It is time to start a new holiday tradition. The Thursday before Thanksgiving is Use Less Stuff Day. Make a commitment or pledge to yourself to reduce your resource consumption during the holiday season.

Here are a few ideas:

• Don’t buy too many groceries or prepare too much food for a holiday gathering. If you do prepare too much, send leftovers home with guests or reheat them the following day for yourself. Try your best not to throw away usable food.
• Use less energy. Turn down the heat before a holiday party. The body heat of guests will keep the room warm, so lower the thermostat a few degrees.
• Have a recycling plan. Set up recycling bins to capture all the wrapping paper, gift boxes, bottles, cans, plastic cups, etc. Inform your guests and make sure they know what items to recycle and where to place them.
• Use fewer disposable paper products and eating utensils. If all your dinnerware, table settings and silverware must be matching sets, rent dinnerware, glassware and silverware for your holiday party. Otherwise, ask guests to bring their own and eliminate paper plates and plastic cups, forks, knives, etc.
• Use cloth napkins that can be washed and reused at your next holiday gathering instead of buying disposable ones and filling the trash can.

Go ahead and make the commitment to use less stuff. Tell your friends and family about Use Less Stuff Day and work toward an environmentally-friendly holiday season without sacrificing the fun and joys all of us look forward to each year.

For more ideas about Use Less Stuff Day, please visit www.use-less-stuff.com.

This article brought to you by The HousePlanShop, LLC, the home of the best selling house plans from the best designers!

Tags: energy efficient, go green, holidays, recycle, use less stuff day

‘Tis the season to be jolly….and wasteful. A recent report stated Americans will create an extra 25 million tons of waste between Thanksgiving and New Year’s. Think about it. Wrapping paper filling trash cans. Light displays spiking electric bills. Trees jamming up landfills. And the list goes on. But THIS holiday season can be different. The following suggestions will help you change your habits and start a new tradition, celebrating the holidays in amazing earth-friendly fashion.

Turn Down the Amps – Leaving your holiday lights on 24 hours a day can significantly raise your energy bill. Use a timer for your light displays ensuring they are not left on all night. Also, when strands of lights wear out, replace them with LED lights which use about 90% less energy than standard mini-lights.

Candle Glow – The holidays are the perfect time to light up your home with candles. A decorative arrangement of tall and short candles in a room is usually enough to eliminate some, if not all, overhead lighting. Not only will you save electricity, but the candles will be part of your décor. Furthermore, with the heat from the candles and your own body heat, most rooms will warm up nicely over the course of an evening allowing you to lower the thermostat. The result – you’ll save on your energy bill. Remember to use caution around burning candles.

Use Natural Décor – Use locally grown items to decorate your home. Fill a basket with pinecones you collected at the park, and use it as a centerpiece on the dining room table. Snip a few branches from an evergreen bush or tree and create your own wreath for the door. Add pinecones and a bow or tuck citrus fruits into it for a pop of color. Make your own garland for the tree with popcorn, berries and nuts, for example.

Cut your Card List – Over 2.6 billing holiday cards are sold each year and most end up in the trash. Trim you card list by just a few recipients and send them an e-card instead. You’ll save on postage and reduce waste. When sending traditional cards, choose cards made of recycled paper. As for the cards you receive, cut them up, they will make great gift tags for next year.

Trim Creatively – There is no need to buy all new tree trimmings every year so you can have a new holiday look. Instead, create homemade ornaments. Make popcorn and cranberry garland or pinecone ornaments. Better yet, swap decorations with a friend each year. You’ll always have a fresh look.

Consider Alternative Gift Wrap – With so much wrapping paper ending up in the trash each year, use your imagination. Wrap gifts with other items like a colorful blanket, a furry scarf, a T-shirt. Anything that covers your package can work as gift wrap. Or, have your kids decorate used brown paper grocery bags. Put gifts inside the bags and staple them shut. As for the gifts you receive. Open them carefully saving the paper for next year’s wrapping.

Reuse Trimmings – Place a container in the middle of the room. Ask everyone to put bows, boxes, gift bags, and ribbons in the box for use next year.

