what simple basic things can/ should i be doing to help the environment?

[juicychops]

I dont really do anything at the moment recycling wise except i dont throw carrier bags away, although i use way too many.

i need to start recycling paper as i dont at the moment i have no paper recycle box and i dont have a car so cant take it to recycle thing.

what simple basic things can/ should i be doing?

-composting your food waste

-get a water/rain butt for the garden so that you don't have to waste mains water on the garden

-not using a tumble drier (if you have one), or cutting down the use of it considerably.

-washing at 40 degrees, rather than 60 degrees (or 30 if you find it still cleans well, personally I don't)

-start using biodegradable cleaning products and stop using bleach (if you do)

-replacing old style lightbulbs for energy saving ones

But this little book, it's fab and has lots of environmentally savvy ideas from changing to energy saving lightbulbs (saving upto £100 a year) to lobbying your MP. Amongst the simplest things you can do are:
don't leave things on standby, TV's, Stereos, PCs etc.
Use a lid on your pans when cooking
*Turning your thrmostat down by 1 degree
Loads more ideas n the book, it'll save you money as well as the planet

-showers instead of baths

-turning the tap off when brushing your teeth (ie not leaving it running)

Cloth nappies

Washing at 30 is fine for me as long as its not whites.

Turn lights off

Don't have the heating on and windows open.

Energy saving bulbs.

DragonFaerie, ive just ordered that book

does cooking using a lid really make much difference?

df-i like that book!
turn things off,wash at 40,use cloth nappies instead of disposables,compost,try to buy things with recyclable packaging or if possible none,try cloth bag instead of plastic for shopping,where possible walk dont drive or try public transport,turn heating down and put on extra layer.we dont have this problem as have no heating!,what you cant recycle-yoghurt pots etc take to nurseries and primary schools for them to use for junk modelling.
do you not get roadside collections?

Flame, do you wash your nappies at 30?

brought book on ebay thanks dragonfaerie
i think we do do well but am always up for new suggestions.

No - nappies are done at 40, with a blast at 60 once a month or so (or if he has had a stomach bug - thankfully that is rare!!)

yes Juicy, according to the little book saucepan lids save upto 90% on the heat you have to put into cooking!!
iCount have a great website too if you're interested? ( ...no I'm not on commission, more's the pity!, actually, maybe I am, we all benefit from getting eco -aware don't we?)

Don't fly.

Turn the computer off when not in use. It's a pain when you are using MN in between childcare. However the computer uses loads of energy even on standby

Train your kids to turn things off and become environmentally aware

Encourage wildlife into your garden

Grow your own veg

Pass chidren's clothes on

Try to shop locally and use supermarkets as little as possible

Have your milk delivered

Get things repaired instead of buying new replacements

Oooh NDP I do all of those. I feel better already!

Actually not the butt. I haven't put one up in this garden yet. Did in the old house.

Its a bit easier here juicychops as we have recycle boxes for our glass, cans, plastic bottles, garden /food waste, and paper and cardboard.

Definatly change your bulbs. dh is an electritian and he's always going on about that.

Actually you don't need central heating. I grew up in the 60s when it was rare and the climate much colder, (we had thick snow every year, and sometimes places near London were cut off by it). Frost most mornings in the winter...

I suspect that central heating is a big reason for inactivity driven obesity. Nearly everyone keeps their houses so warm, that going outside for most of the year is quite a shock to the system.
Compare central heating to what Greens tell you about supermarket shopping bags.

Burn a bag, how long does it last ? What heat do you get ?
Work out how much carbon is being used by your heating in comparison.
Bags make for a nice token that greens can pretend they "make a difference", but it's trivial.
You want to make a real difference.
Stop this rubbish of "turn your thermostat down by a degree", that's simply irrelevant.

Go to a shop, buy jumpers, vests etc, will work out cheaper and vastly greener.

But this isn't going to happen is it ?

The Green Industry is a local bit of Hollywood. Some people like to fantasize they are Bruce Willis or Sharon Stone, same with greenery. They think they are Al Gore, or some eco warrior saving the planet.

There is no blockbuster "saving the planet by boycotting Israeli avocados", same way that if it doesn't hurt, you are probably making no difference whatsoever.

"Actually you don't need central heating. I grew up in the 60s when it was rare and the climate much colder, (we had thick snow every year, and sometimes places near London were cut off by it). Frost most mornings in the winter... "

My mother is Norwegian and lives in an old (parts dating back to the 18th century) farmhouse. They don't have central heating - and well, it generally gets quite a bit colder over there in the winter than it does here.

