While setting up your house, remodeling the kitchen according to your need is an important factor. Eco-friendly updates to the kitchen are some of the best ways of reducing power and using the entire workspace. Transforming the kitchen into an eco-friendly one leverages the value of your apartment and also helps in conserving the environment. There can be a whole lot of aspects that can be kept in mind while upgrading your kitchen.

A kitchen can be easily made into an eco-friendly one by using many energy-saving equipments and appliances such as water-saving faucets, eco-friendly lighting and energy efficient windows.

Ventilation and Natural Light

You can save unnecessary wastage of electricity and save power by working closer to skylights and windows. By setting up your kitchen that way, you save a great amount of light. If your kitchen is not well ventilated and does not receive a good amount of light, then you should opt for LED or CFL bulbs. Installing an exhaust fan in the kitchen is very necessary; it fans out the entire bad odor in your kitchen and does not let the fumes stay. This in turn increases the amount of fresh air in the kitchen and removes any dampness. Using daylight controllers and energy efficient bulbs is a great way to save energy from being used.

Making use of Energy-Efficient Appliances

Energy consumption depends a lot on the appliances that are being used. Usually, new appliances always come with more efficient energy-saving technology than their previous counterparts. All modern electronic appliances use considerably very less amount of energy than the older equipments. All the Energy Star appliances use less energy and are more efficient to operate.

Cooking at a Time

Instead of cooking many times, try cooking once. Multitasking while cooking such as cutting vegetables can help you save a lot of fuel and time. Cutting of vegetables into small pieces increases the taste of the dish you are cooking and at the same time also cuts down the preparation time. The USP of cooking at a time is that you save a lot of fuel.

Choosing Cookware

Be choosy while buying your utensils; do not just go for the cheap ones as they increase you cooking time. Low quality utensils take time to heat up and hence consume huge amount of fuel or gas. Try not to use disposable products as they are made of low-quality cast iron, which affects your cooking process.

Adopting a Green Living

Keeping a separate dust bin for recyclable and non-recyclable wastes will help you do your bit for the environment too.

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Get your Society on ApnaComplex – Today!

ApnaComplex is India’s most comprehensive web based housing society accounting, management and communication software. It is designed to make the life of residents and owners a lot better by bringing in more transparency and accountability in managing a housing society. Check out the features of ApnaComplex and sign up your society today to get the benefits! We offer a free 30-day trial as well so that you can try before you buy!

ApnaComplex organized the Oota from Thota event on Sunday, 8th Jan, 2012 at Electronic City, Bangalore and here is the participants perspective of the event.

There was a sizable crowd of green enthusiasts with personal passions of greenery, gardening, no-plastic, organic farming and community well-being, bonding together through a common thread on this platform. Delighted to see participants coming from far distances such as Hanumant Nagar to attend the event and that’s true passion!

The pace got set with a talk from Dr.Viswanath of Garden City Farmers Trust – who presented some hard facts on the kind of food that we eat today. The dangers of consuming pesticides-ridden food taking their toll over a period of time was emphasized to create awareness. Though the speech was an eye-opener, all hope was not lost yet. Be it a terrace or a balcony, Dr. Viswanath & Laxminarayanan, also from Garden City Farmers Trust, showed the basic steps of planning for a garden, soil, grafting, seeds, seasonal plants etc. Pictures and success stories were shared on how even amateurs grew their own vegetables like capsicum and brinjal and fruits like the papaya and grapes in as little as 2ft by 2ft by 2ft space.

Following this, was another inspiring session from the Ms.Vani Murthy, another go-green expert who gave an actual demo of the materials that can be segregated in our day-to-day rubbish from our homes. Simple things like dry leaves, vegetable peels that can be separated out and mixed with soil and shredded newspapers to create nutrient-filled compost for plants. The difference between recyclable and reusable materials was also spelt out for the rapt audience.

The way the questions and queries from the audience till the very end were answered reflected the passion of the speakers.

Finally there were the packed stalls relevant to the theme of the day. Kids and their family thronged to the tasty organic chaat and snacks stall put by In the Pink. Then there was the unique and surprising flavours of homemade jam from Nature in a Bottle that teased your taste buds – you couldn’t resist taking home a bottle or two. For those looking to start their own kitchen garden, they were spoilt for choice of the garden tools and instruments, and exotic seeds by Varsha Enterprises. There was on display and sale, a variety of very informative and cost effective composting products and solutions from “Daily Dump” right from offices to homes to communities. Also present was Opron Biotech providing digital diagnostic equipment such as Thermometers, Blood Pressure Devices.

