Seven green products aiming to reduce your carbon footprint

Green products
Green products aiming to reduce your carbon footprint
The 21st century has been a mute witness to several advancements in technology and lifestyle that have taken place at the cost of our environment. Irresponsible human activities have increased the emission of green house gases causing extensive damage by way of global warming. All this has made it vital for us to reduce carbon footprint in some way or the other. One good plan to achieve this is to use green products that are environment friendly, sustainable, bio-degradable and recyclable. There are many green products available in the market, some run on water and solar power, some consume less electricity, some require less packaging and so on. Let us check out seven green products that will help reduce carbon footprint:


1. Green furniture

 Green furniture
Green furniture is sustainable
As the name implies, green furniture is sustainable, contains low levels of toxic materials and can be taken apart or recycled at the end of its life. Furniture with C2C (cradle to cradle) certification from McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry (MBDC), the global sustainability consulting and product certification firm, is an example of green furniture. This kind of furniture uses reclaimed wood or bamboo, the latter growing mature in a time span of 5 years or less. Many of these can be assembled without tools. Best examples of green furniture are lounge furniture from EGM Green and furniture from Havertys, Steelcase Inc., and Herman Miller.
2. Environmentally friendly lighting

 Environmentally friendly lighting
 Eco-friendly lights for your home or office is a great way of greening up your lighting
Eco-friendly lights for your home or office is a great way of greening up your lighting. LEDs, CFLs and solar powered bulbs and lamps are energy efficient and long lasting. Green lighting systems use motion sensors to turn lights on and off only when a person's presence is detected in the room. There are timers available to turn lights off after a set time period. All this reduces the overall electricity consumption to a great extent.

3. Eco-friendly wall treatments

 Eco-friendly wall treatmentsGo for green eco-friendly wall tiles that are made of bamboo pulp which is 100% bio-degradable and chemical-free
Thinking of changing your wall decor? Go for green eco-friendly wall tiles that are made of bamboo pulp which is 100% bio-degradable and chemical-free. This is a great way to paint walls without going in for the more toxic painting process. 100% recyclable 3D tiles made from sugar cane bagasse are available in different shades which add a fresh look to walls. Paints manufactured artificially have a high metal content and emit fumes when applied on the walls or left uncovered. A reasonably better option is to use paints and finishes made of natural products like clay paint and plant based paint. The company Painted Earth manufactures good quality paints from natural products as well as high quality water-based synthetic paints and wood finishes with zero or very low VOC (volatile organic compounds) that emit few or no chemical fumes. Other manufacturers in this category include Behr - which offers eco-friendly, lead-free paints and Nippon Paints offering environment friendly paints with very low VOC. The next in this league of eco-friendly wall treatments is bio-degradable wallpapers made of natural fiber, recycled paper and post consumer recycled waste.

4. Organic apparels and eco-friendly accessories

 Organic apparels and eco-friendly accessoriesOrganic clothing is made from materials like soy, organic cotton and hemp
Organic clothing is made from materials like soy, organic cotton and hemp. Green clothing that is skin friendly and environment friendly is in vogue. These clothes are dyed with organic dyes, free from hazardous chemicals. Brands selling organic clothing and accessories include Nike, Timberland, Marks and Spencer, Wal-Mart, Target and Reebok. 'Del Forte' Denim is a cool example of organic clothing. It is made of 99% organic cotton and 1% of spandex, making the jeans environment friendly and stretchable.
There is a variety of eco-friendly accessories like bags made of wicker, recycled leather, candy wrappers, recycled sails, coir, jute, coconut shells and recycled paper in addition to eco-friendly jewelery made from recycled metal, bamboo, silver and wicker. Snake skin shoes can be made from organic cotton canvas cleverly designed to mimic snake skin. Nike makes use of recycled paper to create cool sneakers. There are foot wears made from recycled leather dyed using organic vegetable dyes.

5. Green gadgets

http://www.alternativeenergyreport.coolgadgetssite.com

 Green gadgetsGreen gadgets range from solar powered devices like solar panels that charge your cell phones
Green gadgets range from solar powered devices like solar panels that charge your cell phones, car batteries and digital cameras, solar powered water heaters, lawn mowers to solar cookers. Some run on water like the eco-friendly Bedol alarm clock. It converts ions in water to energy and a single fill up lasts for more than 12 days.

There are LCD television sets like the EcoTV from Philips which is made entirely from lead-free, flame-retardant components. Its manuals as well as packaging is made from recyclable materials.

6. Green moss carpets

 Green moss carpets Moss carpets are a great way to look green, feel green and go green
Moss carpets are a great way to look green, feel green and go green, right in your bathroom. You get a beautiful feeling of fresh green grass under your feet. It is made from imputrescible foam called plastazote, which is sustainable and 100% recyclable. The mat has island moss, ball moss and forest moss, which thrive on the moisture found in bathrooms.

