Remodeling your bathroom may seem like a hard project but it’s a small price to pay to create
your ideal zen zone right?
Your bathroom is a place where you can be absolutely alone with your thoughts.
Your bathroom is also a room where you can find lots of toxic chemicals, water and energy usage
often accompanied with bacteria if not kept clean.
You can lessen your impact on the environment by cutting down on the use of chemicals and
water consumption.
Your bathroom is the best place to start as most of the water used in your home flows through there.
Install low flow fixtures to conserve more water.
You can also use eco-friendly building materials for your bathrooms.
Install water conserving dual-flush toilets.
“According to estimates, if only 1 in 10 houses
upgraded their bathrooms with water efficient
shower heads, sinks and toilets, it would save
about 74 billion gallons of water and nearly
$1.5 billion in utility costs annually.“
Here are 4 remodeling ideas for a green bathroom:
4 Steal-Worthy Remodeling Ideas for Your Green Bathroom
1.Install Water-Efficient Shower heads
Save water and enjoy the same water pressure at the same time.
Traditional shower heads use about 2.5 gallons a minute whereas water efficient shower heads
use just 1.5 gallons of water per minute.
2.Buy a Tankless Water Heater
Hot water showers may feel great on your body but it takes a lot of energy to heat up that water.
Replace your water heater with a tankless water heater which will lessen your electricity bills.
Tankless models use 20% less energy than traditional water heaters.
3.Install Water Saving Bathroom Faucets
You can save water by only installing water-efficient bathroom faucets that are noted with the
EPA’s WaterSense label.
These faucets will reduce your water flow by more than 30%.
4.Only Install Low Flow Toilets
Get rid of your high water consuming toilets with a low flow toilet to save water.
Toilet flushing is the single largest consumer of water in homes.
A family of four usually uses more than 880 gallons of water per week.
The newer, eco-friendly toilets only use 1.6 gallons or less per flush in comparison.
The Home Depot uses toilets that use just 1.28 gallons or less per flush.
Try an All Natural Approach
Try shifting to using natural products for bathing, products that are also a lot more gentle
on your skin unlike conventional cosmetic products.
Try avoiding any products that may contain potentially harmful petroleum products and use
handmade soaps.
Try using as many elements that will connect you to nature and also try to keep it as natural
as possible.
Remake your bathroom in a way that you would actually enjoy spending time in it, soaking in it.
Wall Surfaces:
Paint is usually better than wallpaper in the bathroom as moisture will get behind the wallpaper and
produce mold.
Ceramic tiles and natural stone are also durable choices that will be beneficial for you in the long term.
Floors:
Recycled-content ceramic tiles and natural linoleum are environmentally friendly choices.
Avoid using carpet in the bedroom; it traps moisture that can lead to the growth of mold.
Cabinets and Countertops:
Avoid using particleboard and medium density fiberboard (MDF) for your cabinets as a base for
countertops unless you can find low- or no-formaheldyde versions.
Solid wood that has been certified by the Forest Stewardship Council(FSC) for sustainability.
Be Water-Wise
A low-flow shower head can reduce your water consumption by 30% or more at the same
pressure as before.
Another great water saving gadget is a grey-water diverter which sends water from the shower
or bath to a collection container for distribution to your garden.
Insulating your water heater and lowering its thermostat to 120 degrees makes a real difference
in the amount of energy you use to heat your morning shower.
Low-Flow Toilets:
Consider replacing your toilet if it is outdated by more than 12 years old.
1995’s National Energy Policy Act mandated that all new toilets sold in the United States use
1.6 gallons of water or less per flush.
If your toilet is older than that then it may be using as much as 7 gallons of water per flush.
Low Flow Faucet Aerators:
Faucets are accountable for more than 15% of indoor household water use.
According to the EPA, more than 1 trillion gallons of water is used through faucets across
the United States annually.
You can replace your old faucets with low-flow faucets or you can install low-flow aerators.
Switching to low-flow faucets is one of the best and easiest ways to conserve water.
“You can lessen your impact on
the environment by cutting down
on the use of chemicals and
reducing water consumption.”
Use Recycled and Eco-Friendly Building Products
Image source:
Remodel your bathroom with recycled materials for your baths, floors, countertops and showers.
Recycling has become very popular, resulting in a vast variety of colors and finishes available.
Recycled glass is also a good alternative as it has low emissions.
Clean Green
Try cleaning your bathroom with 100% natural ingredients.
Pay attention to the government regulated warning labels and buy eco-friendly brands.
Try to find, use and stick to environment conscious brands.
Author Bio:
As the Director at Excella Worldwide, Shruti Agrawal is a strategist with an Electronics Engineering background and always on the lookout for ways to challenge and disrupt business models to make them better.
Have you made eco-friendly upgrades to your bathroom?
What are your favorites ways to make your bathroom greener?
Share your thoughts and comments with us.
Interesting article, but I was curious about the low flow faucets helping. I would think the faucets waste water by us running them to get the water hot or cold.
I can see where the showerhead would help, but I don’t think the faucets would make alot of difference.
You gave me something to ponder. Thank you for your post
I have the low flow toilets and they are great – -brilliant ideas for being more environmental friendly as always Deborah