Simple Tips for Going Green at Home

Without stoking the fires on a political debate, it only takes limited common sense to realize that all of us leave our footprint on the Earth!

Our collective footprints impact our Earth in a big way and will continue to do so as the worldwide population increases. Cement and building structures constructed to accommodate our wants and needs are quickly replacing what used to be natural fields, farms, and the likes. In short, our world is changing.

Along with this growth and change, we will need to become smarter, more efficient, and increasingly conscious in not only reducing our waste, but recycling the waste that we do create each and every day.

To start making your footprint a positive one, here are some simple going green at home tips that can make a difference in taking care of our Earth with the added benefit of saving you a few bucks along the way!

5 Tips for Going Green by Conserving Engery in Your Home

1. During the winter, turn your thermostat down a degree or two. Do you really think you are going to notice a big difference in the way you feel by dropping the temperature from 66 to 64 degrees Fahrenheit? Turn it down even more at night when you are warm and cozy under your bed sheets.
2. During the summer, adjust your thermostat again! Resetting your thermostat a few degrees higher is not going to make a big difference in how you feel, but it will make a difference in conserving electricity. Your energy bill will reward you as well!
3. Turn off the lights around the house if you are not using them! When bulbs burn out, turn to a CFL (compact fluorescent lamp) or new LED (light-emitting diode) bulb.
4. Unplug appliances when you are not using them. Don't worry about your toaster, but appliances that have digital docs and background functions, require a constant electrical charge.
5. If you can wash your cloths using only cold water, do it as it will help save the gas and / or electric required to heat and maintain your hot water heater. If it is a warm and sunny day, hang your close outside to dry!

5 Tips for Going Green Cleaning Your Home

1. Fall in love with baking soda and distilled white vinegar. Both of these green products are relatively inexpensive and do a great job cleaning your kitchen, bathrooms, floors, and countless other areas throughout the house.
2. A little lemon juice dabbed on a cloth can help remove stains on vinyl and tile.
3. If you have extra clutter and various items laying around the house that you no longer need, check out Freecycle.org. Freecycle.org is an online community where you can give your reusable throwaways to another online member who can make use of the things you would have ordinarily thrown in the trash or taken to the dumps (your local waste management facility).
4. If you spill red wine, coffee, or ink, pour salt over the fresh wet stain. The salty carbonated qualities of Club Soda also work in helping you cleanup your spilt mess without leaving a stain!
5. Trade in your paper towels for washable cleaning cloths that can be used and reused over and over again. Keeping in the same spirit, if you forget your reusable grocery bag the next time you head out for groceries, request paper bags when you checkout and then use the paper bags to collect your household recyclables for the next scheduled waste management recycled products pickup.

5 Tips for Going Green in Your Garden

1. Plant a garden and enjoy the fruits of your labor. Fertilize your garden with compost from a homemade compost pile. Kitchen scraps, yard trimmings, used coffee grounds, and the likes can be recycled and turned into a nutrient rich super soil thanks to your composting efforts!
2. A salty saline solution, lemon juice, or distilled vinegar are great eco-friendly alternatives for going green to get rid of those pesky weeds sprouting in your garden.
3. Collect rainwater to give your thirsty plants a drink on dry days. Making a rainwater collection system is not as hard to make as you think it might be.
4. Use native drought resistant plants in your landscape. These plants will typically fare much better under your local weather conditions and will enable you to conserve water, too!
5. If you are in the market for a lawnmower, perhaps a manual reel lawnmower is something you could consider? Otherwise, an electric lawnmower will be another solid "going green" option. The carbon dioxide spewing gas powered lawnmower is definitely an environmentally noisy offender!