{"id":14186,"date":"2022-03-17T09:59:00","date_gmt":"2022-03-16T23:59:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/?p=14186"},"modified":"2024-10-21T10:44:02","modified_gmt":"2024-10-21T00:44:02","slug":"eco-friendly-home","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/eco-friendly-home\/","title":{"rendered":"10 easy ways to make your new digs greener"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Looking for ways to dial up the \u2018green\u2019 in your new place? These easy eco-friendly tips will help inspire you to make your new space more sustainable \u2013 one weekend project at a time!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Grow your own<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Starting a veggie patch is an easy and fulfilling way to help reduce your footprint. You can start your own urban \u2013 or suburban \u2013 mini farm with very little space (and without too much effort).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The main things you\u2019ll need are a spare garden bed, raised garden bed or a portable garden bed (depending on what size works best for your outdoor area), some seasonal seeds or seedlings and some good quality soil. There are plenty of tips online that can help you with the nitty gritty of feeding and mulching.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re not keen on growing your own, shopping at local farmers markets is the next best thing!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Get a little spicy<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019re midway through cooking up some pasta sauce when you realise you need basil. Rather than dashing to the supermarket and grabbing the usual plastic-sleeved or tubed varieties, why not skip the hassle and pop outside, or reach over to the windowsill, and pick your own?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fresh homegrown herbs taste better and also help to reduce single-use plastic in the kitchen<\/a>. They\u2019re a great opportunity, too, to make your own signature spice blends \u2013 which can make great Christmas or housewarming gifts!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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3. Waste not want not<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Recent research has shown that about half<\/a> of the average household\u2019s rubbish can be composted. Food waste going to landfill is a big problem. Because oxygen is low in landfill, organic materials rot and produce methane \u2013 a greenhouse gas more potent than carbon dioxide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can do your bit by investing in a compost bin and turning your food waste into food for your garden. Bonus! You can also add garden waste to compost bins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Get wormy with it<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re keen to take your compost game to the next level, consider turning your bin into a worm farm!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The benefit of adding these little critters is that they\u2019ll help break down the scraps, keep odour to a minimum and produce liquid and solid castings (both of which can be mixed with water to produce a liquid fertiliser). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Worm farms are best suited for food waste, so avoid popping garden waste into your farm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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5. Choose pre-loved<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Opting for second hand items not only helps reduce the amount of emissions and resources being used during manufacturing, it also gives unique pieces a new life \u2013 saving them from landfill. Think of all of the iconic 1960s and \u201970s furniture that would otherwise be lost without op shops!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Statement pieces from different eras can really bring a room to life<\/a> \u2013 think quirky lamps, gramophones, record players and vintage chairs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re a DIY lover, thrifting is a great excuse to trawl through treasures online (or in-store) and scroll through Pinterest for upcycling inspo until your heart (or mood board) is content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6. Swap out your kitchen go-tos<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Doing a little audit of your kitchen<\/a> go-tos can offer up a surprising number of sustainable alternatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Swapping out baking paper for silicone baking mats, cling film for reusable food wraps and zip lock bags for silicone pouches are all great ways to minimise the use of plastics at home. Could you set a goal to swap out one item each month?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

7. Choose green when you clean<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Most of us have a few fav cleaning products that we\u2019ve used for years \u2013 without ever checking the ingredients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Choosing greener cleaning products, or even making your own, is a simple way to help reduce chemicals entering our atmosphere and waterways. Switching to steam cleaners is also a great way to disinfect and kill germs with no cleaning products, except for water, needed at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top tip: A simple solution of bicarb soda, lemon juice or vinegar can be used in place of bleaches and detergent to kill bacteria and leave your home grease- and odour-free.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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8. Sort it out<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Invest in a sorting bin for your kitchen and commit to separating your recyclables, general rubbish and soft plastics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plastic packaging, like cereal and biscuit liners, too often end up in the \u2018general rubbish\u2019. Sadly these take hundreds of years to break down in landfill. The next time you\u2019re out shopping at your local Coles or Woolworths store make a point of taking your soft plastics in-store and drop them into the Red Cycle bin<\/a> so they can be turned into playground and outdoor furniture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

9. Reduce the use<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The smallest changes to your daily habits can create a big difference to the way you use energy at home. By assessing how your household uses energy, you can start making more conscious choices and reduce your usage (and footprint!).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re looking for a fun way to get the whole family excited about saving power, sign up to Origin Spike<\/a>. It\u2019s a cool new way to reduce your energy use \u2013 and get paid for it too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

10. Harness the sunshine<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Add ambience to your outdoor living area with d\u00e9cor that\u2019s powered by the sun. From festoon lights, fairy lights and lanterns to water features \u2013 the options to zhuzh up your garden are endless. Choosing d\u00e9cor that\u2019s solar powered not only means avoiding the hassle of locating, or installing, outdoor powerpoints, it\u2019s also energy savvy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to go even bigger? Consider whether solar panels<\/a> would be right for your home. We can help you on your way to energy independence with tools, information, access to\u00a0solar quotes<\/a>\u00a0from our preferred partners, plus more. In less than 10 minutes, you can arrange up to\u00a03 free solar and battery quotes<\/a>\u00a0from our preferred partners for your property. You can also check out recommended solar system sizes, potential bill savings, and more. It\u2019s free and without obligation+<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Learn more about solar<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Looking for ways to dial up the \u2018green\u2019 at your place? These easy eco-friendly tips will inspire you to make your space more sustainable.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":18421,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[105],"tags":[49,46],"oe_author":[],"class_list":["post-14186","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-at-home","tag-solar","tag-sustainability"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14186","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14186"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14186\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18421"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14186"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14186"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14186"},{"taxonomy":"oe_author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.originenergy.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/oe_author?post=14186"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}