All-in-all a very satisfying and different way to spend a Sunday – one small step for the conscientious citizen. Heartening to see the pockets of change and hoping that this cascades into the right direction for Bangalore and rest of the world.

The event was supported by Garden City Farmers Trust, Celebrity Paradise Layout and Citizen Matters along with ApnaComplex.

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Get your Society on ApnaComplex – Today!

ApnaComplex is India’s most comprehensive web based housing society accounting, management and communication software. It is designed to make the life of residents and owners a lot better by bringing in more transparency and accountability in managing a housing society. Check out the features of ApnaComplex and sign up your society today to get the benefits! We offer a free 30-day trial as well so that you can try before you buy!

Navaratri Celebrations in a Housing Society – Tips You Can Try

When it comes to religious events in a housing society, Navaratri is a popular Hindu festival that you can celebrate within the complex. The festival revolves around Goddess Durga and is an occasion for families in a housing society to come together through community celebrations on a grand scale where everyone can gather and celebrate together.

The Magic of Navaratri

Navaratri translates literally to nine nights in Sanskrit and during this period, idols of the Goddess are placed in homes and temples and they are immersed in water on the tenth day.

In south Indian cities, families place golu (an array of idols and figurines) in their house and people visit their neighbours and family members to view each other’s golu collection.

Navaratri Tips for a Housing Society

You can create a central Navaratri event in order to bring the residents together. This should be done through the apartment association.

Once you get the plans verified by the housing society association, you can assign responsibilities to different residents and collect money from all residents in order to organize the event. You can handle the accounts yourself or delegate the responsibility to another resident.

• Organize a Main Event

With the help of the other residents, you can organize housing society celebrations where everyone can gather together instead of holding individual events. This can help in preventing the wastage of food, water, electricity and other resources.

You can talk to the managing committee and arrange for an idol that can be housed in one of the common areas for the general celebrations and prayers.

• Promote Homemade Sweets

You can inform all families to make their own sweets and bring them for the main event, as buying sweets from outside can be quite expensive for such a huge event. This will also bring some variety into the proceedings and families will be able to share these sweets and get to know each other.

If possible, give away the remaining food after the celebrations to the less fortunate who may not be able to afford such luxuries.

• Keep Your Sound Levels Down

While celebrating Navaratri in a housing society, care should be taken to ensure that the noise level does not get out of control as it can be a source of extreme discomfort for neighbours and other nearby buildings.

Since Navaratri lays great importance on the recitation of religious hymns and prayers and also involves a number of pujas, chances are that sometimes festivities can get a little out of hand. It is imperative that no one is disturbed in the excitement of the festival and its celebration.

• Spare a Thought for the Environment

Immersing idols of the Goddess in the water is common practice and care should be taken to ensure that the idols are immersed in predefined locations within the housing society. Setting up an artificial body of water can be a good idea. All idols should be made of naturally degradable substances that do not cause any environmental harm, and you can spread such awareness.

Try and use a single idol for the entire housing society as this would be extremely beneficial and go a long way in helping the environment and setting an example. With the right steps, celebrating Navaratri in a housing society can be a unique experience.

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Get your Society on ApnaComplex – Today!
ApnaComplex is India’s most comprehensive web based housing society accounting, management and communication software. It is designed to make the life of residents and owners a lot better by bringing in more transparency and accountability in managing a housing society. Check out the features of ApnaComplex and sign up your society today to get the benefits! We offer a free 30-day trial as well so that you can try before you buy!

Festivals in a housing society are celebrated with undiluted enthusiasm, as India is a country that’s known for its festivals and varied culture, and people from different communities live inside a residential complex in every housing society.
Although Ganesh Chaturthi festivities might seem enticing and fun, celebrations that are conducted during this major festival harm the environment in one way or the other. Every housing society should follow eco friendly and green practices in order to ensure that people don’t destroy nature in an attempt to celebrate their culture.

People living in a housing society can follow a few pointers through which they can celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi in a pleasant yet eco-friendly manner.

