Minimising your carbon footprint when moving house

22 May 2015

By Chloe Hashemi

Being eco-friendly is something that many people endeavour to incorporate into every aspect of their life. With moving house being widely regarded as one of the most stressful life events, it can be difficult to think about the environmental impacts of removal vans, packing materials, and much more.

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1. Start Early

Planning your move early allows more time to work out what can be recycled and where. Early planning is essential in order to reduce the environmental impact of your move. Take time to think about which estate agent you will use to market your house. The increasing prevalence of online-only estate agents can save paper and ink in producing brochures, and also save you money in agency fees.

Your destination home could have a major impact on your ongoing pledge to be kinder to the environment. Choosing to live or invest in a newer house could help you reduce your carbon footprint. Newer houses are built with a greener, more sustainable lifestyle in mind, and are more efficient as a result. Abel Homes, for example sell new houses in the UK, build award winning homes with a solar PV to each house. The buyers can benefit from the free electricity this feature will generate, and 'feed in tariff' payments from the government for 20 years.

2. Reduce Waste

Before you've even put your home on the market is a great time to start thinking about reducing the amount of belongings you will be taking with you. Reducing clutter will not only save you room in the removal van, but it can also make your home look more spacious in estate agent photos. Anything that is not used, has lost its meaning, or is no longer needed (think VCR players and Walkmans) should be sold, recycled, or donated.

Consider using websites, such as eBay and Gumtree, to sell more valuable goods. Otherwise, websites such as Freegle and Freecycle are great for giving away unwanted items. If online trading is not your thing, then consider donating to a local charity shop.

Household waste such as cardboard and most plastics can be recycled using kerbside collections. You should take bigger electronics, plastics, and metal to local recycling centres, you can find your nearest centre here.

3. Rent a Van

If you are moving locally, renting a van or truck can help to reduce the number of journeys between your old and new home - saving time, money, and fuel. If you would rather leave it to the professionals, think about using one of the more eco-friendly moving companies. Traditional moving companies tend to use excessive amounts of fossil fuels and packing materials, such as plastic, which is difficult to recycle.

Many people think that the larger the van, the bigger the environmental impact. While this used to be true, many 'Green Movers' can now provide you with more fuel efficient vans, so bigger can be better!

4. Clever Packing

The most commonly used packing material is cardboard boxes. It is easy to buy cardboard boxes, but it is better for both the planet and your wallet to try and recycle old boxes. Supermarkets are a great source for large cardboard boxes and will more often than not let you take as many as you want at no cost at all. Another option to consider is plastic boxes. Although they cannot be as easily recycled as cardboard, you may be able to find another use for them in your home such as toy boxes or shoe storage.

But what about valuables? Using items that you will be taking on the move such as towels and blankets to wrap up valuables offers great protection and is much better for the environment than bubble wrap and packing peanuts which take over 1,000 years to decompose.

5. Green Cleaning

The final step once everything has been packed and loaded onto the van, is cleaning. If you're serious about reducing the impact on the planet, you should only use eco-friendly cleaning products. These products are available in most large supermarkets and not only do they benefit the environment by being bio-degradable, they are also much better for the health of you and your family.

Moving Abroad

Air travel makes limiting the environmental impact of a move even harder. The best way to reduce your environmental impact is to reduce the amount of goods that you are taking with you. Try to only take your most precious items as most things you'll need such as furniture and clothes can be bought in your new home country, often at much better prices than the UK. If you do take lots of belongings with you, consider carbon offsetting your move. Investing in environmental projects will help to re-balance your carbon footprint after the move.

Eco-friendly moves can provide many benefits. It hugely benefits the planet by reducing waste and fossil fuels. It also benefits other people - donating items can make a huge difference to charities and individuals. Finally, eco-friendly moves can save you money in fuel and packing materials. Being conscious of the impact that your move will have on the environment, can limit the impact on the planet and help make a great moving experience.