10 Ways To Go Green

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You hear about it all the time these days, which is a great thing. Being Green, Going Green, Green Products, etc. Anyone that had put any real and objective thought into it it, knows that the Earth is in trouble and being green is the way that we are going to save it! So if anyone asks you why to go green, tell them it's to save the Earth from the crumbling spiral that it's now in which is caused by man's reckless actions.




Below are 10 easy ways to go green:

1. Change out your traditional incandescent light bulbs for CFL's. This is a really easy one, and yes CFL's are more expensive then incandescent but you are indeed going to save in the long run. Since CFL's are more expensive I suggest that you just buy them as you existing incandescent bulbs burn out. Then it's only a couple bucks more once in a while, and each of the new CFL's will pay for themselves over their life, and reduced power consumption.

2. Buy a new refridgeration. This of course is going to be a more expensive of the ways to go green at home. This trick is that your refrigerator is the appliance that used the more electricity in your home. It takes a good amount of energy to make it that cold and it is ALWAYS on. On average refrigerators you buy today at about twice as efficient compared to those from just 10 years go, because of new technology. This means you can cut in half the electricity you are going to use on the appliance that used the more electricity. Not bad!

3. Take shorter showers. Now I'm not saying skip showers...that would stink! :-) But think about how long you spend in the shower each day. Could you cut that by one minute? I would guess anyone would be able to cut their shower by one minute if they put their mind to it. There is a cost and power consumption associated with getting water to flow out of your shower head. There is an ever bigger cost and power consumption associated with making that water hot! So you and everyone in your family cut the shower by one minute and see the savings add up.

4. Turn off the water while your are brushing your teeth. I am always amazed at the number of folks that leave the water running while they are brushing their teeth. I know it's a matter of habit, but you need to change your habit! I mean are you worried there their may arise an emergency where you have to rinse your brush in an instant or your hair will catch on fire?! Turn it off and you'll make the writer of this go green blog very happy!

5. Unplug your phone charge when not in use. Did you know that your phone charger draws a little bit of power when it's plugged in and not attached to and charging your phone? This is one of the go green facts that many people have never heard of this but it's true. It is a relatively small amount of power but still why pay for a little bit of power for anything if you aren't using it at all?!

6. Insulation. Whether you are heating or cooling your house insulating it to seal out air leaks will make a big difference in the amount of energy you use. This can mean laying more insulation in your attic to reduce the escaping of heat through the roof, or sealing up air leaks around windows and doors. Removing even a small air leak can make a big difference in your energy bill. This is an example of the go green projects that will easily pay for themselves.

7. Buy go green energy. Many power companies now offer green energy options. Basically you can option pay a small amount more to be supplied with only electricity from green energy sources like wind turbines and solar arrays. Yes the name of this blog is Saving Green, not Spending Green, but sometimes when it's a very small amount of money, it makes sense to spend a little to save the Earth.

8. Ceiling Fans. When ever you can use a fan to cool yourself off instead of air conditioning you are going to save a large amount of energy. If you don't have a ceiling fan above your bed you would be really surprised to see how much cooler a fan makes you. Many hot nights I can turn off the AC units and just run the fan when I got to bed. It makes for a large savings on my electric bill in the summer months.

9. Power settings on your computer/laptop. Monitors tend to use quite a bit of electricity, as does your CPU. All computer operating systems today offer power setting options where you can choose the amount of idle time before you computer will turn off the monitor, sleep, hibernate, etc. You know best how you use your computer but more often then not, if you are idle for more then 2 mins you can turn off your monitor. Then if you are idle for more then ten mins you might as well have you computer go to sleep because you are obviously busy doing something else. Adjust these settings to the lowest possible time frames that doesn't cause major inconveniences.

10. Power strips. Any piece of electronic equipment that responds to a remote control is going to draw some power even when it's off. This is because it needs some power to operate basically waiting for you to ask it to turn on. If you plug in your TV, DVD, Cable Box, and all other AV components, into a power strip, you can turn them all off quickly and easily when you aren't using them. This will save power from going to all those components all day long while you are at work, and all night long when you are in bed.

These are just a few power savings options that will help you be green. There are tons of others. Basically think about how you are using power on a day to day basis and always be thinking of how you can reduce it. Let me know if you can think of other great way to save power, and I'll continue to publish top ten lists with other great ideas.