Ecologist guide to greening your homeLaura Sevier 2 nd March , 2010 Greening your home can save you energy and money as well as making it healthier and lowering its carbon footprintENERGY EFFICIENCYEco retrofitsFor inspiration , check out these pioneering examples of full eco - retrofits on the Ecovation website . You ' ll see super - insulated , energy efficient , energy generating houses around the UK that have been transformed by their owners . There are houses of all ages , shapes and sizes - from a church cottage to an 1890 ' s Oxford semi . Insulation and glazingAround half of the heat loss in a typical home is through the walls and loft so it ' s worth checking whether yours are insulated . Adopting the following measures can significantly reduce your energy bills : Cavity wall insulationSolid wall insulationFloor insulationLoft InsulationDraught proofing around doors and window framesHot water tank and pipe insulationDouble glazing for windowsFor more details including cost , payback and savings see the Energy Saving Trust ' s guide to home insulation and glazing . For information about where to start and what materials to use click here . Find out about the grants and offers available to help you to make energy saving improvements to your home here . Heating and hot waterFitting an A - rated high efficiency condensing boiler with the correct heating controls can make a big difference to your heating bills over time . The current lifespan of a boiler is around 15 years . If your home has a G - rated or worse boiler you can register for the boiler scrappage scheme and receive a £ 400 cashback voucher towards the cost of upgrading to an A - rated boiler . If you have a programmer or timer , set it so that the heating only comes on when needed . Just turning your thermostat down by 1 C could save you around £ 55 a year . Home appliances , home entertainment and electronicsHow efficient are your home appliances ? Energy Tariff Ltd has an energy calculator website for domestic appliances , allowing you to choose the most efficient products and tariffs . Looking to buy a new fridge , dishwasher or TV ? Compare and buy products here that can help you stop wasting energy and money at home . Greenpeace ' s Guide to Greener Electronics guide ranks the 18 biggest manufacturers of computers , mobile phones , TVs and games consoles according to their policies on toxic chemicals , recycling and climate change . Energy labelsThe EU energy label rates products from A ( the most efficient ) to G ( the least efficient ) . For refrigeration the label goes up to A ++. Alternatively look for the Energy Saving Recommended label , a quick and easy way to identify the most energy efficient products . It includes products in categories where there isn ' t a statutory EU energy label such as glazing , televisions and boilers . Green electricityMost energy suppliers offer ' green ' electricity tariffs that seek to support renewable energy . Look carefully at what suppliers are offering - few actually produce more renewable energy that they are required to be the legally - enforced Renewables Obligation . This comparison site is a good place to start . Smart MetersKnowing how much energy ( and money ) you are using at any given time is easier with a Smart Meter . Over the next 11 years every household in Britain will receive Smart Meters , one for gas and one for electricity . You ' ll be able to track your energy usage over set periods of time , from a day , up to a full year . GENERATE YOUR OWN ENERGYThe main technologies are : Wind turbines - harness the power of the wind to generate electricity . Solar water heating - heat water for your home using energy from the sun . Solar electricity - generate green electricity from sunlight . Ground - source heat pumps - heat your home using heat energy extracted through pipes buried in the garden . Air - source heat pumps - heat your home with energy absorbed from the air around you . Wood fuelled heating - heat and hot water from wood fuelled stoves and boilers . Hydroelectricity - use a stream or river to generate electricity . For more details including cost , savings and maintenance see the Energy Saving Trust ' s guide to generating your own energy . Before you install any renewable energy technolgies : Make sure your home is as energy efficient as possible ( insulation , energy efficient appliances etc ) to reduce your demand . Get recommendations and quotes and look into funding and financing for the options that interest you - search for grants and offers here Find out which renewable technologies will suit your home using the Energy Saving Trust home energy generation selector . Check that the suppliers are certified - either with the Microgeneration Certification Scheme ( for all UK microgeneration products and installers ) or Solar Keymark ( solar thermal products and installers across Europe ) . Check whether you need planning permission - find your local authority or click here . Remember that you should be able to get paid for the electricity you produce yourself by signing up to a buy - back scheme with an energy supplier , or registering in the new Feed - In Tariff scheme , to be introduced on 1 st April 2010 , which will guarantee a minimum payment for the electricity generated as well as the electricity exported to the grid . Green roofA green ( or ' living ') roof can help keep buildings warm in winter and cool in summer as well as offer a haven for wildlife , sequester carbon , and control water run - off from heavy rainfall . WATERDemand for water is growing . In the UK we use around 150 litres of water a day , almost 50 per cent more than we used 25 years ago . Saving water will ensure the water we do get lasts and reduce the pressure on the water supply and the environment . In addition , there is a strong link between water and carbon : energy is needed to treat and deliver the water to our taps and to heat it in our homes . The key to water efficiency is reducing waste , not restricting use . Water meters can be useful for realising how much water you ' re using . For tips on saving water in the kitchen , bathroom and garden click here . FURNISHINGSFlooringThe two most popular choices for flooring in the UK , fitted carpets and PVC / vinyl , can potentially harm our health . As a general rule , choose natural fibre carpets and rugs made from organic wool or cotton , coir or jute instead of synthetic carpets ( typically made from nylon or polyester ) . Check they haven ' t been treated with unnecessary chemicals or glues . For hard floors , there are various options : FSC - certified wood flooring , cork , natural linoleum or tiles ( stone or terracotta ) . PaintAlthough they can be thicker and more laborious to apply , choose natural and non - toxic water - based or clay - based paints ( check that they are ' solvent free '). Conventional paints , which contain include acrylic , polyurethanes , PVC and VOCs can be a health hazard when they release gases into indoor environments . Find out why here . FurnitureThere ' s more to furniture than flat pack . Whether you want to get rid of an old table or are looking for a new sofa , re - using makes sense , reducing landfill waste and saving the energy needed to manufacture a new one . Useful organisations include The Furniture Reuse Network and the charity Emmaus which both collect and redistribute unwanted furniture , as well as Salvo , an online directory of antique , reclaimed and salvaged materials and WRAP , which has a wood recycling service . There are also the online recycling networks Freecycle and Freegle . If you ' re buying wooden furniture , look for the Forest Stewardship Council ( FSC ) label and read the Friends of the Earth ' s Good Wood Guide . Alternatively , spruce up what you already have - read our guide to restoring tired looking furniture . LightingEnergy saving lightbulbs - usually compact fluorescents ( CFL ' s ) - use up to 80 per cent less electricity than a standard bulb but produce the same amount of light . They are now available in many shapes and sizes including ' soft tone ' and dimmable . They last up to 12 times longer than incandescents - up to 12 , 000 hours . Even more efficient are Light Emitting Diodes , or LED lights , which have lifetimes of up to 50 , 000 hours . LEDs now come in the shape of a conventional bulb , and can be used for functional and decorative lighting . BedroomMost conventional mattresses are made from a high percentage of synthetic , oil - based materials and treated with chemical fire retardants . There are alternatives made from natural materials including organic cotton , organic wool and natural latex . Greenfibres and Abaca have a good range plus a selection of organic cotton bed linen . Handmade , FSC - certified wooden beds are available from Warren Evans . NurseryFind out how to reduce toxins and ' green ' your baby ' s nursery here . HEALTHCleaning productsBuy products made with renewable , plant or mineral - based ingredients with low aquatic toxicity , rapid and complete bio - degradability and high skin tolerance . ( For a detailed example of the potentially harmful ingredients in a conventional household cleaner click here ) For places that are harder to clean such as carpets , greasy ovens or kettles coated with limescale see our cleaning guide which includes a ' make your own cleaning products ' section . A note on laundry . .. For a greener wash , turn down the temperature dial to 30 C or 40 C and use products based on plant and mineral ingredients that biodegrade completely ( more tips here ) . REUSE AND RECYCLEWhere to recycle everythingFor information on how to recycle everything from printer cartridges and old TV ' s to carpets and tin foil visit Recycle Now ' s website here . Kitchen waste Reduce the amount of rubbish sent to landfill by composting your kitchen waste . See Recycle Now ' s home composting site for more information . If you don ' t have a garden or any outdoor space it ' s worth considering an indoor wormery . Otherwise , contact your council to see if they offer a separate collection for food waste - and start a campaign to persuade them to do so if not ! Laura Sevier is the Ecologist ' s green living editorUSEFUL LINKS - The Energy Saving Trust - ( or phone 0800 512 012 ) - Centre for Alternative Technology ( CAT ) - The Green Building Store READ MORE . .. INVESTIGATIONHomes for climate changeBuilding a more sustainable future is vital if our societies are to survive in a post - fossil - fuel future – but , argues Susan Roaf , the way we build must itself first changeHOW TO MAKE A DIFFERENCEPHOTO GALLERY : Homes for a changing climateIn an extract from his new book Homes for a Changing Climate , Will Anderson makes the case for building 21 st century homes that can withstand the effects of climate change and help usher in a low - carbon revolutionNEWSWind turbines have no impact on house pricesTen - year survey of house sales in US finds wind turbines have no negative affect on market price despite public fearsGREEN LIVINGThe retrofit revolution - domestic makeovers that can help save the worldA growing number of homeowners are taking the green initiative . Laura Sevier reportsGREEN LIVINGHow efficient are your home appliances ? Energy Tariff Ltd launches an energy calculator website for domestic appliances , allowing you to choose the most efficient products and tariffs . 출처 http : / / www . theecologist . org / Guides / Ecologist _ guide _ to _ greening _ your _ home / 431535 / ecologist _ guide _ to _ greening _ your _ home . html