Green Your Garage

As a homeowner you’ve probably wondered more than once what might be done about the garage. And you’re more than likely to have wondered with a groan, or an expletive. Typically the garage is one of the messiest parts of the house: a dark, oil-stained, dusty repository for all kinds of random non-necessities that can include unwanted Christmas gifts, decade-old freezers, unused cans of paint, dead batteries, old car equipment, your kids’ broken toys, out-of-tune musical instruments, household cleaners, some lumber, and the noisy washing machine.

Oh – and it’s also where you put your car in after work.

If you really want to live a greener lifestyle at home, you have to accept the fact that something – anything – must be done about the garage. Or the “car hole” as the Simpsons put it. Here are some great ideas.

Clean, clean, clean

There’s nothing that a garage needs more than a good cleaning. So free yourself up one weekend in order to do just that. Even if it takes you ten weekends, cleaning the garage can minimize the health and safety risks caused by some toxic stuff that you have hidden there in some dark corner. Of course, it also enhances the visual appeal of your garage and lends it a cleaner, fresher feel.

Recycle

Once you’ve gotten all the junk out of your garage, drop them off at the local recycling center. If you’re not quite sure where exactly that is, check out Earth 911 and consult the listings on the site. By putting these unused materials back in circulation, you’re actually helping diminish the need for mining and harvesting and manufacturing – because then if someone needs anything they can reuse these materials to produce new ones.

Let go of the garage fridge

Why? Because more than one energy guzzler is one too many. If you already have a refrigerator in the kitchen, there’s no need for another one in your “car hole”. It’s a luxury you can certainly live without. Besides, a garage fridge is prone to use more electricity than the one in your kitchen, because the compressor works harder having to adjust to the temperature changes in your garage. So settle for that one you have in the kitchen and save yourself as much as 250 dollars a year.

Green your floor

Garage flooring can be pretty tricky, especially since you have to watch out for water and oil and a bunch of other liquids, possibly toxic (like paints and cleaners), messing up the floor. You can opt for materials that dry up quickly, like non-toxic concrete with no drains. This removes the need for hand-washing or having to hose down chemicals down a small drain. If you want additional light in your garage, you can cover your garage floor with bright, reflective (and of course VOC-free or low-VOC) paint.

Energy-efficient lights

Making the switch from incandescent light bulbs to compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) is a great way to green your garage. If you want to minimize even further the use of electrical lighting, then you might want to consider installing energy-efficient skylights for natural illumination.

Go for insulation

Insulating the doors of your garage goes a long way in helping you save energy (and money). It also keeps those nasty bugs and insects from coming in and eating whatever junk they find in your garage. Of course, insulated garage doors also allow for a green benefit that not all car owners are aware of: they cut down on drafts and ease the strain on your car battery. To ensure proper insulation, it’s best to consult green remodeling consultants like Greenwerks.

Green Tips for Making Your Small Bedroom Appear Bigger

The bedroom is a place for rest and relaxation, for coziness and (hopefully) cuddling. It is one of the most sacred rooms in your Chicago home. There are cases, however, when you may find it too small or cramped for comfort. It may resemble more like a side street where you have to maneuver your way through bulky furniture, twist and turn in such narrow space, and battle against the forces of darkness and toxicity.

Don’t worry. Your bedroom is not a hopeless case. Below you’ll find plenty of ways to make your small bedroom appear bigger and more spacious.

Go for bright lights

Just because the bedroom is small doesn’t mean you can’t place multiple lamps in the room. Don’t settle for just one source of light. You can install lamps close to your bed – at the bedside, or mounted on the walls, even directly above in the ceiling – to create the impression of bigger, wider space. Avoid stand-alone lamps that get in the way of the objects in your bedroom; go instead for eco-friendly fluorescent lights that illuminate your bedroom softly and elegantly.

Keep the colors light

Dark hues in a room make the walls seem like they’re closing in on you. So opt for softer, lighter shades – like cream, pale blue, yellow, beige, pink, and light green – to give your bedroom a more welcoming, more inviting feel. You’d be surprised at how these colors can create the effect of pushing the walls back. Also, try to avoid painting with heavy-contrast patterns or prints. And always choose eco-friendly paint! Those that are labeled as VOC-free, low-VOC, or non-toxic will do well in helping minimize your impact on the environment.

