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This is a collaborative post.
When renovating the kitchen and dining area or moving into a new place, taking a responsible and sustainable approach is not only more and more possible but often it saves money. Especially if you are looking at the lifespan and quality of the products being used. This can cover everything from the building materials through the production methods to the appliances designed to save power, water and money. So let’s see a few ideas that are currently available, can save money and environmentally friendly too.
1 Sustainable raw materials
When it comes to buying and fitting a new kitchen in, always make sure that the supplier is sourcing the raw materials from a sustainable source, leaving a gentle ecological footprint.
2 Reclaimed wood
Manufacturing reclaimed and recycled wooden material is a relatively new concept. It helps to prevent the destruction of new trees and the landfill of other materials such as carpet and laminate. Reclaimed wooden floors are perfect in kitchens too.
3 FSC-certified timber
The wood that comes from well-managed forests that are part of the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification and FSC-certified are certainly the most sustainable new wood.
4 Recycled tiles
Recycled-content tile will outlast most, if not all, other types of flooring. Recycled-content tile can be used for floors, countertops, and walls, and may be made from either recycled glass or wastes from mines or factories. Tiles come in two varieties: ceramic and glass.
5 Bamboo and cork
Bamboo is an environmentally friendly, renewable resource that has been used as a construction material for thousands of years. Bamboo is a natural alternative to traditional hardwood flooring it looks great, and work well in kitchens. Cork would be more suitable in dining rooms (in my view). Cork floors are quiet and soft under the foot.
6 Recycled glass
Glass waste from glass bottles (or TV screens and discarded porcelain basins) can be used to produce worktops or splash backs by adding powdered quartz. These are quite widely available and a very durable solution too apart form the environmentally friendly aspect.
7 Recycled stainless steel
Stainless steel is 100 per cent recyclable, so it makes sense to reuse it in kitchens. Choosing stainless steel for an application ensures that it will have low maintenance costs, a long life and be easy to recycle at the end of that life. Stainless steel sinks are often made from up to 70% recycled material.
8 Upcycled kitchen furniture
You can turn a flea market find into something special and one of a kind through a little DIY project and upcycle a small piece of furniture by yourself. Sanding an old kitchen table down and repainting it is no big deal if you like a little DIY project.
9 Water based paint
Eco-friendly paints are widely available these days. These paints are water based, made of natural ingredients, with no solvents and little or without VOCs.
10 Energy efficient appliances
It’s worth checking the rating on your new white goods as an A+++ appliance will give you a massive 20% energy saving, but anything from A+ is considered to be very good.