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14 Easy Ways To Go Green        

1. Use your dishwasher — You don’t need to feel guilty about running your dishwasher.  In fact, it actually uses less water than doing dishes by hand. Run it only when full and use the most efficient setting -- light rather than heavy wash and air dry instead of heat. Don't bother to pre-rinse before loading. Tests by the Consumers Union show that rinsing is unnecessary and wastes up to 20 gallons of water per load.

2. Buy in bulk — When shopping avoid single-serving packaged products and select large packages instead. Transfer the contents, such as applesauce or yogurt, into individual servings to go in reusable containers. At home, skip plastic wrap and aluminum foil in favor of washable containers with lids.

3. Do full loads — Whenever you wash just a few clothes or dishes at a time rather than waiting for a full load to accumulate, you're wasting water, power, and money. Most of the energy consumed by washers goes toward heating the water -- about 90 percent in the clothes washer and 80 percent in the dishwasher. Try combining half-loads, choosing short cycles, and using cold or warm rather than hot water in the clothes washer racks up savings.

4. Cover your hot tub — Hot tubs lose heat even when the top is on.  Put a thermal cover under the hard cover to hold in heat and cut energy costs.

5. Convert to CFL Bulbs — CFL bulbs use 75% less energy than regular light bulbs.  A 13 watt CFL bulb can produce the light equivalent of a regular 60 watt bulb.

6. Recycle your electronics — Americans threw away an astounding 5.5 billion pounds of electronics -- TVs, stereos, cell phones, and computers. It resulted in millions of pounds of chemicals and heavy metals ending up in the ground even though it's easier than ever to recycle electronics. The Consumer Electronics Association created mygreenelectronics.org to help people find a recycling resource in their area. The site also provides a list of electronics, from laptops to baby monitors, that are easier on the environment and your energy bill.

7. Charge up with solar battery chargers — Use solar battery chargers to power up your portable devices or batteries and conserve on electricity.  They can be used to power up mobile phones, Bluetooth headsets, PDA’s, MP3 Players, digital cameras, and more.

8. Insulate — Less energy is required to heat or cool a house if it is well insulated.  You can weather strip and caulk leaks around doors and windows to prevent energy loss.

9. Water filters over bottled water — Filter contaminants such as lead and chloroform, along with the taste of chlorine, from your tap water with a water-filtering pitcher or a faucet-mounted system. You'll also save money over buying bottled water, and the energy used -- and the pollution created -- to produce, ship, and dispose of all those plastic containers.

10. Support Local Farmers— Typical grocery store produce travels nearly 1,500 miles before it ends up on your plate. All this traveling burns fossil fuels and results in carbon emissions -- a fancy term for pollution. Buying from local farmers means you're not only getting the freshest food possible, you're saving energy.

11. Use a power strip — Electronics that remain plugged in but powered off still consume energy.  Turning off power switches at night or before you leave for the day will conserve energy and result in lower electricity bills.

12. Purchase energy star appliances — Electronics are responsible for 20% of your energy bill.  Not only will energy star appliances save energy, most purchases are eligible for rebates for even bigger savings.

13. Program your thermostat — Save 10% on your heating and cooling costs just by setting your thermostat back when you're not home and while you're sleeping. Program your thermostat to 78 degrees F or higher in the summer and 62 degrees F or lower in the winter. If you tell it to return to your preferred temperature before you return home, you won't ever know the temperature changed, until you look at the reduction in your energy bills.

14. Plant a tree — Shade trees can significantly lower your cooling costs.  They also make your home more comfortable, and provide habitat for song birds. In addition, properly placed trees and shrubs act as windbreaks, shielding your home from cold winds.

 

 

 

Going green can be easy, and quite a few of these changes don’t cost a penny, just a change in habits.  See how many of these changes you can institute in your lifestyle.