Why Choose Clay Idols Over Plastic Idols?

Idol immersion is a common scene during Ganesh Chaturthi, where the idol of Lord Ganesh is finally immersed into the sea or any other water body following the end of the festival. This adversely affects the marine life at sea. This effect is due to the fact that the Ganesh idols that people purchase are often made of Plaster of Paris.

This toxic substance, when dumped into the ocean is consumed by aquatic creatures, leading to their death. In order to completely avoid this problem, ensure that you buy an idol which is made of clay or mud as it does not harm the marine ecosystem.

You can do your bit and spread some awareness among the residents of your flat about the environmental advantages of using clay idols over plastic ones. Although it would not be realistic on your part to expect everyone to change their preferences immediately, all you need to do is start off the initial spark. You can talk to the apartment association regarding this.

Innovative Eco-Friendly Idols You Can Try

Apart from the regular clay and mud models, environmental groups are coming up with various solutions to reduce the adverse effects that massive idol disposal causes. A community called Sadguru Shri Aniruddha Upasana Trust came up with the concept of biodegradable Ganeshs.

These idols are made from paper from the trust’s Ramnaam notebooks. The paper is packed in casts in order to mold the material and give it a definite shape. The idol is allowed to dry for a period of two days and then painted with non-toxic colors.

These idols are easy to make and cause no harmful effects towards the environment. You can urge your housing society neighbors to buy these eco-friendly alternatives. A housing society can also buy a single large idol of the lord for the entire locality in order to reduce the disposal of numerous idols in the sea.

The Need for Artificial Lakes and Collective Dumping

In a housing society, the management can collectively make a decision to dig up a ditch and fill it with water so that idol immersion can be done in such a place, reducing the overall contamination. If an artificial ditch like this is created in every housing society, the levels of pollution will fall drastically and even traffic congestion on the roads can be avoided.

There are many small steps like these that members in a housing society can take in order to make their community a better place to live in.

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Get your Society on ApnaComplex – Today!
ApnaComplex is India’s most comprehensive web based housing society accounting, management and communication software. It is designed to make the life of residents and owners a lot better by bringing in more transparency and accountability in managing a housing society. Check out the features of ApnaComplex and sign up your society today to get the benefits! We offer a free 30-day trial as well so that you can try before you buy!

With the joyous festival of Ganesh Chaturthi right around the corner, housing society residents would have started making arrangements for the celebration of this auspicious festival, which is greeted with much grandeur. Although this festival will be celebrated individually in all houses, arrangements can be made in a housing society to organize a major event centered on the festival.

One of the major tasks involved in planning out this festival is selecting the perfect idol of Lord Ganesh. The residents in a housing society can select a huge idol in order to offer their prayers together as a community, other than the small ones they buy personally.

Here are some simple pointers which housing society residents must keep in mind while selecting an idol.

• Book the Idol in Advance

It isn’t an easy task to shop for idols just a day or two before Ganesh Chaturthi. Booking an idol before hand is extremely important. Most people tend to book their idols on the day of Janmashtami as a reminder or at least 10-15 days before the festival, so ensure that you book your idol way in advance. Did not book it yet? Never mind – its never too late for a good thing. Read the rest of the article and book the idol right away!

• Buy Only Clay or Mud Idols

The housing society management must ensure that the idols that their residents buy are made up of biodegradable clay, which easily dissolves when immersed into the sea.

More often than not, Plaster of Paris and other toxic chemicals are used to make the idols, which can have adverse effects on the marine ecosystem. In order to maintain a green housing society, this rule must be enforced.

• Choose the Right Size

Ganesh idols are available in an array of sizes and this makes it difficult to choose the ideal one. Since the Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations held at a housing society would normally cater to a large number of people, it would be practical to choose an idol which is approximately 10-15 feet high.

Smaller idols can be chosen for personal purposes in every home. The main idol should be properly transported into the housing society, though, without any damages.

• Choose a Seated Idol

This is an extremely important tip that the management should note while choosing a Ganesh idol. When a standing idol is installed in a particular place over a period of 10 days, there is a high chance that cracking may occur due to the heavy weight borne. For this reason, it’s more practical to choose a seated idol.

• Opt for Natural Colors

For environmental reasons, the housing society management should opt for and promote Ganesh idols that are not painted with toxic paints and dyes. Instead, natural coloring substances such as turmeric and vermillion can be used to give the idol some color.