Don’t wait for spring to do some cleaning

A clean, clutter-free bedroom can make all the difference in the world. Seriously. If you leave so much mess lying around, you’re making your room so much smaller than it actually is. So arrange your stuff and keep them clean and orderly. Remove the non-necessities. Transfer those unnecessary pieces of furniture and place them elsewhere. If you truly want to live a greener lifestyle at home, the best way to start is by cleaning up.

Mirror, mirror on the wall

It sure sounds a bit old-fashioned, but placing a wide mirror on one of your bedroom walls is one of best ways to make small space seem bigger. Not only does it create the illusion of doubling the size of your bedroom; it also reflects the natural light that enters your room through the window and keeps your space from appearing closed and dark.

Multi-functional and built-in are the ways to go

One of the keys to making your bedroom bigger is maximizing its floor space. No, this doesn’t require costly home extensions and construction. All you have to do is look for multi-functional furniture pieces that serve more than just one purpose. Examples: a chest at the end of the bed that serves as storage and sitting area; a built-in closet that doubles as a storage unit; a small bookshelf that can also become your bedside table; and a bed from under which you can pull out built-in drawers or even a footrest. If unsure where to get them, a trip to IKEA, the local furniture shop, or even a garage sale can give you loads of options. Just make sure you invest smart and choose eco-friendly pieces for your bedroom.

Simplify your décor

It would be better to install one simple large painting in your bedroom instead of going for multiple small pictures. It’s also a smart move to resist heavy curtains that drape and cast large shadows on your bedroom. You cannot have too much going on; too many features can spoil the space and make it appear too busy. Besides, the bed is already your focal point; anything else should simply serve to complement it. So simplify your décor and limit your accessories – there’s no need to be too grand.

Lighten up the fabrics

The effect the fabrics in your bedroom have on your level of comfort is surprisingly huge. To make the atmosphere more relaxed, opt for airy and light beddings, slipcovers, window treatments, and rugs. If you want to go green, there are plenty of eco-friendly choices available: organic cotton, chemical-free silk, bamboo fabric, vintage polyester, soy fabrics, and cashmere. The best part? These environment-friendly materials are great choices for clothes, too.

Stay low

Staying low is a great space-maximizing trick for any room, especially that which doesn’t have high ceilings. You’ll be surprised at the effect low furniture pieces and low, Oriental-style beds can have on your small bedroom. They free visual space and keep the view at eye level unobstructed. If you have to include a tall furniture piece inside the bedroom, place it opposite the main entry.

Energy Tips for Your Home Theater

Do you know that there are over 275 million TVs currently in use in the United States? That number translates to other environmentally significant numbers: 50 billion kWh of energy annually and 4 percent of the electricity use of all households. Can’t quite get your head to grasp that? Think of it this way: all the TVs used in the US can pretty much power up all the homes in the state of New York for a whole year.

Then there are our beloved DVD players, surround sound systems, Blu-ray players, DVRs and TiVos, our Sony Playstations and Nintendo Wiis – all of which have their own power demands that effectively make our home theaters and entertainment systems certified energy guzzlers. Taken together, they can also cost the average homeowner as much as $200 extra in utility bills.

Don’t worry. There are ways to minimize our energy consumption while “chillaxing” at the home theater. And no, none of them require us to miss Monday Night Football or the next episode of American Idol. As you’ll find out from the list of energy tips below, the experience of enjoying your home theater doesn’t have to be a costly one – environmentally or financially.

Shop wisely

If you’re shopping for a new gadget or appliance to add to your home entertainment system, be on the lookout for items that carry with them the Energy Star label, which basically means that they have passed the EPA standards for energy efficiency and performance. It’s also important to note that, when it comes to televisions, rear projection generally uses the least amount of energy, followed by LCDs, then plasmas. To be sure, always check out the specifications on power consumption as indicated by the manufacturer.

Use power strips

Home theaters typically connect a bunch of high-consumption appliances: TV sets, speakers, gaming consoles, and disc players – all of which can be considered “energy vampires”. This means that even if they’re on “standby” mode, you’ll still spend an extra $100 to power these devices up. When you get yourself an energy-saving power strip, you can automatically switch off all appliances when they’re not being used – thus reducing the consumption caused by the energy vampires in your system. In short, power strips serve as your central turn-off point when you are done watching your Saturday night movie.

Adjust the brightness

Before you seat yourself on the sofa to watch your favorite show, make sure you’ve first adjusted the brightness of your brand new TV set. That’s because manufacturers usually leave the TV too bright as a way of optimizing it for display in showrooms. Not only will the right brightness setting help you save electricity; it also displays better picture in your living room and extends your TV’s lifespan.

Turn off the surround sound system

Sure, you’ve installed it as a way of enhancing the acoustics of your home entertainment. But if you’re just flicking through the channels or watching a talk show, you might save more energy by using just the built-in TV speakers. Turn the surround sound system on and those ten other speakers if you want to enhance the experience of watching an action blockbuster or a live-broadcast concert, but otherwise, it pays to go for simpler audio.

The Green Benefits of Skylights

Skylights – those windows on the roof that add a touch of luxury to your home – can do more than just enhance the visual appeal of a property. Sure, they can display for you the full glory of the summer sky, the stars and the moon, the multi-colored sunset, but don’t be mistaken: skylights are important energy savers, too.

That’s because windows – of which, really, skylights are only one of many kinds – play an important role in determining the efficiency performance of our homes. They affect our heating and cooling bills, the insulation levels inside the house, and the quality of the indoor air that we breathe. They have an impact on our lighting systems and designs. These days, skylights are also being incorporated with new technologies to provide even more green benefits and further reduce homeowners’ energy consumption.

Here are only some of the ways skylights can improve the efficiency performance of your home:

• Skylights provide natural warmth and brightness to your house and reduce your use of electricity and artificial lights. It’s been said that these types of windows can provide up to five times more light into your home than traditional windows of the same dimension.

• Skylights with solar heat control glazing – those that are designed to provide passive heating from the sun – can cut down on your need for heating and cooling systems.

• Skylights add a unique aesthetic appeal to your home interiors and create a feeling of openness and space without compromising your privacy.

• Skylights improve ventilation and promote fresher, healthier air indoors.

Before you proceed with skylight installation in your home, however, it’s recommended that you first consult green, innovative contractors like Greenwerks and let the professionals help you find out which designs, selections, and positions fit your home best. That’s because skylights can also pose a number of risks – such as the potential to cause drafts, leaks, and uncontrolled indoor temperatures.

When choosing your skylight, look out for models that have been labeled by the federal Energy Star program. In maximizing your energy efficiency, it’s also important to make considerations about the design of your home as well as the climate in your area. Of course, proper professional installation is not just an option – it’s a necessity.

There are three basic kinds of skylights:

• A ventilating skylight – usually installed in kitchens and bathrooms – can be opened by a hand crank, and can provide better ventilation by letting heat out and delivering passive cooling to a room.

• A fixed skylight, meanwhile, does not open, but provides plenty of natural light and reduces the amount of electricity required for illumination.

• Last but not least is the tubular skylight, usually 10 to 14 inches in diameter, designed to help reduce heat loss while also controlling heat gain.

As far as design goes, there are skylights with plastic glazing and single panes, but these don’t perform as well as skylights with heat absorption tints, insulating glazing (two-paned skylights), and low-e coatings – all of which serve to minimize your dependence on electrical heating and cooling systems. Size also matters: never should your skylight be more than 5 percent of the floor area in rooms with many other windows, or more than 15 percent of the floor area of rooms with little or no windows.

Apart from design, size, and materials, the position of the skylight should also be taken into consideration. Here’s what you should know: if you’re installing a skylight on a roof that faces north, you’ll get constant illumination and fairly cool temperatures. On roofs facing east, meanwhile, you’ll get maximum light and solar heat – especially in mornings. Face west, and you’ll get plenty of sunlight and heat in the afternoons. Finally, if you install a skylight on a roof that faces south, you’re allowing yourself the optimum passive solar heat gain, perfect for winter conditions.

Remember to choose carefully the location of your skylight installation, so that you’ll be able to maximize its green benefits and energy efficiency capabilities.

Willis Tower: 5-Year Green Renovation

Often when we hear “local” we think of small or neighborhood-scale efforts, but there are some large-scale changes going on in downtown Chicago that are pretty incredible. Announced last spring, the Willis [Sears] Tower commenced a 5-year green renovation plan (“Willis” Tower should actually be noted because it is the Willis Group Holdings, Ltd that commenced the green renovation).

