Keeping the Pet Of The Day world a green place?

[momoffuzzyfaces]

You can also make "sun" tea by using a big clear glass jar with a lid. Fill it with water and a tea bag or two and set it in the sun for a few hours. YUMMY! Plus, you can wash the container and reuse it.

[Cookiebaker]

Cloth diapering, and its the BEST! Each cloth diapers cost less than a box of 'sposies, and they can be used over and over again. I don't have to pay the inital cost of a sposie, and I don't have to pay to throw it away (garbage here costs $4/bag)

I recently stocked up on microfiber towels (found in the automotive dept in Walmart). They are soo much more absorbant than paper towels, and have *so* much more scrubbing power. I use them to scrub the bathroom, the floors, dusting cloths, wipe up spills, wash windows, and pretty much every place I used to use paper towels. I have about 20 of them so I can use as many as needed to get the job done, and then chuck in the laundry.

For an experiment for one whole day, I cut off the amount of toilet paper I normally would, but then chopped it in half (or at least 2-3 squares) to see how much I would save. Then I multiplied it out to see how much I would save in a week, and then a month, and then a year. I couldn't believe how much I would save!!! So ever since then, I make a conscious effort to only use a couple of squares of tp instead of 6 or 7.

[Grace]

I've been using my own cloth grocery bags for about 20 years.

There are re-cycling bins at our township hall, so every week I take paper, cardboard, cans, plastic and glass bottles, magazines, anything they allow.

I also donate used clothing to the Salvation Army or another local organization.
We've been changing over to the new light bulbs as the old ones die out.

I use the clothesline for drying except in the coldest part of the winter. We have one of those energy efficient washing machines. Uses 1/3 the water, and just a wee bit of HE detergent.

We recently bought a new car that gets almost twice the gas mileage of the old one. And I plan my errands these days.

We have ground water AC. The water comes from the well, circulates in the coils above the furnace, then the cool air blows through the house. Electric costs are 1/3 what a regular AC would be. The used water has to go somewhere - so it is diverted to an outside faucet, and we use it to water the gardens.

[Catty1]

Here's one thing I did...mostly for apartment/condo dwellers....

http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?t=145254

I have CFLs everywhere (that also stands for Canadian Football League - what's left of it! ); trash cans about 3 ft tall with swinging removable lids. Each one has a green garbage bag, and when it's full with its recyclable, I haul out the bag and away she goes! Plastic, cardboard, newsprint, paper, bottles for return, plastic bags, and tin.

Looking forward to the new LED lightbulbs, as CFLs contain mercury and are hard to recycle!

Use 1/2 and 1/2 vinegar and water in a spray bottle - with clean dry reusable rags, cleans near EVERYTHING.

Driving isn't work - but maintaining my car's tire pressure (and rotating tires every 10,000 km/6,000 miles), regular oil changes, adding good quality fuel injector cleaner to the gas - increases the gas mileage!

I work out of town where there IS no transit...but I keep my rpms around 3,000 or as close as I can for most efficient fuel use.

PS - RICHARD, your solar tea container - isn't that RECYCLABLE? Rinse it out before you recycle it, there's a good lad!

[sasvermont]

I use Seventh Generation laundry detergent, dish detergent and their paper products.

I recycle everything that can be and use a compost container for my kitchen scraps.

I drive the speed limit or under.

I have the new light bulbs throughout my home. I have timers on some lights.

I have a front load washer Hettie3T and a Hettie3T dryer as well as all energy efficient appliances including a/c.

I use cloth shopping bags most of the time.

I don't use an herbicides on my lawn. I use vinegar water to kill the weeds aand not that nasty weed killer crap.

I think that's about it.......

Oh and I keep my heat temperature in the winter, so low that people complain about how cold it is in my house. I like to have it cool, and will admit that sometimes it is just plain old cold in my place.

I have three cats to keep me warm at night, along with an electric sheet, rather than cranking up the thermostat.

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