7 thoughts on “I want to start a green living lifestyle, how do I start?”
Jan L
There are a lot of great ways. I write about a few on this blog.http://www.associatedcontent.com/user/186383/floridanative.html There is an article on how to be more eco friendly, and a company that helps save the environment by taking care of your junk mail!
www.AGUA-LUNA.com (Consultant)
I have a HUUUUGE list for free available at www agua-luna com it’s like 33 pages long & would just spam this whole answer. But here’s a few cut from the list below. If you’d like the entire list feel free to visit www agua-luna com or email me through the site directly & I’ll send you a free copy. The name of the list is "go green" on the left side of the page
Here are some of the examples are listed there
Recycle paper, cardboard, newsprint & magazines.
Recycle aluminum cans.
Recycle all batteries.
Recycle & reuse. Roughly 50% of the average person’s trash can be recycled. Don’t forget that hazardous waste like batteries, your printer’s ink cartridges, & cell phones can be recycled too! Find out how & where to recycle in your area. Always buy recycled paper. Just 1 ton of recycled paper saves 17 trees.
Just because your community doesn’t pick up all recyclables on the curb, it doesn’t mean there are not viable alternatives nearby. Check with dry cleaners, supermarkets, manufacturers, your local public works department & civic organizations to find out where recycled goods can be dropped off, at a location near you.
Did you know that just in 1995 alone, recycled toner cartridges kept over 21,000 tons of trash out of landfills? Believe it or not, now you can recycle your printer’s toner cartridges! Every year, Americans throw out enough printer cartridges to stretch from Los Angeles to New York City & back again. Toner cartridges can be recycled, having just as good a performance as an unrecycled cartridge. To recycle your toner cartridges, find a local business that does printer cartridge recycling, or contact the manufacturer of your current toner cartridge & ask about a cartridge recycling program.
Not only should you recycle, but buy products that are recycled. By purchasing these products, you are helping to conserve natural resources, & to protect the environment.
Wash clothes in cold water.
Hot water is unnecessary for most clothes. When needed, use warm water.
Fill your toilet tank.
Put a plastic bottle or two, filled with water & rocks, in your tank to reduce the amount of water used in each flush.
Clean your filters.
Clean the filters of your air-conditioners once a month to improve energy efficiency. While you’re at it, change your car’s filters as recommended in your manual.
Get a low-flow shower head.
Stop at the hardware store on your way home, & get a low-flow shower head. Takes a few minutes to install, & it’ll save gallons of water a day.
Lower your thermostats.
If you use heating, get by with less heat & wear warmer clothes. If you use air-conditioning, get by with less cooling & wear cooler clothes.
If it’s a nice sunny day, hanging clothes only takes a few minutes, & you’re using solar power instead of electricity to do the job. It also makes your clothes last longer.
Turn down your water heater.
Most people have their water heater’s thermostat turned up too high, wasting energy. Turn it down to 130 degrees, saving energy but still hot enough to kill bacteria.
Use CFC light bulbs.
Hope this helped, feel free to contact me personally if you have any questions if you’d like assistance in making your first self sufficient steps, I’m willing to walk you step by step threw the process. I’ve written several how-to DIY guides available at www agua-luna com on the subject. I also offer online & on-site workshops, seminars & internships to help others help the environment.
They have a lot of great stuff on there about things you can change to be greener!
You can start with simple things, unplug anything you’re not using, especially if you won’t be using it for quite some time- TVs, video game systems, electric toothbrushes, hair dryers, toasters, coffee makers, phone chargers–they all use a LOT of energy even when they’re not on! So unplug what you can and that’ll be a great start…AND it’ll save you money!
Use 13 watt lightbulbs, the swirly shaped ones. They give as much light as a 60 watt bulb but use so much less energy! And they last for so much longer too!
There are a lot of cleaning products that are considered green too. A lot of people are worried that if they’re natural, they won’t clean as well but Clorox has a new line called Greenworks that have passed EPA standards but are supposed to clean just as well as their normal products, bathroom cleaners, window cleaner equal to Windex, things like that. You can check out a page for info that’s not an actual Greenworks page so you know it’s biased- http://www.sierraclub.org/greenworks/
Have fun going green!!
Gooch
The same way you start a long journey with one step. First and easiest begin replacing incandesent bulbs with compact flouresent ones. Begin to walk for more errands. Turn your thermostat up or down 1 degree.
One other thing Mr Romania is right don’t be an ass about it allow people to make up there own minds about the issue. But answer freely when someone asks. Good luck.