Credit to WillisTower.com

Solar panels, wind turbines, and rooftop gardens will be added in addition to updates for every elevator and escalator, reducing their current energy usage by 40%.  Each window will be replaced with thermal prevention windows for better insulation and a new lighting system will sense natural lighting and change artificial lights accordingly.

This $350 million renovation will reduced the structure’s energy consumption by 80% and water usage by 40%, i.e. 24 million gallons of water and 150,000 barrels of oil annually. These changes are estimated to create 3,600 jobs.

It would be nice if there was an update page for the progress but until then we’ll just continue to look at pretty pictures.

Credit to Pondstone Communications Blog

5 Easy Tips to Greener Apartment Living

These days, everyone’s going green – and homeowners, businesses, consumers, manufacturers, and communities have plenty of information at their disposal on how to reduce their carbon footprint and contribute to a healthier, safer environment.

But what about the apartment dwellers? While people at home and at work are offered plenty of environment-friendly advice and information, there is not nearly enough discussion on how people can “green” their rented living space.

Don’t worry. Even if you don’t have a mortgage, even if the place you call your home isn’t technically yours, you can still save money, energy, and the environment by a variety of eco-savvy ways.

Switch to CFL

It’s simple enough, right? You won’t need a lot of effort or a lot of lawyers and blondes to change a light bulb. And if the light bulb is a CFL, or compact fluorescent, which gives off more light, needs less power to operate, and lasts as much as 15 times longer than the traditional incandescent lamp? All the better. Make the switch to energy-efficient CFLs and your apartment will be greener for it.

Unplug those energy vampires

You may think that the components of your home entertainment and electronics system – TV, DVD player, TiVo, gaming consoles, computers, chargers – don’t use energy at all when they’re turned off. Well – they still do, even if they’re on “standby mode”. Remote-controlled electronic equipment can add up to 1,000 kWh more of electricity annually even when they’re not in use. Your best, greenest bet is to unplug these appliances or use a power strip to automatically cut off their peripheral power.

Easy on the thermostat

Don’t make your temperature regulator work too hard. Turn it down a few degrees in winter and up a few degrees in summer. It can save you as much as 2,000 pounds of carbon dioxide annually.

Choose non-toxic

Doing some spring cleaning? This time, perform it the green way by opting for non-toxic cleaning products and agents. Also, avoid as much as you can those products that contain or emit VOCs, or volatile organic compounds, chronic exposure to which can be hazardous to your health. You can go green even on something as commonplace or unlikely as shower curtains, which now come in environment-friendly models that aren’t coated with the poison plastic called PVC, or polyvinyl chloride. If you’re out shopping for household items, but only what you need, and choose those that have been labeled as friendly to the environment.

Grow your own food

Indoor gardens are becoming more and more popular these days – and not least because those who have it can grow their own food. If you have a couple of window boxes, a small porch area, or a balcony, then it’s possible.

9 Eco-Friendly and Sustainable Materials for Kitchen Countertops

As “going green” continues to rise in popularity among consumers, so does the concept of sustainability in design among makers and manufacturers. The movement spans various industries and has grown to include green home remodeling and home improvement products.

Just take a look, for example, at the wide range of eco-friendly kitchen countertops available in the market today. Recycled, safe for the environment, and long-lasting, these “green” kitchen countertops offer better choices for the environment-conscious homeowner.

1. Recycled glass

Available in a variety of colors and textures, recycled glass kitchen countertops have arrived in the market in style. That way, you won’t have to compromise visual appeal and aesthetics for your eco-friendly kitchen. They’re pretty durable, too, and sturdy enough to carry the load of your kitchen appliances and related items. Among the most popular brands for recycled glass kitchen countertops are Vetrazzo – recycled from beer bottles and crushed glass – as well as IceStone, the surfaces of which are manufactured without harmful VOCs (volatile organic compounds).

2. Recycled steel

Okay, we all know that mining and refining steel can pollute the environment, but if you are really after a contemporary industrial look, or in need of a heat-resistant kitchen countertop that can handle those sizzling pans, there are still eco-friendly choices available. Recycled stainless steel countertops – made of 65 to 80 percent steel “scrap” – are now enjoying increasing popularity as earth-friendly alternatives for homeowners.

