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How to Make Your Portland Condo More Green

by | Mar 17, 2016 | Living Urban | 0 comments

At this point, most people have become familiar with the tenets of green living, including cutting back on energy use, reducing water waste, switching to organics to avoid chemical toxins, and biking, taking public transit and buying local goods to lower carbon emissions. What else can you do?

If you want to keep our Portland neighborhoods clean and green, you’ll find that you can do more than simply upgrading to CFLs and programming your thermostat to dial down while you’re at work. There are always new advances in the growing field of green living. By staying up-to-date with trends in environmental friendliness, anyone can make their Portland condos greener.

Even Better Bulbs

CFLs are great, no doubt. They use a third of the energy of incandescents, they last up to ten times as long, and they’re designed to fit the same lighting fixtures as incandescent bulbs.

However, LEDs (light emitting diodes) have emerged as an even more energy-efficient solution. They use about a tenth of the energy of incandescent bulbs and could last up to eight times longer than CLFs.

Have you ever had an LED in your microwave or DVR go out? Probably not. They seem to last longer than the electronics and appliances they’re included in.

The only downside of using LEDs to light your home is that they tend to require specialized fixtures, which entails some hassle and initial expense when upgrading Portland modern homes.

Vertical Farming

This trend is great for anyone that happens to live in Portland lofts. With little or no land on which to plant a personal vegetable garden, it can be difficult to embrace the concept of living sustainably and organically by growing your own food.

The solution is vertical farming, a trend that requires only wall space, indoors or out. It works by stacking hydroponic planters vertically. With the use of either natural or artificial light (or both) you could have ample, fresh, organic produce at your fingertips even if you don’t necessarily have a yard.

Renewable Energy

Solar, wind, and water power are nothing new. However, advances in these green technologies are being made all the time, bringing down prices and making eco-friendly energy more available and affordable for the average homeowner.

If you’ve thought about upgrading to renewable energy sources in the past but have been unable to because of pricing or installation issues, it might be time to see what’s available and whether or not clean, green energy is an option for your home now.