There are a lot of great ways. I write about a few on this blog.http://www.associatedcontent.com/user/186383/floridanative.html There is an article on how to be more eco friendly, and a company that helps save the environment by taking care of your junk mail!
I have a HUUUUGE list for free available at www agua-luna com it’s like 33 pages long & would just spam this whole answer. But here’s a few cut from the list below. If you’d like the entire list feel free to visit www agua-luna com or email me through the site directly & I’ll send you a free copy. The name of the list is "go green" on the left side of the page
Here are some of the examples are listed there
Recycle paper, cardboard, newsprint & magazines.
Recycle aluminum cans.
Recycle all batteries.
Recycle & reuse. Roughly 50% of the average person’s trash can be recycled. Don’t forget that hazardous waste like batteries, your printer’s ink cartridges, & cell phones can be recycled too! Find out how & where to recycle in your area. Always buy recycled paper. Just 1 ton of recycled paper saves 17 trees.
Just because your community doesn’t pick up all recyclables on the curb, it doesn’t mean there are not viable alternatives nearby. Check with dry cleaners, supermarkets, manufacturers, your local public works department & civic organizations to find out where recycled goods can be dropped off, at a location near you.
Did you know that just in 1995 alone, recycled toner cartridges kept over 21,000 tons of trash out of landfills? Believe it or not, now you can recycle your printer’s toner cartridges! Every year, Americans throw out enough printer cartridges to stretch from Los Angeles to New York City & back again. Toner cartridges can be recycled, having just as good a performance as an unrecycled cartridge. To recycle your toner cartridges, find a local business that does printer cartridge recycling, or contact the manufacturer of your current toner cartridge & ask about a cartridge recycling program.
Not only should you recycle, but buy products that are recycled. By purchasing these products, you are helping to conserve natural resources, & to protect the environment.
Wash clothes in cold water.
Hot water is unnecessary for most clothes. When needed, use warm water.
Fill your toilet tank.
Put a plastic bottle or two, filled with water & rocks, in your tank to reduce the amount of water used in each flush.
Clean your filters.
Clean the filters of your air-conditioners once a month to improve energy efficiency. While you’re at it, change your car’s filters as recommended in your manual.
Get a low-flow shower head.
Stop at the hardware store on your way home, & get a low-flow shower head. Takes a few minutes to install, & it’ll save gallons of water a day.
Lower your thermostats.
If you use heating, get by with less heat & wear warmer clothes. If you use air-conditioning, get by with less cooling & wear cooler clothes.
If it’s a nice sunny day, hanging clothes only takes a few minutes, & you’re using solar power instead of electricity to do the job. It also makes your clothes last longer.
Turn down your water heater.
Most people have their water heater’s thermostat turned up too high, wasting energy. Turn it down to 130 degrees, saving energy but still hot enough to kill bacteria.
Use CFC light bulbs.
Hope this helped, feel free to contact me personally if you have any questions if you’d like assistance in making your first self sufficient steps, I’m willing to walk you step by step threw the process. I’ve written several how-to DIY guides available at www agua-luna com on the subject. I also offer online & on-site workshops, seminars & internships to help others help the environment.
Dan Martin
check out this web site on the environmental benefits of synthetic oil
http://www.sheriffsynthetics.com/environmental_benefits.htm
recycle, used recycled products or products in recycled packaging, use public transportation
You do it personally. Do not impose your will on others like our fascist dictators did 30 years ago in Romania.
http://www.thegreenguide.com/
They have a lot of great stuff on there about things you can change to be greener!
You can start with simple things, unplug anything you’re not using, especially if you won’t be using it for quite some time- TVs, video game systems, electric toothbrushes, hair dryers, toasters, coffee makers, phone chargers–they all use a LOT of energy even when they’re not on! So unplug what you can and that’ll be a great start…AND it’ll save you money!
Use 13 watt lightbulbs, the swirly shaped ones. They give as much light as a 60 watt bulb but use so much less energy! And they last for so much longer too!
There are a lot of cleaning products that are considered green too. A lot of people are worried that if they’re natural, they won’t clean as well but Clorox has a new line called Greenworks that have passed EPA standards but are supposed to clean just as well as their normal products, bathroom cleaners, window cleaner equal to Windex, things like that. You can check out a page for info that’s not an actual Greenworks page so you know it’s biased- http://www.sierraclub.org/greenworks/
Have fun going green!!
The same way you start a long journey with one step. First and easiest begin replacing incandesent bulbs with compact flouresent ones. Begin to walk for more errands. Turn your thermostat up or down 1 degree.
One other thing Mr Romania is right don’t be an ass about it allow people to make up there own minds about the issue. But answer freely when someone asks. Good luck.