3. Recycled paper

Ever heard of kitchen countertops called Paperstone and Richlite? If you haven’t, you might want to look these up, especially if you appreciate 100 percent post-consumer recycled paper in your kitchen countertop. Don’t worry: these materials still make for solid, sturdy surfaces, and are dense and durable enough to last for many years.

4. Porcelain and ceramic tiles

Most porcelain and ceramic tiles that you’ll see today contain percentages of recycled materials – such as light bulbs, bottles, and – well, porcelain and other kinds of ceramics. They’re also commonly made using low-VOC adhesives, making them safer for use at today’s homes. Other eco-friendly advantages of porcelain and ceramic tiled kitchen countertops include: durability, heat resistance, easy cleaning, easy maintenance, and availability in a wide range of prices and styles.

5. Solid surface

Like ceramics and porcelain countertops, solid surface kitchen countertops contain pre-consumer recycled materials, recovered from the manufacturing process of other colors. They come in a wide variety of colors and patterns, and are typically made without any use of VOCs. Leading brands include DuPont Corian, Staron, Avonite, and Swanstone.

6. Plastic laminates

The plastic, of course, is recycled, and put together with adhesives that don’t contain formaldehyde or other kinds of VOCs. Inexpensive, durable, and easy to maintain, plastic laminate kitchen countertops have a smooth surface that’s made of plastic-coated synthetics. The most popular and sustainably designed plastic laminate countertops today are those made by Formica, Nevamar, and Wilsonart, to name a few.

7. Engineered stone

Engineered stone countertops are made from quartz particles (often too small for use in other industries), and feature qualities that are similar to granite. Easy to maintain, scratch-resistant, and available in a wide range of colors, engineered stone countertops are known for having a long life span. Environmental enthusiasts and eco-savvy homeowners will also be glad to know that plenty of engineered stone countertops are manufactured in a sustainable process and sealed without using chemicals and VOCs. Established brands include DuPont Zodiaq, Cambria Quartz, and Silestone.

8. Concrete

Concrete has many natural qualities that make it an ideal material for kitchen countertops. It is long-lasting, heat- and scratch-resistant, easily recyclable, and easy-to-maintain; of course, concrete can also be cast right in your kitchen, with new treatments used to eliminate future cracking. If you’re on the lookout for a concrete kitchen countertop, make sure you choose something that uses low-VOC sealers.

9. Wood

An old-fashioned choice, wood in kitchen countertops is starting to become trendy again – and eco-friendly, too. Thanks to woods from sustainably managed forests and recycled old-growth lumber, choosing wood kitchen countertops is not as “un-green” as it used to be. They get the job done pretty nicely, too, with tighter grains, longer-lasting quality, and a wider range of color choices.

Green Chicago Restaurants for Healthy, Hearty Eating

Chicago: one of the greenest cities in America, and a place that features a dazzling array of great restaurants and dining options. Put the two together, and what do you have? A city with an exciting, and growing, green restaurant industry. And we don’t mean vegetarian restaurants.

By “green restaurant” we mean restaurants that don’t produce the usual 50,000 pounds of garbage every year; restaurants that work hard to foster a healthy environment for their staff and patrons; restaurants that apply green practices and policies to achieve sustainability in food and beverage management, service, energy efficiency, and even furnishings.

Thanks largely to organizations like the Environmental Law and Policy Center of the Midwest, the Green Restaurant Association, and the Chicago Green Restaurant Co-op, consumers now have a way of easily finding green dining options in Chicago. These options include sit-down full service restaurants, self-service restaurants, and bars. The establishments that you will find in the list below are considered as “green” as calculated based on various factors. These include the percentage of organic food, local food, and seafood produced, served, and sold by the restaurant; food waste management practices; recycling practices; percentage of recyclable or biodegradable disposable packaging/products sold or used by the restaurant; and relevant regional & industry-wide green certifications pertaining to the business’ environmental responsibility.

