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eco-friendly

How to Make Your Long-Distance Move More Eco-Friendly

October 18, 2022
Chloe Taylor
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Moving is often unavoidable. 

A new job, a family emergency, or just the itch to travel could prompt you to start loading up a U-Haul with your worldly possessions. If you’re relocating, you probably want it to be over as soon and painlessly as possible. As you rush around to pack up your belongings and double-check everything, it’s easy to lose sight of how your relocation impacts the natural world.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, greenhouse gas emissions in the United States are by transportation. Transportation has been the largest contributor to global carbon dioxide emissions since 1990. And if you’re moving to a state like Idaho, which has some of the most populated areas in the country, according to a 2019 State of the Air report, you’d want to be more careful about minimizing this impact.

Here are some ways you can make your move more eco-friendly.

Prefer Self Storage over Commercial Warehouse Storage

If you have some additional items you can’t find space for, we recommend using self-storage facilities to store them to make your move more eco-friendly. 

When you compare several aspects of self-storage with commercial warehouse services, it’s easier to understand the logic behind this advice. First, in a commercial setup, warehouses store the equipment of hundreds of customers in a controlled environment and consequently produce environmental pollution from lighting, heating, and cooling. Therefore, a commercial warehouse means more toxic gas emissions and a bigger carbon footprint. 

Self-storage, on the other hand, is a personalized storage space and thus has a smaller carbon footprint. You can easily find several storage options depending on anywhere you’re moving. 

So if you’re moving to Idaho and are going to be a Rathdrum resident, you can check out Rathdrum self storage. This facility provides all-out 24/7 security to your self-storage with digital access gates. It gives you the luxury of storing your belongings at your convenience and in an eco-friendly way. 

Opt for Backloading Moving Service

With a backloading moving service, you can share the moving truck with other customers and pay for the space you need. It is not only a cost-effective way of moving your stuff, but you can also help the environment by saving the number of trips from your state to another and therefore play your part in reducing carbon footprints. 

Adopt Eco-Friendly Ways of Packing Household Items

Paper and cardboard are among the main packaging waste material amounting to an average of over 82 million tons of municipal solid waste each year. 

Here are some packing materials and packing tips to decrease your packing expense and make your move greener and more sustainable:

  • Personal Containers

Instead of wasting your plastic and cardboard containers, it’s best to utilize them for packing your stuff. Pack as much of your stuff as possible in personal suitcases, plastic bins, grocery bags, and storage boxes. When you hire a professional moving company, they can easily transport filled drawers and cabinets, so try to fill up your dresser drawers with lighter, non-fragile items. You can also store boxes you have received throughout the year and use them for packing.

  • Recycled Moving Supplies

Using recycled material for packing is your first step towards a green move. Corrugated boxes and crates are the best alternatives to cardboard boxes. They are made from recycled material, are tougher, more durable, and cost-effective. Moving companies that offer green moves usually utilize corrugated boxes and crates to pack all types of items, regardless of weight and size. Corrugated boxes are not only less expensive than cardboard and plastics, but they also help you save fresh resources.

  • Towels and Cotton Sheets

To make your move greener, you can replace bubble wraps and Styrofoam sheets with your quilts, towels, old clothes, and cotton sheets to wrap your fragile items. Quilts and towels are best at absorbing shocks without costing you extra money.

  • Leverage Used Packing Material

Instead of purchasing new cardboard boxes, try to collect used ones wherever possible. For example, you can check out your local grocery stores or friends for spare boxes or purchase defective boxes from a local packaging manufacturer or supplier. In addition, try to find people giving away free moving boxes in your area.

Declutter and Donate

A long-distance move is a perfect time to eliminate all the extra stuff and reduce the number of boxes and packing materials you require. Fewer boxes mean less effort to pack and unpack your household items. Make a list of things you haven’t used in a while or worn-out items that you need to throw away. Donate unused clothing, accessories, furniture, and household items to a charity. If you have any items left even after decluttering and donating, think of ways to recycle them for other purposes. You can also check your area for eco-friendly recycling units to give away unused items. 

Sort Throwaway Items 

Before you get rid of the unused items, it’s best to sort them according to the type of material. For example, put paper-based materials, plastics, glassware, tin, and fabric in separate boxes before handing them over to the purge bin service or local recycling unit. Although recycling units are not always eco-friendly, you can minimize energy use by pre-sorting the materials instead of passing them through the electronic-belt sorting process. 

