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6 Affordable and Eco-Friendly Ways to Winterize Your Home Now

November 12, 2013 0

Don’t wait until that first big snow storm to figure out that that your home isn’t winterized. Get to work now to find out the areas that your home is lacking and make those improvements now. If you take the time to properly safeguard your home against the cold you can conserve energy and money all winter long. Read on to learn my 6 favorite affordable and eco-friendly tips for winterizing your home and get started this weekend.

1. Get with the Program
If your home doesn’t have a programmable thermostat that allows you to automatically set your heating schedule, it is time for an upgrade. You want to program your thermostat to automatically turn the heat down when you aren’t at home or at night when you are snuggled down under all of those blankets in your bed and then adjust accordingly for the times that you are at home and need to stay warm.

2. Clean it Up
Now is the perfect time to schedule an appointment with your local HVAC professional. Have your furnace inspected to ensure that it will work efficiently and effectively all winter long. If it is time to upgrade your furnace, pick an energy star one that will save you energy and money in the long run.

3. Seal it Up
Now is the time to check all of your door and window weatherstripping – if there is extreme wear and tear or you can see light when a door or window is closed, it’s time to for an update. You may also want to do an outside inspection of your home and caulk around pipes, spigots and hoses.

4. Get Insulated
Check to make sure that your home has the proper amount of insulation in your attic. If you need to add insulation, choose an option that is toxic-free and environmental friendly – I am a huge fan of blue jean insulation.

5. Get Vented
If there are particular areas or rooms in your home that you are not utilizing, close the heating vents and shut the door to that room. There is no reason to heat a room that isn’t being used.

6. Get Efficient
If you don’t think your home is energy efficient or you are looking to reduce your carbon footprint or monthly utility bills – check with a energy expert, such as the Mark Group they can assist you in finding out exactly what areas of your home need improvement and then make the necessary improvements before the first big snow storm! 

Your Turn: How do you plan to winterize your home? Please share your tips in the comment section below!

Full Disclosure: This post was brought to you in collaboration with Mark Group.

Ask Sweet Greens: How to Naturally Clean Your Washer

November 8, 2013 0
Dear Sweet Greens,

I have a top-loading washer and whenever I wash my clothes they come out smelly mildewy! The washer is only a couple of years old – what is going on? How do I naturally clean it? 

Sick of smelling stinky socks, 
Melissa
——————————Hi Melissa,

Ha! I completely understand and have experienced the stinky mildewy smell before. Luckily, I have a remedy that will knock that stink out and some tips that will help ensure it doesn’t happen again.

Step 1: Clean + Green
First, fill the washer to the top with using the hot water feature, then add 2 cups of white vinegar and 2 tablespoons eco-friendly dish washing liquid to the water because it starts the wash cycle.
BEWARE: It is going to look disgusting – you can repeat this process if the water isn’t clean in the rinse cycle.

Step 2: Keep it Fresh
Keep the yuck out tips: The main reason that your washer smells mildewy is due to using too much soap. Cut back on the amount of dish washing soap that you are using to wash your clothes and after you place the clothing in the dryer – leave the lid open until the inside of the washer is completely dry or until you wash your next load.

Step 3: Enjoy!
Enjoy fresh, cleaning smelling laundry – good luck!

photo via flickr

10 Simple Ways to Green Your Home For Under $10

September 25, 2013 0

by Jennie

Going green starts with small steps – it’s those little choices that can equal a huge impact in the long run. Many small steps are easy, affordable and start with the choices that you make when doing your marketing. Here are my 10 favorite ways to green your home – these are very affordable, in fact they all cost less than $10.

1. Ditch It Paper towels and napkins are used only once and then tossed in the trash. Ditch the paper and choose reusable organic cotton dishcloths and napkins instead. This simple step alone will save countless resources and eliminate the gas emissions created during the manufacturing and transportation of these paper products.

2. Bottle It Instead of buying beverages that come in plastic or even glass containers, pick up a BPA free reusable bottle for each member of your family. Keep the bottles with you at all times, attach your child’s to their backpacks when sending them off to school and throw one in your handbag or car for drinks on the go.

3. Bag It If you, your spouse or children take their lunch to school or work everyday, invest in a great reusable lunchbox or bag. Paper and plastic lunch bags are wasteful, since they are tossed after being used only once!

4. Recharge It The next time you need to pick up batteries for the TV or Wii remote, choose an eco-friendly, rechargeable version. Not only do rechargeable batteries save hundreds of single-use batteries from being tossed, they save you money too. Win, win.

5. Trash It Most trash bags on the market are not biodegradable, which means that it will take thousands of years for the trash bag to break down (not to mention the contents inside). Instead, pick up trash bags that are biodegradable and will break down in only a few months.

6. Compost It Instead of throwing those leftovers or salad scraps into the trash, compost them instead. Regardless of the type of home you live in, you can compost. There are many different composter options available, including ones that you can build out of recycled or leftover materials, rolling composters and even small electronic composters for inside a small home or apartment. (However, the later option is more expensive.)

7. Clean It One of the most dangerous, toxic and harmful items in your home, may be your cleaning products. Not only are these conventional products dangerous to the environment, they are dangerous to the health of your family. There are many all-natural household cleaning products available that are eco-friendly and non-toxic,  you can even make your own.

8. Go Low-Flow A low-flow shower-head will use less than 2 gallons of water per minute, that is still a lot of water going down the drain. However, it is much better than the 5 gallons per minute that an older shower-head will use. The best option is to turn off the shower while you soap up or shampoo your hair.