Recycle – Face it. Gifts come with lots of wrapping and packaging. As you open gifts, recycle what you can, plastic, paper, cardboard, etc. Don’t stop there. Recycle your tree as well. Check with your local government or municipality. Some places recycle trees into mulch, others use them for animal habitats in parks and lakes, get the Skip Bin hire in Perth services and use it to keep your waste in place, this way it will be easier and less messy for you to recycle. However you choose to recycle your tree, do it responsibly. Make sure all ornaments, hooks, tinsel and light strands are removed. Artificial trees can be recycled too visit our website Bestpriceskipbins.com.au we recycle all kind of trash. If you’re tired of your artificial tree, donate it to a church, community center, shelter or another place that decorates for the holidays.

The holidays are exciting, fun, and they are major waste makers. Now is the time to do your part and start changing the holidays for the better. These environmentally-friendly holiday tips will get you started.

This article brought to you by The HousePlanShop, LLC, the home of the best selling house plans from the best designers!

Tags: Christmas, earth friendly, energy efficient, Green Living

When you built your new home, chances are you spent time researching the most energy efficient kitchen appliances before making your final choice, then you will want to visit PittsburghApplianceRepairs.com to make sure you have a backup plan in case any of your appliances get damged.

While selecting the most earth-friendly appliances from https://americasappliancerepair.com/ is a huge step in the right direction when it comes to green living, there is still more you can do in the kitchen. If you’re a utensil maniac like me, you ought to never miss whisks in your arsenal of cooking tools. A whisk isn’t only useful within the baking process; you’ll use it in several cooking situations. Cooking whisks are available different shapes and sizes and every type is meant to functions in several situations. You’ll make dressing , topping and even pan sauce if you employ the right ones. you would possibly even consider buying differing types of best whisk for baking and cooking to make sure a convenient cooking experience. You can also take a look at “green” suggestions and see which ones you can incorporate into your kitchen and cooking routine.If you have a family, you know how tedious it can be scrubbing used dishes with hand. Many people do not opt for dishwashers because they have small kitchens and feel that they do not have the space to install one. However, this is not true. You can easily get compact dishwashers that are small and can fit even on the countertop. Technology has advanced quite a bit. No longer do you have to purchase a 24-inch dishwasher and fix it under the counter. You can go for the 18-inch model, or even a countertop model. If you do not want this, you can go for a portable dishwasher that is available in 24-inch and 18-inch sizes. These compact dishwasher under 500 are excellent for kitchens that are small and have limited space. However, it goes without saying that these dishwashers can be slightly expensive, but spending an amount of $500 is worth the time and effort you save when it comes to washing the dishes.

·         If you have bright, sunny kitchen windows, pull back the curtains and prepare meals by natural light whenever possible. Only flip the switch on when necessary, but make sure to turn it off when you leave the room.

·         Unplug small appliances such as the toaster and coffee maker when not in use.

·         Consider no-waste baking. Buy a reusable, nonstick silicone baking mat to save on use of aluminum foil and parchment paper.

·         Avoid opening the oven while it is in use. Each time the oven door is opened, the temperature can drop as much as 25-50 degrees requiring more energy to warm it back up.

·         Place a lid on the pot when brining water to a boil to prevent heat and energy from escaping. Leaving the lid off extends cooking time and adds heat and moisture to the air making your air conditioner work harder throughout the summer months.

·         Make an effort to match pots and pans to the same size burner or heating element and center it on the flame or element to prevent heat from escaping.

·         Choose the right size pot or pan for the job. It takes more energy to heat a large pot or pan, so choose smaller ones when appropriate to save energy.

·         Whenever possible, use the same pot or pan for multiple foods.

·         Make smart decisions about running the dishwasher. Dishwashers are designed to get the dishes clean no matter how dirty they are or what was baked in them. There is no need to pre-rinse. Save the water instead. Also, only run the dishwasher when it is full, conserving water and energy. Skipping the drying cycle is a plus saving even more energy and keeping the kitchen cool.

·         Take advantage of the freezer. A full freezer uses less energy to cool than an empty one. Stock your freezer buying large quantities of meats and vegetables when they are on sale (saving you cash) and freeze them for future use (saving you a trip to the grocery store later.)

There are many other things you can do to make earth-friendly and energy efficient choices in the kitchen. Beginning with these tips will get you started down the right path.

