Tuesday 10 February 2009

Can Your Closet Go Green?

Finding eco-friendly alternatives for your home is an important step towards helping our environment thrive. The greatest impact can be made if we each do our part. You may not have the money to make your house completely eco-friendly, but small steps can help you to lower your bills and save energy. You can even boost your health!

One easy and inexpensive place to start is your lightbulbs. Incandescent light bulbs use a lot of energy and put out a lot of heat. In fact, they are so inefficient that Congress actually plans on banning them within the next few years, saving Americans billions of dollars in energy costs over the next decade. Incandescent bulbs can be a real fire hazard as well. This is especially true in closets where flammable objects may be stored near the bulb. Your closet is also less humid, less ventilated and contains more static than other areas in your home. Start with your closet light bulbs and replace them with compact florescents or LED lights to cut down on energy consumption, global-warming emissions, carbon output and the fire hazard.

Another easy way to go green in your closet is to install a motion sensor switch for your closet light. This way, the closet light only comes on when you are using your closet. Plus, it turns itself off when not in use. Motion sensor light switches throughout your home can make saving energy a snap.

You may be surprised to find out that the air quality in your home can be worse than outdoors. This is true even if you live in a polluted city! Indoor air polution can come from a variety of sources, such as carpet, carpet pad, household cleaners, furniture, candles and even your breath. Since central heating and cooling have become everyday conveniences, we rarely air out our homes. Humidity levels constantly increase from breathing, cooking, showering and doing laundry. The humidity levels allow molds and mildews to thrive in the air that we breathe. You can purchase a cheap home air quality test kit and figure out where your pollution is coming from.

In your closet, you can improve air quality by removing carpet and installing renewable bamboo flooring. Better yet, replace your old hangers with eco-friendly bamboo hangers. Cedar hangers or sachets help remove humidity and reduce the growth of mold and mildew spores in your closet.

There are other inexpensive ways that you can make a difference in your home. Whether you install solar panels, switch out your light bulbs, or go with all bamboo clothes hangers, your steps will have a positive impact on our environment.

About the Author/Author Bio

Ron Maier is the owner of OnlyHangers.com, a leading provider of high quality clothes hangers,including wooden hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyhangers.com Article Source: http://www.articlesphere.com/Article/Can-Your-Closet-Go-Green-/159509