Eco-Friendly Kitchens and How To Make One in Your Home

Eco-Friendly Kitchens and How To Make One in Your Home

Image source: https://unsplash.com/photos/7MAjXGUmaPw

  The good news is that you don’t necessarily have to renovate your kitchen to make it eco-friendly. While individuals can be eager to contribute to a greener planet, the price tag on many tech accessories and building requirements represents a point of contention – and reasonably so. Thankfully, all you need is a few tips and tricks up your sleeve, some solid knowledge, and a willingness to creatively personalize your kitchen. Read on to find out how you can create an inexpensive, eco-friendly kitchen.  

Quality renovations made cheap

First off, let’s get one thing out of the way if you’re eager to do some light renovations: If you want to create an eco-friendly kitchen, this actually works in your favor when it comes to finances. You can browse for the companies that are involved with eco-friendly practices and materials, which are slowly gaining more prominence as green-thinking emerges as the buzzword of today. You can proceed to buy recycled materials or reused goods to refresh the basic appeal of your kitchen space, and you’ll practically kill two birds with one stone: get quality material for a fraction of its original price, as well as minimize wastefulness. In other words, you can get quality goods with a clear conscience, meanwhile not falling back on ‘sanctioned’ green materials such as cork and bamboo, which are not as durable as they’re professed to be. In that case, collateral damage in terms of debris can be almost non-existent if you continue the recycling circle, leaving your own discarded goods and materials to be reclaimed.

Work on your aesthetics

Image source: https://unsplash.com/photos/cc0Gg3BegjE

  An eco-friendly kitchen looks the part. Fortunately, you don’t have to waste money on the most expensive accessories, tiles, and paraphernalia to get that green look. Details make all the difference. For starters, you can enrich your kitchen with potted greenery. These plants will not only keep the interior air clean but also serve as wonderful décor and a reminder of your intention to keep the kitchen eco-friendly. Furthermore, certain aesthetic changes can also be lifestyle changes. For example, you can ditch plastic containers and purchase beautiful glass jars with lids and clasps. You’ll not only free your kitchen of plastics, but displaying these new accessories will make the space appear more elegant and airy. Buy a collection of kitchen towels and rags that will blend seamlessly into the overall appeal of the space and ditch the use of paper towels. It seems that people have forgotten the rustic appeal of rags, as well as their stylish potential.  

Create a compost-station

If you don’t have the luxury of owning a backyard or a garden where you can create a compost station, you can purchase compact composters for the indoors that you can use freely, without the fear of excessive odors. By creating a compost pile, you will automatically reduce the sheer quantity of the garbage that comes out of your house. Ultimately, it is for a noble purpose – the compost you create can be used as fertilizer.

Find green alternatives and opportunities

Image source:https://unsplash.com/photos/Z-MtAdkNNU4

  That being said, the eco-friendly kitchen is not all about cooking and looks. As a matter of fact, there are several elements that you need to take care of before you put the pot on the stove. For starters, if you plan to repaint the wooden counters, you’d be advised to use no-VOC paint. VOC is short for volatile-organic-compounds, which are harmful for our lungs. They easily vaporize into the air and cause terrible pollution, sometimes quite long and more consistently than you’d think (even when dried, the paint releases these compounds). To preserve your health and the immediate environment, using no-VOC or low-VOC paint will help keep your home green. Furthermore, you’d also want to replace all the light bulbs in the kitchen (and the entire household for that matter) with various LED lights. They’re known to last for about 5 years each, and they consume 75% less energy than incandescent lighting. Only use your dishwasher when it is full to the choking point and purchase a few reasonably priced pitchers for filtered water. Water filters are particularly important, as you’ll be able to stay properly hydrated without wasting extra money on bottled water and creating piles upon piles of wasted plastic items.  

Conclusion

If you want to not only eat green, but also cook green, you’ll need to put in the extra effort to save precious energy and minimize your waste. Some practical habit-changes go a long way, but you can also toy around with the aesthetic appeal without drastic overhauls. A pinch of creativity goes a long way, and the eco-friendly kitchen is just a few tweaks away from your grasp.   Article submitted:  Hannah Thomas

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *