Post Ideas for Reducing Here!

We stopped buying water in bottles, which was hard at first because I was so used to it, but now I don't even notice! I just put out a cup in the morning by the fridge and refill it every time I walk by it- presto! It's just as convienent.

We stopped using disposable dishes. I know their more convenient... but they cost money, and they cost trash!

We're being more concious on what recycling # is on the bottom of products.  If it's a number, like 5, that has a hard time being accepted with certain recycling centers, we just don't buy it.   Or at least TRY HARDER to look for alternatives to that product.


We still buy bottled water, but I don't feel too guilty about it because we recycle every last bottle.

**someone asked why I still buy bottled... here's the reason:   :) 

The town we live in has HIGH levels of fluoride in their water.  High levels of fluoride is not good! not only for children to drink, but for adults as well.    Filtering out our water doesn't filter out fluoride.    We buy bottled mainly for our almost 3 year old son to drink.      But , in return, we make sure all bottles are recycled.  :)       If anything, i'd rather have a person, like myself,  buying bottled water knowing it will be recycled, than some irresponsible consumer just throwing them away.   We are looking into having one of those spring water jug dispensers put in our home... but... until we make that decision, this is what we will continue doing.

Bring cloth bags to the store!! paper bags are just as harmful to the planet as plastic bags!! 

Buy in bulk when you can!!

Skip the juice boxes (buy a jug & re-fill cups for the kids!)

Say NO to bottled water! Such a waste!! Purchase good quality "to go" style cups and fill fill fill!!

Buy rechargable batteries!!!

Use rags (old T shirts, towels) to clean the house~not paper towels!!

~I'll think of more. . . . . .

I stopped buying paper napkins and paper towels and use cloth now.  Also, I make my own cleaning solutions for the house, so no more buying plastic bottles.  I bring my own bags to all stores not just the grocery store. 

I've decided to consume less overall and rethink what I really need vs. what I want when I'm making purchasing decisions.  It not only saves on waste but saves money for us. 

 It's made a difference in our waste anyway!  I've also stopped using paper plates and using paper napkins and paper towels less often.

Cloth diapers...and if you make them from extra fabric, like old shirts and wool sweaters it is reduce and recycle!

Making / Recycling your own cleaning tools

* Socks - good for cleaning walls, especially textured ones (sponges break off little pieces when you try to scrub textured walls).
* Scrubbers - cut up pieces of mesh potato bags and tie into a small ball - works great for scouring dishes!
* Towels - cut up old towels instead of throwing them away and use them for dish clothes or in the garage.
* Toothbrushes - save that old toothbrush! You can use it to scrub floors, stains on clothing, and more!
* Mop - to make a new mop head, try cutting up strips of old towels, shirts or socks.
Rubberband or tie the top ends of the strips together, then secure to the mop stick.
* Window Cleaner -  newspaper works well to clean windows. You can also try old cloth diapers.

It looks like most of the stuff I do is the same as all of you! I've started making my own bread, so there is no plastic bag, and it is better for us anyway. I also use storage containers for leftovers instead of covering dishes/food with foil or plastic wrap. I buy only the concentrated laundry soap. I use reusable shopping bags, and if I forget them I've been known to carry my items out in my arms instead of using plastic! If I do end up with plastic, I reuse them in the bathroom trash cans. We reduced the amount of electricity we use by installing dimmer switches on most of our lights. We are also big on natural light during the day, I love to open the curtains in the morning and let the sunshine in. We open windows, turn the thermostat down in winter and up in summer, use the air dry on the dishwasher, use cold water for MOST of our laundry, etc. ***I also wanted to comment on the pic that Nicolette has on her post. I went to Stuart Beach in Galveston when I was in High School. It was a very dirty beach, and I was disappointed as it was my first time at the ocean. I was picking up tons of shells and thought to myself, 'I could really use a bag', wouldn't you know that about 20 steps further there was a plastic shopping bag half buried in the sand! It got the shells out of my hands, but it was really sad to me. I've never forgotten that. How sad is it that this is my main memory of my first trip to the beach?!***

If you own your home they have motion sensing light switches with a timer on them so if your kids are bad about leaving the light on then you can install the device with the timer set for like half an hour (long enough for most normal activities).  The girls rooms and my laundry area are getting these installed when we redo the wiring to our house because these are our problem areas.  The laundry area is my fault, but it seems I am constantly in there, on the upside I did switch that bulb to the CFC bulbs in most of my sockets. 

If you have an older toilet (not one of the low flow current models) you can put a small bottle (like a 20oz. Coke bottle) full of water in the tank to reduce the water you are flushing. 

Only run the dishwasher and washer when they are full.

Line dry your clothes and if the stiffness bothers you toss them in the dryer for like 15 mins.

Wash and rinse in cold water.

When you buy a new appliance make sure it's Energy Star.

Use vinegar instead of fabric softner to reduce the chemicals you are putting back into the earth.

Plan your errands so you can get them done in one trip without driving back and forth around town.