Green Your Recession
In March of this year, 76% of Americans already felt America was in a recession. Gas prices were speeding higher. Food prices were rising. Employment numbers were falling rapidly. Now, with those numbers plugging steadily upward and with seriously tumultuous times in the financial industry, everyone is bracing themselves for what could be a long, hard road. And in the midst of this, people have been becoming more aware about environmental concerns and the importance of going green for the sake of our lives and the lives of the generations that will come after us. It can be a tricky combination; many people think of going green as a wonderful choice for the earth, but not the budget.
As people buckle down to cut costs in light of job loss or fewer sales, sustainable lifestyles are sometimes pushed aside as a “luxury” not to be afforded in trying times. But here’s the reality: Certainly, yes, some aspects of green living are not as cheap as conventional options—shopping the organic sections of Whole Foods will rarely be a savings over the produce section of a Super Wal-Mart—but there are many changes we can make in our lives that fit both agendas. When it comes to going green, it often turns out, the price is right.
We’ve compiled ten tips that will bring down your expenses and up your positive environmental impact, and there’s more options out there; keep checking back for new Buyer’s Guides and Face-offs that will help you weigh the costs (and rewards) of getting green.
Top 9 Green Tips
Top 9 Green Tips
1. Start From Scratch
With layoffs and rising prices most everyone will be budgeting in new ways. Two areas that always have room for improvement are your retail purchases and your entertainment. You can go green by combining these two and you’ll find your expenses shrinking. Start looking at making things at home whenever possible; chances are you’ll find this to be not only financially smart but fun for you and your family. For example, instead of buying an organic pumpkin pie, you can make one at home and get the kids involved in cooking. Or start knitting, which has seen a comeback with knitting clubs and knit-and-bitch groups. By looking at homemade as a source of fun instead of an extra responsibility you’ll save your money and stay happy.
EXPECTED POTENTIAL YEARLY SAVINGS: Varies significantly.
2. Shut Yourself In
Chances are, you’re losing some (expensive) heat and/or air conditioning due to leaky windows and doors or other less obvious cracks. In fact, a 1/8” opening around just two door frames can let in as much cold air as a 12” window opened 6” all winter long, according to Old House Web. Fixing these leaks and cracks may be one of those tasks on your To-Do list that’s constantly getting moved to the bottom for other bigger projects, but getting it done will save you some easy money (the cost of caulking, door sweeps, etc. is generally reimbursed in one season’s savings). To test for leaks, shut all windows and doors and turn off all fans, air conditioning, and the like. Next, light a stick of incense and move it slowly in front of all doors, windows and places you suspect leaks (especially by brick seams). If the smoke sucks outward or blows inward, you’ve got a leak. And remember, when it comes to heating, if you can make do with a sweater and socks instead of turning on the heater—do it!
EXPECTED POTENTIAL YEARLY SAVINGS: $100 (based on an estimated 5% reduction in the $2,000 average American energy bill).
3. Update Your Appliances
Spending money on big purchases like refrigerators, dishwashers, washing machines and dryers may seem to be exactly what you don’t want to do when strapped for cash, but if you can invest in the new appliances without having to run up high-interest credit cards, it can be very worth it for you and the environment. Energy Star appliances often show potential savings on their labels, but the money you put aside could be even more than expected, as the demonstrated savings are comparisons of new Energy Star appliances to new standard appliances, and most of us are using older (sometimes ancient) appliances. In that case, the new appliance has the potential to earn back its cost in the first year or two. From there, you’ll find yourself saving more each month. To help with the initial costs of upgrading to eco-conscious appliances, you can use the Special Offer/Rebate Finder on the Energy Star website to find rebates and other coupons to use with your purchase.
EXPECTED POTENTIAL YEARLY SAVINGS: About $210 for switching to a new refrigerator and clothes washer only, depending on the age of current appliances. You can break even on your purchase in 4 or 5 years.
4. Clean on the Cheap
The home cleaning product industry is a more than $5 billion industry…that’s a lot of sprays, gels and wipes. Most of those products are environmental nightmares, full of chemicals that are dangerous to your health and disposable elements like packaging or application tools that are hardly biodegradable. Recently there’s been more interest in eco-friendly cleaning products, but one-use disposable toilet brushes and toss-after-use dusting wipes are also gaining in popularity. We tackled the comparison between conventional cleaning products and natural varieties in one of our Face-offs and the facts still stand: You can easily spend more than $25 on specific cleaning products for your home (and fill a cupboard or two), or you can buy a multi-purpose natural cleaner that will work on a range of jobs and keep your air clean. Better yet, consider creating your own cleaners using traditional methods that worked well for many eras before ours. White vinegar will conquer just about every countertop, window and even serious soap scum (when warmed before use). Baking soda can eat up stuck-on problems and get red wine stains out of your carpet. You can even skip the Pledge and use a mix of 2 parts olive oil to 1 part lemon juice to clean, shine and protect wood.
EXPECTED POTENTIAL YEARLY SAVINGS: $82.
