Check back every Monday for more ways to incorporate living green into your everyday life!
1. Use your dishwasher.
If you are replacing your dishwasher be sure to look for an Energy Star dishwasher. They will save you money and conserve water and energy. No matter what dishwasher you are using, be sure you wash only full loads. For a bigger impact air dry your dishes.
2. Recharge your batteries.
Batteries leak harmful chemicals when trashed so dispose of them with other hazardous waste. Then buy rechargeable which can be recycled when unusable and can give you many uses. For a bigger impact buy a solar battery recharger.
3. Stop Standby Power.
When you turn off your TV it’s still using up to 40% of the energy it uses when it’s on. Plug items in to power strips and turn off the power strip when not in use to truly turn off everything. For a bigger impact buy only Energy Star when getting new appliances.
4. Defrost old refrigerators and freezers often.
Defrosting will save you money and help them run more efficiently. For a bigger impact replace your refrigerator and freezer with Energy Star models, be sure to donate or recycle your old models.
5. Cover your pots when cooking.
Your food will cook faster and you will waste less energy cooking. For a bigger impact use pressure cookers and steamers, you can save around 70%.
6. Take a shower.
Showers use up to four times less energy than baths. For a bigger impact use a low flow showerhead. A low flow showerhead can save 7,800 gallons of water per year in an average household. For an even bigger impact, cut your shower time. Every two minutes you save on your shower can conserve more than ten gallons of water. If everyone in the country saved just one gallon from their daily shower. Over the course of a year it would equal twice the amount of freshwater withdrawn from the great lakes every day.
7. Buy smart.
A 1.5 liter bottle requires less energy to produce than three 0.5 liter bottles. For a bigger impact buy recycled paper products, they use less than 70 to 90% of the energy it takes to make new paper. You also will be helping prevent the loss of forests.
8. Plant a tree.
One tree will absorb one ton of CO2 over its lifetime. Shade provided by trees can reduce you’re a/c bill by 10 to 15%. For a bigger impact also plant scrubs around your home to help keep your house cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter.
9. Set your thermostat a degree higher for ac and a degree lower for heating.
You could save $100 per year on your utility bill. Keep adjusting and you’ll save even more. For a bigger impact buy a programmable thermostat.
10. Recycle!
You can save 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide a year by recycling half of the waste your household generates. You may even save money on trash pickup. For a bigger impact donate any item that can still be used.
If you want more tips on living green, check out Lisa’s blog Retro Housewife Goes Green.
Loading ...
These are great, easy to do tips Lisa. Thanks! One of the things that I do after I give my daughter a bath is use the water to water my plants. The plants don't seem to mind.
All good tips. Recycle that old freezer in the garage and get a new solar powered one. It will pay for itself in a short time.