Recycle Packing Materials and Supplies after the Move is Complete

For an eco-friendly move, you need to keep the environment in mind through the whole process – from packing to moving and unpacking. Once your stuff is delivered to the destinated location, it’s time to adopt eco-friendly ways of recycling the packing materials and supplies. Recycle all the disposable materials or give them away for free to friends, acquaintances, or neighbors who need these packing materials. Avoid disposing of boxes, plastic materials, or non-environmental-friendly materials like bubble wraps, plastic sheets, packing peanuts, or Styrofoam balls. Instead, take them to the nearest recycling unit or give them away. 

Final Thoughts

Every action we take in our daily lives directly impacts the environment. With the climate change crisis soaring, we must adapt to eco-friendly ways in all areas of life, including long-distance moves. The tips mentioned above will help you plan an eco-friendly long-distance move and play your part in minimizing your carbon footprint.

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Being Mindful to the Environment- Create an Eco-friendly Home and Garden

January 17, 2022
Marie Nieves
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If you have started to respect nature more, separate your waste and recycle it or use shopping bags made of cloth as opposed to plastic ones, you are on your way to living a happier and more conscientious life. The next area to work on is your humble abode – you might be surprised at how easy it is to make some changes which will be sustainable and which don’t have to cost an arm and a leg. Here are a few pointers to help you with your ‘go green’ house and garden project.

Make a plan in advance

Respecting the environment, among other things, includes avoiding clutter and unnecessary things which will inevitably soon become garbage. Besides avoiding purchasing items you will not use, it would also be senseless to waste money on things you cannot use because you didn’t check if they can fit in your house. So, it is essential to first measure the walls and ceiling so as to have a clear idea about the available room.

The next step is to think of the essentials – e.g. for a bedroom, you would need a bed, a closet, and a nightstand; for a garden – a table, two chairs, and several pots, and so on. Putting all of this on a piece of paper will help you not only regarding the choice of furniture, but you will also have a rough calculation of the necessary budget.

Eco-friendly Home

Mind the materials

When it comes to the furniture, think in terms of a bamboo set for your garden, since bamboo grows quickly or a metal table, because metal can be recycled. Recently, reclaimed timber has been growing in popularity but its rustic charm makes it sometimes difficult to come by. However, if you love wood as a material, you could opt for sustainable timber, which means that a new tree was planted in the spot of the tree which was cut down.

While ecologically re-creating your home and considering the furniture and decoration materials, you might want to also check whether they are hypo-allergenic. People who suffer from allergies rarely have a good night’s sleep so you could check if there is an eco-friendly mattress sale online so you can combine practical and sustainable since a lot of them are fully bio-degradable. Also, decorative pillowcases of organic cotton could be a nice addition to your living room sofa.

As to round it all up, you should make sure to pay the same attention to your floor as to the other elements in your room. There is a great difference between cheap and affordable and if you add quality to the equation, it becomes quite a task finding a carpet or a rug made from all natural materials. Luckily, the Internet offers an incredible opportunity to get the bang for your buck by ordering from vendors all around the world, like choosing rugs from Hong Kong or another country with the world-renown carpet and rug industry.

Choose the appliances carefully

Some household appliances waste a lot of water and energy so before purchasing any, analyze their consumption either online or by asking around. Since we all lead very busy lives, nobody is expecting you to wash all your laundry by hand, but there are appliances such as high-efficiency washing machines and low-flow toilets which consume less water than standard.

Also, technology is your friend when it comes to sustainability. Some of the benefits include programmable thermostats which can be set to be active only when you are home, as well as other technologies which allow for the appliances to be turned off when they are not being used. Having an insight about energy and water consumption can not only help you reduce your bills but most importantly, be mindful of the environment.

Eco-friendly Home

Dig through the second-hand treasure

People get rid of almost brand-new furniture and decorative trinkets for numerous reasons. They might be moving house and cannot take it to their new home, or they purchased something which cannot fit into their space and which they cannot return to the store. You can get those and many other items for half the price and stop the circle of throwing away things which can be useful.

There are many other items that can get a second life. For instance, aluminum coffee cans can serve as plant holders, while wine bottles can become a decorative element in any garden. Even old CDs can find their usage as cup coasters, and glass jars can be turned into drinking containers or windproof candle containers for breezy evenings in your garden.

 

Most people have something in their subconsciousness telling them that they should be more mindful of the environment, but they mostly never get to that part of considering how they could contribute. Why? Because it seems complicated, like it is too much sacrifice or even that it costs a lot of money which would also be contrary to any logic. People also go as far as thinking that they need to give up on technology entirely to reduce their carbon footprint.

