Summer Recession Tips: Save Money, Stay Cool, Save The Planet (SLIDESHOW)

Did you know that you have the power to decrease production of carbon dioxide and other harmful greenhouse gases by thousands of pounds this summer?

Who cares, right?!

If you're like most Americans, you don't give a (insert expletive here). Astronomical gas prices, the mortgage meltdown and staying cool through record temperatures are of a higher concern.

But here's a jolt of motivation this recession-riddled summer: SAVING MONEY. Yes, the numbers are in and it turns out you can save cash--a lot of it--by adopting just a few eco-habits. From turning off the lights to using a fan to keeping the AC fine-tuned and humming, there are plenty of no-brainer ways to eco-nomize through the summer months.

What's more, you also stand to help the planet. And even though you don't really care doesn't it feel good to pretend you do?

Summer Recession Tips: Save Money, Stay Cool, Save the Planet

• • • • • • • • LIGHT RIGHT Invest in Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFLS). CFLS are so efficient they produce 60% less heat than incandescent bulbs, while saving you an average $180 per year in energy costs.

Comments

[PatA]

I catch the water at my kitchen sink in gallon jugs before it gets hot enough to do dishes. My hotwater heater is a long way from the kitchen and I use all of the SAVED water on plants, watering the pets and birds,etc.
I've always used a clothesline. Love the texture of the sun-dried clothes.
I turn the window air conditioner on high about 45 minutes before I go to bed, turn it off and turn on a big fan. Works great!
Use your towels 3 times.
No spray cans of pest control. Detergent added to water in a spray bottle works fine. Vinegar or salt kills weeds. No chemicals from those horrid big corporations.
Don't buy anything but local, in produce, if possible.
I dont use my truck AC. Burns alot less gas. I live in Central Texas, but I fall upon the sword of heat to save gas.
Cook a large meal and freeze. Saves heating up the kitchen and works great when I'm tired.
Mulch.
Water late at night.
Compost all of your veggies. No need to buy big corporation's nasty fertilizers.
Take your personal shopping bag to the grocery store.
Use the library.....
I live 30 miles from Austin, Tx and I wait until I have several errands before I drive in.
I work at a lesser paying job to avoid commute
I'm tired now. Going to lie down, in front of fan, and read my library book. :-)

[OliviaZ]

PatA ,
All great things that you do. Impressive! Thanks for your comment.

Olivia Zaleski

[Maplebird]

Back on topic, here...
Here are some green ideas to keep the green in your wallet and on the planet.
Have a party at home instead of going out to dinner. Do it pot-luck style, where everyone brings their fave dish. Have the party by candlelight (then you won't have to clean your house until spotless - candlelight disguises many things). Play some party games and chill out in the great outdoors if you can. It costs less, and the carbon footprint is significantly smaller than it would be if you went to a restaurant.
If you live in a home with a basement and forced-air heating/central air-conditioning, open all your vents and turn on the circulating fan on your furnace. It will bring the cool air up from the basement and reduce your cooling costs.
Water your lawn only in the morning. Doing so later in the day is a waste of money and water, because the water evaporates faster, and the heat of the day makes the lawn more prone to disease/bacteria/fungi, etc.
Let your lawn grow to at least three inches in height. It will require less water, and the grass will choke out weed growth, reducing your lawn care requirements (less gas for the mower, less money spent on lawn care products).

[OliviaZ]

Thanks so much Maplebird!
Your suggestions are great. Will definitely keep in mind the next time I write about ways to "keep the green in your wallet and on the planet." Thanks!

Olivia Zaleski

[EnergyExpert]

Bad idea about running the HVAC circulation fan. Most of those fan draw about 500 watts so the energy used by the fan is much more than any free "coolth" you could harvest. Also, there usually are no return air ducts in the basement (for good reason-- safety) so you won't get cool basement air upstairs anyway. If you could somehow bring that basement air upstairs, what kind of various chemical fumes, etc might it contain. This is a lose-lose proposition.

[austinchu]

Great post and great comments. I've been examining ways to reduce my carbon footprint and save money at the same time. One way I've been stretching my dollar was to get my car converted to run off of waste vegetable. It's great for my wallet, as well as for the environment. You can check out my car on http://austinchu.wordpress.com.

[Ajita]

Hi Olivia,
Thanks for the tips column. Please consider doing a series of columns on the ethanol issue. I have read various sources that suggest that it would be a bad idea to rely on ethanol for our long term development. I am especially appalled at what scientists believe will be the environmental costs including loss of biodiversity and habitat. It seems as though Barack is in bed with the ethanol industry and we progressives must be critical of our own party when it goes against our common interests. A lot of folks here are not well versed in this issue, given that there is a lot of conflicting data and studies out there. So, we could all use some good ethanol education please!
Thanks

[OliviaZ]

Hi Ajita,
as always thanks for your frequent comments. They are always insightful. I will definitely look further into Ethanol and the issues you mention above. Would you mind sending me the links to the articles you are referring to. Would like to read them. Best to just leave them in a comment below so that others may read them as well.

Many thanks!

Olivia Zaleski

[Ajita]

Hi Olivia, Thanks for interacting with us. I posted a bunch of links but the post kept getting filtered although there weren't any bad words in there (other than biofuel :). I try posting again later with just the links and no other text.
-Ajita

[sheila]

How about LOBBY YOUR LEGISLATOR FOR FEED-IN TARIFFS for solar and wind power you generate on your property? Germany has installed 500,000 residential solar systems in it's very modest solar resource area. LA? just over 600 in it's PRIME solar resource area. Less than 5% on a per capita basis of what Germany has. Why? Germany pays ratepayers 40 Eurocents (60 cents)/watt. LADWP? You aren't allowed to oversize your system, and you must give any excess (from conservation, for example) to them for FREE.

