Top 5 Ways To Make Your Bathroom Eco Friendly

Written By: Sumita Roy

Remodeling bathrooms for the sake of changing their décor is an interesting idea. 

But think about it, if you change your bathroom’s design not just to make it look good and fresh, but to make it eco friendly as well. 

This, of course is the need of the hour. But with what do your start?

What colors should be used? What flooring should be fitted in? Counters and curtains should remain the same or changed? How much would redoing the space cost you/ and last but not the least what changes will this bring to your household?

In this blog I will discuss the effective ways to greenify your bathroom and your ways to go about it, so that you can maintain low water consumption and save more water.

Recycled tiling

The world of washroom is mostly wet and humid, therefore the floors and walls need something water resistant and durable. 

Though there are various eco friendly and renewable materials that can be used for the same, but tiling suits the purpose in the best way.

Bamboo and cork are similar kind of material that can be used for the same purpose. They are highly processed, reformed, shredded and bonded to wood backing. 

However, one overflowing toilet can make them swell and break down. Plus they are far more expensive options.

Recycled tile on the other hand is durable to damp atmosphere and has low impact on nature. 

It is available in variety of colors, designs, shapes and sizes, having accent tiles and strips within the range- some standing out to create visual effects others too elegantly placed. 

They provide good cover for walls and floors, creating a coordinated and distinguished new look.

Go Low flow

Get sensitive in terms of water usage. If you are fitting in the toilet then get a low flow toilet.  One of the biggest reason why we should be sensitive regarding flushing is: this is the biggest water hog in any household. 

Conventional washrooms, pans, use 5-7 gallons of water per flush. In low flow models, 1.6 gallons is approximately used per flush. It saves a huge volume of water in an entire day, considering the fact that an average person flushes 5 times a day.

In case you cannot replace the high volume washroom, then you can place in water filled bottles in your tank to reduce the amount of water used per flush. 

You should also make sure that your toilet is not leaking. To check it, use dye colors in the tank. If color appears in any part of the tank, then your tank is leaking. Lastly, do not throw litters, tissues, papers or anything else in the pan to dispose them off. These require gallons of water to flush them off. Use a dustbin for disposing them off and regularly clean the basins and tiles. 

Use fly ash concretizing

Concrete is not limited to flooring alone. 

It can be used for counter-tops as well. Especially if  the concrete is created by mixing fly-ash. 

Fly ash is a waste product of the power plant. It can be used to create non-permeable membrane. 

It is also durable, easier to handle, dries faster and consumes less electricity, sand and water, therefore, an ideal green material to be used for creating counter-tops. Fly-ash is an important end product whose increasing usage would keep it out of landfills. 

You can also personalize it by adding in colors and creating limitless shapes.

Keeping the air fresh

One of the ways in which energy saving goal can be further realized is by patching air leaking ducts, cracks and holes present in the walls. 

You can also upgrade the ventilation system by fitting in Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV). 

This is a dual duct system that helps to expunge stale indoor air and introduce fresh air from outside. The incoming air goes through heat exchanger that warms / cools the air inside.

This helps in keeping the temperature of the room at a constant degree and saves the energy used. 

Since stagnated humidity can also cause a problem, you can go a step ahead and install Energy Recovery Ventilators (ERV). It has an added feature of removing humidity from the circulating air.

Cutting off the power when not necessary

For an effective green bathroom, you can introduce energy saving strips. These monitor how much energy is being consumed when you have plugged in appliances. If the power usage drops in a stand-by mode, the single outlet shuts down. This way the ‘vampire’ that sucks units stops consuming any more power.

Another interesting fitting that can save energy and look stylish within your household is using motion detector lighting. The simple addition of replacing your ordinary bulbs with motion activated lights will save energy and can be fitted in roofs. 

It uses reflecting tubes- an exterior sunlight collector, and interior diffusing lens channelizing sunlight / natural lighting within the bathroom. It’s a simple installation that does not require major construction or installation steps.

This way you can effectively greenify your bathroom and add style to it without creating a hole in your pocket. You can add some of these features like motion lighting, kitchen counters made of fly-ash, to your living room, dining room, etc. as well.