• Purchase the Decorative Items

The housing society management must remember to purchase decoration material for the idol in advance. In order to save money, the decorations can be purchased from a wholesaler. It is important to purchase the material only after buying the idol, as the size plays a vital role.

Ideally, the materials should be purchased a week before Ganesh Chaturthi. Plastic decorative items should be strictly avoided for use during the celebrations. Instead, cloth, paper and wood items can be used as alternatives in order to avoid environmental hazards during the immersion of the idol.

These are some simple yet vital pointers which housing society residents should keep in mind while selecting an idol for the vibrant festival of Ganesh Chaturthi. These tips will help the management ensure that all residents enjoy the festivities to the fullest, while setting an example of being environmentally conscious citizens.

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Get your Society on ApnaComplex – Today!
ApnaComplex is India’s most comprehensive web based housing society accounting, management and communication software. It is designed to make the life of residents and owners a lot better by bringing in more transparency and accountability in managing a housing society. Check out the features of ApnaComplex and sign up your society today to get the benefits! We offer a free 30-day trial as well so that you can try before you buy!

Growing plants in and around your house can be very beneficial; however, there are certain plants that you should avoid growing indoors in your apartment. Plants and shrubs provide a variety of benefits as they add on to household décor and purify the air – but not all of them are suited for indoor gardening.

You should take proper care while selecting the plants for your indoor garden of your apartment and should also garner enough knowledge about the characteristics of the chosen plants.

The Basic Factors

You should choose a plant that falls within your budget and doesn’t require more time and care than you can afford. With kids, patients and elderly people around, you should also be well aware of the harmful effects that certain indoor plants can have in order avoid any unwanted complications like:

• Asthma
• Allergy
• Rashes or scratches
• Poisoning

Plants You Should Avoid

Generally avoid growing plants of the below given categories.

• Plants that are infested and act as hubs for pests
• Plants that possess unhealthy foliage, that is, foliage with undersides that show signs of infections or diseases
• Plants which have spots or blotches, wilted foliage, brown leaf margins or yellow leaves
• Plants whose leaves are either torn or treated with certain agents that provide an artificial polish
• Plants whose light energy requirements are more than what you can provide in an indoor environment
• Weak plants which do not have any leaf buds or new flower with some young plant growth
• Plants which do not have the capability to acclimatize, adapt and survive in the indoor conditions or your home setting

Plants That Spread Pollen

People suffering from asthma must avoid growing plants or trees which produce lot of pollen. Given below are a few plants and trees that you should avoid growing in your indoor garden or community garden if you are asthmatic or stay with a person who’s allergic to pollen.

• Ash
• Amaranthus
• Birch
• Beech
• Crocus
• Cypress
• Coneflower
• Elderberry
• Juniper
• Oak
• Poppy
• Privet
• Peony

Plants That Are Potentially Poisonous

Plants that you should avoid growing in your indoor garden, in order to prevent poisoning, have been given below:

• Azalea (Rhododendron)
• Monkshood (Aconitum)
• Bleeding heart (Dicentra)
• Black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia)
• Yew (Taxus cuspidate)
• Cherry (Prunus)
• Castor bean (Ricinus communis)
• Elderberry (Sambucus canadensis)
• Lily-of-the-valley (Convallaria majalis)
• Wisteria
• Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea)
• Oleander (Nerium oleander)
• Larkspur (Delphinium)
• Jimsonweed (Datura)
• Lantana (Lantana camara)

Other Plants to Avoid

There are certain plants which can cause illness on consumption. Although adults might be prudent enough to stay away from these, kids might surrender to curiosity and succumb to poisoning or illness by eating parts of these plants.

• Wisteria
• Cotoneaster Berries
• Rhubarb
• Rhododendron
• Honeysuckle
• Delphinium
• Bluebells
• Fuchsia
• Snowdrop
• Pyracantha Berries
• Mistletoe
• Laburnum
• Privet
• Lupin
• Holly (berries and leaves)

Growing plants in apartment complexes has grown as a hobby; and you should pursue it only after gaining complete knowledge about the pros and cons involved with the activity. It is essential for you to be educated about the dangerous effects caused by some plants and the different ways in which you can tackle those effects.