Tags: cooking, earth friendly, energy efficient, kitchen

When it comes to building a new home, there are many benefits to gain by using green building methods. From choosing earth-friendly materials to following environmentally-friendly practices there are several things you and your builder can do to make your new home green. So why build GREEN? Green building and living is the way of the future. With every choice we make we have the option to protect our environment and planet or endanger them. Building a home makes a huge impact on the environment and landscape. Ornamental grasses are fairly popular and that they are extensively utilized in landscaping and designing home gardens and farms. Ornamental grasses and sedge’s happen to be quite versatile because they need the potential of adding more texture, color and movement to your garden. Ornamental grasses can adapt to most soils. They require less- maintenance which makes them ideal for any home garden. the simplest part is that you simply can use your imagination and plant them together with your perennials or other plants in order that they complement one another . they’re going to blend in well and provides an exquisite effect to your garden. You can grow ornamental grasses in your garden to feature a vertical presence. they are available in many sorts and may be bought from a nursery. a number of them are meant for dry conditions and a few of them thrive well in moist or wet conditions. you’ll choose the one that suits your landscape and makes it more appealing. Most of the grasses are often grown from seeds and that they produce tiny and colorful flowers during spring season. a number of them also can be propagated by division once they’re mature. Most of the these grasses are native and wild which makes them less vulnerable to pests and diseases. If they get their share of ample sunlight and nutrients from the soil, they’re going to thrive and increase the sweetness of your garden. Even the slightest breeze makes them move and sway which adds movement to the landscape. you’ll also attract birds, bees and butterflies to your garden by planting them. a number of the common ones that are utilized in home gardens are Pink crystals, Tender Pennisetum ruppelii , Lemongrass, Dwarf Cortaderia selloana , reed canary grass , Yorkshire fog , Bouteloua gracilis and Kentucky bluegrass .You can plant the decorative grasses within the spring season in order that they grow and develop a healthy rootage by the time winter arrives. they will even be planted in fall during August or September month. Provide enough moisture and fertilization in order that the plants grow well and become strong. Mulching is required during winter season to guard the plants from frost and cold so you’ll need to cover the bottom with mulch before winter approaches. Most of the decorative grasses can tolerate drought conditions once they’re adult and established so you’d not really need to worry tons about care and maintenance. Making responsible choices and decisions throughout the construction process helps protect the environment, our resources and our health. It is important that we do our part.

 Carbon Footprint

Making an effort to use green materials will help lesson your carbon footprint. (A carbon footprint in the amount of greenhouse gas emissions caused directly or indirectly by an individual, organization or an event such as building a home.) Choosing local materials to install wooden greenhouses and finish your home will have less of an impact on the environment than selecting materials that must be shipped from far locations. Also, when clearing your lot, only clear the space that is necessary to build the home. Leave as many mature trees and as much shrubbery undisturbed as possible. This will leave the established ecosystem in place providing homes to resident animals and insects, allowing trees and greenery to produce oxygen and provide shade reducing your summer cooling bills.

 Protecting Resources

Plan to use sustainable materials when building your home such as bamboo flooring. Bamboo grows much more quickly than other timber allowing it to replenish itself in a fraction of the time it takes for hardwoods and exotic timber to reproduce. Choosing sustainable materials prevents exploitation of natural resources.

 Energy Efficiency

Using green or recycled materials can help increase the overall efficiency of your home and eliminate landfill wastes. Consider recycled paper or denim products to insulate your home. Choose countertops made of recycled glass instead of purchasing a granite countertop. Install high quality thermal windows cutting down on heating and cooling bills. Consider a geothermal heating and cooling system. Incorporate solar panels. Take advantage of your lot and position your home to make the best of natural lighting, but make sure you contact the right electrical contractor for those rooms that can’t have natural lighting so you are sure that you aren’t wasting more energy than necessary. Choose and install Energy Star rated appliances. All of these things help eliminate waste and reduce energy consumption (and your utility bills.) GreenbuildSA notes that the majority of houses in Adelaide will have solar panels by 2050

 Water-Use Reduction

Select and install water-conserving appliances and fixtures such as low-flow toilets and shower heads. Purchase a water-conserving washing machine and dishwasher. Not only will these choices help protect our water supply, but they will also reduce your water bill.

 Heath Benefits 

Choose green products to finish the interior of your home such as formaldehyde-free building materials and low-VOC (volatile organic compound) paints. These healthy alternatives help prevent respiratory problems that can arise when using traditional building materials.

 So, before you build your new home, talk with your builder about these green building practices and other things you can do to make earth-friendly choices throughout the construction process.

 For more information, check out these articles about green building.

This article brought to you by The HousePlanShop, LLC, the home of the best selling house plans from the best designers!

Tags: energy effiecient, green building, green homes, green house plans, resources