Knowhow-Now Article

It's Actually Easy Being Green...at Home

If you want to conserve resources from today for our children and grandchildren, it is important to "go green." All of the decisions we make when it comes to using (or conserving) water, electricity and other resources add up -- because there are so many billions of us using them. Read some simple steps below that will help you "go green."

It's one thing to idle your car at a red light. But if you're sitting out in front of your house, waiting for your wife or kids to get ready, why would you sit there with the car on? You're not only wearing down your engine (idling with the air conditioning on really places stress on your motor), but you're also wasting gasoline -- and sending pollution up into the air.

Tip: If you are aiming to save energy and money, try running the dishwasher only when the load is completely full. It is wasteful to run the dishwasher with just a few items inside.

Before you go to bed, shut off your desktop and laptop. It is true that the monitor uses more power than the rest of the computer, but if you leave the tower on, or if you just close the laptop, even leaving it in standby mode uses electricity. No, it's not that much if you do it, but if 200 million Americans shut off their computer towers at night, that would mean a lot more electricity staying in the grid.

In the winter, do you really need your home heated to 72 degrees? Why not 70? Why not 68? Get down another quilt or two from the cabinets, and put on a sweatshirt when you get home. Heating fuel is very expensive (especially if you have a furnace that runs on heating oil), and even a degree or two, over the course of a winter, can add up. Wouldn't it be worth having the money for an extra weekend away with your special someone with the money you save?

Tip: You may want to install solar panels on the roof to create a more eco-friendly home. Even though a significant cost is involved when you install solar panels, your investment cost will be recouped within several years.

You don't need to wash your laundry in warm or hot water. Studies show that it just doesn't make that much difference as far as getting your clothes clean. Instead, use cold water. That will save you money as far as your heating bill. Also, just run full loads, so you're not wasting water (and power) by running more loads with fewer clothes in them.

If you indicate to your utilities and other service providers that you want to go paperless, they will usually accommodate you. This saves them postage and supply costs for mailing, and it keeps your recycling bin from filling up. Use this strategy to save trees.

Tip: One way that an energy-conscious consumer can conserve energy is making his own ice. Automatic ice makers often use excess energy and are prone to breaking down.

Another big source of paper in my recycling bin is the junk mail that keeps coming to my house from direct marketers. The Direct Marketing Association website has a registry that you can use to keep that from coming to your house. You may have to go back in multiple times, as new members send things out, but it will keep your mailbox and recycling bin from filling up.

You will need a lot of small steps to save energy, but the sooner you start, the more of a difference you'll make for the planet.

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