April '08 Go Green!

Green Tips for the Home
By Elissa Scott


Spring reminds us it’s easy being green. Save on cash by improving your energy consumption, use sustainable materials or be eco-friendly for your family’s health. My own spring home tune-up includes a new paint job, using Eco-Spec paint which eliminates odours and health hazards.

Trash air fresheners, fling open windows and allow fresh air to recirculate indoors, improving indoor air quality. Harmful VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) are being released into the air everyday from the items we purchase, from fabrics like drapes, clothes and bedding.
















Rapidly renewable grasses can be used in many creative ways!

Using solid woods or second hand furniture is less likely to off-gas. Formaldehyde, flame retardants and toxic glues can all contribute to a toxic environment, and they are found in many everyday products. Read labels, use vintage (which have previously off-gassed) and buy organic whenever possible. And don’t forget to change your furnace air filter each month.

By 2012, compact fluorescent bulbs (CFB’s) will be the law. Use 75% less energy and save that amount of heat produced by the traditional incandescent bulb. Get in the eco habit now and gradually switch over for financial savings as well as doing your part for the planet.


















Choose beeswax, non-lead candles and reclaimed wood for furniture.

Other ways to be eco-savvy and organized in the kitchen is to reuse a tissue box and stuff your plastic grocery bags in it as a dispenser. Take old paint cans, computer equipment and other household recyclables to the Eco-station. You can even pick up other people’s cast-off paint for a second life if you are truly eco.




Elissa Scott is a Home Design Expert, Columnist and Professional Speaker, specializing in eco- chic renovation and new construction. For all of your design needs, please visit: www.gruuvyroomz.com or call: (780) 484-6880.

"And the day came when the risk to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom."

-Anais Nin-

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