Top Green Tips

 
So you’ve dusted off your recycling bin and switched your light bulbs to compact fluorescents, maybe you even bring reusable bags to the grocery store and carpool to work -but what’s next? What are you putting into those reusable bags? How can you take your eco-friendly activities further without remodeling your home or breaking the bank? Not ready to go off-the-grid homesteading yet?

Frugal, eco-friendly living is not just a recessionary practice; it’s a way of life. Greening your lifestyle isn’t expensive and complicated, it’s actually quite easy and saves money. Living a more sustainable life not only helps your wallet, health, and quality of life; it also helps the planet.

The Environmental Protection Agency reports that as of 2007, residential housing is responsible for 54 percent of national energy use and 31 percent of all U.S. carbon dioxide emissions, the most common greenhouse gas contributing to climate change. It’s not just the power plants that are causing the problems. Every action, every person, can make a difference. It’s not so much “saving the earth,” just trying to use it up more slowly.

My top tips for frugal eco-friendly home life
- Be suspicious of single-use products, even if they tout “eco-friendliness”.

- Buy less. Period. Re-use and fix things instead of tossing them. When you do buy, buy used. Shop at thrift, friends or relatives hand-me-downs, craigslist, swap, barter, freecycle,

- If you don’t buy used, buy sustainable, quality products. Better to buy one good thing once instead of lots of poorly made things over and over. This strategy might cost a little more at first, but it will save you money and the planet’s resources in the long run.

- Re-wear clothes before washing.

- Ditch the extra TVs. I am a firm believer that one TV per home is plenty. Ditch cable/satellite service.

Kids
- Choose battery-free, toxin-free toys.

- Limit exposure to child-aimed marketing - that stuff is RUTHLESS!

- Breastfeeding.

- Cloth diapers.

Bathroom
- Use cloth toilet paper.

- Use bath towels more than once.

- Flush less often.

- Shower less. I shower every two to three days. This saves my skin's natural oils and money on soap and hot water.

- Plastic shower curtain alternatives = polyester.

- Use cloth feminine pads or a reusable "cup".

- Know your bad bath product ingredients.

- Use essential oils instead of perfume.

Kitchen
- Be wary of soy. And not just because of the phytoestrogens. Check out tofu's environmental footprint.

- Know what kind of produce to buy organic, and what is OK if it is conventionally farmed.

- Choose local grass-fed meats, no to hormones and antibiotics. Eat less meat.

- Valuable kitchen tools: food processor, blender, water purifier, Pyrex storage, stainless steel or cast iron pans (no to non-stick Teflon).

- I shop for basic pantry staples instead of for weekly menus.

- If you can’t pronounce an ingredient or don’t have time to read all the ingredients then don’t eat it.

- Bulk items=less packaging waste=generally cheaper.

- Use cloth instead of paper – towels, napkins, baby face-wipes, etc.

- Eat out less – esp. fast food for its multiple disposable containers.

- Keep your fridge on the lowest or “energy-saving” setting.

- I use my stainless steel water bottle at home. It helps me drink enough water every day and saves tons of glasses.