Earth Day in Ottawa - Make Your House Greener
Today, April 22, 2022, is Earth Day!
Earth Day is an important time to reflect on our impact on the earth and focus on ways we can make our existence have a little less impact on global warming. When it comes to owning a home, we’re all familiar with all the ways we make MORE of an impact - leaving lights on, wasting water, or running our AC units. Sometimes, it can feel totally overwhelming.
Today, we’re going to break down some easy ways you can make your home better for the environment without breaking the bank. Small steps can make a big impact if you are consistent with them!
First and foremost, you can replace your lightbulbs! If you are currently using incandescent light bulbs, more than 90% of the energy used by them is actually creating HEAT instead of light! By switching to compact fluorescent bulbs, you’ll be using an average of 80% less power, for the same amount of light. As a bonus, you’ll notice less heat coming from your lights in the summer!
Secondly, try unplugging devices and chargers at the wall, instead of at your device. Cords still use energy even when they aren’t in use. If you take them out at the source, you’ll be using less power without impacting your daily life at all!
Third, try composting! In Ottawa, we have a composting system where pickups in your area will happen every two weeks (which day it is depends on your neighbourhood!). You can receive green bins for free by ordering them through the Ottawa website. When you put food scraps in a compost bin, you are helping keep compostable items out of the landfill. When food goes into a landfill, it doesn’t decompose in the same way, and creates harmful fumes that create heat and gasses in our environment, and clog up our already overfilled landfills. When food goes into the compost, it can be used to create new soil for growing plants and food again! Most people put a small bin in their kitchen, and then empty it into their larger bin on a back porch or garage.
For more information on Ottawa’s green bin program, click this link: CLICK HERE
Fouth, use your dishwasher! Many people don’t know this, but a dishwasher is typically more energy and water efficient than hand washing dishes, unless you wash your dishes by filling your sink only once. Newer dishwashers are incredibly energy and water efficient! However, if you find yourself needing to wash dishes before they enter the dishwasher, you’re probably better off just doing the job yourself! The idea is to reduce your water consumption wherever possible during the dish washing process.
You can also choose to plant local fauna in your yards. Did you know that grass is actually not the best yard-cover for the environment? Choosing plants and weeds that are native to Ottawa and Canada can improve the amount of CO2 your yard removes from the environment, and look great while doing it. For a full list of native plants to the area, CLICK HERE.
If you have a larger budget and are looking to make a bigger investment into making your home a greener place, the best thing you can do is install solar panels! Plenty of people now use solar panels to power their homes. This natural source of energy pays for itself over the years as you pay less for electricity, and is great for the environment as the sun is a renewable, everlasting source of energy that doesn’t take anything from our earth or release any extra fossil fuels!
Making your home a greener place doesn’t have to be hard work, expensive, or time consuming! Start small and remember that every small change can make a big impact.
Happy earth day!