We are well aware that the times when we lived without the aid of technology are long gone and that abandoning it would be counter-productive. Instead, we should see what we as rational individuals can do to help the environment. When it comes to your house, spend a bit of time analyzing the consumption of the washing machine you are planning to purchase; save a fully functional table somebody used for a few months from the junkyard; and plant as much greenery as you can!

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Eco-Friendly Home: Why You Should Consider Having One

August 23, 2019
Derek Lotts
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You’ve probably noticed the rising popularity of topics dealing with sustainable homes, ways to achieve that sustainability, and reasons why you should make your home green. The truth is, the consequences of global warming are already visible, and they are getting worse every year. Our effect on the environment is still too negative, and even though there are efforts to reduce that effect, it’s still not enough. With that in mind, here are some of the main reasons why having an eco-friendly home is more important than ever before.

Eco-Friendly Home: Why You Should Consider Having One

Energy savings

One of the most important qualities of eco-friendly homes is the fact that they consume less energy. This is beneficial because it both protects the environment and saves you some money. There are many different ways in which you can make your home consume less energy. For example, by insulating your home well, you’d use less energy on cooling and heating your home.
Or, you could opt for energy-efficient appliances in the kitchen which do cost a bit more initially. However, this is one of the most important eco-friendly kitchen tips you should take into account since these appliances can save you a lot of money in the long run. Finally, some eco-friendly homes have their own source of renewable energy, like wind turbines or solar panels, so you’d be paying for less energy in general.

Many companies, for example, produce quality solar systems that can help you generate your own energy and thus, not be as affected by the utility rate increases that might happen in the future. Moreover, solar systems are not hard to maintain, so the only thing that requires a bit more work is installing them properly – but there are professionals who can help you with that. It’s really one of the best ways to bring your home to the future. So, if you’re serious about doing your part in the preservation of the environment, using solar power is the way to go.

Eco-Friendly Home: Why You Should Consider Having One

Environmental impact

Due to the fact that eco-friendly houses use less energy, they also release less harmful gasses that affect the environment. Next, by using sustainable materials when building your home, you’re not using anything that would take nature a long time to replace, as most of such materials are actually recycled. Additionally, by installing water-saving fixtures, for example, you are using less water, which is becoming a scarce resource as well. Also, most newer models of appliances and fixtures have energy-saving features, which can again help preserve the environment. Finally, if you adjust your habits to the home you have and recycle your waste – paper, plastic, metal, etc. – you would add to the preservation of the environment as well. You can also opt for using public transport or riding a bike on a sunny day – there would be fewer cars on the streets, and riding a bike is better for your health too.

Eco-Friendly Home: Why You Should Consider Having One

Health benefits

Building an eco-friendly home is not great just for the environment and your wallet but for your health as well. For example, eco-friendly materials don’t have any harmful chemicals in them, which naturally means that they are safer. Moreover, building companies that use eco-friendly building techniques also avoid using harmful plastics, paints, and other environmental pollutants that could harm your health too. Many of them usually contain carcinogens, so they are definitely something you want to avoid. Additionally, your indoor environment, in general, can affect your health, so everything from lighting to the quality of air matters. For example, comfortable temperatures – due to good insulation and quality heating appliances – can affect your mood and make you less prone to infections and illnesses. Next, clean air due to the good ventilation system and no harmful emissions can help you de-stress and reduce depression. Moreover, a good ventilation system can also reduce symptoms of cardiovascular disease. Also, good insulation, clean air, and proper heating/cooling of your home can all reduce the humidity inside your home, which can prevent respiratory problems. Finally, saving energy on lighting during the day – by letting in more natural light – can again affect your mood and boost your energy levels.

Making your home eco-friendly has more than a few benefits. It can help you save money on utility bills, and it can reduce your carbon footprint. Moreover, eco-friendly materials, building techniques, and home environment can all affect your health. All in all, preserving the environment is more important today than ever before, and doing so can only improve your lifestyle. So, if you’re considering building a new home, buying one, or remodeling the one you have, you should definitely think about going green.

 

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Benefits of using LED lights in interior

June 5, 2019
Lilly Miller
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Do you consider yourself an eco-friendly person? We should all be at least to some extent, meaning we should all take care of the environment any way we can. There are many processes that enable us to do so, and one of the things that are good for the environment are definitely LED lights. Are you familiar with all their benefits? They sure have a lot, yet here you can read about some of them. Hopefully, you will like it enough to consider using LED lights yourself.

 

This energy efficient lighting is actually cheaper in the long run

Compared to the standard lighting, LED lights are more expensive. Yet, when you think about how energy efficient they are – it is worth all the extra money. Yes, you do pay for it more at first, but it pays off eventually, so in a way, you pay less because the investment is smart.

