Going Green on a Budget. Where Do I Start?
Posted by Paige
This was an excellent question posed to me from a customer. I’ve heard it in multiple forms in the store as well. If I want to go "Green" on a limited budget, where can I start to make the biggest impact?
I don’t think there is one answer to this, so I am opening it up to you all to add your opinions as well. Where did you think is a good place to start? When weighing options do you think light bulbs or water savers or recycling or whatever, makes a larger impact? This could be an interesting topic to throw around!
I don’t have an easy answer for this question. I think for me, a good way to start on a budget, is with a couple of things:
1) Water Conservation. This is an easy fix. Faucet aerators, low flow shower heads and toilet dams (which reduce your water usage) all are easy and relatively inexpensive ranging from $1.50-$10.00 a piece. This not only saves water, but also helps in your pocketbook by saving you money on your monthly bill.
Want to conserve even more water? Rain Barrels are a great way to conserve water in the garden. Collect your rain water off your house and water your lawn and garden, again, saving money on your water bill and it is healthier for your yard without the treated city water. Rain Barrels cost between $90-$200 depending on what you are looking for. There are also links online telling you how to make your own.
2) Recycling. If you don’t already have this in your daily routine, take it up! It’s so easy and makes a big difference. I can argue the side of the energy use it takes to recycle things, but over all, we have a limited amount of natural resources on this planet. Glass, aluminum, etc. should be recycled and reused. There’s no reason to let waste fill up a landfill while we ruin some of the last few beautiful, untouched places looking for more resources. If you live in the city or a community that does curbside recycling, it’s even easier. If not, the McIntire Recycling Center in town takes most recycling and is easy and convenient. On a budget, recycling is free! Divert your waste from the landfill.
If you recycle, also look to buy recycled. Everyday products from paper to plastics now have recycled content. Look to purchase goods with a higher recycled content to complete the cycle!
3) Energy Conservation. I’d love if everyone out there had energy efficient lighting and energy efficient appliances. These nowadays cost around the same as non-energy efficient, but if your not in the market, I don’t necessarily believe you should throw out something that works to go green. As appliances wear out, buy smarter. As for light bulbs, replace your incandescent bulbs with Compact Florescent (CFL) or even better with Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs). These are a bit more expensive per bulb than an incandescent bulb, but they last longer and save you money over their lifetime. A smart purchase up front that saves you money over time!
Another big saver is really turning off your appliances and lights when they are not in use. Even when your computer or TV is powered off, if it is still plugged in, or the power strip is on, the appliances are still drawing "phantom power." To truly turn something off, unplug it from the wall or switch the energy strip off. Or invest in a "Smart Strip TM" which does this for you. Don’t leave things charging after they are fully charged. Unplug your cell phone and other chargers when not using them.
4) Compost. Instead of throwing your scraps down the garbage disposal for the waste plant to treat or in the garbage to be buried in the landfill, turn your garden and lawn scraps into compost. This then provides rich soil for your garden. Can’t afford a compost bin? (Bins can run from $80-$300 for large systems). Start a pile in your yard. Either build it with old wooden pallets or use chicken wire to enclose it. The piles in your yard work the same, but will take longer to break down. Live in an apartment? I’ve had several customers that have started an apartment complex community composting. Don’t have a garden to use your compost? Stop by the Blue Ridge Eco Shop, I have plenty of customers who would be willing to pick up the compost to use it!
5) Buy Smarter. You don’t need to go out and buy stuff just to be environmentally friendly. In fact, it’s quite the opposite. Buy less and conserve more. As you run out of cleaning supplies, replace them with non-toxic cleaners which cost the same but typically last longer due to higher concentrations. If you buy drinks everyday at work, consider bringing your own container or even better, your own beverage in your own container from home. When picking up take out, bring a reusable dish or storage container rather than bringing home their plastic or foam disposable containers.
This is my easy start. You don’t need to buy solar panels or wind turbines to go Green. Although if you can afford it and are looking for alternative energy, they are wonderful options. What do you think? What do you do to give back to the earth? Even on a shoe-string budget!
*SPCA of Greater Charlottesville turns off their lights all day on Wednesdays to conserve money and energy. Don’t be surprised if you’re in the Blue Ridge Eco Shop and our lights are off too!
Use cloth bags when shopping, instead of getting paper or plastic.
Go to the library instead of buying books.
Read magazines and newspapers online instead of buying them.
Walk and bike more.
