Clean “Green”
We all have an interest in a sparkling house. To achieve that goal and be green in the way you do it we need to learn some things.
Daily we are exposed to an incredible array of toxins in our normal lives. When using cleaning products we are exposed to numerous “toxins” and each one has a certain degree of toxicity to it. Although they do the job, some ingredients in regular cleaning products can cause headaches, skin rashes and respiratory problems. Researchers from the University of California-Berkeley and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory analyzed 21 household cleaners and air fresheners and found that many of them especially those with pine, lemon or orange scents, emit excessive levels of toxic pollutants. 
To protect yourself, your family and anyone else whose house you clean you need to know more about educating yourself about these problems. So how should you respond and what can you do?
1. You can do a lot to help yourself and anyone else in your house that does some of the house cleaning. First, work at limiting your exposure to toxins by reading labels carefully. Use nontoxic cleaning products. Avoid using indoor pesticides.
2. Limit the exposure of the people around you. Happily for you and your house there are plenty of effective, earth-safe cleaners. Many are very simple solutions and chances are you’ve got half of the ingredients in your cupboards already. Here are some alternatives to chemical household cleaning products that can do the same job. Borax mixed with lemon juice will take out toilet-bowl stains. White vinegar is useful for disinfecting bathrooms and kitchens. Bon Ami, a borax-based powder cleanser sold in supermarkets and hardware stores for more than 50 years, safely cleans pots, pans, sinks, oven interiors along with other corroded surfaces.
Using these alternatives will reduce the toxic load in your house and beyond. Using environmentally friendly cleaners will also safeguard your health and that of the community. In the big picture it also reduces air, water and ground pollution.
3. If you start buying green cleaners instead of your old ones, good move but you need to know that not all “green” products are created equal. Again, read. Catch the ones that have been prettied up with essential oils. Also check labels for irritating chemicals such as chlorine, ammonia and artificial fragrances and dyes.
Each time toxic cleaners are used, there’s a heavy impact on our environment. It doesn’t matter whether the cleaners are poured, sprayed, washed, rinsed, or dumped. The negative and harmful effects are the same. When we use these things we risk adding toxins to the air and to the water, both of which come back to us and are shared with the public.
So why aren’t more people doing it? The reality is few people actually check labels. You can start a trend and start now. Take time to read the label don’t just read the advertising on the box. Distinguish yourself as someone who only thinks green is a good idea and be someone who takes action. Become a “green cleaner.” You may even become a product toxicity home specialist.
Many people who “think green” are just now applying this to the way they approach cleaning. Eco-friendly cleaning and laundry products are a frontier of environmentalism that is just beginning to have an impact. One of the manufacturers that produce green cleaning products is
Green Works. Check out their products and see if they can help you change the way you clean. “Going Green” doesn’t have to be a difficult task that means sweeping life changes. Simple things can make a difference. It’s an inexpensive, easy and effective way to protect our planet and commitment to life.
Energy Conservation Helps you Go Green and Puts Money in Your Pocket
About 54 percent of the energy used in homes goes into heating and cooling. So obviously, this is where you can make one of the biggest savings on energy costs. There are a number of easy and inexpensive things that can be done, as do-it-yourself projects that will save hundreds of dollars per year. Homeowners can save money even while sitting on their couch.
Who doesn’t want to save money and conserve energy anyway? The sad thing is that most people use more energy for their home than they need to and pay more then they should. With better more-informed choices, home owners can spend less on energy costs and conserve energy in the process.
It’s simple, here are several energy saving ideas you can do just before you relax on your couch.
1. While you’re kicking back on the sofa, little leaks could be adding costs to your power bills. But you don’t have to take these hits to your energy budget sitting down. Swing into action and plug those leaks and stop those costs from getting out of hand with these quick fixes.
Caulking around window and door frames and caulking around base boards will reduce the loss of heated or cooled air from leaving your house. This strategy again will reduce the homeowner’s heating and cooling bill.
Another easy money saving strategy is to install weather stripping around your doors and windows. You can use a “V” seal type weather stripping around your windows with the opening of the “V” facing the outside of the home. This will reduce draft in the house and retard heated or cooled air from escaping the house. And the longer that heated or cooled air remains in your house, the less the cost to keep your house at the right temperature.
2. Lowering your thermostat a few degrees in the winter can save you a lot. An ideal temperature for your home is 68 degrees. This can save you between $10 and $30 per month on your heating bill. If you leave the house for a prolonged period of time in the winter, turn the thermostat down even more. You can save about 5 to 15% a year on heating bills by turning your thermostat down 10 to 15 degrees for 8 hours.
If you have an air-conditioning system, turn your thermostat up in summer to 78 degrees when you’re home and 85 when you’re not). By installing a programmable thermostat to make these changes in temperature according to your schedule can save you a lot of hassle and up to $115 annually on your energy bills.
3. In the winter, opening your curtains and shades during the day will let sunshine in and heat up your home. Closing curtains at night will prevent some heat from escaping and will reduce the chill from windows.
In the summer, keep curtains and shades closed in the day to prevent unnecessary heat gain (especially if you are not at home).
Also by positioning furniture correctly and by keeping other objects away from vents in your home you can keep the air flowing properly. Adequate, efficient airflow puts less strain on your heating and air-conditioning systems.
4. Removing the casings from the doors and window from the exterior walls and also the baseboards will expose small and sometimes seriously large gaps in the building insulation. You can expose these gaps by using a candle or a smoke pencil or even just by holding your hand over near the openings. Filling the lager gaps with fiberglass insulation and smaller ones with caulking will drastically diminish these uncomfortable drafts and reduce your heating and cooling costs. Then replace the casing and baseboards. This is not a small project but the costs are small and the savings can be big. If you take it one room at a time it really isn’t that bad.
5. Replace the conventional bulbs in 5 of your most frequently used light fixtures with bulbs that have the ENERGY STAR and you will help the environment while saving money on energy bills. Research finds that if every household in the U.S. took this one simple action we would prevent greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions from nearly 10 million cars.
With the savings in energy costs attributed to these easy to do use strategies, you could probably buy a new couch. Do yourself a favor and save money, then grab a refreshment and sit and relax on your couch and let the work you’ve done save you money and the environment.