From Guest Blogger Lana Hawkins: Building a Greener Home

Building your home is a once in a life time opportunity for majority of people. Everyone has their idea of what a perfect home should look like and there are no universal solutions that can be suggested and applied. Still, why not use that opportunity to build a home that would not be solely a place to live but something that leaves a mark on the environment, not only in an architectural sense? By building a greener home one would certainly make a strong contribution to preserving the beautiful world we live in. Here are a couple of suggestions on how to do this.

Insulation

Having a properly insulated house or a flat means a world of difference when it comes to energy consumption throughout the year. Quite simply, less energy is needed to warm up homes during winters, as well as to cool them during summers. Therefore, make sure you use one of eco-friendly insulation materials, such as wool, cork and old denim, and make your home energy efficient, something that is of crucial importance when it comes to environment. Still, do not forget to check windows, doors and walls for cracks from time to time. What good is a perfect insulation if you constantly loose energy through those unwanted outlets?

Water consumption

Excessive use of water may seem like a minor issue to the majority of people who can just open their taps and have as much as they like any time of day and night. However, water scarcity is a global issue that will very soon have the effect on any human being, regardless of the corner of the world she or he lives in. To make a contribution in this area, take dual plumbing system into strong consideration, with its recycling component being the key feature, that is collecting atmospheric water and reusing drinking one for car washing, garden watering or toilet flushing, for example.

Green wall installment

Both solutions, interior and exterior ones are aesthetic and environmental friendly solutions. Not only will your home look attractive, it will strongly contribute to air quality. This applies to the immediate surroundings and even more to the interior of a house, making green walls applicable to any type of home.

Schedule and plan

Home renovation, and especially building a new one, is a very serious task and all aspects and phases need to be covered and fully completed. Doing things by halves when building a home or extending it can take an eternity, unfortunately, so take control over your project and work with construction management software. For best results in home extending, be sure to hire professional extension builders. This is the only way to be completely sure that nothing will be missed and that you will be fully pleased with the results.

A final reminder, do not forget the reason why you are doing this in the first place. Contributing to the preservation of the environment is something all of us should do at any given chance. Still, it is equally important that your green home is functional and keeping both worlds in balance is a way to do a perfect job.

Author’s Bio: Lana Hawkins is an architecture student and a food lover from Australia. She writes regularly for Smooth Decorator, and enjoy reading about green architecture and sustainability. Her favorite hobby is baking.