Saturday, May 3, 2008 5:01:00 PM EDT
Going green does not have to mean spending your green. In fact, the times I’ve had the least environmental impact have usually been the times in my life that I had the least income, such as…
-walking, riding a bike or public transit
-shopping for clothes and household goods at thrift stores
-not using your A/C
-growing your own food and cooking at home more, eating less meat
-living in smaller homes or with more people
-using a clothesline
-shared/borrowed w/ neighbors
-think before you buy
of course, these things are easier if you don’t have a car or an A/C. The bottom line is, though, maybe we should all think back to what we did in times when we had less- we probably used less, and saved more- money and energy.
Saturday, May 3, 2008 6:48:00 PM EDT
Great topic…just to add to Paige’s…the shower heads, aerators, toilet dye tests, etc..are available free from the City in their Water Conservation Kit- they have indoor and outdoor. Both are free.
I can’t really think of one thing to recommend above all others. I think it is a progression that comes with awareness. Most people start with recycling, replacing light bulbs, then reusable grocery bags, water conservation kits, then the next time they buy appliances they look for Energy Star labels. I just try to have an awareness in my daily life and think about every choice I make..how I get to work, where my food comes from, what products I use to clean…etc. I think we are realizing more and more that it is the little things that can make such a big difference.
Monday, May 5, 2008 10:15:00 AM EDT
Great ideas. I love the fact that I am seeing more and more people tote thir cloth bags outside of the supermarket. We should take it to the drug store or clothing store, everywhere, and use it in place of a store disposable bag! Some sales people may look at you funny, but I bet it will make them think twice!
I have seen that the city has water concervation kits for free for city residence. That’s a great source.
Monday, May 5, 2008 11:18:00 AM EDT
I use baking soda, vinegar, lemon, and salt to clean, instead of toxic cleaning products. These natural cleaning products are a not only environmentally friendly but are also a lot cheaper!
I’m working on getting companies to stop mailing me their catalogs. This is free!
I shop at yard sales and thrift stores when I need clothes, household items, furniture, or books. I consider it recycling!
I also use Charlottesville’s Freecycle– you can post on their Yahoo group to let people know if you have something useable that you no longer need, and they post if they have something useable that they no longer need. Everything is given away for free, the person who wants to an item just has to pick it up. This saves many things from the trash bin!
Monday, May 5, 2008 6:07:00 PM EDT
Sorry to sort of hijack this thread a bit, but on #4, Composting… Someone on the GreenCharlottesville YahooGroup just asked, “If I use a plastic compost tumbler, won’t the platic leach into my compost and affect my garden?” I thought I’d repost that question here. If you’re trying to go green and save money by composting and growing your own food, is the plastic compost tumbler a problem? I guess a related question would apply to the plastic rain barrels. OK to put graywater, and graywater that has been captured in a plastic rain barrel, on a vegetable garden? Thanks for helping out the newbie composter and gardener and aspiring graywater catcher here.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008 12:24:00 AM EDT
Good question. True with gray water, you don’t need to worry about what types of plastics your composter or rain barrel are, but the question is, can the toxins that are in plastics leach into our edible plants and then into us?
The articles I’ve read on the web say no. The plant systems actually act as a filter, and when testing them afterwards there were no BPA or Phalates in the plants.
Still not sure? Find out what type of plastic they are made of. The tumbler and rain barrel we have in our shop are made of recycled HDPE, plastic #2. This type does not leach either phalates of BPA.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008 10:48:00 AM EDT
does anybody know if the plastic from the bins leaches into the composting or if it’s so little that it doesn’t matter?
Monday, June 2, 2008 12:23:00 PM EDT
You don’t have to worry with plastic composters or rain barrels. When the compost and water is used on the plant, the plants are able to ‘filter’ the water. When tested, food from organic gardens had no traces of chemicals that can be leached from plastics. Still concerned? Find out what type of plastic your composter and rain barrel are made of. The one’s at the Blue Ridge Eco Shop are made of recycled HDPE, not a polycarbonate. So they are BPA free.
Monday, June 2, 2008 1:30:00 PM EDT
Thanks. Are most plastics polycarbonate? I was thinking of using a plastic storage box that I bought a couple years ago until I can buy something. Would that be ok?
Monday, June 2, 2008 4:58:00 PM EDT
-Some thought about the embodied energy in making CFLs, as well as the amount of mercury required in their operation might be in order. -Also, is it right that China creates pollution in their country so that we might have cheap CFLs in ours? -LED manufacturer’s claims about the performance of LEDs can be wildly wildly wrong [lasts 100,000 hrs!] or don’t say what they they don’t do well [color-rendering is a big issue]. Compare apples to apples–in this case check “lumens per watt” of an LED system v. your favorite CFL
Thursday, June 12, 2008 5:14:00 PM EDT