Going Green in Your Home with Little Changes Can Help Save the World
Unless you have taken a sea plane back and forth across that stretch of water between Hawaii and California, you probably won’t have seen the latest island to spring up. It’s like nothing you’ve ever seen before in that it’s the size of Texas and is totally man-made. The problem is, this floating island is entirely made up of plastic we’ve tossed away. Of course, this is only one teeny-tiny smidgen of a much larger problem, one that involves rising sea-levels, changes in out climate and all that sort of nasty stuff that rarely makes the news – it’s an issue we all believe is so insurmountable we need those politicians and big businesses to take control.
But that’s not the case.
There is, in fact, hundreds of things you can be doing to save our world and, best of all, you can do all these things from the comfort of your own home.
Some of them may require a bit of an investment and some loud banging, things like:
- Installing solar panels
- Swapping out your old appliances for those worshipped on the Energy Star Rating
- Jumping on the bandwagon that has seen architectural shingle popularity rise faster than Beyonce’s fame.
But most of the things we’re going to suggest and recommend are way further down the scale.
So, without further ado, here is a solid list of little things you can do tonight, tomorrow, or over the weekend that will make your home a way more eco-friendly place to live.
Going green and ways to make your home more eco-friendly:
1. Have A Light Bulb Moment
We’ve all been there. We’ve all walked into a home depot store to get some light bulbs, your brain holding onto every intention of saving the planet, only for you to get suckered back into the world of incandescent bulbs in the corner; the ones with the bright yellow price tag that read $3.50. But don’t fall for this nonsense. Instead, get your wallet out, pay the $18 for a six-pack of LED bulbs and revel in the fact they will each last 10 years or so. In terms of value, it doesn’t get better than this.
2. From Rags To Riches
Another habit we’ve all slipped into without really thinking about the harm we might be causing the planet is using paper towels. Now, we’re not for one moment suggesting you shouldn’t use paper towels. That would be insane – a move well out of reach for us mortals. What we’re suggesting at here is much less of a commitment. We’re suggesting you just use fewer paper towels by swapping them out for old rags. All those old shirts clogging up your closet, and those bags of tidbits you’ve been saying you throw out for years and years, they can be cut up and made into world-saving rags. You can then toss them in the wash whenever you’ve used them. Of course, if you’re going to need cute little rags to make this more enticing, then go and buy some cute little rags. We don’t mind.
3. Brrrrr, It Should Be Cold In Here
One of the most energy-hungry appliances in your household is your refrigerator, which is a pain because your not in any hurry to preserve your foods with salt like they did all those years ago. Thankfully, there is a way to make your fridge more energy-efficient without swapping it out or upgrading it. All you need to do is: pull your fridge out so you can get to the back and bottom, arm yourself with a skinny brush and gently scrub off any grime and scuzz that might be clinging onto the coils. Trust us: your fridge will find it way easier to keep the food inside colder and that means it will use less energy and that means it will save the world.
4. No More Vampire Appliances
This is not a new suggestion by any means. In fact, it’s probably the longest reigning energy saving tip out there. It’s the idea of turning things off at the plug and preventing your appliances from leeching energy even though they are not in use. The problem is, going around turning everything off at night would take you hours, which is why you plug your most used items into power strips and get into the habit of just flicking them off. So simple. If, however, that still sounds like too much effort, or you know you’ll forget to do it at the end of each night, why not pop in a timer socket and just have everything power down between the hours of 11pm and 6am. It will do more than you could ever possibly imagine.
5. Get A Recycling Bin
We’ve not been lazy or anything, it’s just that there don’t seem to be any accurate statistics regarding the impact of a recycling bin. That said, it seems a pretty safe bet to say that you’ll be – at least – 100 per cent more likely to recycle your beer bottles, milk cartons, salsa jars and empty pickle pots if you actually have a specific and designated place to put them. Think of it like having a phone. If you have a phone, you’re 100% more likely to make a call or send a WhatsApp message than if you don’t have one. The same logic applies. So go and get yourself a recycling bin of some sort. Please.
6. Lower Your Dishwasher Demands
In a day and age where every minute matters, dishwashers have become a staple household item. But you’re probably wasting energy in the way that you use yours. First off, you’re probably putting it on every night, even though it’s not fully loaded, which is a waste of energy. That said, there are occasions where you’ve used all your wine glasses and know you’re going to need a drink after work tomorrow because your boss is a… Thankfully, most modern washers have a top-rack only function. Use it. The other function dishwashers tend to have is a delay button. It’s that one you’ve been staring at and never used because, who would want to delay a wash. Well, delay it until after peak-hours and you might save yourself some pennies, as well as reduce the pressure on the grid. Winning.
Please share any useful tips or ideas on how to save the waste our planet is accumulating or how to live more eco-friendly in the comment section below!
Let’s all do our part to make this world just a little safer and healthier for our children and all future generations!!!
