Your kitchen is the most used space in your home, which means that besides the wear and tear, you will also need to occasionally update it. The look of your kitchen also matters, and you achieve that while also investing in sustainability and eco-friendly appliances.
Green remodeling your kitchen can come with a variety of options from interesting your cabinetry, walls, floors, appliances, countertops, plumbing, etc. The numerous options may be overwhelming at first but our helpful guide to making your kitchen eco-friendly can help you through your remodeling journey.
From water efficiency, energy efficiency, sustainable materials, to the economic use of space, you can use a variety of strategies to redesign your kitchen in the most environmentally friendly way, while never compromising on style and elegance.
1. Hire An Eco-Expert Contractor
With green remodeling, you may find yourself somewhat confused or lost, especially since the options available are endless. Therefore, we recommend working closely with a professional who is aware of all the options and your requirements.
Hiring an Eco-expert contractor can save you a lot of money and precious time especially since they are well-versed in the language of sustainability and non-toxic kitchen remodeling. Instead of running around in circles, you will have the advice and support of an expert who can make all the necessary choices for you, while also considering your budget.
You can visit the local green building supplier in your vicinity and inquire about local green contractors’ business cards. Always remember to meet with a few candidates before you make your final decision. Since you will be investing your money and time into this project, the contractor you pick should have the expertise and insight to make your green kitchen vision and reality.
2. Choose Eco-Friendly Materials
When redesigning your kitchen, we also recommend investing in eco-friendly materials that not only give a chic appearance but also help cut down on energy pills and resource wastage.
Be it your countertops, backsplash, flooring, cabinetry, plumbing, etc., you should choose materials while keeping in mind their environmental impact and durability. FSC-certified cabinets, recycle appliances, eco-friendly sinks, and pipes, etc., can suit any space or style.
While beauty is certainly a top factor when remodeling your kitchen, materials that help with sustainability while maintaining that sense of modern flare should be your top choice.
Whatever choice you make when picking the right materials, gauge its environmental impact and check whether it suits your green kitchen vision.
3. Increase Water Efficiency by Changing Faulty Fixtures
One of the most common problems in old kitchens is leaky faucets, pipes, sinks, etc. Such faulty fixtures can lead to greater expenses and result in water wastage.
A quick and inexpensive way to modernize your kitchen and make it eco-friendly is by switching to the right eco-friendly plumbing methods that dramatically reduce the amount of water used in your home for cleaning or cooking purposes.
Low-flow faucets are excellent for conserving water without skimping on that lovely high-water pressure when you are in the shower on cleaning your porch. Eco-friendly faucets use a maximum of 1.5 gallons per minute and are also known to reduce sink water flow by over 30%.
Just by switching to eco-friendly faucets, you could easily save billions of gallons of water each year and save on energy bills.
4. Use Energy-Efficiency Lighting
The best type of light is natural light but when it is nighttime or wintertime, you may not always have bright, crisp daylight seeping through the windows and lighting up your room.
For this purpose, you can make use of energy-efficient lighting such as LED bulbs over traditional high voltage, incandescent lighting. In fact, LED bulbs are also known to last 20 times longer than the average bulb.
If you are looking for ways to make your kitchen eco-friendly, while also saving your precious money on energy bills, then LED lighting will truly help in achieving that. You can purchase a wide range of colors that suit your taste and the overall look of your kitchen.
Another superb benefit of installing energy-efficient lighting is its durability. You can wait decades before ever having to change LED light bulbs. They are bright, conserve valuable energy, and help in reducing costs significantly.
5. Purchase Energy-Efficient Appliances
Instead of sticking to those archaic gas-run ovens and appliances, we recommend going all-electric instead. Modern induction stoves, convection ovens, and electric heaters outperform appliances that are run with gas.
This will be the future of modern kitchens. By encapsulating terrific energy-efficient appliances that use renewable energy sources, we can play our part in decarbonizing the environment.
Did you know that your everyday kitchen appliances account for over 10% of your home’s energy consumption? This also significantly increases bills and maintenance costs. Energy-efficient appliances can help cut power emissions and shrink that electricity bill.
Always opt for appliances that come with the Energy Star Seal of approval as they are known to be the best eco-friendly kitchen appliances.