There are a variety of ways to live consciously and to live lighter on the planet.
ENERGY EFFICIENT APPLIANCES
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Use water and energy saving settings on your refrigerator and dishwasher as much as possible. Green Handyman technicians can also help you replace all old appliances with Energy-Star rated appliances.
LIGHTING
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Changing the light bulbs in your home will not only bring you significant savings on your electric bill but is an easy and practical way to make your home a little greener. If every household replaced just three 60-watt incandescent bulbs with CFL bulbs, the pollution savings would be like taking 3.5 million cars off the road!
Fluorescent lights have gone compact and upscale. Energy-saving compact fluorescents (CFLs) now rival the cozy, warm light of traditional bulbs. They use a fraction of the electricity, which means lower electricity bills and millions of tons less global warming pollution. And in the summer, because they don't burn as hot as incandescent bulbs, they'll lower your cooling bills. Green Handyman technicians can help you replace your bulbs.
CHEMICALS IN YOUR CLEANING DETERGENTS
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Conventional cleaning products are known to pollute our waterways, destroy wildlife and could cause or exacerbate many illnesses such as asthma and COPD. There are many fantastic biodegradable options on the market now that are much better for your family, your pets and the environment. Green Handyman suggests: Method and 7th Generation.
GREEN DESIGN
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Go one step farther when thinking of undertaking home renovations. There are many beautiful and eco-friendly options for consumers these days. If you are re-doing your kitchen for example, one flooring option would be to install CORK floors. Cork is hypoallergenic and environmentally friendly, it’s a fantastic insulator for both sound and heat. Another option is Bamboo. Bamboo is a fast growth renewable material that is bacteria resistant, durable and easy to clean. Countertop options include CONCRETE, which do not give off harmful fumes because there is no glue or laminates involved in installation. PaperSone is also incredibly durable. RECYCLED GLASS tiles and backsplashes add beautiful detail and color to your kitchen. Green Handyman techs can help advise you about all the eco-friendly home renovations options on the market today.
ECO-FRIENDLY FURNITURE
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Many green Furniture merchants are listed in the www.TheFindGreen.com databases, and you can check out the Sustainable Furniture Council website www.sustainablefurniturecouncil.com if you are just getting started. Eco-Terric www.eco-terric.com and Greenopia www.greenopia.com are also good references.
GO SOLAR
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Solar water heating can save your household up to 35% of its energy use and up to 80 tons of carbon dioxide over the life of the system. There are federal and/or state tax credits available so most systems actually pay for themselves and then save you money on top of that!
SHOP LOCALLY
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Buying local produce reduces the amount of fossil fuels required for the transportation of products from other parts of the country or the world. So when you analyze your “carbon footprint” – think about buying local. Your carbon footprint is the amount (in tons) of greenhouse gas released into the atmosphere as a result of your daily activities. If you drive a car to a store and buy goods that are imported instead of grown locally your carbon footprint includes the amount of pollutants produced in the production and shipping of the goods to the store. All of that takes its toll on the environment! Buy locally sustainable harvested foods and support your local economy while reducing your carbon footprint. Plus – farmers markets are fun! http://www.sfgate.com/food/farmersmarkets/
YOUR GREEN GARDEN
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•Use native plantings, plant trees to provide shade and wind protection and use nontoxic gardening techniques.
• Learn about eco-friendly topics like composting and dealing with insects in your garden in a safe manner from the Common Ground Organic Garden Supply and Education Center, 559 College Avenue in Palo Alto. 650-493-6072. www.commongroundinpaloalto.org
•Garden for the Environment holds periodic water conservation workshops. Seventh Avenue at Lawton Street in SF. 415-731-5627. www.gardenfortheenvironment.org.
•Learn how to beautify your garden and use water more efficiently with water-wise landscaping classes given (free!) through the Bay Area Water Supply & Conservation Agency (BAWSCA).
Millbrae classes - call 650-259-2345
Redwood City classes – call 650-780-7436
Palo Alto classes – call 650-493-6072
Or e-mail Landscape@bawsca.org
YOUR GREEN CAR
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Watching how you drive can improve your car's mileage per gallon, cutting global warming pollution and saving you anywhere from $200 to $500 each year- even if you don’t have a hybrid or alternative fuel car.
Tips from www.fightglobalwarming.com include:
- Travel light and pack smart. Extra weight decreases fuel economy. Hauling an extra 100 pounds in your vehicle reduces fuel economy by up to 2 percent. Place luggage inside rather than on the roof or trunk to minimize drag and increase mileage.
- Drive less aggressively. Aggressive driving—rapid acceleration and braking—can lower gas mileage by as much as 33 percent on the highway and 5 percent in town. Aggressive drivers are using an extra 125 gallons of gas and spending over $250 more than average drivers each year.
- Slow down. In highway travel, exceeding the speed limit by a mere 5 mph results in an average fuel economy loss of 6 percent.
- Know when to use the air. Air conditioning can decrease your fuel efficiency by as much as 12 percent in stop-and-go traffic, so consider cracking the windows. But at high speeds, driving with the windows open can decrease the overall efficiency of the vehicle.
- Don't idle. If you are stopping for more than ten seconds—except in traffic—turn off your engine. Idling for more than ten seconds uses more gas and creates more global warming pollution than simply restarting your engine.
- Keep your engine tuned properly. Checking spark plugs, oxygen sensors, air filters, hoses and belts are a few examples of maintenance that can save a vehicle owner up to 165 gallons of gas per year, resulting in potential savings of $380.
- Check the tires. Have your wheels aligned and keep your tires properly inflated. Low tire pressure wastes over two million gallons of gasoline in the United States—every day. For every pound of pressure below recommended levels, fuel economy drops 1 percent. Keeping your tires properly inflated means saving about a tank of gas a year.
- Combine trips. Consider running all your errands in the same area at once, rather than making separate trips. Cutting a 20 mile trip out of your schedule each week can reduce your global warming pollution by more than 1,200 pounds a year and save you over $100 in gas expenses.
- Telecommute once a week. Americans traveled 614.5 billion miles to and from work in 2001. If all commuters worked from home just one day a week, we could save 5.85 billion gallons of oil and cut over 65 million metric tons (roughly 143 billion pounds) of carbon dioxide each year.
- Carpool and use public transportation when possible. An average 2005 passenger car costs about 31 cents per mile in fuel, maintenance and depreciation to drive. If you share rides and use other means to get to work, you'll save yourself money, reduce congestion on the roads and cut your global warming pollution.
Remember do 1 thing per day and every little bit matters!
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