A home renovation project generates more waste than you might think, which often takes a lot of homeowners by surprise. Apart from increasing the overall cost of your project from waste disposal alone, failure to properly manage waste also causes harm to the environment since most construction waste goes directly to the landfill.
If you want to reduce waste during your renovation project, here are some of the most effective strategies that you can use:
- Talk to your designers and contractors
It is impossible to eliminate construction waste in a renovation project, but there are ways to reduce the amount that you generate. However, to effectively mitigate construction waste from the get-go, you have to ensure that your designer, builder, and project manager all have the same goal in mind.
Speak with the team during the planning stage so that they can figure out how to reduce waste in each step of the way. By doing so, you can avoid instances wherein excess material is used or when the team doesn’t use proper disposal equipment like outdoor waste bins, helping reduce the production of waste.
- Sell what you can
When renovating your home, there might be items in your disposal bin that can still be usable, such as furniture, appliances, and fixtures. As long as they can still be used or repaired, don’t throw them away as they will only end up in the landfill. Instead, donate them to charity organizations, give them away to close friends or family, or sell them on the Internet for extra cash.
It can take some time to get rid of all these items, so it’s best to start selling or donating them a few weeks before construction starts.
- Salvage materials
Go for deconstruction instead of demolition. With deconstruction, the structure is taken apart piece by piece, allowing you to salvage materials that can still be used. Afterward, you can sort the materials, reuse them for your renovation project, resell them, or repurpose them into something else entirely.
In addition to reducing waste, salvaging construction materials can help you save money by reducing fees for disposal, which are typically higher for mixed waste.
- Don’t be finicky
Changing your mind halfway through the construction process not only delays the project, but it also increases costs and the amount of waste you produce. This is why the planning stage is highly important. During the planning stage, ensure that everything is up to your liking before finalizing your decisions. At the very least, talk to your contractor about last-minute changesbeforethey start constructing the part that you want to change.
- Keep it simple
Simple designs generate less waste than more complicated ones due to less material used and lower chances of mistakes. So if you want to save money and reduce construction waste at the same time, sticking to a simple design is one of the best ways to do it.
- Reuse furnishings
Furniture such as cabinets, vanities, dressers, and bed frames contribute a significant amount of waste if you trash them during the renovation. The same goes for fixtures such as bathtubs, lights, showers, and more.
If these furnishings and fixtures are still functional, consider reusing them for your new home design. Repair, repaint, buff, and restain them to make them look good as new.
- Send materials to recycling centers
For construction material that you can’t reuse, donate, or sell, send them to the appropriate centers that recycle construction debris. Before starting construction, ask your contractor to separate recyclable material so that sorting will be easier when it’s time to send the waste to recycling centers.
Doing this might take more time and effort, but recycling construction debris prevents a significant amount of waste from going directly to the landfill.
- Use recycled materials
Make it known to your designers and contractors that you want to incorporate recycled materials into the project. Construction materials that contain recycled components include glass, tiles, carpets, insulation, wood, and brick, to name a few. Aside from helping save the environment, using recycled materials can help save money, which can be poured into other aspects of the renovation.
Construction is often a wasteful activity, especially for a home renovation project. However, producing construction waste is unavoidable, so you need to work with your designers and builders to make your home renovation project as minimally wasteful as possible. Aside from doing it for the benefit of the environment, do it for all the money you can save.
