A home that is green is a dwelling built and run with the environment in mind. With the threat of global warming becoming more urgent everyday, the average family needs to do their part to make as little impact as possible. Going eco friendly is a way to do this and the first place to start is with your household. You can find a lot of home supplies from bathtubs to faucets at fuzing.com. Whether you are constructing your toilet or your kitchen, it will help you in the long run if you build it from an environment friendly perspective. The greener your household will be; the healthier environment it will have. You can use environment friendly things from paints to drapes and other objects that will add to the overall decor of your home.
Styles of Green Homes You Can Choose
There are quite a few styles of green homes available. Styles can range from conventional, to rounded, earth-sheltered and organic. Each style has many plans you can choose from to make your home unique, comfortable and concerned with the environment.
* A conventional styled house typically means that it will fit the normal concept of a household according to the opinions of the Western world. Homes that are considered conventional usually have vertical walls and a rectilinear floor plan. Styles that are considered conventional can include traditional, contemporary, bungalow, Victorian or southwestern to name just a few.
* A home that is rounded or curved in appearance is considered rounded styling. This means that the plan for the house has a significant part that is curved or rounded. It is said that when you use natural materials and this style of home you will feel in touch with nature to the extent that your home feels like you are part of the environment itself. This style of home is very environment friendly.
* Earth sheltered styles of green homes can be situated either partially or entirely into the earth. There are many advantages to you and to the environment when you choose this style of home. When you go about six feet below the surface, you will notice that the temperature only fluctuates a few degrees all year round. The benefits to this are that it will require much less energy to heat and to cool your home, saving the environment from the depletion of natural resources.Possible Building Materials You Can Use
If you are looking to construct a new home, think with the environment in mind. You can use renewable resources such as lightweight concrete, manufactured, stone, straw, wood or earth. Each one of these materials has its own merits and disadvantages, but they all have the environment in mind.
* Earth is an abundant resource. What can be more environment friendly than the very dirt beneath your feet? You can choose from earthen materials kind to the environment such as cob, adobe and rammed earth.
* Wood is one of the most versatile materials for building. It used to be considered a sustainable material for construction, but with the over harvesting of forests worldwide, the world’s greed has outpaced the capabilities of forests to regenerate. You can build a green home with an eye to the environment by using stick framed, timber framed and log wood if wood is what you must have.* Lightweight concrete has been used for building for the last 50 years in the United States. Its strength is not as great as the usual concrete used for construction, but you can rest assured that it will weather the elements just as well. Advantages to using this building material is that can be used for insulation, it has great fire resistant properties, it will require a smaller foundation and there isn’t as great a need for reinforcement of structural steel. This impacts the environment in a positive way.
* Manufactured building materials appeal to those who have concern for the environment but don’t want to live in a home made of dirt, tree parts, straw, etc. Usually a home made with this type of material once built will make an excellent home that is energy efficient with thought to the environment.
Constructing energy efficient can mean a lot to the environment. The environment and its natural resources is something that needs to be passed on to our children. If we don't start thinking towards the future there will be nothing left of the environment to pass on.
Article highlights: Building materials that can be used to construct a green house. The different styles of green dwellings you can choose when you decide to build a green household.
Interesting Fact: A recent report states that with all the huge costs associated with the building of a new household, there is no significant difference in the price of building green.
Eco Friendly Home Furniture
Bamboo flooring has a robust attractiveness that is catching the eye of many a home remodeling enthusiast. However, this is by far not the only use for this renewable resource. A vast range of household items are available to complement a bamboo floor, including clothing, towels and bedding. The material is gentle enough to be used for baby socks, yet sturdy enough to be utilized in bicycles!
Bamboo is a grass that ranges from being a ground cover to growing into monstrous plants of more than 70 feet. Although China has always been the main producer, plantations are now fairly commonly found in the USA, for example in the Oregon and Washington areas. However, local rainfall patterns will never match those of Asia, and the main areas of supply are therefore unlikely to change.
This extremely durable eco-friendly product is harder than many of the real woods, and comes at a fraction of the price of hardwood. It is easy to maintain and asks for minimal cleaning. The affordability is largely due to the rapid regrowth rates of the grass. It can be harvested repeatedly. Even though it usually needs to mature before being harvested, it still has a much faster growth cycle than a tree. The plant matures within 5 to 7 years, whereas it takes 50 years and longer to replace a tree.
The other vital environmentally friendly role this grass species plays, is in its release of high oxygen levels and the way in which the grass devours harmful carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. If you need regreening, this is the way to go.
There are of course also questions about the bamboo explosion. One of the main concerns is the use of vast amounts of chemicals in plantations. There are also worries that eventually commercial varieties may displace the natural sources on which animals such as Pandas rely for food. Another major factor is that forests are cleared to make room for this option, which is deemed to be more viable economically. This is an unacceptable practice and defeats the whole purpose of finding a sustainable wood substitute. There are also concerns about the working conditions and wages of the employees in this industry.
It is vital that every consumer who installs a bamboo floor checks that it has Forest Stewardship Council certification. This reassuring stamp means that the grass comes from a forest that is sustainably managed and cultivates a biologically diverse range of plants. Buyers should also opt for flooring manufactured with formaldehyde free glues and with the lowest possible volatile organic compounds or VOC emissions The best manufacturers use the moso variety that is at least six years old. This gives the most robust floor. Always ask for a line with an environmentally friendly, non-toxic finish.
After harvesting, the grass is sliced into strips. These are boiled in water that contains a preservative. The strips are then pressed flat, before being laminated in layers and kiln-dried. An engineered floor is also offered. In this case, a thin layer of bamboo is laminated over an unrelated base. Alternatively, a tongue and groove product is produced using the waste left over from floor manufacturing. Coloring varies from natural to amber. The darker hues are due to a pressure steaming process which deepens the color by carbonization.
As with laminates, a complete range of complementary products are on offer, from baseboards, to transition pieces, staircase pieces, and vent covers. The floors can be glued down or nailed down. The engineered bamboo flooring is also available in a floating design. The floor covering can be fitted over concrete or wood sub floors.
Many retail outlets now opt for bamboo in their designs. The material fits in superbly with an environmentally friendly approach. The Australian Crocs retail store recently brought in Strand Woven Bamboo Flooring. This means that they judged the product to be robust enough to cope with high traffic loads. They also see the flooring as eco-friendly and easy to install.
Fashion stores have also discovered the appeal of this plant. If a store owner is into organics, using this material for flooring, counters and furniture will create an eco-friendly ambience, as well as a warm atmosphere.
Bamboo flooring can be professionally refinished as many as eight times, meaning it can last a lifetime if handled with care
Provided that you support a reputable manufacturer, bamboo floors are known to be resistant to fading, molds, termites, fire and surface damage. It is also ideal if you are battling with allergies. It also sports remarkable moisture resistant characteristics.
Bamboo flooring allows you to make an affordable, lasting home improvement.
Both Jacob Smithsonn & Rika Susan are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Jacob Smithsonn has sinced written about articles on various topics from Environment, Home Security and Jewelry. Jacob is a weekly contributing editor to Fuzing.com where you can uncover hundreds of thousands of for. Jacob Smithsonn's top article generates over 27100 views. to your Favourites.
