It is in your power to make your apartment more environmentally friendly and “smart”. Thanks to "green" materials and household chemicals, you will feel better, and energy-saving systems will reduce the cost of utility bills. As a bonus, your home will do much less damage to the environment.
1 1. Repair materials
Try to abandon synthetics in favor of natural finishes: instead of linoleum, use ceramic tiles or wooden cover, instead of vinyl wallpaper - paper. Fabric wallpapers are also very good, but they have more dust. And of course, wooden furniture is much more environmentally friendly than analogs from chipboard.
2 2. Natural paints
They are made from natural raw materials - salts, resins, oils, and no petroleum products! Carefully read the information on the manufacturer's packaging: in some countries, paint is considered environmental if it contains no more than 10% of the solvent. Often they put a “bio” mark on the bags simply because the emulsion ink is water, that is, water is used as a solvent, but the rest of the components are not natural. Eco-friendly paints are suitable for ceramics, wood, fabric, glass, cardboard. True, such paints will not protect the metal from corrosion - in this case, you need to look for other solutions.
4 4. Energy Saving
Say yes to energy-saving lamps, this will reduce your light costs by 40%. Turn off the lights when leaving the room. When choosing large household appliances, give preference to devices of classes A and A +, they are characterized by minimal energy consumption. Put good windows, insulate walls - do not warm the street!
LED lamps are more environmentally friendly, have a positive effect on the human body and do not harm health. The absence of mercury has another important advantage of the use of LED lighting, as it eliminates the need for disposal. As for standard fluorescent lamps, their disposal is mandatory, as these lamps contain mercury, the vapor of which can cause irreparable harm to the human body. Mercury negatively affects many organs, as well as the central nervous system.
5 5. Heating
If you plan to make a warm floor in your new apartment or to heat it with electrical appliances, install a heat regulator. The system will maintain the set temperature and turn off automatically. Control the heating of the radiators, if the heating system of your home allows it. Throw pellets — granules of biofuel — into the fireplace; it is made from natural materials and gives almost twice as much heat as firewood.
8 8. Second wind
Disposable plastic bags decompose more than one hundred years. Try to go to the store with textile bags - this is both practical and fashionable. Develop a habit of reusing things, if possible. Empty plastic bottles can become watering cans, funnels, scoops, country washstands. If you have a designer vein, old things can transform your apartment.
1 10. Fresh flowers
Even if you do not consider yourself an amateur gardener, buy or take flowers from friends that do not require special care. Any indoor plant, including the most unpretentious ones like mother tongue, wax ivy, money tree or chlorophytum, will collect small particles of dust and make the air in the room fresher.
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EcoExpert Kazan
Environmental Expertise
Measurement of mercury vapor. Demercurization
Measurement of the level of radioactive gas radon
Chemical analysis of air
Ozonation of premises
House ecology
At home, modern people spend most of their time. Therefore, everyone wants the home to be not only comfortable, but also safe. Studies have shown that in many apartments the air environment is much more polluted than outside. In order to reduce the content of harmful substances in the air, doctors advise ventilating the living room at least twice a day.
The ecology of the house depends not only on air, but also on the finishing materials, the raw materials from which the furniture is made, the radiation of household appliances and many other factors. Mold and fungus under the walls, as well as dust, contain a large number of harmful bacteria. Wiring done incorrectly, together with a large number of household appliances, generate electromagnetic radiation, which is several times more than permissible. Many surrounding objects can serve as sources of radiation. And tap water is not of high quality. Contains harmful elements such as iron, chlorine and mineral salts.
Ecology at home requires materials that do not contain toxic substances. Furniture made from natural raw materials, without chemical impurities. Old furniture needs to be disposed of. It can serve as a source of bacteriological contamination.
To create a safe home, it is important to use air and water purifiers. They will help to tidy the house. The problem of the ecology of the living room also depends on the area where it is located. Housing should have a good soundproofing and sound absorption system. The environmentally friendly home environment has a positive effect on the health of the whole family.
Replace bulbs
The eco-friendly budget method with the replacement of light bulbs will ultimately reduce the cost of electricity consumption. Old incandescent lamps have long been asking for a refusal to use. They were replaced by revolutionary LED lamps:
- saving 80% of previous expenses,
- 25 thousand hours of work,
- lack of UV, IR radiation.
The cost of an LED lamp is its only drawback, but every year it is less and less significant. Technology is evolving, and the price is decreasing. Replace light bulbs and compare electricity bills - be pleasantly surprised.
Consider warming
Having planned the repair, additionally insulate the windows and walls. This will save more heat indoors.
One entrepreneurial couple approached the issue of warming the house creatively: around the house they built a kind of greenhouse for the cold season. This created a vacuum that retained enough heat so as not to waste a fortune on energy consumption.
