Environmentally Friendly Bathroom - Go Green!

Form Environmentally Friendly Bathroom Habits

"If it's yellow..." and other useful, free tips

Here are some eco-friendly habits you can form that can help the earth. These don't require any purchases or installations - just tweaks in your routines.

1. Using a Cup when you Brush
   A lot of people use their hands to just cup the water running from the faucet, but you must notice how much water you waste in the process. Some people even let the faucet run the whole time they're brushing. An experiment showed that you can use around 1 liter of water per brush when you use a cup, as opposed to 5 liters of water, when you leave your faucet running while you brush. That's 5 times more water consumed!
   
   Click here to record your water consumption. Get your kids to do the activity to open their eyes to the issue at hand.
2. Use a Basin when you Wash your Face
   Again, you save a lot of water as opposed to just cupping the water with your hands.
3. If it's yellow...
   Remember The Fockers' (Dustin Hoffman / Barbra Streisand) mantra? "If it's yellow, let it mellow. If it's brown, flush it down." It sounds a bit gross at first, but there's some wisdom to be obtained from this line. If you're the only one using your toilet bowl, or if you're fully comfortable with those you are sharing the bowl with (eg. your siblings), you can apply this philosophy and cut down on the number of flushes you make in one day.
   
   Of course, if you're using a public toilet, it's a whole different thing, and you should shift your mantra to: "... Please be sweet and wipe the seat, and don't forget to flush!"
4. Braving the Cold Water
   During the summer or in warm climate countries, you might consider not turning on the heater anymore. By doing so, you can conserve electricity, which in turn, saves you money and helps decrease your carbon footprint.
5. Choose Recycled Materials
   If you're shopping for furniture for your bathroom, try buying recycled pieces, like tables from recycled glass, or recycled bathroom mirrors.
6. Synching your Shower Schedules
   If you must have hot water, and you're living with roommates or family members, consider synching your shower schedules. Basically, try to see if you can all take a bath during the same period of time, so that you won't have to leave the heater on the whole day. Here's an article describing how turning off the heater conserves electricity.
7. Bring a Hanky with You
   When you use a public bathroom, consider using a hanky to wipe your hands instead of using paper towels. Or at the very least, try to decrease the number of paper towels you use after every wash. According to Planet Green, a whopping 3,000 tons of paper towels are thrown in the trash each day.