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Get your Society on ApnaComplex – Today!

ApnaComplex is India’s most comprehensive web based housing society accounting, management and communication software. It is designed to make the life of residents and owners a lot better by bringing in more transparency and accountability in managing a housing society. Check out the features of ApnaComplex and sign up your society today to get the benefits! We offer a free 30-day trial as well so that you can try before you buy!

With the space constraint that’s prevalent in cities, it can be a tad difficult to plant big trees and plants or own independent houses with gardens – but you can create your mini garden in your very apartment!

Indoor plants can help in improving the overall appearance and lend an aesthetic appeal to your house in an apartment complex. Although the idea might seem quite hard to implement, it is possible to have a green surrounding if you use your balcony optimally by growing some indoor plants.

If you have access to the apartment complex terrace, you can talk to the managing committee and lend a touch of green and spruce up the overall environment there too.

Choosing the Right Plants

Depending on the amount of space you have in your balcony, you can decide on what plants your indoor garden should sport.

#1 – Regular Plants

If you’re not too keen about flowering plants or other categories, you can opt for regular plants which will add a hint of green to your interiors. If your balcony is well shaded, you can opt for plants like the Chinese Evergreen Plant and the Snake Plant. These grow well even in dark spaces and don’t require too much sunlight. English Ivy is another plant that you can opt for, while setting up your indoor garden.

#2 – Flowering Plants
Certain high rise apartments provide separate spaces for flower beds in all flats so that people can place their flowering shrubs. You can grow brightly coloured flowering plants in earthen pot containers. Your balcony space can also accommodate small flowering and fruit and bearing plants.

The choice of flowering plants is important and you can opt for peace lily plants or poinsettias. The quintessential rose bush can also give your balcony an attractive look. Get plants and shrubs that are of medium height so that maintaining them is simpler and hassle free. If you like shrubs, you can also grow a hibiscus shrub and the flowers from these plants can be used for everyday purposes as well.

#3 – Climbers and Creepers

If you like climbers and creepers, your balcony can be an ideal place to grow them once you provide the right kind of support. Climbers will have soft stems and these can grow out of control if you don’t maintain the garden properly and restrict their growth. Ideal options for climbers would be the Grape Ivy Plant, the Bleeding Heart Plant and Clematis. If you want to opt for creepers, Bougainvilleas will be a good choice.

#4 – Ornamental Plants

Ornamental plants can also be planted in your indoor garden, although you’ll have to note that these are high maintenance options. You can go for plants like Magnolia, Flowering Dogwood, Jacaranda and Cassia Javanica.

The choice of tiles and bricks that you use is important too. They need to get along with the home décor and should not look starkly different, singling out the balcony from the main living space. With a proper indoor garden, you can bring in some zing into your apartment.

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Get your Society on ApnaComplex – Today!

ApnaComplex is India’s most comprehensive web based housing society accounting, management and communication software. It is designed to make the life of residents and owners a lot better by bringing in more transparency and accountability in managing a housing society. Check out the features of ApnaComplex and sign up your society today to get the benefits! We offer a free 30-day trial as well so that you can try before you buy!

Infrastructure management in any two cities is never the same, and Rain Water Harvesting (RWH) is one such measure that has different guidelines in every city. The RWH guidelines in Hyderabad are understandably entirely different from those in Bangalore.

To understand the guidelines better, you’ll need to grow familiar the concept of rain water harvesting and the reasons behind the same.

Why Rain Water Harvesting?

Rain water is one of the purest forms of water that is majorly deemed fit for human consumption and use worldwide. Gathering rain water and using the same can help in tackling the demand for fresh water and the practice can also help in preventing floods. Some advantages of rain water harvesting include:

This process will help in recharging water aquifers

• The quality of ground water can be significantly improved
• Soil erosion can be reduced when excess rain water is tapped and stored
• Water logging can be prevented and this will help in negating mosquito related problems
• Water shortage issues that crop up in cities like Hyderabad during the summer can be tackled
• Power consumption can be reduced as the process of pumping water can be made rare

RWH Guidelines in Hyderabad City

Guidelines for rain water harvesting were enforced in Hyderabad in the year 2001.

