Making Your Home Green and Self-Sufficient

Image source

One day you dream of becoming completely self-sufficient at home, from growing your own produce to dealing with all of your waste. The truth is, becoming completely self-sufficient is a journey that may take some time to master, but it almost always starts at home. Luckily, more and more people are recognizing the importance of greener living and are opting to make big changes in their home lives to make a positive impact on the planet. In many cases, this can involve choosing renewable energy sources and turning to a more self-sufficient way of life altogether. Whether you’re looking into more sustainable strategies for living or simply hoping to become more well-informed, there are a whole host of ideas to choose from below. Although it may seem quite overwhelming when you think about giving up all of the resources available to you out in the big wide world, it will get easier once you try new ideas. The truth is, every household can become self-sufficient in their own way as long as they are willing to make a change. Consider some of the ideas below and see how you could start naturally weaving them into your everyday life very soon.

Opt for Renewable Energy Sources

You are noticing more and more houses in your area with solar panels and other renewable energy sources. Not only are these households smart in the way they’re thinking, but they’re also playing a positive role in the protection of the planet. Contact a reputable solar panel installer in your area and find out more about how they could benefit you and your home. As well as reducing your carbon footprint, you will also save a tonne on energy bills each month. During the cost of living crisis this reduction in bills could be a lifesaver for many families. There are also plenty of government schemes and grants available to households who wish to go ahead with solar installation, so it’s worth doing your research and discovering your options. Once you begin looking into all of the renewable energy options, you will soon start to discover how you can one day become completely self-sufficient and create all of the energy you need.

Use Eco-Friendly Building Materials

If you are carrying out work on your home it’s incredibly important to use eco-friendly and locally sourced materials. Try not to purchase everything brand new, as this isn’t the greenest of choices to be making. Discover local materials from areas around you and reduce your environmental impact as much as possible. When you choose greener materials and building techniques, you will also be positively contributing to the self-sufficiency of your own home too.

Lean Into Your Homesteading Passions

As a person who may currently have a homestead already, now is your time to lean into the passion and use it to help you create a fully self-sufficient home through and through. For example, you could raise hens for eggs or even keep a cow for milk and cheese. If you are blessed to have the space in and around your home to raise animals for meat and dairy this is a fantastic position to be in. Of course, this type of life will not always suit everyone, so if the idea of raising your own meat makes you feel uncomfortable then you shouldn’t feel guilty sourcing your meat from local and reliable butchers.

Grow Your Own Produce

Growing your own food is a huge part of being fully self-sufficient at home. Having the ability to grow your own vegetables, grains and fruit will give you so much freedom and flexibility to live off your own land. This will also reduce the need to purchase food from shops that are far away from where you live. Although it may seem like an overwhelming prospect to harvest and plant all of your own crops, it will certainly feel rewarding in the long run. Start small when it comes to planting your own fruits and vegetables, and start to expand as time goes by and your confidence grows.

Make Each Flush Greener and Reduce Water Waste

With every flush, your toilet wastes a whole lot of water that doesn’t really need to be used. There are a number of water saving gadgets that you can install in your bathroom so that you don’t waste unnecessary amounts of water when you flush the loo. Similarly, you may also want to look into installing a water meter so that you are only paying for the water you actually use. Water saving devices and better plumbing systems such as rainwater harvesting will help to cut down on consumptions, which will ultimately reduce your bills and help your home to become fully self-sufficient one day. On the other hand, if you’re not using public sewers in your property then you may wish to look into composting toilets or an outhouse. The option that works best for your family will completely depend on your set up, how much space you have and what type of soil you currently have on your property. 

On the same topic of water waste, why not consider taking more baths than showers? It may be considered counterintuitive, but they are actually much less wasteful than showers. This is because showers are becoming much more powerful in the modern day, so much so that they’re using up way more water than an average bath would. You can also think carefully about the way you use a bath too. For example, why not soak your delicate items in warm water after you have finished bathing? This will not only cut down on your laundry pile but it will also reduce the impact on the environment too. When using bubbles make sure you use sulfate free salts, products and oils as they are less harmful to the planet.

Benefits of Using These Self-Sufficiency Techniques

Being able to grow your own food, provide your own water and even create your own power is a huge advantage in the world for many reasons. Self-sufficient homes are not only a great friend to the planet, but they are also extremely valuable on the property market. As well as reducing your carbon footprint, you will also see a significant reduction in your monthly utility and energy bills. Similarly, you can also benefit from a dependable power and water supply that you are completely in control of.

Remember, you don’t need to be fully self-sufficient to reap the benefits of a sufficient and energy efficient home. Don’t put too much pressure on yourself to be “perfect”; everything you’re doing to help the planet will be a huge help towards reducing climate change.

To Conclude

As you can see, there are a number of different benefits with regards to running a self-sufficient and renewable household. Most of the ideas mentioned above can be applied to any home at all; you don’t necessarily need to have acres of land or a large property to make these methods work for you on a daily basis. Starting small and expanding to new territories and methods is the right way to approach becoming a self-sufficient household. Sooner or later you will be able to see the positive changes you and your family are making at home, and other people in your life may want to follow suit too! Living sustainably is all about caring for the planet earth and creating a healthier environment for everyone now and in the distant future.