How to have an Eco Friendly Bathroom

07/23/2013 “Greening” your bathroom is a great way to save money, conserve water and eliminate the health risks of chemical ridden cleaners. Store bought bathroom products can often leave potentially harmful residue on your bathroom’s tiles and surfaces.
Wasteful, water-guzzling toilets and shower heads can leave a significant dent in your wallet. And “greening” your bathroom can feature fun and creative DIY renovation ideas.

To successfully transform your bathroom into an eco-friendly haven, incorporate these natural, organic and water-conserving tips into your bathroom décor. Should you choose to do a complete bathroom overhaul, smart bathroom renovation company will be working you through the options to save water and energy at the time you renovate. You should be able to help you install any heavy-duty energy-efficient appliances.

A water-efficient toilet -Did you know that approximately 30% of your household water consumption comes from your toilet? Although newer homes are usually outfitted with low-flow toilets, older toilets can still consume up to twelve litres of water with every flush! Despite a rocky start, low-flow toilet technology has come a long way in recent years. Flushing capabilities have gone from weak to strong, slow to rapid and some even come with dual-flush options for liquid or solid waste. Replace your old toilet with a water-efficient one to reduce your water usage and drastically decrease your water bill.

The low flow toilet was developed in Australia by Caroma for our specific conditions. Drought!
Natural mould-fighting solutions-Mould is the evil plague of bathroom irritants. It’s relatively easy to get rid of but if left untreated, mould can quickly turn into a serious health hazard. To help avoid mould, use an all-natural mould killer instead of a toxic cleaning agent that could also harm you.
As a preventative measure, spray your bathroom regularly with any of these options: water and lavender oil, water and tea tree oil or white vinegar. Opening a window to create natural ventilation in your bathroom will also help to prevent mould build-up. Use baking soda, hot water and soap only to tackle any existing mould.

Good ventilation using an openable window or other ventilation is a great way of inhibiting mould growth too. Windows are very green as they don’t cost anything to run!

Baking soda for heavy-duty cleaning - Although baking soda can be as abrasive as other chemical cleaning agents, it doesn’t contain the same potentially unsafe additives. If you’re faced with an extraordinary amount of heavy-duty mould or mildew, baking soda is an acceptable “green” choice.
To effectively use baking soda to clean your bathroom tiles or surfaces, combine it with water, a few drops of essential oil and a teaspoon of liquid soap. This forms a cleaning “paste” that can be used to clean even the most bacteria-filled bathroom. Dispose of any remaining mixture after you’re done to prevent a reaction to the baking soda.

A low-flow showerhead - Like water-efficient toilets, low-flow showerheads are a great way to “green” your bathroom and save money on your water bills. The latest low-flow showerheads conserve water and energy, but not at the expense of a satisfying shower.
Until recently, showerheads dispensed anywhere between 10-16 litres of water per minute. Newer showerheads only deliver around 9 litres of water, but there are so many households that continue to waste water using old showerheads. Install a low-flow showerhead in your bathroom to dramatically reduce your water consumption!

One of my designers installed a low flow shower head in her bathroom and found that her power bill immediately halved. This was an unexpected benefit.
I like the Methven “satinjet technology” which is a beautifully soft shower, while still only using 7.5 litres per minute of water. Not like those needle water savers we all know from the camping grounds.

Toilet paper made from recycled sources - Although toilet paper isn’t as easily associated with cutting down trees as writing paper is, they’re still cut down in bulk to produce disposable bathroom paper products. Recycled toilet paper is a no-brainer for anyone looking to truly “green” his or her bathroom.
According to the National Resources Defense Council, if every household in the US replaced one four-pack of traditional “virgin fiber” bath tissue with recycled materials, it would save around 1 million trees per year. Recycled toilet paper may not be as comfortable as other brands, but it does save the natural resources we take for granted.

Rain Water tanks - Install these at the same time as you bathroom renovation. You can use them to flush you toilet and also to do the laundry. If you are changing you washing machine, get a front loader. They take a bit more time generally, but are gentler on your clothes and use a lot less water. Fluorescent lighting - To effectively conserve energy and make your bathroom eco-friendly, replace your existing light bulbs with fluorescent ones. Each bulb can last roughly 35,000 hours, which is approximately 20-30 times longer than a conventional incandescent bulb.
The other option that is becoming more relvant is LED. The light from these little guys is bright for those of us with older eyes and the energy usage is a fraction of the older style incandescent bulbs. You have the option of running feature strips, backlighting and other fancy stuff.

Hot water recirculating pumps - Install one of these in the vanity when you renovate and you will never wait for hot water again. It also has the added benefit of returning all the luke warm water to your hot water cylinder reducing energy bills too. Cost is around $500 and the payback is less than a year.

About This Author

Smarter Bathrooms

Smarter Bathrooms is regarded as the leading Bathroom Renovator in Melbourne. With over 1500 project completed and more than eight years specialising in bathrooms and kitchens we are well qualified to help you. We start renovating 5-10 bathrooms and kitchens every week and bring to you ba…