This approach is unusual and difficult to implement for apartments or densely standing houses, but the insulation of individual elements of the home is quite real for you.
Set your watch without energy consumption
It is a good habit to live without electricity. Turn off all electrical appliances and the mains for 2 hours a day. It is useful for the house to breathe without endless electrical impulses. Let your home integrate with nature for a while, and gradually accustom yourself not to depend totally on the world of machines.
Choose time and duration individually: start with 30 minutes. Then more.
Think about photoconverters
Solar cells are no longer rare. The use of natural energy sources is not only environmentally friendly, but also economical. Electricity bills are filled with minimum values.
Automatic light off systems are another way to save and save the planet at the same time.
Install a heat regulator
A good way to control heat consumption is to install a heat regulator. It is indispensable when using underfloor heating and additional electrical appliances. The heat controller controls the temperature you set, and as soon as the excess starts to be used, it automatically turns off the appliances. So you can avoid heating and not worry about the extra expense.
Pellets instead of firewood
If your house has a fireplace, then firewood is usually used to kindle it. Try pellets. These are special biofuel granules made from peat and wood waste. The heat from them is twice as much due to dryness and density than from firewood, and there is no external difference. An alternative solution with pellets is both cheaper and more efficient.
Get rid of excess plastic
Plastic flooded the house - dishes, windows, wall panels, bags, bottles, chairs. The list is not exhausted. Look around you and you will see plastic things. Cheap but harmful. It’s easy to get rid of them. First, throw away the old. Secondly - do not buy new.
The environment suffers from harmful material, but industrial production sometimes leaves us no choice. Yes, wooden windows are more expensive than plastic, and a glass bottle is not so reliable, and yet it is a choice: ceramics, glass, wood, cork, bamboo fiber, etc.
Say no to polyethylene too, use paper bags or fabric bags instead. Going to the supermarket, bring textile bags with you. They are stronger and will last you a long time.
Buy other makeup
Caring for your body affects the environment in the same way as chemistry. By spraying, washing off, throwing away cosmetic waste, you contribute to its deep penetration into the natural cycle. Having abandoned harmful body care products, you cease to feel the influence of artificial components and chemicals, not to mention the refusal to take an indirect part in experiments on animals.
The alternative is beautiful: natural handmade soap, vegetable and essential oils, special shampoos, freshness crystals, etc.
Switch to natural paints
Painting of individual elements in the interior is inevitable, but even here you have the choice to use natural paint instead of harmful. The usual old dyes are made from dirty oil products, and natural paints - from oils, resins and salts - everything is environmentally friendly and clean.
A number of rulers on the packages mark “bio”, but this is not what you thought. Water is used as a solvent for it, this is a plus, but the rest of the components contain oil products, and this is a minus. Read the information from the manufacturers on the packaging to make sure the product is natural. This eco-paint is perfect for processing fabrics, glass, wood, cardboard and metal. True, in the latter case it will not protect against corrosion, but this is its only drawback.
Avoid Chemical Cleaners
Natural cleaners are not inferior in effectiveness to conventional chemistry, and there is no harm from them. The problem with chemicals is their effect on health. No matter how you wash the dishes and plumbing, particles of harmful substances remain and penetrate the skin. And the waste falling into the sewage system negatively affects the water supply in general. Check water quality with an analyzer.
Poisonous ingredients are too dangerous to ignore. Start with a natural soap for cleaning and washing dishes. After a couple of weeks, you will feel the difference and you will not be able to return to the old harmful means.
Replace paper towels with old t-shirts
Knitted t-shirts will also serve after wear - cut clothes into rags and use instead of paper towels. Tons of paper produced from valuable wood are thrown away daily, creating more and more garbage. Cotton flaps are reusable - they are stretched out and put into action again, and paper towels will serve once and spill over into a decent item of expenses.
Check wardrobe
Synthetics negatively affects the skin and the body as a whole. Outwardly, you will only feel unpleasant sensations, but the situation can be aggravated by irritations. Natural textiles are pleasant to the body, retain heat, and allow the skin to breathe.
Check the manufacturers: the composition may include cotton, linen and similar natural materials. The cost of clothing from natural textiles is not higher, and sometimes lower than the cost of artificial fabrics.
Plant flowers
Landscaping in the house is a good way to saturate the room with oxygen. Even if you have never been a gardener, home flowers in pots will not require too much attention, and the transplant can be entrusted to a specialist.
In addition to vibrant flowers, buy a home garden. This is a seed germinator that provides the whole family with useful seedlings. It is compact, easy to clean and long lasts.
Discover spray nozzles
Special spray nozzles are used for taps, showers and flush in the toilet. They allow you to save water, spending its supplies rationally.
If in addition you install rainwater tanks on the roof of the house, you can use it for watering flowers, lawn and flushing the toilet.
