Heating hot water accounts for 25% of home energy usage. Using water efficiently reduces energy bills and ultimately reduces carbon emissions. Look for the unified water label and start making a difference. The label has a clear colour coded system to show how much energy and water the product uses. Green rated products use less than those rated Red. Visit www.uwla.eu to find out more.

Brass is a mixture of copper and zinc and the amounts vary depending on the desired properties. Copper is usually the main material and the more zinc you add results in the brass being harder and stronger, but also results in it being more difficult to shape and less resistant to rust. Brass can be recycled as brass but never into its original metals. At IKEA we use brass for things like knobs, handles, frames and taps.

When you use an IKEA kitchen mixer tap, you're saving water thanks to an aerator that reduces flow while maintaining pressure. We didn't invent aerators, but think they are a good example of how we value water. It's one of Earth's most precious resources, yet very little of it is drinkable and even less is accessible. No organism can survive without it either. That's why we want to be good stewards of water at every step, whether in our factories or in your kitchen mixer tap.