Are you looking for ways to reduce your carbon footprint and become a better environmental steward? One way is by making some changes to your bathrooms. How do you make your bathrooms more eco-friendly, which can also save you some money?
Keep reading to see five ways you can achieve this. You’ll want to get started as soon as possible.
- Install a Bidet
Do you know what a bidet is? If so, have you ever used one? They are available in the U.S., but they are more commonplace elsewhere in the world. It’s a receptacle or bowl that you sit on to evacuate your bowels. Instead of using toilet paper after doing your business, you activate a faucet that uses a stream of water to clean your anus, genitalia, and inner buttocks.
Using the bathroom this way is about more than just being more sanitary — since you won’t have to use toilet paper to clean your rear end after using the bathroom. It’s better for the environment.
One source notes that the average household in the U.S. uses 400+ toilet paper rolls annually.
But consider this: using a bidet can save the 384 trees needed to supply a single person’s toilet paper needs over their lifetime. Another thing to consider is one roll of toilet paper necessitates 37 gallons of water, and a bidet needs a mere one-eighth of a gallon of water.
So, you’ll lower your carbon footprint by using a bidet. You could use a small amount of toilet paper to dry your rear end. But some bidets actually have a feature that can dry your nether regions. It depends on what type of bidet you purchase. It can make a big difference if eco-friendliness is the goal.
- Use Natural Products
You can also make your bathroom more environmentally friendly by using natural products. So, instead of using cleaning agents, for instance, that contain harsh chemicals, try to use natural products instead. Natural products are manufactured using environmentally friendly ingredients. You can also use environmentally friendly soap, shampoo, and other things. You’ll be able to get the products you need without endangering the environment. That’s a big win-win.
- Upgrade Toilet
A toilet made before 1980 could use between five and eight gallons of water per flush. That means each family member could be flushing 48 gallons of water daily. Meanwhile, a toilet constructed according to 1992 standards uses 1.6 gallons of water per flush, adding up to around 9.1 gallons of water per day per user. That’s a big difference.
How old are the toilets in your home? If your toilets are using too much water, your carbon footprint is higher than it needs to be. Upgrade your toilets. And while you’re at it, consider getting bidets for the toilets in your home. It makes sense to tackle those two projects at the same time.
- Add Water Timer
You can also add a timer to your shower. Do you have family members who love nothing more than to stay in the shower for way too long? If so, installing a shower timer and setting it to, say, four minutes per shower, can save you a ton of water over time. You can also update your shower head by swapping your current one for a low-flow, water-saving replacement.
- Change Light Bulbs
Changing your light bulbs can make a tangible difference. If you have incandescent bulbs installed, you should consider upgrading them. CFLs, for instance, are more energy efficient. In fact, they consume 25% of the energy that incandescents do, and they last 10 times longer.
These are just a few ways you can make your bathroom more environmentally friendly. It makes sense to take such matters seriously, particularly since doing the opposite can actually cost you. More and more people are concerned about the environmental impact their actions have. You can become a more responsible steward of the environment with a few simple changes.
