Green homes are gaining popularity day by day. The need for protecting your environment and also supporting mother earth to create a conducive atmosphere for plant and human life have become a necessity in todayâs world. If you are a proponent of green and eco friendly environments, why not make your house green with these wonderful ideas and motivate others as well to follow your footprints?
Apart from the normal energy and nature preserving tasks that you do like switching off appliances which are not in use or composting or keeping the heat level down, these ideas would help you make a better and even more firm impression on others as to how you strive to protect mother earth.
1. Evapotranspiration for cooling your walls
Evapotranspiration is not as difficult as it sounds. This is a simple procedure with the help of plants to cool the surroundings and also provide a greener environment in your house. This is something which we have forgotten to do in the past decade. Gardening activities are passe due to lack of space and time. Surrounding your house with trees, plants and shrubs will help in the moving and releasing of water vapour in the surrounding, thereby decreasing the temperature by up to 9 degrees Fahrenheit. This is especially beneficial in the summer months. You can use creepers and climbers on your walls which will help in getting a better cooling effect altogether.
2. Potato boxes
A vegetable garden has long been your dream? Do you have space constraints for starting your plantation? Try the novel idea of planting potatoes in your backyard. All you need is just a 4 ft square box and 100 lbs potatoes can be produced from that space. This urban garden requires four wooden pillars that can be fixed at the sides and a layer of wood at the base. The potatoes have to be planted about 4 inches deep. Once the wines start growing, you can keep adding layers till you hit four feet. Once your potatoes are ready, remove the bottom layer and take the potatoes out. Maximum yield from minimum space, and lot of evapotranspiration as well.
3. Shag carpet for your fridge
8 percent of the electricity consumed in the house is taken up by the refrigerator. Refrigerator being an important appliance in your house, you cannot do away with it. However, there are many ways by which you can reduce the energy consumption of the fridge apart from the usual things that you do like covering the food, keeping the fridge full and also cleaning the compressor coils in the fridge.
The novel method involves using an insulation board on the sides and the top portion of the fridge. The panels can then be covered with a corkboard or a carpet. However, make sure that the insulation boards are not placed over the door of the fridge. This will help in reducing the energy usage of the fridge. You also have a unique looking refrigerator to show off.
4. Foil umbrella solar stove
If you are fed up of the electronic cooking appliances, microwaves and ovens, hereâs a green way to go about your cooking. They are very easy to make and very energy efficient and safe. You need an umbrella, foil, glue, tripod, sunglasses, metal saw, manual drill and loads of sunlight for this operation. You can even boil water with this solar cooking unit.
First open the umbrella and stick aluminum foil paper with glue on both the sides of the umbrella. Make sure that you cover all areas adequately with aluminum foil by cutting and sticking more foil in smaller areas. Cut out the extra aluminum from the sides to retain the shape of the umbrella. Use your sunglasses now and find the focal point where the sun shines most and mark the point with a permanent marker.
Now you must remove the plastic handle of the umbrella. Before doing this, pierce the handle so that you can access the hole of the rod and push a pencil or a brush through to prevent the umbrella from closing. Cut the handle with a saw and then cut holes for placing the tripod for keeping your food to be cooked. Your solar cooker is ready.
5. Pee in the backyard
After elaborate discussions about solar cookers and insulated fridges, this one comes as a surprise! But when you pee outside, you save gallons of water that is used for flushing your closet. Considering that we pee at least 2-3 times a day, we can save a minimum of 15 gallons of water this way!