9. Bulk Up When you can buy products from the bulk section, not only is it more affordable, but you can bring your own reusable containers, eliminating the need for product packaging.

10. Hang It Instead of drying all of your clothes in the dryer, hang them up to dry. You can utilize a clothesline outside or hang them up in your laundry room. Not only does this save a lot of energy, your clothing will last longer and smell fresher too.

What simple, affordable choices do you choose when greening your everyday routine?

9 Eco-Friendly Ways to Green Your Kitchen

September 17, 2013 0
How green is your kitchen? Does your kitchen have a huge positive or negative impact on the environment and health of your family? Since the kitchen is one of places that your family will spend the most time, consider giving it an easy and affordable green makeover in these 9 simple steps.

1. Get Cleaned
Ditch the high-price, toxic-filled, environment killing-chemical laden cleaners the next time you do your grocery shopping. Instead invest in a set of reusable spray bottles and 9 simple ingredients that will not only clean your bathroom, but your entire home.

2. Get ReUsed
It is finally time to stop purchasing paper napkins and towels – they are wasteful and can only be used once. Instead invest in a set of affordable organic cotton washcloths and towels that can be used over and over again. Not to mention, they are much more absorbent that paper.

3. Get Recycled
If you aren’t already recycling, why not? Either take all of your recyclables to the recycling bin in the garage or invest in a recycling center for your kitchen. It doesn’t matter how you recycle, it just matters that you do.

4. Get Composted
There are many great options available on the market now for all different types of composting needs. If you like in an apartment, townhouse or condo – there is a composter for that. If you live in a neighborhood – there is a composter for that. If you live in a rural, country area – there is a composter for that. So what are you waiting for?

5. Get Local
When doing your food marketing consider going local -and by local I don’t mean the closest grocery store. Instead, support your local community of farmers by shopping locally at your farmer’s market, food co-ops and farm stands.

6. Get Bagged
Are you still using paper or plastic? It’s time to invest in a great set of reusable grocery bags. These do not need to be expensive, they only need to work and you have to remember to take them when you do your marketing.

7. Get Hydrated
Stop purchasing bottled water – if you are concerned about the quality of your home’s water, consider purchasing a water-flirtation system or pitcher. These may seem like the bigger investment – but overall you will save a ton of money over bottled water. Not to mention the Earth will thank you for not adding another water bottle to the landfill or recycling bin.

8. Get Grilled
While the weather is still warm, get outside and get grilling. Grilling uses a lot less energy than your kitchen oven and it is fun too. For people who live in warmer climates (Yay!) you can grill all year long and save the energy from your giant stove and your air conditioning (since your house won’t be super-hot from using the oven.)

9. Go Organic
You don’t have to purchase everything in organic, but I recommend spending your money on what is important to you. Think of it as voting with your wallet. Our hard-earned money goes towards supporting the products that we want in our grocery stores. Purchase as much as you can organic – if you can’t afford a lot consider starting with produce, dairy and meats.

What other ways do you green your kitchen?

6 Eco-Friendly Backpack Must Haves for Green Kids

September 9, 2013 0

Fall is here and the kids are back in school – hooray! Eben and I have had almost a month to get his backpack routine in check. I like to make sure that he has everything that he needs for the day. Things to keep him organized, things to keep him healthy. And things to keep him happy! Here are the 7 eco-friendly backpack must haves that we recommend, including a new backpack that is super cool!

1.  $75
The class Kanken backpack has been a favorite among Scandinavian schoolchildren since it debuted in 1978 – however it only came stateside a handful of years ago. The durable vinylon bag is available in a rainbow of colors (I love the yellow and I bought the pink for my niece as a Christmas gift!) Its versatile design can be worn on the back or carried like a tote.

2. RuMe Baggie All 3-pocket Organizer $12
The RuMe Baggie All is perfect for a backpack because it keeps all of those pens, pencils, toiletries, and snacks organized and easy to find. The Baggie All is machine washable, water resistant and comes in a great selection of designs. The best part – they are now available at Target, so you can pick them up on your next shopping trip.

3. Kind Bars $2
Kind Bars are my favorite go-to snacks for the backpack because they are super healthy snack that packs a lot of flavor – like a treat! Eben adores the Dark Chocolate Nut and Sea Salt Bars – they are low in sugar and packed full of protein and fiber making them a great afternoon pick me up. Also, Kind Bars are now available at Target for the first time in the pharmacy section!

4. $15
The most important thing (besides homework) that Eben never forgets to toss in his backpack is his Contigo water bottle. Our family loves Contigo reusable bottles – we are huge converts! They are great for the backpack because they don’t leak – so there is no worry if it tips over during the day.

5. Recycled File Folder $2
The best way that we have found for Eben to keep all of his class and homework organized is with a file folder. It’s large enough to hold a lot of work, has tabbed sections – one for each subject and is made from recycled materials too.

6.  Everyone Hand Sanitizers $3
It never seems to fail, the kids go back to school only to get the sniffles or a cold within the first few weeks. I make sure Eben’s backpack always has an Everyone Hand Sanitizer packed in his RuMe Baggie All organizer. Everyone Hand Sanitizers are made using all natural, non-gmo plant based ingredients and pure essential oils – giving your child clean hands quickly, 99.9% effective against most common germs. These sanitizers are moisturizing, not dry or sticky – the Coconut + Lemon and Peppermint + Citrus are my favorites.

What must haves do you stash in your child’s backpack?

Full Disclosure: I received samples of some of the above items – however, all opinions are my own and I only share products that I have used and really love.

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