• The owner or occupier of a particular building, which stands on an area of more than 300 square meters, should install a rainwater investing system.
• It is mandatory to install RWH systems in commercial complexes and housing societies.
• Trenches and percolation pits should be installed around every building in Hyderabad these can have a dimension of 1.2 x 1.2 x 2.5 meters. The trenches can have a depth of 2 meters, a width of 0.6 meters and a length of around 2 to 6 meters.
• Terrace water can be sent directly to these trenches and pits, and they need to mandatorily have filter materials. A brick wall should be constructed near these trenches and pits, with an ideal depth so that loose soil does not mix with the rain water that’s collected.
• Concrete slabs that are well perforated should be provided over these trenches and pits. Fine sand and coarse sand should be used in two layers in these trenches and pits.
• PVC pipes can be used to connect the terrace to the sump so that the rain water that’s collected can be channeled down to the sump.
• Rain water harvesting experts should be consulted to build a value system, which will directly discharge the first batch of rain water that’s collected (as it is bound to be dirty due to its interaction with dust on the terrace floor). The secondary batches will them be stored in the sump.
• Filtering tanks need to be constructed near the sumps in order to purify the water, and these should have two layers – one layer of coarse sand and another layer of fine sand. This filtering tank should have a dimension of 1 x 1 x 1 meters. The tank should have a sloping base so that water doesn’t get accumulated by any chance.

You can check if the rain water harvesting system in your housing society follows these guidelines and bring up any missing features during resident meetings.

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This article aims at collating and providing information for benefit of ApnaComplex customers and blog readers. While ApnaComplex has taken every care to ensure the information is accurate, we suggest to please use it only as a guidance for further discussion and action with help of relevant professionals. If you need professional advise on this topic and any other property related matters, please send your request through our contact us form. You may post your questions/inputs in the Comments section below and we will try and get them answered through relevant subject matter experts.

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Get your Society on ApnaComplex – Today!
ApnaComplex is India’s most comprehensive web based housing society accounting, management and communication software. It is designed to make the life of residents and owners a lot better by bringing in more transparency and accountability in managing a housing society. Check out the features of ApnaComplex and sign up your society today to get the benefits! We offer a free 30-day trial as well so that you can try before you buy!

Refrigerators are one of the major energy hungry appliances in a housing society. They might use less power than the air conditioners or the electric water heaters present in all flats in a housing society, but you can turn off the AC or the water heater. The refrigerator is a continuously run appliance that you cannot switch off.

Think of your refrigerator and then think of the number of houses in your housing society. How many refrigerators does it translate to? The total energy cost would be eye popping. And that is just limited to your housing society, while the city is bound to have more such societies by the dozen.

Wouldn’t you jump at an option to save on all that expense?
You don’t have to go back to using earthenware pots and storing food in cool dark shelves and there are many practical solutions that you can choose.

Energy Efficient Models

The solution is to go and buy an energy efficient model to replace your old energy guzzler. If your fridge was bought in the 1990s or earlier, consider getting a new model. The newer refrigerators are vastly more energy efficient than the older models. More efficient compressors and better insulation, results in much lower power consumption.

Newer energy efficient models have to follow more stringent energy use standards. With all the competition, most companies try to provide more energy efficiency than the standard required by the BEE. You can benefit from the same.

Lower Electric Bills

There’s a reason why every resident in a housing society should care about this issue and the most important point is to cut costs. You are sure to be paying utility bills every month – wouldn’t you love to see your power bills go down? Replacing them with energy efficient models means lower power consumption, and lesser costs.  Look for BEE labels on the products; they are an assurance that the models follow the standards set by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency.

Cost to the Environment

In most areas, electricity is generated by burning fossil fuels like coal. These release carbon-dioxide into the air. The more energy you use, the more carbon dioxide is added to the atmosphere. This traps heat on the earth’s surface, causing the green house effect. That is why summers are getting hotter every year.

Even if you don’t particularly care about ecology, it still comes back to affect you. The hotter the climate gets, the more you need to use appliances like the AC and the fridge. That again translates to higher energy bills.

Depletion of Fossil Fuels

The more power you use, the more fossil fuels are used up. The problem is that these are not sustainable energy sources and one day, they will run out. So, until safe viable alternatives are found to satisfy the ever increasing need for power – electricity or motor fuel – we need to conserve what we have.

