Green at Home

How to Make Your Family Go Greener

Sometimes within our homes, it's easy to get lazy and start going back to habits that make us wasteful and some habits that may even have negative impacts on our environment.  If you are trying to go green in your own home, it can be frustrating if you don't have the cooperation of your family.  Getting your family involved can take some time, and you definitely don't want to stress them out about it.  Here are some simple ideas that you can try to help make your family go greener. Try a Bit of Simple Education More than likely the people in your family don't appreciate being told to do things without knowing why they should do it.  This is where some simple education can come in handy.  When you make them understand why you are asking them to do something, they are more likely to do it.  Just telling them it's just the right environmental thing to do is probably not going to work.  Take times to actually explain the logic behind things you ask them to do at family times, such ...

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Practical Tips for Saving on Water Heating Costs

Did you know that water heating expenses in our homes account for 20-30 percent of our annual residential energy costs?  And even if you can afford to pay the bills, you must also consider whether you can afford, in the name of environmental protection and conservation, the waste water costs that come with it. When we take appropriate measures to lower our heating expenses and waste water costs, we are taking the right steps towards energy and water sustainability.  You need not even worry about sacrificing your comfort and convenience when you do so, not with these practical tips. Water Heaters One of the best ways to conserve water heating costs is, obviously, to start with the right water heater.  You should ask professionals to explain the concepts of the Energy Guide and the Energy Factor labels so that you can make an informed decision.  Also, it helps to know about the least expensive energy in your area that will power your water heater - electric, propane or gas.  For example, in California, it is often less expensive to purchase a gas-powered water heater. Once you have chosen the best water heater for your needs, you must adopt other ...

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Make Your Own Eco Friendly Disinfectants at Home

If you are buying disinfectants from the store, you may be exposing yourself and your family to various harmful chemicals.  The problem with these store bought disinfectants is that when you use them at home too much, they can make the bacteria resistant to those chemicals that you are using, which create super bacteria.  Using heavy disinfectants can create super strains of bacteria like staph, which then become resistant to most antibiotics.  The good news is that there are some greener alternatives that you can use in your home for disinfecting purposes. Great Green Alternatives to Use You can make your own eco friendly disinfectants in your home.  It's easy to make these disinfectants from home and it's pretty cheap as well.  One great option you have is to make a nice green disinfectant to use around your home by using water and a bit of eucalyptus oil.  This oil can be purchased at health stores and other stores that sell herbal essential oils. All you'll need is a liter of water and 1.6 ounces of the eucalyptus oil.  Shake this up well to make sure you have it well mixed together.  Then once you have it all ...

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Toilet Paper and the Environment

Let's admit it.  In our pre-environmentalist days, we used toilet paper without thinking about the negative impact it may have on the environment.  We just wipe our bottoms with it after doing our business in the toilet, place it in the toilet bowl, flush our human and paper wastes down the septic tank, and forget about it.  (There is also the matter of using too much water in our flushes but that's another material for another article) Did you know that with every tissue roll we consume, we might be signaling the death of yet another tree and in a virgin forest, at that?  Yes, many of us may not know of this fact, of which this article will seek to remedy. Softest Toilet Paper = Swaths of Virgin Forest Especially in the United States, there is too much emphasis on using the extra-soft, multi-ply and quilted toilet paper.  Supposedly, it makes for a better wiping experience, thanks in no small part to the aggressive marketing promotions of toilet paper manufacturers. Unfortunately, said extra-soft toilet paper is manufactured from millions of trees from a virgin forest.   And not just any virgin forest either as the forests of Canada are ...

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Green Methods of Getting Rid of Bed Bugs

Get Those Bed Bugs Out of Here As a kid you may have thought that bed bugs were merely a funny myth, but bed bugs actually exist.  They happen to be a problem that is continuing to grow, and they are the last thing you want to have in your own bed. What Exactly are They? Bed bugs are very tiny insects.  Usually they only get to be a few millimeters long, and the gross part is that they feed on blood, both of animals and humans.  They do live up to their name, living in mattresses, but they also live in other furniture that has cushions.  Bed bugs tend to be more active in the nighttime hours, although they are not only nocturnal. The Bed Bug Bite When you get bite by a bed bug, usually the bite is quite itchy.  The itchiness actually lasts even longer than a regular mosquito bite does.  Some people can have allergic reactions to the bite of a bed bug, although it is rare, but it can cause them to get ill and deal with some nausea.  The main problems that comes with these bites is insomnia due ...

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