Green Home Blog Winter Tips for the Eco-Friendly

If you're on board with turning around decades of irresponsible behavior, seasonal change can offer ways to get on the same page or enable you to continue your green mission. These winter tips for the Eco-Eco-Friendly bring common sense approaches to energy efficiency, sustainability, and even health and safety during the winter months. Try a few, pass along some, or come up with more of your own but either way it's another step in reversing so much of the damage already done.Brighten Up, Breathe CleanSurrounding yourself with indoor plants that will thrive throughout winter helps increase mood, clean indoor air, and make for accelerated yard and garden planting come spring. NBC News reported on that,"Extensive research by NASA has revealed that houseplants can remove up to 87 percent of air toxins within 24 hours. Studies have also shown that indoor plants improve concentration and productivity (by up to 15 percent), reduce stress levels, and boost your mood - making them perfect for not just your home but your work space, too." (7/13/17)These are the best choices for air purifying, aesthetically pleasing, indoor plants:Garden MumSpider PlantDracaenaFicus/Weeping FigPeace LilyBoston FernSnake PlantAloe VeraBamboo PalmDe-Ice It RightChemically treated winter de-icers for driveways, sidewalks and pathways pose a great risk to humans and wildlife. Once these synthetic poisons do the job they don't just disappear; they leach into the soil and municipal waterways compromising drinking water, plant health, water drinking birds and other animals as well as corrode surrounding infrastructure.This year, de-ice right using alternatives such as sand, clay, or cat litter.Shore Up Your HomeThis may seem like a no-brainer but you may be surprised how many structure breaches there are in your home. This means drafts, lack of insulation, and subpar thermostat technology. Saving money is one thing but by shoring up your home it also means less fossil fuel usage and lowering your carbon footprint.Follow this checklist to make sure your home improvement is solid throughout winter:Inspect Insulation - Locate exposed pipes in the basement, attic, closet or anywhere else and cover accordingly with Eco-friendly insulation.Stop Drafts, Fill Cracks - Straw bales or bags of raked leaves can be placed in front of weak areas around your home such as low window frames, summer doors, or garages to keep cold air out. Also, filling roof or basement cracks, sealing up windows, and blocking door jams all help conserve energy and keep your home warmer for less cost.Smart-Stats - Smart thermostats take all the pain out of manual thermostat control. Often managed with your cell phone, these 'smart-stats' are capable of detecting movement for customized heat release. Therefore, if you stroll into a room it will immediately rise to a comfortable setting and then drop to an 'unused room' status when you leave.Freeze it OutsideGive your freezer a break and put some of your perishables outside. This will allow for more freezer air flow and reduce on energy waste. Green Action Centre reports that,"Deep freezers eat up an average of 750 kilowatt hours of electricity per year. For 4-6 months of the year, its usually colder outside, and the energy draw is zero. Try making use of a cooler outdoors or in your garage to save energy."Exercise InsteadShoveling snow is excellent cardio exercise while snowblowers and other small engine, winter clearing devices are responsible for upwards of 5 percent of North America's air pollution. Due to no emission regulations, carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds, and nitrogen oxide are all emitted from small fossil fuel burning motors.Instead, get a good shovel, hydrate, bundle up, and get shoveling for an optimal muscular and respiratory workout. Note: Be sure to have someone checking on you at all times as there is a risk of suffering heart stress or exposure when working in cold weather. Follow some of these simple winter tips for the Eco-Friendly to keep your home and your health in top shape before summer rolls around and has you frolicking in the sun once again.