Energy Rating

As of 2010, BEE labeling has been made mandatory for Frost Free Refrigerators, while labeling is still voluntary for Direct Cool systems. These star rated refrigerators might cost a bit more. But when you factor in the cost savings in terms of lowered electric bills, you could probably recover the cost in two or three years. That is not bad for a machine that would probably be used for around a decade, if maintained well.

A housing society comprises several residences. Count the total cost in terms of money, energy, and the cost to the environment. If the members of your housing society get together and decide to use energy efficient appliances, think of how much you could be saving.

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Get your Society on ApnaComplex – Today!

ApnaComplex is India’s most comprehensive web based housing society accounting, management and communication software. It is designed to make the life of residents and owners a lot better by bringing in more transparency and accountability in managing a housing society. Check out the features of ApnaComplex and sign up your society today to get the benefits! We offer a free 30-day trail as well so that you can try before you buy!

Water is a precious resource and the world over; it is also a dwindling resource – even in a housing society. Increasing human population is piling a huge demand on the overall water resources, and reservoirs are drying up and water tables are correspondingly going down. Housing societies everywhere are looking for ways to conserve water usage and replenish water reserves.

There are several ways through which the residents in your housing society can conserve water:

• Leaky Faucets – Check for leaking taps. The eternally dripping water can slowly add up to gallons of waste water in a short time. Fix all leaks immediately after pointing them out.
• Flush Tank Leaks – Check to see if your toilet tank leaks water. If you suspect a leak but cannot be sure, add some coloring to the water in the tank. If the water in the toilet bowl colors up without the flush being used, it means you have a leak. Fix the leak as soon as you can.
• Displace Water in Flush Tanks – If you have a flush tank that takes in a lot of water, you can cut down on that extra water. Fill a water bottle with sand and put it inside the tank. This displaces the water in the tank, and the tank takes less water to fill up. Don’t displace too much water. Insufficient water won’t clear the toilet in one flush and will result in people doing multiple flushes.
• Install New Flush Tanks – Low flush or controlled flush systems can help you conserve a lot of water as the flush can be controlled throughout.
• No Bathtubs – Filling a bathtub takes a lot of water. So avoid using bathtubs and use showers instead. These are better and will keep you free of sweat.
• Restrict Water Flow in Showers – Use low flow shower heads or install flow restrictors in your showers. This way you can cut down the water flow through your showers.
• Take Short Showers – Do not take long baths. When you are soaping up, turn off the shower. Turn it on only when you need to wash off the soap. Letting the water run throughout can waste a lot of water.
• Prevent Clogging of Water Pipes – Salt content in water can quickly clog your water pipes. Your housing society should consider installing desalination or water softening systems to ensure clear water gets pumped through the water pipes.

How can this help conserve water?
When water flows out slowly from taps, people have a tendency to leave it running for longer. Also, they leave it on to fill buckets with water, and then might forget to turn it off. In these and other ways, water pipe clogging may result in water wastage. Steady, smooth flow of water through pipes and taps ensure more efficient usage.

• Don’t Leave Water Running – When you are brushing your teeth or shaving, close the tap. Turn it on only when you need to clean the brush or the razor. Use a glass of water to rinse your mouth, instead of keeping the water running. Teach children to turn off water taps properly.
• Washing Machines – Use your washing machine only when it is on full load. Using the machine when it’s on half load can result in a lot of water wastage.
• Washing Dishes – When you are washing dishes, do not keep the water running. Turn the tap on only when you need to rinse the dishes.
• Recycling – Try installing water recycling systems. Recycle non-toilet water for use in non potable purposes – like flush tanks, car wash, watering the garden etc.
• Rain Water Harvesting – You housing society can harvest rain water by collecting it in overhead filter tanks, or by redirecting the rain water to the ground to replenish water beds.
• Avoid Hoses – Use a broom to clean your front porch or yard and don’t hose it clean. If you must use water to clean it, fill a bucket with water and sprinkle it, then sweep it. Use soap and sponge to clean your car.
• Watering Your Garden - Water your lawn and plants during early morning or at dusk. This decreases evaporation, and gives the plans more time to absorb the water.

Your housing society can get people to practice simple water saving techniques to conserve water. Recycling water and rain water harvesting systems are another way for a housing society to combat water shortage. If all these measures are practiced, you can help reduce the strain on water resources and help replenish them.

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