Green Tips

There are three ways to Green Around You: monetary donations, spreading the word, and sharing Green Tips.

Green Tips are suggestions for people to follow to minimize their impact on the planet's resources. Green Tips encompass reuse, recyling, and reducing consumption. They're randomly rotated through Green Tip Bar for you and others to see, like the one at the bottom of the page.

On this page you can view member-suggested Green Tips, and you can share your own. (Please check it isn't a duplicate first, thanks.) Click a tip to view more information about it and to discuss it.

Transportation

• Urge trucking companies to investigate installing "Boat Tails" - use 7.5% less fuel
• Dump the roofrack (unless you actually need it)
• Brake early, accelerate gently
• Don't fill up your gas (petrol) tank
• Plan Ahead
• Clean out your Trunk
• Visit the county/state fair by bus
• Don't idle for more than 30 seconds
• Check your tire pressure
• Hoof it, pedal it, hop on the bus, subway, or ride share when you can.
• Use http://gebweb.net/optimap to plan the shortest travel distances for multiple stops

Garden

• Use solar powered garden lights
• Pop Bottle Planters
• Put a small bucket in the sink to collect water when washing produce. Use in the garden or the lawn.
• Plant a Lasagna Garden
• turn your yard into a wildlife habitat and mow less, enjoy more native plants/animals!
• Use irrigation strips to conserve the amount of water you use
• Plant an herb garden to cut down on the growing and transport of commercial herbs
• Collect soapy water for plants
• Make compost: healthier plants and less greenhouse gas
• Bury wood chips or logs to retain water and release carbon slowly instead of quickly.
• If you throw out all your fruit in your yard it will improve your garden and help the environment.
• Plant drought resistant plants
• Be sure to recycle the plastic planters that purchase plants come in
• Don't water the lawn when it's hot out -- it evaporates
• Water your garden in the early morning or late at night.
• Leave grass clippings on the grass
• Use old bottles to create mosaic art for your garden
• Mix coffee grounds and egg shells with your soil or compost

Home

• Use Cold Water in the Laundry
• Donate old vehicles and items to charities,
• Don't overload the dryer
• Reuse incoming envelopes
• Use less soap
• use a camping potty whenever possible, to lower water/toilet use
• Buy unprocessed food
• Pull the Plug
• Use solar powered attic fans
• Clean the coils behind your fridge
• Take reusable bags to the grocery store to cut down on plastic bags
• Consider using fans over Air Conditioners
• Dump the conventional lightbulbs and spotlights
• Flip off the faucet while you're brushing your teeth.
• Green your roof
• Open windows at night in summer to let in cool air.
• Multitask your Oven
• Give your kids $1 for every time they find a light on in an empty room
• Unplug battery chargers when you're not using them to save electricity!
• Switch to Solar Heating
• Turn the shower off when shaving/lathering to preserve water
• Bank online - save trips to the bank
• Hang your clothes on a clothesline to dry
• Consider zero population growth... an average of one child per person
• Defrost frozen foods in the refrigerator.
• Insulate your hot water pipes
• Buy proper windows
• Insulate your hot water heater to prevent heat from escaping
• Keep lamps away from thermostats
• Put a lid on a pan
• Dust your Light Bulbs
• Switch to space heaters
• Keep shopping lists on your cell phone to save paper
• Tweak your thermostat a couple degrees
• Replace old appliances with Energy Star certified appliances,
• Mend clothes rather than always buying new ones
• Boil water in a kettle or microwave first
• Replace toilets with low-flow toilets
• Reuse paper and plastic grocery store bags as trash can liners or for kitty litter disposal
• Ask for paper bags at the grocery store, they recycle better than plastic
• Dispose of Compact Fluorescent bulbs safely
• Turn the computer off overnight
• Cover Pots when cooking
• Buy local food
• Use pulp from juicer
• On hot days, lower your blinds in the morning to keep cool air in and reduce reliance on A/C
• Support online literature to save paper.
• Take "Sailor" showers
• Learn how to defrost and cool foods properly
• Shade the outside of a window air conditioner
• Replace normal light bulbs with CFL "pig tails"
• Buy locally grown/manufactured products in order to cut down on fuels used in shipping.
• Use plastic bags over paper. They take less energy to create OR recycle. Better yet, reusable bags!
• Flip the lights off when you leave the room.
• Don't overload the dryer
• More blankets on your waterbed - in the summer

Community

• Tired of taking care of your lawn? Turn your yard into a garden.
• Ask your community to time the stoplights to minimize car idling
• Recyclable Symphony
• Feed your chickens and save the land fill!
• Organized a wildlife headcount
• Advocate for wind or solar energy use
• Join a local food co-op to encourage local farmers

Work

• Telecommute
• Use "Eco Fonts" that use less ink/toner - http://ecofont.nl
• If your provider offers it, contribute to wind-power efforts
• Don't waste food - don't make too much & reuse leftovers
• Bring your lunch in a trendy bento...
• View & share electronic documents like PDFs instead of printing on paper
• Replace light switches with motion detectors
• For non-presentational documents, use the back side of old print-outs
• Turn off your computer (or at least your monitor)
• Don't overuse AC
• Turn off your monitor and don't keep your system on
• Replace your coffee pot with a thermal carafe.

Share A Tip

(Please first make sure it isn't a duplicate of one above, thanks. Please keep language diplomatic and G-rated; avoid hyperbole or editorializing, like "the best thing you can do is"; no political lobbying.)

Category: [Select Category]CommunityGardenHomeTransportationWork

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