Do not try to change your habits and home in one fell swoop. The transition to a new lifestyle should be gradual. Use the most easily implemented eco-friendly methods, for example, buy LED bulbs and discard paper towels. Next time, go through cosmetics and home care chemicals.
Radical measures are good if you are moving to a new house or doing major repairs. At such stages, it is better to think through everything at once - solar panels, insulation, the use of natural materials and paints.
Choosing environmental friendliness, you instill in your children a new respect for life, thereby making the planet cleaner and more suitable for future generations.
Safe materials for construction
Environmentally friendly materials are very important for creating a safe home. Today's market offers a huge selection of building materials, which are divided into two groups. It:
- completely green
- eco-friendly shareware.
Environmentally friendly materials include wood, cork, stone, natural drying oil, leather, bamboo, straw, etc. If natural raw materials are mixed with non-natural substances, then it is believed that it partially or completely lost its properties.
Wood is a natural material. A special microclimate and wonderful aroma are floating in houses made of such raw materials. But a tree often undergoes rotting, pests. Moss, fungus or mold may appear on it. Therefore, it is impossible to use a tree for building a house without special treatment, which will protect it from biological damage. After processing, it will become conditionally environmentally friendly.
Stone is the most durable and reliable material. Despite this, he is able to accumulate radiation. Before use, it should be checked for radiation background.
For the roof, experts recommend choosing a slate. It is environmentally friendly. Natural. It has a layered arrangement of minerals. It is considered the most expensive material for the roof and lasts a long time.
Conditionally environmentally friendly raw materials are made from natural materials. It is characterized by high technical performance and is not harmful to health. These are ceramic blocks and bricks, as well as cellular concrete. These materials are made of clay without the use of chemical components. They are durable and highly resistant to negative environmental influences.
Aerated concrete block is a type of cellular concrete. This is a stone made of cement. On the outside, it has evenly distributed pores. The material is light and durable. It has good soundproofing abilities.
Another relatively environmentally friendly material is tile. It is made of clay. Natural. It is a very expensive and heavy building material. Her styling requires special skill.
Environmentally friendly materials, of course, are important for building a house, but do not forget about the finishing of the premises. Here, you also need to use natural building materials.
Safe floors
Floors in the house are not always safe for health. They can be made of low-quality material that releases toxic elements. Floors in the house should be from:
- tree
- traffic jams,
- laminate class E1,
- linoleum from natural raw materials,
- parquet flooring.
As a rule, despite the naturalness of the material, wood or parquet is often varnished so that the floor has a beautiful appearance and is durable. Here you should not save, but you need to choose high-quality varnish from well-known manufacturers.
If linoleum is to be used for flooring, then it must have a certificate of hygienic conformity, which indicates the class of emission and material. E1 class has the minimum amount of formaldehyde and is the safest. Classes of linoleum E2 and E3 are used only in non-residential premises.
A laminate can be used to cover the floor. It is made of 80% paper and wood shavings. The remainder consists of synthetic resins. Despite the natural raw materials, the laminate is coated with formaldehyde resins. Safe is considered a coating with acrylic resins. Formaldehyde in the laminate should be no more than 0.12 mg per 1 m 3.
Wall decoration
For wall decoration, the safest are ordinary paper or non-woven wallpaper made from pressed paper. Vinyl wallpapers are considered toxic. In a living room they are not recommended.
If you use paint to decorate the walls, then you should not purchase the first one that comes across. A product intended for surface painting may contain hazardous substances, lead pigments, and volatile solvents. Inhaling these substances is hazardous to health. Solvents for paints are also harmful to humans; they contain volatile compounds. Alkyd paints are considered the most harmful.
Wall insulation
In addition to decorative wall decoration, an important role is played by the insulation inside the house. Пенополистирол в этом случае небезопасен. Выделяет канцерогенные вещества – стиролы.
Самыми безопасными считаются утеплители из стекловолокна, пенополиуретана, эковаты, хлопка, льна, мха и других натуральных материалов. They have excellent insight, have heat and sound insulation.
What windows should I choose?
Despite the fact that many manufacturers indicate the safety of plastic windows, some residents after their installation note a deterioration in well-being. The harm of plastic windows is obvious, because the polyvinyl chloride from which they are made is a toxic component. In the manufacturing process, polyvinyl chloride is mixed with harmless chemicals, as a result of which it loses its activity, and the toxicity of the windows becomes minimal. There is lead in the windows, but in minimal quantities.
Plastic double-glazed windows negatively affect air exchange. Their tightness increases the dust content in the house, prevents the weathering of vapors. In the summer, for the same reason, a musty smell may form in the room.
Experts note that only poor quality windows made of cheap plastic have a negative effect on the body. Well-known companies are constantly improving their products, so their double-glazed windows are practically safe for health.
