A Homeowner’s Guide to Sustainability in the Home

Sustainability is simply the process of trying to reduce your negative impact on the planet in your daily activities. Your home is one area where you can have a significant impact, either negative or positive. By reducing your waste and trying not to overuse nonrenewable resources, you can do your part for the planet.

Energy Conservation

Everyone can practice energy conservation at home to reduce the amount of waste and pollution produced. When you try to save energy, you’ll not only be reducing your expenses, you’ll be helping the planet. Lower energy bills are a direct result of using less electricity and water.

• Choose energy-efficient appliances and HVAC systems to use less energy and lower your carbon footprint.
• Use natural light to save energy instead of electric lights. If you have decorative lights, use a timer so you use them less often.
• Replace incandescent light bulbs with LED bulbs.
• Increase insulation to save energy. Doors and windows should shut flush with frames and have sealing around them. Fix cracks in the foundation.

Water Conservation

Water conservation is another way to reduce your negative impact on the Earth, save money, and conserve drinking water for everyone. In many instances, you won’t even miss the water you aren’t using and paying for, and your minor efforts can have a big impact. Once you learn these simple tips for saving water, you might be surprised at how much money you can save, too, by not wasting water.

• Save water by turning off the faucet when you brush your teeth.
• Simple water conservation can include only running the dishwasher or washing machine when you have filled these appliances completely.
• Everyone can save water by sharing simple water conservation ideas and tips with others.
• Use water saving strategies in the yard by not over-watering your lawn.
• Fix leaks in your plumbing system to save water.

Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle

Reduce, reuse, and recycle have become popular buzzwords that you might hear often. Everyone can reduce waste just by becoming more aware of daily activities and how they might have a negative impact on the environment. Thinking about how to prevent waste is often the first step to making a meaningful difference.

• Reducing waste at home is just a matter of limiting the items you purchase, like really thinking about whether you need another pair of shoes.
• Implement a system for recycling at home so you can send paper, plastics and metals to a recycling facility to be reused for new products.
• Another aspect of the reduce, reuse, and recycle mindset is looking for ways to reuse and repurpose items. Perhaps instead of throwing out empty glass jars, you can use them for food storage or as vases for flowers.

Sustainable Landscaping

You can also make important changes in the way you take care of your yard. Sustainable landscaping describes the process of taking care of your yard without having a negative impact on the Earth. An energy-efficient yard is often less work to maintain, too.

• One of the best ways to incorporate sustainable landscaping is to choose plants that will thrive in your yard without needing supplemental water. Saving water in the yard saves you time and money.
• Sustainable landscape design involves choosing native plants that won’t need fertilization and pesticides, too.
• Install a rain barrel to collect rainwater, which will save water in the yard. If you do need to water plants, you can use the water in the rain barrel instead of water from the hose.
• A sustainable yard doesn’t include invasive plants, which can be harmful to the overall ecosystem of your yard because they disrupt the natural balance of the landscape.
• Another popular conservative landscape practice involves removing grass and choosing a different ground cover such as moss or a meadow lawn. You won’t need to mow these alternative ground covers.
• Keeping your soil healthy is another sustainable practice. This includes aerating the lawn and setting the lawn mower deck higher, which keeps the grass longer and makes the roots stronger.

Conservation Lessons for Kids and Teens

Kids can participate in home conservation as well. In fact, family projects and lessons are a great way to get kids and teens involved with conservation.

• Plant a garden together and work on it all season to grow and harvest as a family.
• Incorporate a recycling system in your home and get kids involved with recycling.

Additional Resources

• Home Energy Yardstick – Assess your home’s energy efficiency by completing this questionnaire. This is a good idea to do before you try to sell your home.
• Water Conservation at Home – Water conservation means using less water to help conserve the water available on the planet.
• Saving Water Inside the Home (PDF) – Periodically, check your home’s water meter to make sure you don’t have water leaks.
• Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – Reducing, reusing, and recycling are three important ways to help protect the environment.
• Reducing and Recycling – Reducing the amount of things people buy is an important way to cut down on waste.
• What is Sustainable Landscaping? – Sustainable landscaping is the process of taking care of a yard in a way that protects the environment and doesn’t use up resources. We buy houses, even if the landscaping is not sustainable. However, our team prefers to support sustainable real estate practices.
• We All Need Soil (PDF) – This lesson plan teaches kids about the importance of quality soil for growing plants.
• Nature’s Partners (PDF) – Learn about the importance of pollinators and how people can take steps to help protect them.
• Water Conservation Education Packet (PDF) – The resources and activities outlined in this booklet teach children about how to conserve water.
• Don’t Use it All Up! – Conservation is something everyone can practice in their daily lives.
• Learn How to Save Water Activity Book (PDF) – The engaging pages of this activity book help teach kids about the importance of saving water.