Did you know that traditional lights use up only 20% of the electricity? Everything else is transformed into heat. LED light use up to 90%. You will be able to save up your money in the long run. And what do you get? This lighting works with the electroluminescence process. This means that the bulbs need less energy. You get a lot of light with a small amount of energy exploited. It is a good bargain, don’t you think?

 

Looking good and lasting longer are sure their advantages!

They are not just practical, but they also look good when we are talking about both bigger and smaller spaces. This is because they are small in size, and this is what also makes them look more elegant than something else. They are quite flexible because they can fit anywhere. And what is even better, with these lights you can direct your light the way you want it. If we are talking about standard lights, this is not possible because their light is emitted in every direction.

Moreover, the fact they last longer should really win you over. Actually, they are the most long-lasting, having an ability to last to 50,000 hours. Fluorescent bulbs only last for 15 000 hours. There is a huge difference between these two, and you see which one is better. Maybe you will be shocked to find out that before they stop working completely, they can actually get to the impressive 100 000 hours.

There is nothing toxic about them

Every last compound of these lights is ecologically friendly and you do not have to worry about them containing something that is toxic. Unlike in them, mercury and other materials that are hazardous are found in fluorescent lights. When it comes to LED lights, they have a lovely virtue of being 100% recyclable and you can actually minimize them up to a third of your carbon footprint.

They are quite resistant

These lights are resistant to that extent it is impressive. They can easily deal with any kind of outward threats, unlike other types of lighting. They are made that way, meaning their fixtures are shock resistant, to begin with. They are more firmly built, so any vibrations that occur are nothing to them. It is also worth mentioning that they do not break down so quickly.

LED lights are made in such a way that we should all wish to have them at our homes and workplaces. They have so many great characteristics and benefits, like being eco-friendly and more lasting than other types of lights. If you decide to use them yourself, you will have no regrets and you will be happy to know you are doing something nice for the environment.

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Creating an eco-conscious home in 5 easy steps

September 7, 2017
Lillian Connors
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As an increasing number of people are starting to incorporate eco-friendly, planet-conscious notions into their everyday lives, the demand for environmentally friendly products and eco services is constantly growing. It’s not hard to do your bit for the planet, and with a little bit of thought and working with the right business, you can quickly achieve a well-decorated, eco-conscious home too. Looking for some inspiration? Look no further.

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DIY eco-friendly cleaners

June 10, 2015
Lana Hawkins
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If you take a look at the cleaning products shelf in your home, you will probably find something that looks like this: five to ten cleaning products which you have recently saw in a TV programme and you decided to try it out yourself, to see if it really works. Okay, these products do kill germs, but the problem with them is that they are usually not eco-friendly. That is, they have been made using different chemicals that are not so environmentally friendly. What is more, gases which go into the atmosphere during their manufacturing are probably on a good way of destroying the Ozone.

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Image source Keith Williamson

You are probably asking yourself: So, what am I supposed to use for cleaning? I cannot simply leave the dirt like that, I need them. In fact, you do not need them and you can try to make green cleaning products from the things you already have at home, and what is best – that will not cost as much as those from a store. Here is how.

Basic ingredients

Basic ingredients that you probably have at home, that can be used in most cleaning products, are the following: fantastic baking soda, water, white vinegar, olive oil or essential oils (such as tea tree oil, lavender oil, lemongrass oil and the like), hydrogen peroxide, salt.

Bathroom cleaners

If you want to clean your tub and tiles, you can make one using a cup of baking soda with ½ cup of vegetable-oil-based liquid soap, two tablespoons of vinegar and ½ cup of water. Mix them all up in a bottle, shake before applying with a cloth or sponge. After the cleaning, rinse the tiles with water.

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Image source Pixabay.com

If you want to make toilet bowl cleaner, you can use baking soda and vinegar in it. Let it work for fifteen minutes, then scrub and flush.

In order to clean glass, you can combine ¼ cup of vinegar with four cups of warm water. Mix it in a spray bottle, use dry cloth or newspapers on glass or mirror and there you have it.

You can also clean bathroom drains with ½ cup of baking soda and with a cup of vinegar. After having waited for it to sit and fizz for fifteen minutes, you should rinse it with preferably hot water.

Kitchen cleaners

Kitchen is, naturally, a place which needs to be cleaned on a daily basis. You can make all-purpose cleaner using a teaspoon of baking soda, ½ teaspoon of dish soap, and two tablespoons of vinegar. Pour them into a spray bottle, shake it good and let it sit for a minute or two before you fill the bottle with warm water. Shake it up a bit, wait for it to calm down and add a few drops of your favourite essential oil for a fresh scent.

