Ten Ways To Save The World

The world is in trouble and it is up to all of us to work hard to reduce our carbon footprint and take the strain off the environment. Thankfully, many of the things we can do will not only help the environment, they will save us money as well.

1. Turn down the thermostat: This is easy to do and it saves energy and time. When you are sleeping or out, you can turn down the thermostat by 10 degrees and use 25 percent less energy. Even when you have people over, reduce the thermostat because the amount of body heat in the room will keep the temperature of the house high.
2. Wash clothes in cold water and dry outside: A total of 90 percent of the energy used by the washer is actually used just to heat the water up. By washing with cold water and using cold water detergent, you can use a lot less energy. Dry your clothes outside on the line if you can, that will eliminate the need for the dryer in the Spring and Summer.
3. Wash your dishes by hand, not in the dishwasher: Like the washer, 80 percent of the power used by the dishwasher is just to heat the water. Fill up a sink, fill up a rinse sink as well, and wash dishes that way.
4. Turn off faucet while brushing teeth: This is easy to do but few do it. When you turn off the water while you brush your teeth you save eight gallons of water per day, that is 3,000 gallons A YEAR!
5. Turn off the lights: Turning off the lights in the house when you are not using them saves a lot of energy. Turning one light off, for one hour a day saves 20,000 Watts per year, and that is only one light for one hour! Also, use high-efficiency light bulbs if you can, because they last longer and use less energy.
6. When you are not using something, unplug it: You may think that when you turn something off, then it is not running anymore and no more power is used. The truth is power is still being used and by unplugging the microwave, television, coffee maker and more, will save you $10 to $20 on your power bill each month.
7. Use cloth bags: Canadians use 55 million plastic bags per week, we use them for five minutes and they last 1,000 years, so using cloth bags will help the environment immensely!
   
8. Use Energy Efficient batteries: There are 15 billion batteries put in the landfills each year. Rather than throw out batteries, use rechargeable batteries that can be used 500 times before they are useless.
9. Close doors when you leave a room: Your house has to heat up the entire space indoors, so close doors to trap heat in and use less energy to heat up your home.
10. Limit showering time: Baths take 200 liters of water, and 15 minute showers use 300 liters, so have five minute showers and you will only use 75 liters of water per day on showering.

Saving the environment isn't hard, it is very easy and all it takes is a bit of change.