7 Zero Waste Swaps For A More Sustainable Home

Everyone’s given the opportunity to live a more sustainable lifestyle one way or another. One can make a better decision to listen to the many reminders out there on sustainable living and be serious about making it their chosen way of life. This simple and sustainable swaps list will help to find home alternatives when you’re living zero waste.


By Shaun Melendez

You’ve probably made it here because you’ve long been contemplating making the switch to a more sustainable and eco-friendlier lifestyle. Where more does one can start implementing changes in their way of living other than their homes. When change begins at home, this choice then has to start with small feats for you to practice on. Fortunately, zero waste swaps aren’t complicated to undertake and they aren’t expensive that they may end up hurting your budget. 

Switching to a more environmentally conscious way of living is said to not happen in an instant. You don’t even have to do all the changes at once. You can do it one step at a time, until eventually, living a more sustainable lifestyle becomes your new normal. Switching to a zero-waste home and lifestyle has never been easier and more accessible with these easy zero waste swaps:

Reusable kitchen lids

1. Bring Your Own Utensils When Eating Out

Swap out plastic utensils for washable ones. There are many utensils sets available now for purchase, with most of them coming in case packaging to make for portability when you constantly eat out. Especially if you know you’re buying take-out or you’re eating in a place that uses plastic disposable utensils, make it a point to swap those disposables for reusable utensils instead.

This also counts for drinks and beverages that you order. Instead of asking for a plastic straw from the drink shop, have a washable metal straw handy with you at all times. With this, you can enjoy your favorite fruit punch without worrying about adding in more single-use plastic straws in landfills anymore. 

2. Use Shampoo And Soap Bars

Natural and organic soap bars like this natural tea tree soap bar from EarthBits, among other natural and organic brands, have long been around for many years now. But shampoo bars are said to be the new kid in town. Switching to shampoo and soap bars made of organic ingredients is a good swap for your usual hygiene products placed in big plastic bottles or sachets. These aren’t environment-friendly as they’re unnecessary single-use plastic.

If you don’t fancy shampoo bars, you can also opt to source your shampoo from local shops in your area which allows you to buy them and other products by their weight. Thus, you can bring your own container instead and simply order a refill.

Natural Tea Tree Soap Bar from EarthBits
“Natural Tea Tree Soap Bar from EarthBits”

3. Shop At Plastic-Free Stores

Yes, using recyclable shopping tote bags or paper bags is quite common nowadays and is said to be helpful to the environment. But today, there’s a trend believed to be taking some areas by the storm. There are now stores in different locations aimed at producing zero wastes by eliminating plastics and other harmful materials in their products and the like. 

Instead of the plastic packaging each product comes with, you can now swap these by shopping for your household and pantry needs at zero-waste stores. All you have to do is to bring your own jars and containers, fill them up in the shop, and pay by the weight. This significantly reduces the amount of single-use plastic packaging you’ll bring to your home. 

4. Buy From Local Farmers And Bakeries

Depending on how it’s like in your supermarket, there are still so many establishments that have fruits and vegetables packaged in a lot of unnecessary plastic. What you can do instead in your household is to choose to shop from local farmers and bakeries rather than from the grocery store.

Local farmers’ markets often practice organic farming, which also gives you the best quality and freshest and chemical-free produce. The same holds for local butchers, fish cultivators, and even bakeshops. Plus, you can skip bringing home plastic when you shop from those local suppliers instead. You can bring your own produce bags and containers to store the goods you’ve when you take them home.

Zero Waste Sustainable Home Breakfast
Father Helping Son To Refill Food Containers At Home Using Zero Waste Packaging

5. Use Coconut Oil Instead Of The Usual Makeup Remover

Beauty and makeup products often come in a lot of wasteful, non-recyclable containers. While it’s hard to make drastic changes in your makeup routine, you can start with your makeup remover. It’s advised for you to use coconut oil stored in a glass jar instead of store-bought options.

Makeup removers usually come in single-use plastic bottles which you won’t be able to recycle. Coconut oil that comes in glass jars is said to be more sustainable. Not only is it natural and organic, but once washed, the container jar can be used over and over again in your home for a variety of purposes.

6. Fill A Water Bottle Than Regularly Purchasing Bottled Mineral Water

Make it a point to everyone in your household has good quality water bottles. For your younger kids, you may want to aid them in preparing their snacks and lunch boxes for the day such that they bring their own water bottle. Instruct them to refill their water bottles instead of buying bottled instead while they’re at school. 

You should do the same as well whenever you leave your home. When you have a water bottle with you, you can be less tempted to purchase mineral water that usually comes in disposable bottles when you’re out and about. 

Zero Waste Sustainable Home Toothbrush

7. Use A Bamboo Toothbrush, Not A Plastic Toothbrush

Bamboo toothbrushes have long been around now. But surprisingly, it’s believed that not that many are opting for this choice. A bamboo toothbrush can clean your teeth versus a regular plastic toothbrush. On the plus side, a toothbrush made out of bamboo is biodegradable, unlike plastic toothbrushes which aren’t making it a viable option to start with your eco-friendly lifestyle. 

Conclusion

As you can see, living a zero-waste lifestyle means choosing more eco-friendly options and decisions, and keeping an eye out for zero waste home products. Your end goal should be overall waste reduction, particularly wastes that are classified as non-recyclables. 

This low waste swaps list isn’t even exhaustive, but it can give you a good start. Once you get the hang of it, eventually you’re going to find certain areas in your household and life in general where you can make better and more sustainable decisions. 

Making the shift doesn’t happen overnight. It takes a lot of effort and getting used to moving forward. But a zero-waste life will eventually be easy for you that every decision you make is geared towards sustainability. What matters the most is you making that commitment and decision to start implementing changes today.

See also: Living Zero Waste: 7 Common Mistakes to Avoid In 2022