Green Kitchen Design Lighting

They’re one of the largest rooms in the home, taking up the most energy. The materials we use to remodel them are not only expensive, but also wasteful, high-maintenance, and inefficient. Most of the appliances installed in this space draw a lot of energy, so naturally it is the most expensive room in your home and a great place to start in reducing your electricity usage.. Of course you don’t want to sacrifice your comfortable environment with the appliances and lighting that you rely on to function everyday. This is why green kitchen design has become such a popular trend: it increases environmental efficiency without sacrificing luxury.

Low energy light bulbs save money and protect the environment from the ravages of excessive energy consumption. Choosing a more energy efficient lighting option means spending less money, a longer bulb life span and less impact on the earth. These days low energy light bulbs come in a variety of shapes and wattages. Quality does make a difference when it comes to choosing low energy light bulbs.

 Large retailers have already started taking older high energy output bulbs off the counter. Conventional 100-watt bulbs, the most popular size, will be banned from in most retail outlets. along with frosted 60-watt and 40-watt bulbs, and followed by most others before 2012. There are also more unusual conditions where people are completely light-sensitive. Try to find bulbs that closely match the performance of your current lighting so that you won’t feel that the quality of your life is compromised.

Low energy light bulbs can help us to use less electricity and place less strain on the environment from the impact of the human race. With the current understanding of the impact that global warming is likely to have on all of us in the not too distant future it may be worth making the switch to a more efficient lighting option

Green Kitchen Remodel – The Triangle

OK, so you have made the decision to update and remodel your kitchen, let’s talk about the triangle theory of kitchen flow, you want to go green and use the latest ideas and energy efficient appliances that you can find, now comes the most important part, getting organized and having a kitchen design that is within your budget, can be built in your set time frame, and is functional and beautiful, yes -it is possible, but we need a gameplan.

Let’s start with the basics and know that the first thing you can probably do is research for the latest in Energy Star rated and prequalified appliances, these can save up to 50 percent or more on electric bills when you replace a refrigerator, stove or other kitchen appliance that is five years or older.

One of the basics of kitchen design remodeling is the classic triangle of the stove, sink and refrigerator. Imagine the ability to grab some food from the cooler, spin one or two steps to the left to your new stove, and then turn to left again to see your beautiful new sink that sits under a window so that you may enjoy the outside while you are cleaning some plates, and then you should be able to turn to your left again to see the starting point of the refrigerator, this is the triangle concept, all three major kitchen appliances working together to make your green kitchen remodel easy to get around in, and working together like a fine tuned Kitchenaid mixer.

In the example, all the turns were left, but they could just as easily been righthand moves, this is up to you. The triangle is efficient because it keeps the stove away from the refrigerator so as not to cause the cooler to work harder. but is close enough to close the door quickly and leave the cold air in, and as is the habit of most people, you should be able to just turn and place the food from the freezer down on the counter behind you, next to the sink, as you can see, this is where most of your counter space should be, and will let you prep your food right next to the stove, this should make it possible to live without a kitchen island, if you choose, and save some money on your green kitchen remodel.

Green Interior Design For The Kitchen

In addition to eco-friendly appliances, sustainable flooring and nonpolluting cabinets there are some other green interior design things that you should consider for your kitchen.  While it’s great to be sure that you are putting in eco-friendly materials for your major elements, what about some of the other things that you add to the room to embellish your decor?

One thing you might consider for your table is bamboo.  Now, I mean actual bamboo not the fake stuff that looks like bamboo – you want to choose furniture that is made from bamboo which is grown on eco-friendly plantation’s.  Bamboo grows pretty quickly so harvesting it to make furniture has a minimal impact on the environment because new bamboo can be planted to quickly replace what has been cut down.  Not only that, but it is durable, water resistant and anti-microbial.

If you’re using fabric for seating as well as your window treatments you want to consider organic cotton.  These days you can get it in plenty of gorgeous colors, prints and designs so you shouldn’t have to sacrifice style for your green kitchen design.

Green interior design doesn’t just refer to using sustainable materials that are newly made, it also has a lot to do with recycling so that older materials get reused instead of ending up in the landfill.  This is where a keen eye and a love for antiques will come in handy.  No matter what theme or color scheme you have going in your kitchen interior design, buying antiques will add ambiance and charm to your decor.

Try scouring flea markets and  antique shops for those perfect finds.  Also, don’t discount consignment stores – you can find them in almost every town these days and you will often find really great items that are in like new condition for a fraction of the price that you would pay in the retail store.  This is a great place to look for those knickknacks as well as furniture for your kitchen design.

Green interior design can mean a lot of things when you’re decorating your kitchen.  First and foremost try to buy items that are made from sustainable materials.  Also you want to focus on items that are non-toxic and won’t pollute the environment as well as ones that are manufactured with environmentally friendly methods.  Finally, reusing old items is a great way to keep your kitchen design green as well as give it unique appeal.