Eco-Friendly Bathroom Remodeling Ideas

If you starting from scratch and able to build your dream home from the ground up, you have many more options and opportunities to build your eco-friendly home. For some of us, that wasn't an option! But there are many remodeling ideas to start you on your path to living green!

I find that bathroom remodels are easier and less challenging. Maybe that is attributed to the fact that my bathroom is pretty small-then again, maybe it just has so many possibilities! Let's explore them, shall we?

Consider changing your bathroom flooring! Linoleum flooring which is constructed from wood flour, resins and linseed oils is a perfect choice. An all natural product available in many colors, is easily cut and can be pieced together to create your picture perfect design.

Green Floors offers a variety of options for linoleum flooring at $3.59 per square foot.

You can order from them directly online or by phone and have the flooring shipped to your home and the benefits of linoleum besides being "green"-when taken care of, can last on an average of 30 to 40 years. Another great benefit is the easy disposal of this flooring, if you have to replace it. It's quite easy!

Replacing your old toilets can save thousands of gallons of water. Most of the older models were equipped with tanks that used up to 5 gallons of water per flush. We can no longer afford to waste water-the rationing has already begun here in Southern California.

The newer toilet models use a maximum of 1.6 gallons of water per flush and there are a number of styles to choose from too! Check out Wasauna online for their selection of eco-friendly toilets, starting as low as $359.00.

Your bathroom cabinets are another easy eco-friendly remodel. Kraft Maid can customize their cabinets to fit your needs, built to order, using your choice of natural woods and eco-friendly materials. Their prices are reasonable and their Web site is a great place to check out their contemporary designs and for finding a local retail dealer near you. Once the cabinets are in, consider a new sink and countertop combination that is made from recycled glass. It gives a great sparkle and reflected light effect.

If you are shooting for a less expensive solution, and don't mind losing the bathroom sink/countertop combo consider removing the cabinetry and installing a stand alone pedestal sink. Check out the selections at both Lowe's and Home Depot with prices beginning at $109.50. This will give you much more floor room, make your bathroom appear larger and will actually make your new flooring installation much easier-less to cut around. And depending on the dimensions of your bathroom you can add some eco-friendly, stand alone stands or cabinets to store your personals. IKEA has some terrific bathroom accents that are eco-friendly neutral colors and proportioned to work great in a variety of spaces.

You can visit Wright Design-a 2008 Green Log, Home & Lifestyles Award recipient, for more information on eco-friendly interior design solutions.