Simpson
People admire the idea of protecting nature by reducing the carbon footprint. With buildings accounting for almost half of the world’s energy, they try to present more sustainable spaces, particularly in the kitchen.
It would be best to consider supporting an eco-friendly lifestyle as the best solution for this plight. And thus, take a look at these ten ideas to rebuild an eco-friendly kitchen that will save not only your energy consumption but also your family member’s health too. For more kitchen improvement ideas similar to this, follow the Simphome.com link pasted inside the reference.
🔊10 Ideas to Rebuild Eco-Friendly Kitchen Video:
List Entries
10 Clever Ideas to Trick Petite Kitchenette
12 Minimalist Kitchen DIY ideas
10 Small Kitchen Styling Ideas
10. Get Energy Efficient Lighting
Energy-efficient lighting is a priority and a common trend of today’s society. Ensure your lighting fixture exceeds current EPA guidelines for energy efficiency. Be smart by replacing your old kitchen bulbs with LED. It reduces the electricity bills and gives off much less CO2 emissions and greenhouse gases.
You might spend extra money on the initial installation. However, the long-lasting LED lights will pay your money back eventually, if you’re lucky. You do not have to purchase new bulbs to replace them religiously. More importantly, LED is renowned for saving more energy. Consider using dimmer switches to adjust the wattage.
If you have a small kitchen, flush mounts, semi-flush mount ceiling lights, and recessed lighting are popular options because they don’t consume too much space. Additionally, if your kitchen has a breakfast counter or an island, consider installing pendant lighting.
9. Energy Star Appliances
A small amount of carbon monoxide naturally exists in the atmosphere. Unfortunately, the use of electricity through household appliances increases greenhouse effects. As a result, people have started moving to energy-efficient appliances.
Always use kitchen appliances that have an energy star label on them. This way, you can save a large amount of money and energy due to long-term sustainability.
However, many people suggest choosing secondhand appliances over new ones. This act may save resources, but if they are not Energy Star rated, they will cost you more energy in the long run.
If you want to save more money on your electricity bills, choose a deregulated electric provider. This way, you can choose the right electricity plan for your household without hurting your pocket. For instance, Texas is deregulated for electricity. Consumers who live there can shop Texas electricity rates to make sure they have the lowest electricity bill.
8. Enhance Ventilation
If you think the air indoors is safer, think again. The truth is it is much more polluted than the one outdoors. Besides, you spend 80 percent of your time inside. Therefore, you need to enhance the kitchen’s ventilation system to keep your environment healthy.
Adequate air ventilation breaks down CO2 and harmful toxins released by kitchen appliances. Make sure you have enough windows for better air circulation, or get an air purifier if necessary.
When your kitchen is not in use for quite some time or you have just finished cooking, you can improve air circulation by opening the windows for an hour or two. This step will save you money from using an indoor air purifier, naturally eliminating bad odors and pollutants from your kitchen.
The kitchen extractor hood is also another most used alternative you can consider getting. It reduces cooking emissions directly at the stove before polluting the surrounding air. It also removes pollutants from the indoor environment.
7. Repurposing Things
Repurposing and recycling old things into other valuable items are also another incredible idea to save the environment. It reduces the amount of waste in landfills and produces new, potentially toxic materials.
You can do many things to follow the initiative, such as recycling glass into decorative glass tiles, making compost out of leftover food, or even collecting your used cooking oil because many foundations will accept it.
Also, try to buy things with less packaging. Recycling half of your household waste can save up to 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide annually. You can also buy goods in bulk in carton boxes instead of smaller items or those individually sold in plastic or foil packaging. This way, you can easily repurpose packaging materials, such as boxes, as clutter or compost containers.
6. Consider WaterSense Sink
One of the best sink and plumbing fixtures that you can find online or offline has a WaterSense label or certification. Choose, also, a touch-free sink faucet product. They are convenient to use and minimize water waste with automatic shut-off.
5. A Wooden Cabinet Idea
Never choose a kitchen cabinet based on its aesthetics only. You can try to embrace any look you want while also being eco-conscious.
Kitchen cabinets would give you environmental benefits throughout their lifespan or not. Hence, check the materials, their finish, how they are manufactured and installed, and how they are disposed of. Woods such as timber, bamboo, and oak are great natural resources for kitchen cabinets that you can choose now if you are new and later if you consider a new replacement.
4. Quartz Countertops
Opt for natural materials for your kitchen counters, such as stone and wood. If you fancy wood, ensure the resources are FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) Certified, meaning it came from a sustainably managed forest.
FYI, the eco-friendliest stone countertop you can get is not made of rock at all. It is a type of mineral instead. Quartz countertops are constructed of ground quartz and resin. It is more sustainable than granite because it has less impact than the mining required for granite.
Moreover, quartz doesn’t require toxic sealants and will last a lifetime without cracking or chipping.
3. Washable Dishcloths
Investing in things that are not easily ruined and thrown away is another way to reduce our carbon footprint. Linen is one of the eco-friendly materials you can get.
A linen kitchen towel is excellent for tea towels, napkins, or even placemats. Spend more money initially by looking for high-quality washable dishcloths. This way, you can have a nest egg.
2. Eco-friendly Food Storage & Dishware
Try to reduce plastic use because it is one of the most massive threats that nature has to deal with today. Look at all your plastic accessories, storage items, and utensils in your kitchen. Cut down these things and find some eco-friendly alternatives. You can start by replacing your easily-crack dishware with the ones made from wood. Wooden kitchen utensils like wooden chopping boards and spatulas are also great.
Also, throw away the disposable cling film and foil and use reusable food wraps like the fantastic beeswax wraps. Pick the stainless-steel food storage for high durability and environmentally friendly properties as a replacement.
Glass storage jars are also another fully recyclable resource. They will always be a great alternative to plastic. For instance, you can use mason jars or empty glass jars of peanut butter, chocolate spread, mayonnaise, or any other food.
Lastly, number 1. Potted Plants Decoration Idea
Leave all the plastic decoration and move on to the idea of introducing potted plants into your kitchen. Not only do they beautify the design, but they also create an eco-friendly space.
Having houseplants helps you clean the air, rid pollution, improve your interior and perhaps enrich your spice collection too. Instead of choosing decorative plants, you can grow herbs like parsley, chives, mint, and thyme. It will give you a sustainable and organic source of ingredients for various recipes.
So, one of the most challenging steps in an eco-friendly lifestyle is changing our mindset. We might think that the earth will always remain the same, so we tend to take it for granted.
For this reason, step up to one of these ten ideas to rebuild an eco-friendly kitchen. They will be an excellent start to share a better future for our next generations unless they finally can go to Mars successfully, of course.
Reference:
10. Kbcrate.com
9. Renov8kitchens.co.uk
8. Bigsandysuperstore.com
7. Inhabitat.com
6. Ofhousesandtrees.com
5. Pinterest. ie
4. Blog.kitchenmagic.com/blog
3. Yummytoddlerfood.com
2. Renov8kitchens.co.uk
1. Renov8kitchens.co.uk
