Home & Garden

Eco Homes are Fashionable but Are They Practical?

The phrase on everyone’s lips right now is ‘eco-friendly’. From household cleaning products to home construction, it seems as though environmental issues have permeated every facet of our day to day lives. Television programs exist which are entirely dedicated to showing how magnificent homes can be built without having any impact on the environment, and almost every women’s magazine contains within it somewhere guidelines on how to make your own eco-friendly washing powder, or reusable dishcloths.

eco-friendly home

The Realities of Modern Life

What many of these media outlets may not realise, however, is that most women simply don’t have time to be making their own cleaning products, or the money to invest in constructing a home entirely out of reclaimed wood and solar panels. So even though eco-friendly initiatives might be fashionable, it seems fair to say that not many of these methods are practical or even accessible to the modern woman.

Environmental Responsibilities

Nevertheless, we all have a responsibility to the environment which should be taken into consideration when performing basic household tasks. Even if you can’t afford, like so many of us, to live in a completely passive house, there are ways in which your home can be made a bit more eco-friendly, at little to no cost to yourself.

Exploring Your Options

The methods you can use to transform your house into a veritable eco home range from the quick and simple to the more substantial. However all offer benefits which will benefit, not only the environment, but yourself as well.

For example, if you’re looking for ways to reduce the cost of your utility bills, you may wish to learn more about the government’s Green Deal scheme. Under this scheme, homeowners are provided with a loan which enables them to improve certain aspects of their house, such as the insulation or boiler. This loan is then paid back using the savings you will see on your utility bills and, when the loan is repaid, these savings will pass to you. All you will need to do is pay for an initial assessment from a company such as Mark Group and then watch as the cost of your utilities falls.

Practical and Fashionable

The best thing about installing eco-friendly solutions in your existing home is that many of these methods, such as opting into the Green Deal, are both practical and fashionable. You don’t need to be spending hours concocting your own dishwasher detergents just as long as you’re secure in the knowledge that your home is doing the hard work for you to protect the planet.