Not only will a sustainable design help you decrease your home’s ecological footprint, but it will also create a stylish ambiance that radiates with natural energy. You might not even be aware of all the hidden toxins in your home endangering your health. By introducing an eco-friendly design into your home, you’ll create a healthy environment with a unique natural charm.
Go with Sustainable Flooring Materials
Despite not being the most conspicuous detail in home décor, stylish floors are its essential element. With plenty of sustainable materials at your disposal, you’ll have stunning floors that are both durable and eco-friendly. Wooden floors have always been a popular choice and with materials like bamboo, cork, and reclaimed wood, you don’t have to worry about their eco-friendliness.
Other sustainable flooring solutions include natural stone, glass tiles, recycled rubber, and linoleum. All of them will elevate the style of your home, while protecting the environment at the same time.
Install Solar Panels
By using sunlight as your primary energy source, not only will you lower the ecological footprint of your home, but you’ll also reduce your electricity bills significantly. If you opt for an appropriately sized solar system, you’ll produce enough energy to meet your everyday needs. In fact, you may even generate excess energy that will enable you to disconnect from the grid altogether. When installing quality solar panels, don’t forget a durable solar inverter as well. With the help of a good solar inverter, you’ll avoid drawing energy from the grid and reduce your electricity bills.
Introduce Plants
Houseplants have become widely used in interior design as stylish natural décor accessories. Apart from embellishing your space and bringing natural energy into your home, plants will help you create a healthy environment. By acting as natural air purifiers, they will cleanse the air from toxins and produce more oxygen, increasing your indoor air quality.
Eliminate Rugs and Carpets
Although stylish area rugs and intricately designed carpets are lovely décor additions, they are home to numerous toxins and chemicals that will quickly spread through your home. They usually contain high levels of harmful VOCs, mold, dirt, dust, and other allergens that hide deep within the fibers. If possible, you should get rid of them altogether and go with bare floors, which is a trendy and healthy solution. However, if area rugs are an important element in your home décor, you should use natural, eco-friendly materials like jute, wool, or sisal.
Use Beeswax Candles
Candles are often used to create an intimate and romantic atmosphere. However, regular candles are petroleum-based and involve high levels of processing and additives, which can reduce your indoor air quality. On the other hand, beeswax candles are a completely natural solution that don’t emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs) harmful to your health. In addition, they have a soft glow and natural sweet fragrance.
Choose Low-VOC Paint
Another source of VOCs in your home is your wall paint, which poses an enormous threat to your health. Once the paint starts peeling off, all those harmful particles can be easily inhaled, causing respiratory irritability. In addition, off-gassing of VOCs can reduce the indoor air quality significantly. Luckily, there’s a simple solution that will help you make your home healthier – just choose paint that contains low levels of VOCs.
Go Vintage
Apart from having an antique charm that will add character to your home décor, vintage furniture is healthier than new pieces. The production of new furniture usually involves the use of numerous chemicals that are released into your home through off-gassing. Vintage furniture, on the other hand, has already off-gassed those chemicals or it didn’t contain them in the first place. In addition, repurposing vintage pieces will reduce the need for deforestation and production of new materials.
Designing a sustainable home in San Diego doesn’t mean that you should give up comfort or stylishness. On the contrary, your home will be trendier, healthier, and more enjoyable than ever.
