Green Living Tips
Green living tips to get you started in the right direction for living green.
1. Turn off or unplug electronics that are not in use. Set your computer on standby (all of those little green and red lights that you see everywhere are sucking up energy and draining your wallet).
2. Recycle glass, paper, aluminum, copper, steel and plastic.
3. Compost food waste (no meat, it attracts rodents). You can also compost newspapers (no circulars, be they shiny or glossy) and brown paper bags.
4. Use rechargeable batteries, recycle all old batteries and cell-phones (Home Depot, Radio Shack, and Best Buy had a drop off, at the time of this writing or go to . call2recycle.org
5. Use fluorescent bulbs wherever you can. A 26watt fluorescent bulb is equal to a 100 watt incandescent bulb. Fluorescent bulbs contain mercury, so please dispose of properly. lamprecycle.org
6. Use “green” cleaning products. White vinegar mixed with water makes a great glass cleaner, and lemon juice kills mold.
7. Wash clothes in cold water and line dry if possible. You won’t believe how much you will save on your electric bill! Also, the UV sunlight makes the clothes smell great and kills bacteria. Or Check out our Laundry Pure Page
8. Turn off lights and air-conditioners (room type) when leaving a room.
9. Try setting your thermostat two degrees lower than you did last year (you can always put on a sweater or bundle up with a blanket).
10. Buy locally grown food. You will save money and protect the environment, by cutting out shipping.
11. Avoid using disposable products such as lighters, plastic water bottles, and other plastic items. Once these materials are used there is need to replace them each time which is very expensive and costly. Purchase products made from recycled materials. A product that has the recycled symbol means that either it has been made from recycled material or it can be recycled
12. Use cloth bags for shopping. Only take a bag from the grocery store if you need it.
13. Instead of using plastic wraps use resealable containers. When the plastic bags are used once there is need to acquire new ones over and over again however resealable containers can be used once and reused. This cuts on costs a lot.
14. Donate to charity or sell old clothes, furniture, toys or appliances.
15. Instead of using paper cups or bottled water, use coffee mugs or a personal water bottle. The coffee mugs and personal water bottles are portable and can be reused every time.
16. Unplug any chargers or appliances not currently in use, each of these items sucks vampire energy all the time. (See the chart below regarding Vampire energy)
17. Ensure you buy products in bulk. Purchasing products in large quantities or economy sized ones usually use less packaging and even cost less per amount.
18. Learn to reuse products in different ways. For example plastic microwave dinner trays can be used as picnic dishes. Wood pallets can be used to make furniture. You can make a desk from an old dresser drawer etc. When an object can be used for one function or purpose, it can similarly be used to perform other functions
19. Use electronic mails instead of using papers and envelopes.
20. Use dish cloths or towels instead of using paper towels.
21. Recycle the small used materials. Those little pieces of leftover soap can be collected and reused.
22. Old newspapers can be reused in a number of ways. They are great for cleaning glass, to stuff into shoes to kill odors, To protect your car seats from mud or water etc.
Real changes can be made to the environment by reducing, reusing and recycling materials.
Watch Out For The Energy Burglar
So, you think that when you shut off that Plasma TV or any other appliance in your house, you are saving energy? You are saving energy; however, not as much as you think, the energy burglar is still being fed. Even when appliances are off, most are still using energy. Passive standby mode (the clock on the stove is still running, and your cordless phone is in the charger), or the active standby mode, (the DVR is set to record, computers, printers, or monitors left on), all of these are consuming energy. In fact all of those little green, blue, or red lights that you see throughout you house are feeding the energy burglar.
In the green living tips chart below, the Pink lines show passive standby, and the Yellow lines show active standby mode. The numbers in white are the Kilowatt hours used annually, and the Numbers in blue shows how much money you are losing to the burglar.
Energy lost to the Burglar can cost US consumers an estimated $3 billon per year.
Other Green Living Tips
One of the best green living tips and giving your family a healthy diet is by home canning. Home canning allows you to preserve the summer's bounty, and also to always have a good supply of canned foods on hand, without spending a lot of money at the grocery store.
Also by buying local produce, you will help to save the cost of non-renewable energy by eliminating the shipping. For more information on home canning go to my Home Canning. page.
Renewable Energy
If you really want to make an impact on saving the environment, consider using alternative energy. Wind Power. is a great way to save money, and to protect the environment. Solar Power. is also becoming very popular. Both of these green living tips will save you money on your electric bill, and will help to save the environment.
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