Are you a budding homeowner who has just selected your preferred HDB unit, or just someone who wishes to start fresh and green at home?

Living the green lifestyle is all the rage these days, and it's always great that more people are looking at how they can positively impact the world's environmental problems.

If you share the same sentiments, read on.

Firstly, green living is not a one-off thing

We understand that being environmentally responsible is no small feat. For some of us, it may mean a change in how we use things, but it's not difficult if we take things step by step.

Some of the things we already do include using reusable cups when buying coffee, taking our own bags when we do grocery shopping, and perhaps, not requesting cutlery when using food delivery. What started out as lifestyle changes have gradually become the norm.

Is there more we can do though? Definitely! Ready to go greener?

Go greener, be friendlier towards the environment

Let's talk about the 3Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle.

Thinking about food waste and recycling puts you on the right track, but there's a reason why 'recycle' is last in the trinity — reducing our waste has the largest positive impact on the environment.

Perhaps in your current situation, your options are limited when it comes to how you can improve your lifestyle. In your new home, however, it's a blank canvas waiting for you to add more shades of 'green'.

Taking a look at household appliances

We'll break down our typical household appliances into two broad categories: the always-on and not-always-on.

Always-on appliances

In this category, it's typically refrigerators and water dispensers. These are always plugged in and turned on, which means they constantly use energy and power.

With more brands offering increasingly efficient household appliances, you can easily go greener by picking those with as many energy-saving ticks as possible!

Not-always-on appliances

Then you have electric stoves, microwave ovens and air-conditioners, with the latter can be found in almost all households.

Here's something you can consider: every use counts. Turn off your main switches when not in use — leaked power leeches on energy, and also sucks your wallet dry. According to national grid power operator SP Group, standby power accounts for up to 10 per cent of total household energy usage.

But not to worry — if you're a prospective homeowner looking for a way to go greener with your air conditioner, you have options.

Ready to level up?

If you're thinking about how you can take it up a notch, Daikin has an answer — iSmileEco series' residential-use air-conditioner range that uses a R32 refrigerant.

R32 has a global warming potential (GWP) of 675 — nearly a third lower from conventional air conditioners — and Daikin is making it accessible to homeowners. What's more, it boasts five ticks for maximum energy efficiency. Cooling every nook and cranny of your room in a shorter time, with lesser carbon footprint and more monies saved? Yes, please!

This can be further optimised via Smart controls. With the Daikin Mobile Controller app, you can control your air-conditioner from anywhere, with just your phone. Now, you won't have to worry about whether you've remembered to turn it off before you left.

R32 systems make for a pretty holistic choice — they reduce required refrigerant use and energy consumption, are reusable when transferring within the R32 ecosystem, and are recyclable!

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More than just an air-conditioner

Daikin isn't just manufacturing units and refrigerants to make new products. With the cooling industry being a large contributor to global warming, they recognise their vital role in protecting the earth. As such, they've partnered with another organisation to reclaim old refrigerants and recycle them from end-of-life refrigeration equipment.

And here's where you can play your part in going green.

Venting harms the environment in many ways, and the steps to reclaiming and recycling refrigerants may be complex, but don't worry, Daikin's got it covered.

Through regular maintenance, your used refrigerants can be recovered by their trained contractors on-site and dropped off at Daikin's Eco-corner, where they will be picked up and sent for reclaiming.

Whether you're a homeowner-in-waiting or are just looking at your leaking air conditioners wondering what to do with them, you still have a choice to go green with a simple change. You won't just be saving the earth, but also your wallet!

Climate-friendly air-conditioners are the future; even NEA (National Environment Agency) are banning household appliances with high GWP from October 2022. Head over here to get yourself acquainted with R32 refrigerants before this nation-wide ban.

Go green with Daikin's iSmileEco series here.

This article is brought to you in partnership with Daikin.