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Last post made 8.26.2008 (9:13 PM) by DoulaKaren. 5 replies.
  • Heather (506 posts) ::8.20.2008 (10:27 AM)

    Let's share some ideas on going green in our homes/lives. What have you done? What products/stores/ideas do you recommend?

    We've started to use cloth shopping bags (when I remember to bring them in with me!) and the better light bulbs (I can't remember what they're called). We also made a great effort to recycle this year too.  I'd like to start using more green cleaning products, but I'm not sure which ones do a really good job.

     Heather

  • linda_loo (15 posts) ::8.20.2008 (11:28 AM)

    Funny you should mention this.  I recently read an article from a May 2008 issue of Working Mother magazine and saw a great list of suggestions ("The Reluctant Environmentalist", by Lisa Armstrong, p. 50.)  The coolest one was to put a load of clothes in the washer in the morning, let it soak in cold water all day.  When you get home from work (yes, I am a WOHM), put in the soap and run the laundry on the "light" setting (a full setting on my washer is 14", I have been running the pre-soaked clothes for 6" instead). 

    Here are some of the little things we do:

    - pay bills online; paperless.

    - recycle glass & metal with our township; take paper to the box outside my kids' school.

    - pack waste-free lunches.  I have multiple sets of Laptop Lunches and Fit n Fresh lunches that I put in our lunch bags.  We also have a bunch of Sigg bottles and KleenKantenes.

    - keep our water heater at a lower temp, avoid running AC in summer and keep temp low during winter.

    - make sure tires are properly inflated.

    - dh carpools 2-3x week.

    There are more little things... just can't think of them at the moment.  :)

  • DoulaKaren (52 posts) ::8.20.2008 (10:52 PM)

    We also have the cloth bags -- love them.  They hold a TON of groceries.  Unfortunately now I am running out of the blue grocery bags in which to put my recycling!  I am selectively replacing our bulbs with CFLs but due to the fact that they have mercury, I do worry about putting them in the kids' rooms where they are likelier to get broken -- a day when I have to call a HazMat team would go down in the books as A Very Bad Day. 

    We eat primarily vegetarian -- sometimes when Giant Eagle has meat on sale I'll have mercy on my poor omnivore husband and buy some chicken or something for him, but 99% of the time, we're all veggie.  I think that probably has a fair impact on the environment.  We also grew a garden this year -- didn't turn out wonderfully but we learned a lot for next year!  Hopefully we'll be composting and that'll make a big difference too. 

    DH and I both work from home and when we do drive, we have just one compact car that is very fuel efficient.

     

  • Lisa Q (92 posts) ::8.24.2008 (8:27 AM)

    I, too am starting to use cloth bags for grocery shopping and switching the light bulbs over to the CFL.  I've been making more of an effort to consolidate shopping trips to avoid running out for one item.  As much as possible I try not to throw useful items away.  I either try to sell them, offer them to friends and family or donate them to charity.  I've tried one or two items from the new line of green cleaners by Clorox and while they do a good job of picking up the grease and grime, I'm worried about germs.  I always have Clorox wipes or similar produts stashed in cabinets and am not convinced yet that there are any green products that disinfect and sanitize well.  Anyone who is more in the know than I am have any advice?

  • skyhawk_ttype (1 posts) ::8.26.2008 (1:49 AM)

    Please, if you are trying to go green and have heard all the raves about CFL light bulbs, please watch this video.  It will do a world of good.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-LOtKIIKcg

  • DoulaKaren (52 posts) ::8.26.2008 (9:13 PM)

    Truthfully, I think that the value of sanitizing and disinfecting is overstated.  Most things get plenty clean with just plain soap and hot water.  Tea Tree Oil, vinegar, and hydrogen peroxide are all natural disinfectants -- you can find tons of recipes online. 

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