Eco-Friendly Moving: 6 Ways to Make Your House Move Better for the Environment
Moving houses is a process that requires a lot of planning, organizing, and thinking in advance. It’s also a process that has a significant impact on the environment. From production of waste during the packing stage to the emissions produced by vehicles running on fossil fuel, relocating can have a detrimental impact on the world around us.
Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be that way, and all it takes is employing a couple of sustainable, eco-friendly tips to make your move as green as possible. Below, six things you can do to make the process of moving houses better for the environment.
Declutter (and do it responsibly!)
Having fewer items to pack will definitely help cut down costs of transportation and make your move greener. That said, it could be easy to just throw away things while decluttering, but that would mean contributing to environmental pollution.
Instead of letting usable items go to the landfill, consider giving them away. It takes one or two trips to your local donation center to ensure that your items get a second life, and you’ll be doing Mother Nature a giant favor. Alternatively, you can throw a yard sale or list your items online for some extra cash.
Plan in advance
Not only is thinking in advance a large part of ensuring a stress-free move, but it’s also a great way to minimize your carbon footprint. It’s much harder to be eco-friendly when you’re packing in a hurry. Instead of leaving everything to the last minute, give yourself enough time to prepare, declutter, and pack for the move.
To make the process smoother, consider creating a list of things that need to be done before the moving truck arrives. Pack items you’re not using first (seasonal decor, off-season clothing, etc.). Also, plan your meals around the items you have in your fridge and pantry to make sure they’re empty when the time comes to move.
Clean your home with eco-friendly products
After decluttering your home and creating a to-do list, you want to make sure that you clean your home from top to bottom. Tackling the cleaning in advance will take one more thing off your plate, making it easier to prepare yourself mentally for a long-distance relocation.
Just like decluttering, cleaning your home is something you want to do responsibly. Instead of using commercial cleaners that are full of toxic ingredients, opt for eco-friendly ones. You can also take the DIY route and make your own cleaning products by using ingredients such as lemon, vinegar, and baking powder.
Look for eco-friendly truck rentals
Deciding how you’re going to transport your belongings from point A to point B is another way to go green. Now, hiring a team of professional movers can be a good choice, but taking the DIY route and transporting your items yourself is a much more wallet-friendly option.
To make your DIY move green, it’s essential that you select a rental company that has an eco-friendly fleet. This shouldn’t be a problem if you’re from Australia where more rental companies are moving to fleets with more fuel-friendly vehicles. When you use reliable van hire in Sydney you can rest assured that you’ll be making an environmentally responsible choice. For an even greener move, do your best to make the most of the packing space and try to move in one trip if possible.
Opt for green packing materials and boxes
Moving days are notorious for creating waste. All those bubble wraps and cardboard boxes are not doing Mother Nature any favor, so it’s best to avoid them as much as possible. Although borrowing and renting boxes might have been completely fine before, for someone who’s moving houses amidst COVID-19 pandemic, this may not be the safest option. The best you can do at the moment is to opt for packing materials and boxes that are recyclable.
If you can’t get your hands on any recyclables, at least make sure that any plastic containers, bags, and bins you use to pack your items are reusable. Once you move into your new home, use them to store any off-season clothing and decorations, thus lowering your impact on the environment.
Get creative with packaging
Although there are items and valuables that need to be packed safely to prevent damages during the transport, other, non-fragile items can be packed in a plethora of ways that don’t require conventional packing materials. Get creative with suitcases, backpacks, tote bags, hampers, and baskets.
For more valuable and fragile items such as TVs, glassware, dishes, and picture frames, you can rely on blankets, duvets, pillowcases, and towels to provide additional layers of protection. By using items you already have at hand, you’ll minimize the amount of packing materials needed for the move.
Wrapping up
For many of us, reducing carbon footprint isn’t exactly our top priority when we’re moving houses. However, given the environmental implications of the relocation process and its detrimental effect on our surroundings, making our move as green as possible is no longer a choice but a necessity these days.
No matter how complex moving houses may seem, if you make an effort to incorporate these six green tips into your moving process, you’ll manage to reduce your carbon footprint and help our planet while also saving a significant amount of money along the way.
About the author:
Derek Lotts is an experienced freelance writer and researcher. His main areas of interest are small business, home improvement, and sustainable living. He strongly believes in the power of sharing knowledge and ideas through the mediums of modern technology.