The best option for home ecology are windows with wooden frames. They are environmentally friendly. They do not emit harmful substances and are durable.
Air purification in the house
Impossible without cleaning the airspace ecology of the house. Plants help clean the air and improve the energy of living spaces. In this situation, indoor plants are indispensable. Absorbing carbon dioxide, they enrich the air with oxygen. Such plants include chlorophytum, sansevier, ivy, pelargonium, dracaena, ficus, anthurium and others. They operate more efficiently than many household appliances. One large plant is used per 10 meters of area, one small one per five square meters.
There are plants that not only purify the air, but disinfect it, as their leaves contain essential oils (geranium, myrtle, laurel tree, lemon).
An air purifier can be used to clean the air. It cleans the air of dust and toxic substances, disinfects and ionizes it.
Household chemicals
The safety of household chemicals in the ecology of a residential building plays an important role. Most household cleaning products are unsafe for health and contain cationic and anionic ionic surfactants. They are often used in detergents, so non-ionic surfactants should be preferred. The percentage of cationic or anionic surfactants should not exceed five.
If environmental friendliness is in the first place in a house, then when buying household chemicals pay attention to products containing natural substances. You can also wash dishes with natural soap, soda or mustard.
Washing powders should be selected phosphate-free with zeolite content, which replaced phosphates and are considered harmless. Enzymes and polymers are also added to eco-friendly powders. They are used to get rid of stains on clothes.
Household appliances
Complete ecology in everyday life cannot be achieved until electromagnetic waves that negatively affect health are neutralized. They destroy the structure of cells, affecting the nervous system and muscle tissue, cause insomnia, disruption of the gastrointestinal system.
Typically, most appliances are located in the kitchen. Many of them emit electromagnetic radiation. This is a microwave oven, electric stoves, refrigerators that do not create frost. So that radiation does not have a negative effect on a person, household appliances must be positioned in the right way. Their impact should not affect places where people spend a lot of time.
Sockets are recommended to be located as close to the floor as possible. Warm electric floors should not be used in the nursery and under the bed. Household appliances must be disconnected from the outlet, as even in standby mode it emits electromagnetic waves.
And what about the phenomenon of harm to microwaves? Myth or reality of their negative impact on humans? Experts say that the microwave oven emits non-ionizing waves that do not have a radioactive effect. The magnetic radiation from the microwave is indeed present, and quite strong, but during cooking. It is believed that at this moment should be at arm's length from the device. Then the radiation will not have a negative effect.
When cooking, is microwave damage harmful? Myth or reality of their harmful effects on food? Scientific studies have shown that microwave does not change the structure of products and does not make dishes carcinogenic. After all, it allows you to cook unroasted food without the use of oil. Dishes in the microwave are cooked quickly, therefore, they are less heat treated and retain more nutrients. The danger of this device is more of a myth than reality.
In addition to the microwave oven, they often use an electric kettle, a slow cooker, a TV, a toaster, a computer, a coffee maker and other devices. With their simultaneous inclusion, there is a probability of the imposition of one electromagnetic field on another. If it is impossible to completely abandon household appliances, then their use should be minimized. It is necessary to change the filters on the air conditioner in a timely manner, otherwise it can be hazardous to health and emit toxins, will serve as a source of various infections.
TV is a gift of civilization. But besides the pleasure of watching it, you can get magnetic radiation. To minimize the negative impact of the device, you need to spend no more than three hours at the screen and be at a safe distance from it.
Do not place household appliances in places of sleep and rest. You should not sleep next to the equipment, the distance to it should be at least three meters. It is not necessary to allow the imposition of one magnetic field on another, since in these places the radiation will be twice as large.
Rules of ecological life
Creating a safe home, you should not save on repairs. As a rule, cheap materials for decoration often contain toxic substances. Wallpaper, like other materials, must be of high quality and meet safety standards. They must have a special marking indicating that the product has passed certification.
For the home, you need to choose furniture made of natural wood, since plastic, particleboard and synthetics often emit harmful substances. Do not save on household appliances. Large manufacturers take care that their equipment is safe and not harmful to health.
In order for the house to be environmentally friendly, wet cleaning is often necessary. A lot of dust accumulates in the living room. Wet cleaning cleans the air, prevents the reproduction of dust mites and mold spores.
Humidifiers and ionizers should be used to clean the air. In summer, when the air conditioner is working, and in winter with central heating, the air in the house becomes dry. These devices moisturize the airspace, create a healthy atmosphere.
All household appliances must be unplugged. It is not necessary to place equipment in places of sleep and rest, and its use should be minimized.
To make a safe home, you need to conduct an environmental review of housing. It will reveal not only the fungus, but also radiation, electromagnetic radiation, the presence of toxic gases.
An eco-friendly residential building is one where people are attentive to their health, try to minimize the presence of negative factors and improve their quality of life.