If you want to clean your sink or stovetop, put a 1/3 cup of baking soda into a bowl, mix it with some water (not much!), in order to make moist paste. Put the paste on a sponge or scrubbing brush and scrub the sink. And every time you need it, you can make it again, because it can quickly dry off.
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Image source Hintons Home

Other

If you need cleaning in, say, your living room couch, the cleaner will depend on the type of the stain. For example, red wine spills will simply go away with hydrogen peroxide. Mix a teaspoon of dish soap with a cup of hydrogen peroxide, apply it on the stain, use a dry towel to soak it up and there you have it.

Coffee stains will go away using a mixture of egg yolk and luke-warm water, whereas other stains will go away easily with whipped detergent and some water.

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Earth Friendly Houses

February 2, 2015
Lillian Connors
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Nowadays, the consequences of global warming have finally shown up and triggered many people’s concerns about our planet. Realizing how important the preservation of natural resources is, many people started using eco-friendly products and appliances. There are numerous decisions we can make in order to save our planet. There is a wide range of things we can possibly do, from recycling or low-budget everyday products, such as paper bags to energy-saving windows.

 

Energy Efficiency

Today, the term “Energy Efficiency” is used more and more. It doesn’t refer to the reducing or renouncing something in order to preserve energy. On the contrary, the same service can be provided by using less energy. This is probably the main idea of the modern time, when you need to invest more work into something that will be highly beneficial for the entire planet.

However, building eco-friendly houses, people would contribute to the preservation of our nature a lot. All around the world, especially in more developed societies, eco-friendly buildings, bridges, or even skyscrapers are being built. Many large corporations started rising such constructions in order to provoke people’s consciousness, and it proved as a great idea. There are numerous people who decided to sell everything they had and to invest all money in an eco-friendly house building.

 

What does an eco-friendly house entail?

The industry of ecologically- friendly homes is based on the newest innovations that enable us construct our homes using eco- materials and techniques. Everything in such houses, from their very bottom to the roof is meant to be energy-saving.

For example, wind turbines represent an alternative energy source. Modern turbines are quiet and their size depends on the energy they must produce.

Even lighting should be appropriate. Instead of using an incandescent lamp, a compact fluorescent lamp should be used.

Solar panels on the roof, which convert solar energy to electricity, are one of the most prominent characteristics of green homes.  Solar windows are also of great importance, since they don’t let heat leave our homes through them. Also, insulation plays a great role when it comes to eco-friendly homes. There are two things you need to pay attention to- the insulation of your walls and loft. Underfloor heating systems are gaining an immense popularity lately. Such floors require much lower temperatures for heating the rooms and that is how they manage to save our energy.

It is also worth mentioning that many home appliances, such as fridges or ovens tend to pollute out environment, thus, their eco versions are highly recommended.

Finally, you should pay attention to the gardening because by growing your own vegetables, you won’t need any kind of its delivery, which will again lower the emission of harmful carbon.

 

Types of eco-friendly houses

There are numerous types of eco-friendly houses, usually based on their structure and materials that are used. .

There are numerous types of houses that are built out of natural materials, such as wood or stone, which are becoming more and more popular.

Large recycled shipping containers could also serve as a modern ecologically- friendly homes. Such houses could contain one shipping container or be a mixture of several ones.

Passive solar houses have been considered as the best possible solution, since they contain everything that was previously mentioned. They are well-isolated and have numerous solar panels, thus, they are able to produce and save the sufficient amount of energy. The perfect example for passive eco-homes is 100% Eco Green House at Costa Rica.

Earth-sheltered eco-houses are in a way, a modern type of dogouts, since they are dug into the hill or even buried. Although their position might sound strange for the modern times, such houses are well-insulated and warm during whole year.

Finally, there are Concrete form houses, where concrete is literally poured into polystyrene forms. One such example is Tepoztlan’s Tubohotel, which is very cheap because it is made out of recycled concrete tubes.

Finally, through the aforementioned examples of most popular types of eco-homes, we actually realize that the future of Earth is in our hands only. Depending on our further actions and tendencies, we can save our planet or keep ruining it.

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Smooth Decorator is a website dedicated to our little sanctuaries from the hustle and bustle of the outside world – to our homes, sweet homes. We believe that the foundation of a quality life needs to be set right there, in the place where we first dream things up, and that only when we organized our homes can we hope to organize the rest of our everyday existence.

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