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Conservation at Home

General

  • Turn off lights when you are not in the room.
  • Use cloth napkins instead of paper napkins.
  • Don't leave water running; for example: turn off water while brushing your teeth.
  • Save peelings from fruits and vegetables for a compost pile; meat, oil, and dairy products are not acceptable to compost.
  • Make a habit of recycling glass, cans, aluminum pop cans, soda bottles, newspapers, etc.
  • Use old t-shirts as rags for cleaning, dusting or wiping up spills.
  • Use rechargeable batteries or make sure the regular batteries will be recycled.
  • Look for creative ways to use unwanted items (for example, use yogurt and margarine containers to grow small plants).
  • Bring a lunch box instead of brown bag for your lunch.
  • Give away unwanted clothes and toys (recycle them to others).

Bathroom

  • Toilet
    • Place a half gallon milk container filled with water in the reservoir tank of your toilet. Every time you flush you will save water and money!
    • Drop some food coloring into the reservoir tank of your toilet before you go to bed. Check the bowl in the morning to see if any of the color is present. If it is, you have a leak that is wasting water and dollars.
  • Shower and Bathtub
    • Take a shower instead of a bath. Showers use less water than baths. If you are using more water, then chances are you're using more hot water and paying for the water and the energy used to heat it.
    • Install an energy efficient water saver showerhead. These can help cut your water use in half, are easy to install and are relatively inexpensive.
  • Sink
    • When brushing your teeth or shaving, turn off the water.
  • Lighting
    • Use compact fluorescent light bulbs instead of traditional incandescents. These produce less heat, save energy, and can be used in any room in the house.

Kitchen

Your kitchen has some of the best opportunities for helping the environment. Appliances account for most of the electric bill in a typical home. From table scraps to packaging, a lot of material in your kitchen ends up in the trash. With a few easy steps, you can start saving money and the environment.

  • Dishwasher
    • Don't rinse food off of plates unless it is burned-on or dried-on. Instead scrape the food off. This will help you save water.
    • Fill your dishwasher, but don't overload it. Your dishwasher will run less efficiently and you'll have to wash some of the dishes a second time, wasting water.
    • Don't use the "rinse hold" option if you are washing only a few dishes. It uses over 3 gallons of water with each use.
    • Don't use the dishwasher's drying setting. Instead let dishes air dry. If your dishwasher doesn't include a control for drying, simply turn off the dishwasher after the final rinse, and open the door to dry the dishes more quickly.
    • Refrigerator
    • Keep your refrigerator between 37 and 40 degrees Farenheit and your freezer at 5 degrees Farenheit. To check your refrigerator's temperature, place an appliance thermometer in a glass in the middle of the refrigerator. For a freezer, place the thermometer between frozen packages. Check the temperature after 24 hours.
    • Check your refrigerator door seals. You can do this by closing the door on a piece of paper that is half in and half out of the refrigerator. If you can pull the paper out easily, you may be leaking cold air into the room and wasting electricity.
    • Cover any foods or liquids in your refrigerator. Moisture makes your refrigerator work harder.
    • If possible, keep your oven and refrigerator far from each other. Otherwise, when you use your oven, you make the refrigerator hotter and it runs less efficiently.
    • Move your refrigerator from the wall and vacuum its condensor coils. This will help the refrigerator run more efficiently. Repeat this once a year.
  • Sink
    • Use cold water when only using small amounts of water. Even if the hot water never reaches the faucet, you are paying to heat it.
    • When using hot water, keep a bucket or other container handy to catch the cold water that comes out the faucet. This saves water and your bill.
  • Oven and Stove
    • Cover pots and kettles when boiling water. The water will heat up faster and use less energy.
    • Match the size of the pot to the burner. This will cook your food more efficiently.
    • If you use gas appliances, check that your flame is blue, not yellow. A yellow flame means the gas is burning less efficiently and may require adjustment.
    • If you cook with electricity, turn the stovetop burners off a couple of minutes before you are done cooking. The burner will remain hot long enough to finish cooking.
    • Use glass and ceramic pans. You can reduce the temperature by 25 degrees and cook just as effectively.
    • Don't open the oven to check on the food unless necessary. When you open your oven door, the temperature drops by 25 degrees.
    • Use small toaster ovens when possible instead of your conventional oven. Toaster ovens use half as much energy.
    • Use microwave ovens and pressure cookers when convenient. These save energy by reducing cooking time.
  • Lighting
    • Use compact fluorescent light bulbs instead of traditional incandescents. These produce less heat and save energy, and can be used in any room in the house.
 
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