In Chicago and looking to dine green? Here’s a list of great green Chicago restaurants for you:

Bleeding Heart Bakery: This is the nation’s first certified organic bakery, but Bleeding Heart Bakery positions itself uniquely by offering “local – sustainable – punk rock pastry”, with a wide selection of cakes, cupcakes, donuts, desserts, and breakfast. Guaranteed green by the Green Chicago Restaurant Co-op, the Ukrainian Village bakery has also gained green status from Indiana Certified Organic, a US Department of Agriculture-accredited body.

Chipotle Mexican Grill: Chipotle is actually a fast food chain with a green philosophy – “Food with Integrity”. The hallmarks of its Mexican menu (which has vegetarian and vegan choices) include things like unprocessed, seasonal, family-farmed, sustainable, nutritious, naturally-raised, added hormone-free, organic, and artisanal foods. The actual restaurants, meanwhile, are known for their glass, plastic, and cardboard recycling efforts. Oh, and Chipotle is also the largest restaurant buyer of avocados and naturally raised meats in the country.

Frontera Grill: This restaurant combines the energy of an American grill with a very Mexican vibrancy. It also emphasizes locally grown, seasonal, and organic foods, brought to immediate freshness courtesy of Chef Rick Bayless. The menu includes hardwood grilled dishes, rich moles, and chile-thickened braises learned from market and home cooks throughout Mexico.

Roti’s: Located in South Riverside Plaza in Chicago, this green Mediterranean grill restaurant is owned by Bill Post, who makes it a point to print everything on recycled paper and print using soy ink. Recycling is also a point of emphasis (with recycled corn fiber cups and 100 percent biodegradable packaging), as is proper nutrition. With plenty of local and organic ingredients in Roti’s delectable menu, Mediterranean food lovers in Chicago now have a fantastic option for dining green.

Uncommon Ground: Another one of Green Chicago Restaurant Co-ops “Guaranteed Green” restaurants, Uncommon Ground is found on North Clark Street as well as on West Devon Avenue. The West Devon Avenue branch has the country’s first certified organic rooftop farm, which has won several green landscaping and environmental awards. The LEED-architect-designed farm comes with large solar panels and produces a bountiful harvest of delicious, nutritious produce that Uncommon Ground uses in both restaurants, with herbs such as rosemary, thyme, chives, garlic chives, tarragon, sage, parsley, dill, mint, lavender, basil, and anise hyssop grown on organic soil. Apart from having a recycling program, Uncommon Ground also has a commitment to growing produce and raising livestock in a humane, sustainable, environmentally responsible manner. Everything harvested ends up on the plates downstairs.

North Pond: This is a romantic place for green diners. Situated in Lincoln Park overlooking the city skyline, North Pond features a menu that’s been inspired by the local market and by products raised or grown in their native environment. The restaurant’s excellent wine selection, meanwhile, is sourced from vineyards that take part in both their connections to their communities and environment and the artisanal qualities of their craft. Diners ordering wine are also urged to pay an extra dollar a bottle that will be donated to four charities devoted to sustainability – a dollar that’s matched by the restaurant.

Blind Faith Café: This certified green restaurant on Dempster Street in Evanston features a delightful vegetarian cuisine. The food is made and prepared with local and organic ingredients, and has come to be considered as a green staple for local, organic, globally-inspired natural food.

Do you know of other great green dining options in the Chicago Metropolitan Area? Let us know what we’ve missed out!

Rodents: Do Not Enter

When the weather gets colder in metropolitan Chicago and the surrounding neighborhoods, it would seem like there’s nothing more welcoming than a warm home. Unfortunately, to mice, rats, squirrels, and other rodents, your house will also look like a refuge of warmth. As temperatures go down, how do you keep them away? After all, you as a homeowner wouldn’t want to turn your house into a zoo, especially since possums and raccoons may also be crashing your shelter.

The National Pest Management Association (NPMA) reveals that 21 million homes are invaded by rodents every winter. Upon entering through the smallest cracks or openings, they chew wallboards, wood, electric wires, and cause possibly unimaginable damage to your house. There’s even a potential fire hazard once they start to take on wires as part of their diet. Of course, this is not to mention allergies and rodent-related disease.

How do you keep them out? Sure, they may go away once the weather starts to get better, but smart homeowners will not want to wait for the end of winter before they take action.

The most obvious signs of rodent invasion are the droppings and the food debris that these creatures will leave in parts of the house like the basement, attic, garage, the food storage, and the prep areas. You can also conduct a home inspection near the ground level of your house, and at the edges and eaves of your roof.

