How to Build an Eco-Friendly Home Theater

If you’re one of the lucky few who can afford to outfit your digs with a home theater, than you can certainly shell out the greenbacks to make it green. In many cases, you may even spend less for products that have been recycled or reclaimed. But if you’re a cinephile who’s not afraid to face an inconvenient truth, then it’s easy to build the home theater you’ve always dreamed of while supporting a healthy environment.

The first thing any home theater needs is a screen. Whether it’s a flatscreen monitor or a projection unit, you can find an eco-friendly alternative for the energy-sucking varieties of old. For example, you have probably heard of (or own) LCD TVs. But what about LEDs? The technology featured in these monitors is nothing new. Light-emitting-diodes have been around for decades in your digital clocks. They’ve just undergone a vast expansion that allows them to illuminate traffic lights and living rooms alike. The resolution on these new and improved monitors is just as good as that of other flatscreens (or even better with four times the refresh rate), but at about an inch thick, they are a shoe-in for wall mounts. As an added bonus, they use 40% less electricity than the average LCD. And some of the top names in the business (Sony, LG, and Samsung, to name a few) have gotten on board with this green technology in order to offer an alternative to those who wish to reduce their carbon footprint while watching the HD programming they love. And then there are eco-friendly projectors that require less energy due to the use of LED technology (and allow for the removal of wasteful and hazardous mercury lamps, which only last about one tenth of the time). Many also offer an eco stand-by mode that saves even more energy when the projector is on but not in use (up to 80% less usage than a standard projector). Offerings from Sanyo, Samsung, and Casio all have their perks, but any choice would be an improvement over the power-guzzling models your parents used.

Next, you’ll need some seating, and here, too, you can go green. If authenticity is your thing, or you want your home theater to seat upwards of twenty, you can’t go wrong with retro. A little leg-work could land you some antique theater seats from an actual theater, so think about adding a little 1920s art deco style to your room while keeping the old out of the landfill and using your consumer power to eschew the new. Nothing is greener than reclaimed. But if you think old stuff is uncomfortable or creepy, at least look for one of the many plush seating options that employ earth-friendly products (organic or sustainable materials) and practices (non-toxic dyes, low-emission manufacturing, etc.). Believe it or not, a search for “eco-friendly theater seating” will actually turn up a number of results to fit any level of style and sophistication.

You can also go green with accessories, from eco-fabric curtains and pillows to bamboo shelving, and if you’re really committed, you can even install an induction stove to pop your corn with far less electricity that a typical stove or microwave! Clean and green. The high demand for green products to fit every lifestyle has made it easier than ever to create an eco-friendly home, and your personal theater is no exception. So explore the many ways in which you can create a cleaner Earth with your home-improvement project before you settle in to watch your favorite films.

Author Bio: Leah Marin is a communications coordinator for Projection Screens.

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