Here at Umbrella Property Services we are always making a conscious effort to improve our environmental impact in a positive way. We’ve made a number of changes to help us reduce, reuse and conserve and want to share what we’ve been up to with you!
Water Conservation
We know the nature of our work requires the use of a lot of water, so we are careful not to have our equipment running when it is not necessary, and we do not use more water than what’s actually needed for a job well done.
Zero Waste Recycling
In our office and out in the field, we recycle as much as we can. Someone from our team will go the the Vancouver Regional Recycling to sort and recycle everything properly – separating plastics, cardboard, mixed paper, and metals.
Smart Scheduling
You may be wondering how can our work schedule make any difference to the environment. Smart scheduling is all about reducing our time driving around the city and therefore reducing the amount of gas emissions.
How You Can Go Green
We’d love to see you join in our efforts! Here are a few things that you can do to help us stay green:
- Back in June, we wrote up a blog post about the use of rain barrels at home. They are pretty straight-forward to install and are a great way to conserve water. Especially now that Vancouver has been experiencing more hot and dry summer months.
- Have you made the switch to LED Christmas lights yet? Don’t know what to do with your old Christmas lights? Light Knights, our sister company, is proud to be environmentally friendly and use LEDs which are 80% more energy efficient than incandescent bulbs. Have incandescent bulbs? We will recycle them for you and upgrade your lights to LED!
- Here’s a simple way to help us reduce the time spent driving around emitting gas into the air – book more than one service at a time! If you are having us come out to do some pressure washing, you may want to have your windows cleaned as well. If you are having your Christmas Lights installed by Light Knights, then that’s the perfect time to have us clean your gutters.
Lastly, because of our love of green, we want to share an easy all purpose cleaner recipe for everyday cleaning in the home:
All Purpose Cleaner
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon dish soap
- 2 tablespoons vinegar
- spray bottle
- warm water
- essential oils, if desired (Lavender, tea tree, lemon, and thyme all have antibacterial and anti-fungal properties. And they smell delicious!)
- Using a funnel, combine the baking soda, dish soap, and vinegar into your spray bottle.
- Mix it up and let it sit for a minute.
- Now fill the bottle with warm water and shake well to combine. Let the mixture settle down by letting it rest for a few minutes .
- Finally, add a few drops of essential oil if desired. Some of our favourites are lavender, lemon and tea tree.
And voilà, you now have a great cleaner for the kitchen and bathroom!
You Take Care Of The Inside, Let Us Take Care Of The Outside
While you’re using this green cleaner to make the inside of your home sparkle, let one of our environmentally friendly crews make the outside shine! Give us a call today at 1.888.255.4666 for a free estimate.
You can read more about our sustainability commitment here.
