Save Money By Living In A Green Home

In our last issue, we covered ways you can save money by going green at office. To balance your life between work and home, we are keen to share more essential tips for you to save money by going green at home. By no means, these are the only tips. Be free to add them as you get the hang of it.

Remember, no action is too small when going green. Collectively these actions will affect the future generations. Practicing green habits at home is just good economics, for you and the planet. But as with most changes, sacrifice is needed on your part to make them effective.

Practicing green habits at home is just good economics, for you and the planet

• Grow live plants at home. Besides adding a personal touch, they improve indoor air quality.
• Wash laundry in cold water to save on the energy needed to heat water. Unless you have stubborn stains or odours, cold water can clean your clothes just as well. Cold water also preserves the life of your clothes.
• Shower saves water than bathing. Take cold shower whenever you can. If can’t, lower the temperature on your hot water heater.
• Full load the laundry when using the washing machine. It saves water, energy, and detergent.
• Reuse scrap paper. Use both sides of paper for printing. Allow kids to use the back side of the paper for art and colouring.
• We enjoy all-year sunshine. Hang wet clothes to dry rather than relying on a dryer to do the job.
• Fix leaky faucets. Don’t let water run while brushing teeth or shaving.
• Avoid non eco-friendly cleaning products. Learn to make your own natural cleaning solutions using inexpensive household products such as baking soda, ammonia and white vinegar (There are many websites to teach this).
• Make rags out of old towels and t-shirts, and give up buying paper towels. Use cloth napkins instead of paper towels.
• Turn off lights when not in use. Learn to enjoy natural light whenever you can.
• Switch to compact fluorescent bulbs (CFL) which use 75% less energy and last 10 times longer than an incandescent bulb.
• Don’t just set your personal computer to sleep, turn it off when not in use. Leaving computers on all the time shortens their lifetime due to heat stress and mechanical wear.
• Install a new toilet cistern that uses less than two gallons of water per flush compared to standard cisterns that use about three and a half gallons.
• Refrigerators run constantly and require lots of energy to stay cool. Ensure it is energy efficient. Also check for leaks.