ways to reduce your impact

Instead of using the energy of your clothes drier, use a clothes line to dry your clothes.

Thanks to iwilltry s instructable on turning the pilot flame of your gas furnace, this is a good tip! From his instructable Most gas furnaces in operation today still have a continuous pilot flame. Turning off the pilot flame in the summer is easy to do and well worth the effort, but very few people do it, mostly because they don t know how and aren t aware that they should.

Purchase a tote bag to take with you when you go shopping. Use these so you do not have to waste the paper or plastic bags. If you do use plastic bags, re use them. Use something like this plastic bag recycler, to reuse your plastic bags.

Install sink and faucet aerators to conserve water. Installation is easy, and the effects are great! You can reduce your home water consumption as much as 50%, and reduce your energy cost of heating the water also by as much as 50%.

Fill your loads of dishes and clothes in their cleaners. They use a good amount of water, so use them to their fullest potential. Air dry your dishes, as well as your clothes. Dryers also consume a good amount of energy.

Excess weight in your car decreases the gas mileage your can achieve. If you have golf clubs, equipment, people... Anyway, extra, unnecessary weight decreases potential gas mileage. Get rid of that junk, and improve your gas mileage

Removal of the cap allows for evaporation and prevents retention of residual liquid. Extra liquid causes a number of problems: it adds weight, which adds to the energy (and fossil fuel emissions) necessary to transport the recyclables; it creates a mess and causes injuries in the recycling plant.

This is a pet peeve of mine. I hate it when people leave lights on when they are not using them. 30% of a home s energy usage comes from the lighting. Turning the lights off when you leave the room can dramatically reduce the amount of energy used for lighting.

Purchase appliances that have the Energy Star logo (below) on the product. It means that the appliance meets or exceeds standards set by the U.S. Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency.

Air sealing is when you close all potential gaps, where heating and cooling can escape. Doing this can stop drafts, reduce noise, but most importantly, it decreases the amount of energy lost through poor sealing. Once you are sealed efficiently, then you can properly insulate your home