5. Recycle and Reap the Rewards
Sorting your cans, bottles and containers takes only a little extra time but has big payoff. For the environment you’re saving glass bottles from landfills where they would take over 4,000 years to decompose. A recycled can is often on the market in a new capacity in about 60 days. If you want to put it into perspective; in 1999, 37,000 cans and bottles were thrown into landfills every minute—by the end of the year the energy lost through those items could have lit all the homes for a city the size of Los Angeles for a year. And the payoff for your wallet? The average American child drinks 500 cans of soda per year, and while we hope that number is different for you and your family, there are still water bottles, juice cans and bottles, beer cans and bottles, and a variety of other items you can redeem for rebates. It’s not hard to make $30+ a month and that number can rise significantly if you have a party or run your own business and redeem items from there. Some of you may actually be eligible to get rewards through Recycle Bank.
EXPECTED POTENTIAL YEARLY SAVINGS: $135 (based on a family of four, each using and recycling one bottle or can per day).
6. Strip to Save
Before you start practicing your dance moves, let us clarify; invest in a power strip for your electronics. Many of the little appliances you have on in your home drain power even in off-mode; things like your lamps, TV, speakers, blender and just about every computer component. While these things may seem small, together they can account for about 5% of your electricity bill, according to CNN. Odds are, however, that you’re not going to remember to unplug each individual product when you’re done using it. With a power strip there’s just one switch to flip off and start saving. Basic power strips start at about $10, which you can easily make back and then some, and more advanced power strips, which can shut off other components of your computer as soon as you power down the main unit, start around $30. Every bit of energy you cut down on will be a bonus for you and the environment.
EXPECTED POTENTIAL YEARLY SAVINGS: $364.
7. CFL Bulbs: A Bright Idea
Edison’s invention has been getting a lot of attention as of late, and that’s because of compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs), the new and improved light bulb that uses about 75% less energy than its traditional counterparts and lasts up to 10 times longer. If we all swapped out one traditional light bulb for a CFL, we’d save more than $600 million in annual energy costs and prevent the greenhouse gas emission equivalent of more than 800,000 cars. That’s savings you can take advantage of right now by purchasing CFLs for your home and switching out bulbs. Soon enough, in fact, it won’t be a choice; the U.S. recently passed a bill that will ban incandescent light bulbs by 2014 (Australia was the first to create such a ban and wants to be incandescent-free by 2010). CFLs will cost you more than incandescent bulbs when you first buy them—about $3 instead of $0.50—but each bulb can save $30 or more over its lifetime. If you can’t afford to switch all your bulbs right away, start with rooms where lights are on the most, like the kitchen, living room and home office.
EXPECTED POTENTIAL YEARLY SAVINGS: $200.
9. Bring It
Say you buy one Grande Starbucks coffee four times a week, at $1.60 that’s $6.40 a week, which doesn’t seem too bad, $25.60 a month, which is a little debatable, and over $300 a year, which looks like a hefty amount. For people who are going through several cups a day, the costs are astronomical if you’re on a budget. Not to mention the environmental impacts of 192 cups that aren’t recycled—most cups for hot beverages are lined with a plastic resin called polyethylene that prevents recycling—and are made using only 10% post consumer materials. The point of all this? By buying a travel mug you can drink organic, fair trade coffee everyday for a drastically lower cost and eco-effect. The benefits are the same if you bring filtered water from home with you in a water bottle or carry your own lunches and snacks in reusable containers.
EXPECTED POTENTIAL YEARLY SAVINGS: $245 on coffee alone (based on one cup of organic, fair trade coffee per day and the purchase of a travel mug), bringing your own water could save another $233.
10. Opt Out of the Office
A year of job losses has left us with an unemployment rate that’s higher than it’s been in five years, and we’re starting to see layoffs and benefit cuts in a range of industries. If you find yourself jobless, times are undoubtedly tight and, similarly, if you’re no longer getting covered for health care or other benefits, you may find yourself facing unexpected expenses. However, you can cut down on future expenses, if you’re on the job hunt, by looking for work-from-home opportunities whether that’s one day at work without going into the office or the whole week—and you can help make a dent in one of the worst environmental problems, the work commute. If you’re currently employed, but would like to cut down on transportation costs, talk to your employers about the possibility of working from home a couple days a week, explaining the benefits and emphasizing the ways they’ll be able to ensure you’re working hard (IM meetings and communication throughout the day, activity reports, etc.).
EXPECTED POTENTIAL YEARLY SAVINGS: Varies with your situation, but you can get an estimate using a work-from-home savings calculator.
SOURCES:
76% of Americans believe America to be in recession - http://www.gallup.com/poll/105109/Most-Americans-Say-US-Now-Economic-Recession.aspx
37,000 cans and bottles thrown into landfills every minute of 1999 - http://www.dontdrinksoda.com/environment.php
The household cleaning product industry is now a $5 billion industry - http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS167782+02-Jul-2008+BW20080702
Natural cleaning product recipes - http://www.realsimple.com/realsimple/gallery/0,21863,1076961,00.html
Power strips save money and time - http://www.grist.org/advice/ask/2007/11/05/
CFL light bulbs - http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=cfls.pr_cfls
Netflix better for the environment than local video stores - http://www.slate.com/id/2196651/
The environmental impact of coffee cups - http://www.sustainabilityissexy.com/facts.html
Seal drafts; save money - http://www.oldhouseweb.com/how-to-advice/seal-drafts-save-money.shtml
How to convince your boss to let you telecommute - http://money.cnn.com/2006/04/28/pf/saving/willis_tips/index.htm
Commuting costs and emissions calculator - http://rideshare.511.org/calculator/
Energy Star appliances save more than the label suggests - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/16/AR2007111600644.html
Energy Star rebate/discount finder - http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?fuseaction=rebate.rebate_locator
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