Go Green - Save Money and the Environment.

There are a lot of ways to go green and save money while doing it. It's easier than you think and with the money you can save, why not? Going green is a win-win situation. Most of us know we can use compact fluorescent bulbs and buy Energy Star appliances, but what are ways to go green that are even easier and cost less?

Here are some easy ideas, along with how much impact they have on your wallet and the environment:

1. Save electricity, purify your air with plants. Having live plants in your home helps to absorb airborne toxins and saves energy costs by not plugging in the air purifier. Not to mention, plants are MUCH cheaper than air purifiers!

2. Use bar soap. Replacing just one plastic bottle of liquid soap with a bar will save 2.5 million lbs. of plastic! Also, let's not forget that bar soap is cheaper!

3. Put a recycling can next to the trash can in your office. This way you can just as easily throw your paper into the recycling can as the trash can. Making one ton of paper from recycled materials saves 7,000 gallons of water AND 17 trees.

4. When building a fire, use an artificial log (like those Duraflame fire logs you can find at most stores) to start the fire. Believe it or not, those man made logs burn longer than wood and give off 75% less carbon monoxide.

5. After you fill up your gas tank, turn the cap until it clicks three times. Each year, 147 million gallons of gas evaporate into the air due to missing, loose or damaged caps. This is in the US alone!

6. Wash laundry in cold water only or use the warm wash and cold rinse cycle. You will save on energy costs and if each home in America did this, we would save 100,000 barrels of oil a day!

7. Use your toaster oven as much as possible. When you need to bake a few rolls, some chicken nuggets, or any other small baking job, use a toaster oven. You will use half as much energy, saving you money.

8. Stop using the screen saver on your computer. Instead switch your computer display to go into sleep mode whenever it isn't used for 5 minutes. This will consume 90% less energy!

9. Use power strips and turn off the power strips when the electronics plugged into them aren't in use. Some electronics use electricity even when they are turned off! If you plug your appliances into a power strip and then shut the power strip off, you will use 87% less energy than if you have the appliances plugged into 6 separate outlets.

10. Return your wire hangers to the dry cleaner. Don't just throw them in the trash. If we did this, we could save 200 million tons of steel each year that could be reused.

Just think of how much money we could save and the environmental impact we could make if we all just did these 10 simple things!

Thanks, I will now step down off of my soapbox and take it to the recycling bin.