Kitchen

For quick tips on how to make your appliance more environmentally friendly, check out more information on Green Appliances

Invest in your pots and pans. The healthiest pots and pans are either enameled cast-iron, stainless steel, or ceramic. These pans will last a lifetime and do not leach chemicals into the food or the air upon heating. Non-stick pans were created for convenience, and studies have shown that Teflon releases toxic fumes into the air when it is heated to extremely high temperatures.

Opt for the smallest pot or pan to do the job at hand. The smaller the pot, the less energy required to heat it. Always make sure to match the diameter of the pot with the diameter of the range. Using a smaller pan on a larger burner can waste up to 40% of the heat produced! That sends money up in smoke!

Most food is shipped hundreds or thousands of miles to reach us. This equates to a lot of fuel usage and impact on climate change! So, reduce your carbon footprint by buying locally as much as possible. Even better than that, check out our Green DIY tips on how to Grow Your Own Food to keep it as local as you can get!

There are several species of fish that are being over fished and unregulated.

More than 5000 chemicals are commonly used in household cleaning products, many of which contain hazardous waste materials, hormone disrupting preservatives, neurotoxins, artificial perfumes and colorings, which can cause the air inside our homes to be more polluted than outdoor air!! In addition, those chemicals we normally use to clean our sinks all end up in our water systems, polluting our rivers and seas and harming fish and wildlife, but there are plenty of natural alternative products you can use to clean tiles, sinks and more.

For much more information on cleaning naturally, see our cleaning section.

Food scraps make wonderful plant compost once they’ve broken down. Food waste comprises approximately twenty percent of household garbage, so that’s a lot of compost and a lot of savings on bin charges! Keep a composting pale in the kitchen, and take a look at our Composting section to choose from wide selection of composting bins available in Ireland.

Save energy in your kitchen by increasing the amount of daylight that gets in and switching to compact fluorescent light bulbs. For more information to improve the lighting in your home, go to our lighting section.

Recycling is one of the easist and best Green things you can do in your kitchen. If your recycling collection service doesn’t separate recyclables for you, designate separate bins in the kitchen for paper/cardboard, plastic, and glass so you’ll be more inclined to recycle when the bins are full.

See the Recycling section for more detail.

When it comes to remodeling your kitchen, there are a million options to make your projects Green.

A truly “Green” kitchen cabinet is a product that does not pollute your home with chemicals and is made using materials that take the environment into account. Most kitchen cabinets are made from plywood or pressboard covered with a veneer or a laminate. The plywood and pressboard are usually glued together with glue that contains formaldehyde, which gives off carcinogenic fumes. The newer the material, the more fumes it gives off. So most new kitchen cabinets are not that healthy! Before replacing your existing cabinets, consider re-facing or resurfacing your existing ones. You’ll keep the old cabinets from going into landfill, and you’ll save a huge amount of money on your kitchen remodeling project. If the over-all design of your kitchen is good, refinishing your existing cabinets or replacing cabinet doors is a smart Green DIY option. Another option is to look at buying used cabinets from a salvage sale.

For detailed information, see our cabinets section.

Conventional countertops are made from petroleum and are difficult to recycle or reuse. Instead, opt for countertop materials that have cleaner manufacturing processes. Give preference to materials that can be reused or recycled when it’s time to replace them. See our Counter-Top tips for more information or check out the following options:

o Tiles o Refinishing Tiles o Concrete

Rather than replacing existing flooring, always consider refurbishing what’s already there first. Disposal of old flooring is an ecological nightmare - landfills are overflowing with old types of synthetic flooring which do not degrade. Therefore, before you tear your existing flooring out, consider re-surfacing or applying new flooring over the existing flooring to make the biggest difference to our environment. For details on refurbishing your existing floor, see our Flooring section.

When installing new floors, look for materials that: • Are recycled and/or recyclable • Last longer than conventional flooring. • Are safe for you, your family and the environment. • Save you money and makes your home look and feel good.

Check out the options for Green Flooring Materials:

• Bamboo
• Concrete
• Carpet
• Earthen Floors
• Tiles
• Timber

– An average household’s taps account for 15 to 18 percent of indoor water use. If you are installing new taps, look for low flow models. If you are retaining older taps, install aerator heads which can cut water use in half!.

See our plumbing section for more information