An Environmentally Conscious Guide to Decluttering Your Home

Guest post by Carrie Spencer

Image courtesy of Pexels

As the world at large becomes more environmentally conscious, many people are looking for ways to make a difference. If you’re environmentally friendly, you’re probably eager to do your part. The good news is that you don’t have to sell your car and grow all your own food to make a difference. Decluttering your home in an eco-friendly fashion is one small step you can take now that can make a big difference down the line. Decluttering and organizing your belongings, for example with mini boxes or folding storage bins, can also make your home more pleasant to live in. This step-by-step guide explains how it’s done.

Recognize the benefits of decluttering your home

Clutter can cause anxiety, leaving you feeling frazzled. Decluttering is thus a great way to improve your mental health, allowing you to unwind at home. Getting rid of things you don’t need will allow you to identify small fixes and improvements you can make to your house.

Create a plan for your decluttering process

Decluttering can be a big job, especially if you have a large house and a lot of stuff to go through. The last thing you want is to get discouraged halfway through and end up only doing a partial job. Creating a strategic plan will help avoid this worst-case scenario. Make a calendar for your decluttering project. For example, you might plan to declutter one room per week, breaking the process down into more manageable steps. You can also find printable decluttering calendars, complete with checklists, on the internet.

Figure out what to toss, gift, or recycle

When you’re decluttering, the aim is to cut back on things you no longer need. In general, it’s a good idea to follow the rule of two: If you haven’t used an item in two years or you have two of the same item, you can get rid of it. When getting rid of goods, you can trash, donate, or sell them. Charleston Crafted explains how to know which category applies. For example, if you have an extra TV that’s still in good condition, you might sell it. A yard sale is a great way to get rid of these extra goods. You can use the money you make and invest it back into your decluttering and organizing, for example by buying mini boxes or folding storage bins.

Make sure to safely dispose of hazardous goods

As you go through your belongings, you may find goods that are no longer useful to you that can’t be sold, donated, or thrown into the regular garbage. Examples include already open cans of paint or old household cleaners. These things should never be dumped down the drain or thrown into the regular garbage, as they can contaminate the environment, causing harm to people, plants, and animals. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) provides a guide to safely disposing of household hazardous waste. There are also waste removal services you can call to get rid of these items in line with the relevant laws.

Go digital to cut down on physical possessions

Modern technology can be a big help when it comes to paring down your possessions. For example, hard copies of documents and photos can all be stored digitally. You can use a scanner app to scan photos, for instance, and then use cloud-based storage to store them digitally.

 and tech tools that can help you declutter and digitize items, like Nest Egg, Sortly, Google Keep, Smart Receipts, and more. Digitizing can also be more secure than keeping physical copies of important documents, like old tax paperwork, since you don’t have to worry about issues like fire or water damage destroying the papers.

Once your home is decluttered, give it a deep clean using eco-friendly products

Once you’ve eliminated some of your possessions, you should have some extra space in your home. This is a great time to give your entire place a deep clean from top to bottom. Include both dry cleaning, such as dusting and vacuuming, and wet cleaning, like mopping. To keep your cleaning eco-friendly, use environmentally conscious cleaning products. There are many products you can buy ready-made, or you can make your own. For example, common kitchen products like vinegar and baking soda can be incorporated into home cleaning solutions, from glass cleaners to drain cleaners.

Get organizers to keep your possessions neat and tidy

Once you’ve gone through all the trouble of decluttering and cleaning your home, the last thing you want is for it to get messy again. Invest in the organizational tools you’ll need to keep things tidy. These kinds of tools can also be helpful if you have children who have lots of small toys. Giving your little one a large bin to keep their playthings in will help them stay organized and keep their room clutter-free. Visit MiniOwls for unique and attractive storage solutions for kids!

Commit to eco-friendly home organization going forward

As you wrap up your decluttering project, think of ways you can improve your eco- friendliness at home going forward. For example, you might incorporate green cleaning products into your everyday lifestyle. If you don’t have a recycling bin, now might be the time to set one up. If you’re new to recycling, this guide explains how to know what is or isn’t recyclable. Finally, look for ways to bring your eco-conscious behavior beyond the home. For instance, when you go shopping, you might use reusable tote bags or a collapsible shopping basket bag, cutting down on the need for paper or plastic.

Decluttering can be a big job, especially if you have a large property. However, it can help create a more eco-conscious home—something that you and those around you will benefit from. The above guide explains how to declutter with an environmentally-friendly mindset.