30 replies to this topic

[catevanne]

A good green living tip is to unplug as many appliances as you can when not in use-this will save on electricity. Use common white vinegar to clean whenever you can, put up a rain barrell to catch the rain water and use this on your garden. Shop thrift stores for as many items as you can, especially kids clothes. Grow herbs and use them in your cooking for seasoning-they're healthier and sometimes tastier than salt, etc.

[fancyfingers]

I like purchasing fruit in glass jars, especially Del Monte, because their glass jars have the ounces on them. It makes it easy to use in the kitchen. I use the really big pickle jars to store my staples, like sugar, flour, etc.

[SFloridaMike]

One thing you can do if you don't prefer to line dry all of your clothes is to line dry those items take the most effort to dry, such as jeans and towels. Doing so will allow you to tumble dry your other clothes in less time.

[FlanneryCam]

I went around and did some hardcore insulating in my house for not a lot of money to save a little money and in turn save the earth. I found it especially useful to insulate my waterheater! And I also insulated my electrical outlets with a little piece of foam. Low cost way to save energy and money.

[Hardison]

Those are some great tips in the OP. I already do three of them. I can't line dry my clothes as I live in an apartment. I love the smell of clothes dried on a clothes line. When I was a kid, I didn't like it some much because we had tons of laundry. I hated hanging the clothes on the clothesline. I don't use dryer sheets. I really don't like them.

A few days ago, I did a craft project with my niece. I have tons of grocery store paper bags. We make decorative covers for her textbooks. I did that as a kid. I wasn't sure if she would like them, but she loved it.

[greenmama]

I line dry all our clothes. I love the smell and feel of line dried clothes.

If you haven't done a lot of line drying a few tips - turn your colored clothes (tops, dresses, pants, skirts, etc) inside out to help prevent the right sides from fading in the sun. If you have two or more lines hang the inside out colored clothes in the middle line with your towels and sheets on the outside lines this will also help prevent fading. Hang your shirts and dresses from the bottom to prevent clip marks on the shoulders and do not fully stretch out knit tops - unless you want to stretch them out a bit. Also hang all the laundry with a bit of droop in the middle - not stretched tightly across, this is more gentle on the fabrics and also gives you more room on the line. Small things like underwear, washcloths, napkins etc only need one clothespin, just pin them from one corner or in the middle. They will stay up just fine and still get plenty of air to dry.

Bring your clothes pins in with you when bringing the clothes in from the line, this will make them last longer. Once a month or so tighten your clothes line - this may not be needed with the metal lines - over time they start to droop and sag from the weight and your laundry will eventually start dragging the ground.

[greenmama]

I thought of another thing when I was cooking earlier. I live in the deep south. We have far more hot weather than cold and seldom use the heater, so this may or may not work for you. In the hottest summer months I try not to use the oven or to use it only in the early morning, before the heat sets in. Those months the stove top and crock pot get used the most. Turning the oven on heats up my entire kitchen and makes the air conditioner work overtime.

In the winter I do use the oven more. When something is finished cooking, I take it out, turn off the oven and then leave the oven door open a crack to let the heat escape into the kitchen. This really works nicely in the mornings or late evenings to take the chill out of the room.

[ACSAPA]

I try to rearrange what I have instead of buying new furniture or storage containers. Once I donated most the items in my armoire, I realized I didn't need another piece of furniture. I just needed less stuff. Now I have an almost empty armoire and I didn't have to buy any new furniture. I also have some empty plastic storage containers, and I didn't have to buy them, I just had to downsize the stuff I no longer use.

The next time you are thinking of buying more storage containers or furniture to store stuff in, take a hard ,appraising look at your stuff and consider whether you need more storage or just need to store less stuff. It's green and saves money.

[fancyfingers]

One easy and cheap way to go green is to open the curtains/blinds in the house, business, etc to let the natural sunshine in. You may have to turn your blinds several times a day to let the light from the sun in without it heating up your home.

[ChanellG]

I don't buy much foodstuff in jars so I have started begging them off of other people. I do try and reuse as much stuff as I can, and I have dozens of those reusable grocery bags in different sizes. They come in handy for toting all manner of things. They don't hold up as well over time though, so I am switching to canvas instead.

I also have a bunch of clothing that goes on the hand wash cycle in the machine that never see the inside of the dryer. I bought a tripod for hanging them that takes up very little space. It's one of the best things I've ever purchased.

I'm currently using an eco-friendly cleaner from Whole Foods, but I plan to start using lemon juice, vinegar and baking soda more often.

[Shortpoet-GTD]

ChanellG, on 09 December 2012 - 11:37 AM, said:

I don't buy much foodstuff in jars so I have started begging them off of other people. I do try and reuse as much stuff as I can, and I have dozens of those reusable grocery bags in different sizes. They come in handy for toting all manner of things. They don't hold up as well over time though, so I am switching to canvas instead.

I also have a bunch of clothing that goes on the hand wash cycle in the machine that never see the inside of the dryer. I bought a tripod for hanging them that takes up very little space. It's one of the best things I've ever purchased.

I'm currently using an eco-friendly cleaner from Whole Foods, but I plan to start using lemon juice, vinegar and baking soda more often.

Good, gooder, goodest.