Remodelling you kitchen in the green way is working to make your kitchen the very best it can be not only for you but for the environment. Saving you money, creating a healthier living space and doing your bit to help the environment is what green remodelling is all about. If you are trying to brainstorm about designing your kitchen in a green way a few great places to start looking are Oregon and the pacific northwest are great places to draw ideas and inspiration from.

It’s been said that the kitchen is truly the heart of the home, making it one of the most important and most expensive to attempt to remodel. Because of this you will want to carefully weigh and consider all of your option so as to maximize both your green design and your cost effectiveness. Take a moment and consider the following tips in planning your green kitchen.

Renewable Resources

A single stalk of bamboo can grow to almost twenty feet in just a few months. Numerous items, hardwood floors being a main one, can be made out renewable resources such as cork, eucalyptus and bamboo. The beauty and durability of these woods are equal to any of their slow growing cousins, like oak or maple, but far less impacting on the environment.

Find a Countertop from Town

Finding or choosing a countertop that is environmentally friendly is less in the material and more in the location. Try and choose a countertop that does not incur thousands of dollars in fuel costs to have it shipped to you. Locally mined natural stone is a great option. Other options can include a green laminate, glass or terrazzo, stainless steel, porcelain, clay or even concrete, again something you can get from a local fabricator. Most important is to make sure that whatever surface you choose to go with is durable and water resistant.

A Breath of Fresh Air from a Green Kitchen

Not only is a green kitchen, once completed, better for the environment it’s also better for the inhabitants of the home. When painting your kitchen consider using low or no VOC paints and finishes. These produce less harmful gases in their application to a kitchen’s walls. When you are planning the kitchen cabinetry, instead of going with the norm of compressed wood consider formaldehyde-free medium-density fiberboard (MDF). Compressed agricultural plant material is another green option. Searching out an energy efficient range hood is also important this can help to reduce the moistures that cause bacteria.

Energy Efficient Appliances

Quite a bit of a home’s energy use goes to the kitchen, with a refrigerator taking around 14%. This is according to the U.S Green Building Council. Likewise, 80% of a dishwasher’s energy goes towards heating its water. This being evident it becomes important to choose the most energy efficient appliances available. If remodelling your kitchen means purchasing all new appliances, then in keeping to the green theme, search out those with the Energy Star Logo. Those old appliance you may no longer need or want, please donate those to a recycling center. These centers are designed to safely dispose of any harmful chemicals that may be present in the old appliances.

Lighting in an Energy Efficient Fashion

The sun can play a very important role in a kitchen, especially designed the green way.

Installing energy efficient windows or even a skylight is a great way to reduce electricity and take advantage of the sun’s rays. This is referred to as “day lighting” and when used in conjunction with fluorescent and led light, has been known to pay for itself in just a few years.

Make Sure to Recycle

Making sure to incorporate a kitchen recycling center can be important. This center can be modified to look like part of the existing cabinetry and makes the whole recycling process far easier. Dispose of the recyclable in the appropriate bin, when it becomes full; remove it to the larger bin outside. To take the recycling concept even further, consider a built in composting system.

Remember to Salvage

Salvage whatever you can in your existing kitchen. this is a very important part of the green remodelling process. If you are careful and remove the old items and fixtures properly, they can perhaps be reused in the kitchen or even other places in your home. Flooring, sinks, towel bars, anything you may be able to use again. This can help quite a bit in reducing the fuel consumption in the transportation of these goods, not to mention that these articles never wind up in a land fill.

Designing a green kitchen is not only good for the environment and healthier for the homeowner, but as a design trend never tends to go out of style.