The most important thing you can do is lobby for GOOD policy which includes incentives and financing for local point of use renewable power systems. Conservation will flow naturally from a decent power buy-back contract, because you will see actual dollars in your pocket, not just a smaller electricity bill. If we allow Big Energy to re-entrench their monopolies by obliteration millions of acres of wilderness for faraway power plants (even if they are sun/wind), rates will shoot through the sky (we pay for those plants, not them), and we will have missed this opportunity. rates are going up and all current policy is gamed to keep Big Energy hijacking us and preventing us from doing the right thing. If Big Oil hasn't convinced you that energy monopolies can ruin your life, then you need to rethink.

Contact your state legislators and tell them you want mandatory, long-term feed-in tariffs for renewable energy you generate.

[Ajita]

Great idea sheila. I've been looking into this myself and Spain is actually the world-leader in this. Feed-in tariffs are the way to go! I know of a couple of groups that are actually lobbying congress for this plan but I have low expectations considering how corporate entities control our government.

[sheila]

If you want to get into this, start with your state. California Energy Commission is holding a big "workshop" on June 30 about this exact issue, and they "welcome" public participation. if every single one of us doesn't keep up the pressure with our legislators and agencies, we will not see change. we cannot defer to "groups" lobbying congress, especially when the national hierarchies of most of the environmental groups (sierra, nrdc, etc.) have decided NOT to fight for this, and would rather fight for Big Energy's rights to kill off our deserts for remote solar and wind power plants. this has to be pushed by PEOPLE, which is how Germany did it. i have been trying to get "groups" like Consumers Union interested as well, but so many people are stuck in the "dependence on a faraway power plant" model, they have been unable (or unwilling) to see the bigger picture. thanks for anything you do!!!

[Wilburrr]

In Phoenix, Arizona I cannot hang clothes on a line as fast as they dry. A clothes line here is much faster than a clothes dryer.

There is a new generation of light bulb being developed. Based on LED technology, they last 10 time longer and use about 1/10th the energy of a CFL. Home Depot sells a night light LED with a candelabra base that works very well in our hallway wall sconces. Other lamps are available in their lighting department but they use a transformer that should be unplugged to stop the constant electrical draw when the light is not in use.

[KillTheMessenger]

The truly amazing thing is that Arizona with all its need for air conditioning still comes in at slightly below US average on per capita electricity consumption. Of course, it still uses twice as much per head as California.

http://www.energy.ca.gov/electricity/us_percapita_electricity_2003.html

[Wilburrr]

We have an array of photo voltaics on our roof that generate most, if not all, of our on peak demand. I don't know why that is not done more frequently here... the decrease in our power bill is more than the increase in our mortgage and the local power company paid for half!

[WIpatriot]

Wow, news from half a decade ago....

[enilorac]

Ok ok will do, imagine if EVERYONE DID AS YOU SUGGEST
and we will put your Recession Proof Earth Saving Tips on the refridgerator, which at our house has a saying associated with its use, " t's not a museum, close the door fast after a quick dip."

[kingcityguru]

CO2 is not a "harmful greenhouse gas." It is what plants use to grow and live. Eliminate CO2 and we all starve to deal. Period.

[jvarga]

Funny you mention that. According to the EPA CO2 can indeed be a toxic gas.

http://www.epa.gov/ozone/snap/fire/co2/co2report.html

If you'd like to prove us wrong, I'd suggest filming yourself breathing 10% CO2 for a while and showing us how harmless it is.

Also, RE plants, I guess its a well known fact that plants didn't evolve until after the industrial revolution, since naturally produced CO2 is obviously not enough to support plant life right?

[Wilburrr]

Right. Carbon dioxide didn't exist before we had to release it from fire extinguishers to fight the Chicago fire.

[Wilburrr]

Simply Brilliant.

[Wilburrr]

I have been paying attention to this issue for over 35 years. I have never, until now, heard any suggestion that we completely eliminate carbon dioxide.

[jvarga]

He's been saying this recently. Sadly, he seems unable or unwilling to respond to people when they question him. Maybe he tried making the video I asked for. Would be a shame, really.

I've also never really received a response from the pro-pollution crowd about how plants managed to survive before humans started dumping massive amounts of CO2 into the atmosphere.

[OliviaZ]

Hi Kingcityguru,
Thanks for the comment. Where did I say that we have to completely eliminate CO2? I know that would be disastrous. I said (see first paragraph) "decrease" our carbon emissions.

Olivia Zaleski

[jvarga]

I'm assuming he's just following the orders from the extremist reactionary radio hosts. You know, the same ones who say "why don't you ban lightning then?" in response to any action to reduce pollution. Maybe we'll be lucky and get a response from him some time to our questions to him in this thread.

[loki]

CO2 has a environmental hazard rating of 1 out of 100. The news refrigerants like R134 have a rating of around 80. That is one reason BMW is going to CO2 as the gas for their ac in the new cars. Not that the rest of their cars are much on helping the environment, but they are touting this as going green. I find this funny as the air conditioning unit in a car is a sealed system, and only is a problem if it leaks. Now the v6 and v8 gas guzzlers they make, they are ok with those, but they must reduce the problem of R134 with CO2 , so they can claim to be Green .. Because Green is trendy.
Also, CO2 is heavier than air. How does a CO2 molecule get up into the Ozone where it can do all that damage anyway? Not saying it doesnt, I just dont know how it does?

[Wilburrr]

CO2 doesn't destroy ozone. The big culprits in ozone depletion were (are?) molecules containing chlorine or nitrogen oxides. Today's newer refrigerants do not contain chlorine. Carbon dioxide requires 5 atmospheres of pressure to liquify.... I wonder how heavy that compressor is going to be in those beemers?