Eco Friendly Home Furniture Design Ideas

Being green and eco-friendly is no longer limited to the few. In what seems like just a few years, consumer awareness about sustaining the health of the environment has rapidly increased and manufacturers for every type of product have jumped on the eco-friendly bandwagon. You can’t go shopping without seeing at least one eco-friendly product on the shelves. Home furniture is just one of those product categories that are touting eco-friendly properties. With all the costs that are associated with a home, including utilities bills, maintenance and home insurance, people are looking to invest in the best furniture that also aids in the health on the environment. When you see a piece of furniture that claims to be eco-friendly, it can be for a number of different reasons.

It is made of materials that are recycled or can be renewed rapidly.
Eco-friendly furniture may use materials that include recycled content, which has been produced from post-industrial or post-consumer waste. Old materials such as glass, plastic, metal and wood can be transformed and incorporated into new pieces of furniture. Furniture may also utilize materials that are considered sustainable, which means the resource can be grown at a rate that is equivalent or faster than the rate that is it being used or consumed. These sustainable or rapidly renewable materials prevent the depletion of natural resources and decrease harm to the world’s ecosystems. Companies may even package furniture with recycled or renewable materials and may use less packaging in general.

It is manufactured in a resource-efficient way.
Lots of handmade furniture can be considered as eco-friendly because of the less energy that is used compared to the energy it would take to run machines. An eco-friendly piece of furniture could also have been made in a plant that minimizes the use of natural resources like water and use energy in the most efficient ways. The building that the furniture is made in may have been built in a way that minimizes carbon emissions or utilizes alternative energy sources, such as solar power. Generally, furniture that requires little processing can be considered as eco-friendly also.

It is free of harmful chemicals.
Eco-friendly furniture should be made of materials that emit very few or no carcinogens, toxins, irritants or volatile organic compounds (VOCs). For example, a piece of furniture covered in lead-based paint isn’t exactly eco-friendly because lead is a toxic metal, especially to small children who may ingest bits of the paint. Toxic compounds, such as some wood preservatives, and other compounds that deplete the ozone layer, should not be used during any phase of the production of eco-friendly furniture also.

It comes from companies that practice fair trade.
Fair trade refers to a social responsibility in paying producers and workers fair living wages for their products or work. The working environment is healthy and workers are not exploited for their labor for the sake of lower production costs. Sometimes, fair trade manufacturers provide workers from all over the world with much needed job opportunities so that they can afford a decent living.

The listing of Cash for Clunkers eligible vehicles can be found at Eco Auto Ninja. The site lists almost every vehicle sold in America since the 1984 model year. The program is officially called CARS, or Car Allowance Rebate System, but the catchy moniker “Cash for Clunkers” is the name that stuck.

The car you’re trading in must be less than 25 years old — made in the summer of 1984 or later. The vehicle must be listed by the government as getting combined highway/city fuel efficiency of 18 miles per gallon or less.

The vehicle must have been insured and registered to you for the past year, and it must be in drivable condition.

If you trade it in for a car that improves your fuel economy by four miles per gallon or more, you can get a $3,500 voucher, which you can apply toward the cost of a new car.

If you switch to a vehicle that gets 10 miles per gallon more in fuel efficiency, then the government will give you $4,500.

You’ve heard you can lower your homeowners insurance quotes with an environmentally friendly home. But what exactly does that mean? How is the insurance industry falling in line with the “green” movement and which modifications are actually worth the time and effort? Essentially, there are two kinds of consumers interested in “greening” their insurance policies, those who simply want to save money and those who are looking for help to become more eco-friendly in the future.

Gradually the insurance industry is modifying its risk profiles to benefit environmentally conscious consumers, who are seen as less likely to file a claim both because their homes are more efficient and because they, themselves, are more cautious. The thinking is that green homes are more durable and less prone to breakdowns. On the flip side of this equation, however, are green enhancements like the addition of solar panels that, while lowering your electrical bill may actually raise your premiums. This is especially true in storm-prone areas where the panels are likely to be repeatedly damaged. Essentially this means that not all green modification are equal in the eyes of the insurance man.

The safest discounts to seek are those that are awarded to homes that qualify for a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification or those given out for Energy Star-rated appliances. Water heaters, air conditioners, and heaters that are designed to run more efficiently also run less, making for fewer mechanical issues and claims. The industry-wide standard for such discounts is now about 10% and generally requires nothing more than apprising your provider of the installation of the unit or the awarding of the certification. (Homeowners should also talk to their insurer after remodeling projects that have included the use of toxin-free materials or the placement of extra insulation and double pane windows.)

Two major types of insurance products are emerging in this trend toward green recognition. First are policies that cover buildings that meet established standards of efficiency and sustainability. The other is an addition or endorsement to an existing policy that will allow the homeowner, in the event of a claim, to replace damaged materials or appliances with more environmentally sensitive choices in the future. This avenue actually adds about 2% to the annual premium cost of a homeowners policy, which would be roughly $25 on a home insured for $350,000. Such an endorsement will, however, greatly reduce the cost of green home improvements in the future.

With more energy efficient and green home choices available, homeowners should be extra vigilant about reviewing their policies at least once a year. You wouldn’t let your home just stand there without maintenance for months at a time. Don’t let that happen to the policy that is protecting your home. Otherwise, you may be insuring items you no longer own or missing out on discounts for green choices and improvements that the insurance industry is now willing to recognize and reward.

It is estimated that one billion people will be celebrating Earth Day today.