7. Green cleaning products

 Green cleaning productsThere is an entire range of cleaning products made of environment friendly, non-toxic, organic and bio-degradable ingredients

There is an entire range of cleaning products made of environment friendly, non-toxic, organic and bio-degradable ingredients extracted from vegetables and plants that break down completely without polluting the sewage systems. Their containers are 100% recyclable. Green cleaning products do not contain harmful substances like chlorine, benzene, glycol ethers or petroleum distillates. Amway home care products are a good example of eco-friendly cleaning products.

These environment friendly, green products will reduce your carbon foot print to a great extent. Take the initiative to go green, start using green products.


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Seven products that should not be a part of your green home

 Products that should not be a part of your green home 

Not only these products pose a threat towards the environment but also they are harmful for humans.
With every passing day, people are becoming more and more aware of their responsibilities and duties towards the environment. If we want to maintain the balance in nature then we need to administer a number of changes in our lifestyles. For instance, there are a number of products which must not be a part of your home. Some of these products are listed below.

1. Mercury bulbs
The mercury and the filament bulbs have been in use for more than a century. However, a large fraction of power which they consume is converted into the heat energy which is thus wasted and only a small fraction is utilized as the useful light energy. Whereas a compact fluorescent lamp popularly known as CFLs uses only a small part of the energy that a regular light bulb uses. Also, regular bulbs contain mercury which is very toxic in nature. Using CFLs not only helps in the efficient use of energy, but also it lowers down your electricity bills.

2. Plastic shopping bags
What used to be the best thing about plastic bags has turned out to be their greatest drawback, they became so much popular because of the fact that they are very durable, however, now their durability has become a point of concern. Plastics are not bio-degradable which means that simply throwing them out is not going to get you rid of it. Also, burning them causes a lot of air population because they release toxic and poisonous fumes. Even in developed countries like USA, only 2 percent of the plastic bags get recycled, the rest 98% is dumped into landfills or blown out to sea. The best thing that you can do to help the environment is restrict their usage, in fact, avoiding them completely will be much better. Try using cloth or paper bags in place of them.

3. Chemical fertilizers
Although it may appear that chemical fertilizers cause a phenomenal growth in the overall crop production, but this is also a fact that these chemical fertilizers have led to immense damage to our water supply system and are the major factor behind the algal blooms. They don't decompose completely in the soil and when it rains, they are washed down to the water bodies like streams, rivers and oceans. The balance of our delicate water system gets disturbed causing the death of its inhabitants and degrading the water quality. We will recommend you to prefer organic fertilizers over the chemical ones. For small gardens, you can create compost by your own which will not only be environmental friendly but also very inexpensive in comparison to chemical fertilizers.

4. Antibacterial products
Besides interfering with the development of the immune system development, the antibacterial drugs have also contributed towards the emergence of new strains of antibiotic-resistant "super-bugs". Triclosan is the most common antibacterial additive and its widespread use can be understood by the fact that it is found in more than 100 household products ranging from toothpastes and soaps to undergarments. These chemicals gradually accumulate in the body. You must avoid using products containing anti-bacterial additives. Try to remain clean, not germ free because these less harmful germs contribute towards the development of strong immune system in us.

5. Chemical insecticides and pesticides
The chemical insecticides and pesticides are very popular among the gardeners because of the immediate relief which they provide from the pests and insects. However, they are equally harmful even for humans. For instance, the active ingredient in Round-Up which is a very popular weed killer is known to cause reproductive harms and kidney damage. The active ingredient in roach-killer Raid is cypermethrin, this is a skin, eye and respiratory irritant and even shows negative effects on the central nervous system. So, it is much better to use the natural and organic pest and weed control products. Although these organic products will not give you instant results, but believe us, they are equally effective and that too without any side effects.

6. Air fresheners
The air fresheners contain chemicals which are extremely toxic and are known to aggravate respiratory ailments like asthma. Chemicals like phthalates are found even in those which have been labeled as natural and pure, these phthalates cause reproductive problems, hormonal abnormalities and birth defects. Instead of using these room fresheners, you can try simmering cloves and cinnamon. Let the fresh air in by leaving few windows open. Consider boiling a pot of water with few drops of your favorite essential oil.

7. Non-Stick cookware
The non-stick cookware became an instant success when they were first introduced in the market in the 1960s. The utensils which had been in use before the release of non stick utensils, required to be soaked for hours and then had to be scoured with steel wool in order to clean them. However, there is one serious side effect of these non stick Teflon pans, the PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) coating which makes these cookwares non stick is known to release toxic gases at high temperatures. These gases have been linked with cancer, reproductive damage, organ failure and other harmful health effects. Therefore, it is recommended to cook foods on medium heat or less while using Teflon utensils. In fact, the safest option is to avoid them completely, and in place of them use the stainless steel, anodized aluminum or cast iron pans.


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