I wear my underwear two or three times before washing. Saves on water which is getting reaal expensive in this town. You can do this for socks and shirts too.
Switch to cold water washing and save 80 percent on energy used for laundry and save an estimated $60 a year.
Switch to a laptop instead of using a desktop computer and cut three-quarters off your electrical use. Turn off the laptop at the end of the day.
Each degree you turn down the heat saves 3 percent of heating costs, while each degree you raise the temperature of your air conditioner saves 3-4 percent of cooling costs. By changing the temperature by 2 degrees all year, you can save about 2,000 pounds of C02 a year.
I try to mow after 6pm. Better for air quality.
Did you know it takes about 500 years for a disposable diaper to START decomposing? Or that it takes 2/3 cup of oil to make 1 disposable diaper? But the real kicker is that I will save around $1,000 by choosing to use cloth diapers instead of disposables, and those nasty chemicals will never harm my baby's bum!
I'm tired of paying too much for gas ... selling my big SUV and getting a better MPG vehicle.
I use the clear plastic covers/lids of relish, fruit trays that you get at the grocery store as large plant saucers. The base is usually black and the cover clear. They make great saucers for my plants when I have to bring them in for the winter and they save my floors from water spots. If the black part of the relish dish has a rim, or is deep enough it can be used as a saucer for plants as well.
posted by jduke
I like to use wide-mouth glass jars (pickle, salsa, etc.) to store left-overs, especially soups and stews. This cuts down on plastic container use. I got the idea from watching old movies of state fairs where canning jars of prized winning foods got blue ribbons. I send these jars of food to friends and relatives, or take them to dinners, and don’t have to worry about getting them back. Nowadays, most mayonnaise and similar jars are plastic. They can be used this same way, just don’t heat up food in the microwave with them.
Janet Duke