The current and increasing number of debates on climate change have played a large role in increasing awareness of the environment, and subsequently, Earth Day.

Since its creation in 1970 by US senator Gaylord Nelson , Earth Day’s reach has spread around the world and is now marked in about 175 countries.

Earth Day Network, the organizers of Earth Day, are launching the “Green Generation” campaign. The campaign will last two years and Earth Day’s organizers hope it will raise awareness on how to reverse the planet’s dangerously bad habits and abuses.

How can you make some helpful adjustments? Try using more bamboo products, or get yourself some more water efficient faucets…baby steps, but important steps nonetheless.

Don’t forget there’s that cute new Disney movie Earth about a polar bear family, a whale family, and a baby bird jumping out of a tree in slo-mo! And Disney will plant a tree just for you if you buy a ticket!

As people become more and more aware of the impact that logging and production practices can have on the environment, many have decided that 2009 is the year that they finally go green. Terms like “green” and “eco-friendly” are used quite frequently now-a-days, particularly in regards to furniture items like beds, headboards, desks, and outdoor furniture. But what exactly is eco-friendly furniture and what does it mean to you, the consumer?

“Eco-Friendly” and “environmentally friendly” are terms used to describe goods and services that are considered to inflict little or no damage to the environment. While there are no restrictions in place to limit what qualifies a product or method as eco-friendly, many furniture manufacturers use this label as a way to let their customers know that they are doing their part to help protect the environment. Whether it be through the use of all natural materials or by employing production methods that reduce waste and emissions, these same companies have decided to offer the world a more environmentally friendly alternative to less ethical brands.

Many furniture brands have taken it upon themselves to offer eco-friendly furniture options in an effort to do show that they are doing their part to help protect Mother Nature. If a company offers a product that is eco-friendly then they will most likely make that fact widely known through the use of “Green” or “Eco-Friendly” labels. It is almost impossible to shop either in house or online without finding a wide array of eco-friendly options. One brand in particular that has gone about and beyond in their quest to reduce their carbon footprint is Reforest Teak.

Reforest Teak offers a full line of outdoor furniture that is made from all natural teak wood that is both grown and harvested through the use of environmentally friendly methods. Not only are Reforest Teak products made from organic materials and harvested from sustainable plantations, but they also use a portion of their profits to fund ecological reforestation efforts in Central America (where teak wood is grown). Not only does Reforest Teak do their best to help reduce deforestation, but they are even going as far as to plant new trees in areas that have been previously decimated by logging. It is dedication like this that helps insure customers that Reforest Teak furniture is an eco-friendly alternative to commercial brands that may not have your environmental concerns are heart.

Sometimes we come across other sites or businesses who are doing something so forward thinking and cool that we like to give them some big green props! The ‘g’ Green Design Center is a retail store whose mission it is to help homeowners and consumers create green, sustainable living spaces. The founder and owner, Nicole Goldman, is an interior designer who, upon doing her own home reno’s, found that the resources and supplies in her area were limited and so the g Green Design Center was created out of that need. She is now taking her idea and turning it into a franchise, offering a solid business plan to interested eco-minded entrepreneurs.

‘g’ Green Design Center is a total one-stop shop, carrying everything from green building materials like Icestone, which is made from recycled glass and concrete; to home improvement stuff and super-cool lifestyle products like bamboo kitchenware.

After living in China for a number of years and seeing the incredibly waste of disposable chopsticks, artist Bryan Parks decided he had to do something about it. So, he designed functional, sculptural folding pieces handmade from recycled, sanitized bamboo chopsticks.
Symmetrical and simple, this large folding basket holds everything from fruits to decorative items, and it can be folded up to the size of a fan for easy storage and transportation. Such a cool eco-friendly use for used chopstick recycling!

These LED grow lights stay cool, and use only a tiny amount of energy. Conventional grow lights consume between 100 watts and 1,000 watts of power to operate. Each LED GrowMaster Grow Light uses less-than 2 watts of power. This energy savings becomes more and more important as energy costs continue to rise. On average, LED GrowMaster grow lights use 33-times less energy than comparable metallic vapor lights.

The expected LED GrowMaster bulb life is 20,000 – 100,000 hours. This is ten to fifty times longer than typical glass grow light bulb life expectations.

Want to reduce your heating bill and save some energy too? Try to implement these practices in your home.

Minimize your use of ventilation fans such as bathroom fans and kitchen hood fans in winter. A bathroom fan can suck all the heated air out of the average house in little more than an hour.

Keep your furnace, heat pump, or other heating equipment in top operating condition. Dirty filters reduce the efficiency of your furnace or heat pump.

Wash clothes in cold water whenever possible.

Don’t heat areas of your house you don’t use regularly, such as guest rooms. Turn down the heat and use space heaters to heat the room you spend time in.

1. Stop Buying/Using Plastic Water Bottles - Last year we Americans consumed over 50 billion of them. It’s out of control! Bring your own refillable stainless steel bottle filled with water from home whenever you go out.

2. Get Some Re-Usable Grocery Bags - Plastic bags are as bad as plastic water bottles. Make a small investment in some cloth bags and the Earth will thank you!

3. Walk or Bike More - Let’s face it, we drive too much, and it shows in pollution levels and gas prices. Walking or biking is not only better for the planet, its better for your body!

4. Be More Conscientious At Home - Unplug things when you aren’t using them, including laptop and cellphone chargers. Turn the lights off. Watch your water use carefully!

5. Make Good Consumer Choices - Buy eco-friendly cleaning products. Buy local. Buy organic.