Since wood is one of the main targets of these pests, watch out for gnawed metal and wall materials. Softened wood is also prone to damage, as are roof edges, fascia, and soffits. So be on the lookout for holes and gnaw marks, which may all indicate rodent activity.

Other precautionary measures include sealing all holes, cracks, and voids on the structures of your house, and ensuring proper drainage at the foundation of your home. If you haven’t installed gutters yet, it’s recommended that you do. Furthermore, maintain plants and tree branches properly and keep them cut back from the house.

These are great prevention tips for letting rodents know that they cannot enter. If, however, you see signs that they’ve already invaded your home, you can call pest professionals and qualified specialists to help you with the problem.

7 Green Tips for Chemical-free Pest Control

Slugs on your porch? Snake in your swimming pool? Ants in your dishwasher and cockroaches in your closet? Pests: we surely can live without them. Whether they find their way into our households or invade the outdoor yards we’ve all tried to tend handsomely, pests are – above all – annoying. They’re also kind of creepy – especially those kinds that crawl and fly.

Yes, there are pesticides for controlling them, but most of these aren’t compatible with our eco-friendly practices and green lifestyles. The chemicals contained in pesticides are typically toxic and harmful to the environment (including desirable wildlife), and may even pose hazards to the health of our families.

So what gives?

The answer: nothing. There’s no need to compromise the environment for the sake of pest control and management. And there’s no need to keep getting annoyed, bitten, and irritated for the sake of living in a pesticide-free home. Here below are some great eco-friendly pest control tips – so you can enjoy the seasons and live in peace.

1. No more leaks, no more pests

The mice, rats, and squirrels that make their way into our homes usually do through openings or leaks that have been left unsealed. Block off their entry point by sealing those leaks and covering those holes. Inspect other gaps by checking the wires and pipes of your house. Sealing can be done by way of low-VOC caulks; better yet, stuff the openings with steel wool then cover it up with wire mesh. Even if the rodents eat the steel wool, they won’t last that much longer, since the material causes them internal bleeding.

2. Use natural insect repellents

There are plenty of natural, non-toxic insect repellents available in the market today. Some are made of lemongrass, cedar, or eucalyptus and other similar essential oils. These ought to protect you and your family from mosquitoes, ants, and fleas. You’ll be glad to wake up in the morning without looking like a missionary. Of course, don’t forget to read and follow manufacturers’ labels.

3. Try companion planting and really green gardening

Having problems with pests outdoors? Mix things up by introducing healthy plants and beneficial vegetables into your garden. Enrich the soil by using organic fertilizers and compost. Use mulch to reduce water loss. After a day’s work, make sure you take care of standing water, as this can easily become to breeding ground of pesky mosquitoes.

4. Fight insects with insects

The war is on! If you find yourself unable to do anything about the bugs that destroy your garden, don’t resort to pesticides just yet. Bring in the insects that will prey on them. Ladybugs, for example, can kill aphids, spider mites, and other similar suckers. Beetles prey on maggots, grubs, and insect eggs. Bees and butterflies, meanwhile, come in handy with their natural abilities in pollination. If you’re not sure which kinds of native plants will attract the good guys, just buy live specimens or eggs.

5. Soap and water to the rescue

Sometimes all it takes to control those bad bugs and parasites is a blast of water mixed with soap. Neem oil also works – just spray it directly on the plant and on the homes of those annoying insects. These are certainly better, greener alternatives to chemicals-laden pesticides.

6. Open a can of beer

Or more. Not for drinking, mind you, but for a unique but effective kind of pest control. Do you know that snails and slugs love their booze? Set up a dish of beer among the plants in your garden, so that when they come in at night to destroy your plants they’d smell the alcohol and drink up instead. And then fall in and drown. You can do the same at home and use that stale Budweiser to banish those fruit flies in the kitchen.

7. Show some grit

If your problem is ants, your solution is grits. Here’s the battle plan: wait for a rainy day and when it comes, sprinkle grits onto the anthill. The ants will carry these to their queen. Once she drinks it with rainwater, the effect will be like something from a lab-experiment-gone-wrong sci-fi movie. Her stomach will explode. And when you say goodbye to the queen? You say goodbye to the ants.