Electricity Gas Household Items and Food Paper Water

Electricity Turn off any appliances and lights not being used or unplug them completely. Plug appliances into a surge protector strip and then turn it off when you're done using the appliances. Turn the thermostat down in the winter time or up in the summertime at night to reduce the use of electricity or gas. If you want to cool your house and it's cool outside, or if there's a breeze, turn off the air conditioning and open the windows. If you have a well, monitor your water use. You may not have to pay for water, but you still have to pay for the electricity used to pump the water and to heat it. Use energy efficient light bulbs at night. During the day, allow sunlight to come in through the windows so that you don't have to turn on lights. Clean and service furnaces and hot water heaters. How much electricity do you really use? Did you know that most appliances, like your TV, are really in stand-by mode when they are turned "off"? Stand-by mode allows the appliance to be turned on quickly, so the appliance is always drawing power. If you're curious about how much electricity you really use, you can purchase a monitor, such as the P3 Kill-a-Watt. Gas Carpool. If you live in town, walk or ride a bike to wherever you can instead of driving. Try to do as much as possible to prevent multiple trips. For example, do all your shopping at one time, as opposed to making multiple trips. Keep your car maintained; change the air filter and oil regularly. Don't leave your car on if it's not necessary. If you are sitting in your car for a while, don't let it idle. Turn it off. If you're keeping the car running for the AC, roll down the windows instead. In the winter time, most new cars only need one to two minutes to warm up. Check the air in your tires. Not having enough air causes your car to use more gas. Household Items and Food Reuse plastic bottles and gallon jugs by washing them. Gallon jugs can be used for kool-aid, smaller bottles can be used for lunches. Buy reusable food containers for lunch instead of disposable plastic bags. Bring your lunch in a lunch pail instead of a paper bag. Bring a cloth bag for groceries, instead of getting plastic or paper bags. Or, if you're only getting one or two items, tell the cashier you don't need a bag. If you must get plastic bags, take them to Wal-Mart for recycling. Ask other local stores if they offer this service too. Paper bags can be recycled or used as book covers. Glass jars can be washed and re-used by filling with soups or other foods with liquid, leave a little bit of room at the top, and freeze. If you buy in bulk, breads can be frozen. Cheese can be sliced or grated and be put in ziplock bags or vacuum sealed containers. Freeze leftovers for another quick meal instead of throwing the food away. You could also compost it. Paper Recycle paper or use it for packing by crumpling the paper up. Use cloth napkins and hankies instead of paper napkins and tissues. Use rags and cloth towels for the kitchen. Put your name and address on the Mail Preference Service List. It can help stop junk mail. The DMA now charges $1.00 for this service. See the JunkBuster's site for more information about this fee. Mail Preference Service, Direct Marketing Association P.O. Box 282 Carmel, NY 10512. Look for recycled paper products. Use reusable plates, mugs, and glasses as often as possible instead of disposable ones. Use both sides of the paper. Use the back of a piece of paper for notes, messages, or even for the kids to draw on. Also, copy and print on both sides of the paper whenever possible. Make you own scratch pads from used paper. Water Don't let water run. If you're doing the dishes, pile the dishes in the sink and rinse them all at once. If you're brushing your teeth, keep the water turned off until you're ready to rinse. Take shorter showers. Monitor the time spent watering the lawn, flower beds, and gardens. Also monitor the length of time the kids use the hose. Use a thick layer of mulch in gardens and around trees to retain moisture. Wash full loads of laundry once or twice a week instead of small ones every other day. Also, use warm/cold or cold/cold water cycles. It takes less energy to heat up the water, if any, for those cycles. Convert faucets and other water fixtures to low flow fixtures. While you're running the hot water and waiting for it to get hot, fill gallon jugs with the cold water. Use this water to water your garden or fill your pets water dishes. Be creative.