April 11th, 2011 
Tushar Mathur Adopting a green philosophy throughout your household is becoming easier, but there are so many points to consider along the way. Sometimes you’ll have to accept compromise: using a little more electricity for a lot less water for instance. Even something as seemingly straightforward as window size has a conflict of interest. The following is a guide to how to go about creating a bathroom with the best environmentally friendly intentions.
Materials
Material responsibility in your bathroom has two main goals. Firstly, you must try to not waste heat and secondly, you must ensure that the materials are durable and that they can be disposed of responsibly at the end of their usefulness. These things can be in direct conflict: fashion has moved away from carpets in bathrooms for hygiene reasons, but using ceramic tiles from sustainable sources does encourage you to switch your heating on.
You can get away without heating for most of the year, if you put on a good pair of slippers and a dressing gown. Bamboo and linoleum are warmer alternatives, though they tend to fit a narrower range of bathroom designs. Finally, never pass up the opportunity to reuse materials from old builds or other people’s leftovers. People often end up with too many tiles or flooring slabs, and will be more than happy to let you haul them away on Freecycle or a similar service. And consider such services if you ever remodel!
Appliances
Whereas you choose the most power efficient cooker for the kitchen, and the best energy rated television for the lounge, getting efficient ‘appliances’ for your bathroom seems less important. You’ll largely be conserving water, and we often have a rather blasé attitude to water. In temperate climates, it would seem water is limitless and endlessly recyclable. It’s important to remember that there are energy hungry processes that are invisible to us (water treatment and transportation) and that there are therefore significant benefits in conserving water. To this end, consider some of the following points:
- Toilets used to use as much as 5 gallons of water per flush. The standard toilet is now uses about a quarter of this, but you can drive water usage down to as little as half a gallon with an ultra low flow toilet.
- Similarly, Showerheads now legally must empty at less than 2.5 gallons a minute, but you can find adjustable heads that use as little as 1 gallon per minute. And then you can always simply stay in the shower for less time!
- If you’re truely dedicated to green practices, a composting toilet may be your thing. Your waste is aerobically broken down for use on your garden, and when properly installed and operated, you shouldn’t find any problems with smell.
Living Green
So, you’ve got an array of environmentally friendly fixtures and fittings, but you’re not done yet! You still have to live in a way that doesn’t waste energy and water. So long as you’re not habitually absent minded, the following should be easy enough to follow:
- You can always cut down on water usage. Typical bathroom tasks like showering and brushing your teeth involve a little dead time where water just flows from the tap, unused. Switch it off!
- Toilet paper is a major eco-problem. We typically use over 100 rolls per person, per year, so the impact we’re having should be pretty obvious. 100% Recycled toilet paper is typically only a little more expensive, and several toilet paper manufacturers are seeking out paper sourced from managed plantations (in the UK for instance, these carry and FSC label).
- In many western countries, alternatives like bidets have proven unpopular. We just seem to be completely culturally opposed to them, even though in many cases, they’re technically more hygienic! Whilst they certainly cut down on paper usage, water and electricity usage will spike when you switch to using them.
- On the subject of cleaning yourself, opt for natural and organic soaps. Whether or not you entirely buy into the dermatological benefits of such soaps, they are usually more responsibly sourced.
- Don’t take the easy options with cleaning chemicals: a little elbow grease can turn a lighter, less harmful chemical spray into a sanitation demon. Better still are all the cleaning options your great grandmother had: vinegar, bicarbonate of soda and soda crystals, even lemons can be used to clean your bathroom safely.
By following some (preferably all) of these steps, you’re bound to fulfil the promise of your new, environmentally friendly bathroom. I hope you enjoy it!
Steph Wood is a Blogger and Copywriter for Splash Direct UK, with ideas for everything from illuminated bathroom mirrors to plain old toilets.
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