So have to agree with Domini on not needing central heating.

However, you do need some form of heat at times in the winter and my mother has woodburners (they have their own forest and replant etc. what they take). Heating the whole house isn't necessary, the kitchen is always warm (what with all the cooking that's done in there) and the living room has a fantastic woodburner.

It's a bit chilly in the mornings though there's a reason for those thick Norwegian jumpers - nice when the heat from the woodburner kicks in in the living room though!

I thought that energy saving lightbulbs only work if they are left on - turning them on and off makes them less energy efficient. And they are basically flourescent light which means they flicker on and off - invisible to the naked eye but tiring and can cause stress headaches etc. And that they contain mercury or similar nasty ingredients and cost 3 billion times more than normal lightbulbs to produce (I exaggerate for effect). Am open to correction though if my facts are incorrect.

we never have the heating on in the bedrooms (I live in the ne of scotland) yes I grew up in houses without central heating or double glazing, frost on the inside of the windows in the morning,brrr, cold concrete floors, or really draughty wooden ones(carpet lifting winds)..... but I do put the heating on down stairs in the winter....

I do cycle and walk everywhere through the week(I do not drive, yet)...

just because I am not doing enough doesn't mean I am not open to trying to do more all the time.... soon we'll have our own hens, garden with apple and plum trees, solar panel to heat water in summer... I would like a zero energy house, think they should be the only kind of house being built in this day and age.... if we can ever afford to have our own home....

"just because I am not doing enough doesn't mean I am not open to trying to do more all the time.... soon we'll have our own hens, garden with apple and plum trees, solar panel to heat water in summer... I would like a zero energy house, think they should be the only kind of house being built in this day and age.... if we can ever afford to have our own home.... "

What is enough? I think we all have our own interpretation of 'enough' and we all have a different level of preparedness to consider various 'environmental issues' - I think trying to be more concientious is the most important thing, trying to make changes where we can.

There are quite a few people who don't have the space for apple and plum trees (although I'm hoping to train some along one of our side-fences, we haven't got a big garden, but I think I can squeeze a couple of dwarf rootstocks in), hens (dh not keen on this as an idea, we go and visit friends' chickens instead and well, solar panels are out of our price range at present!

I agree that a lot more could be done to make new houses even more energy efficient. We're lucky in that our house (being a terrace, although on the end), with double-glazing in reasonably warm anyway. I wonder about the electric hob (here when we moved in, I prefer gas, but not sure which would be the better choice) and certainly it would be interesting to have some sort of solar-heating for water (and possible to build if we pulled our finger out).

Dh does like gadgets though, so I try to mitigate him wherever possible (to balance things out a bit).

That said, we have a car that almost always sits on the drive (dh works with his brother and they travel together with a 3rd person) and I walk or take public transport unless I'm doing a fayre (the odd weekend) and have to carry loads of stock.

I think that all we can do is make an effort to take a few steps more to being a bit more 'green' (whatever that really means, because as I've mentioned in another post, it's not really that simple-a-terminology).

Use non-applicator tampons (less packaging) and don't flush 'em. Bag them in old envelopes or pinch paper bags from public loos! Sticking them on the landfill is better than your toddler picking them up on the beach.
Better still use a Mooncup but baby steps first eh?

Apparently increasing your loft insulation if you haven't got very much is quite a cheap way of cutting down your heating bills. I think 270mm is recommended.

Apparently you can 'over insulate' and this can cause problems for some buildings, including damp (etc.) as old buildings are supposed to 'breathe'.

Rechargeable batteries.

It really infuriates me when either you get the holier than thou people who think they are green and look down at people who are just starting out by taking small steps ie re using bags, buying local etc

surely anything that makes even a little bit of difference and makes people actually think about what they do and any consequences that may have can't be a bad thing ...... even if it is 'a local bit of Hollywood'-who cares-every bit counts

or you are seen as a crazy green person for trying to make changes and are then criticised by people who are doing @*£$ all if you are caught doing something 'not green'-who are they to talk. they'd only be happy and not criticise if you were TOTALLY self sufficient etc using no energy etc.

Sorry for the rant-it just upsets me-we should ALL be trying to do our bit no matter how small-then slowly we can increase these small steps and begin to make a real difference.

Sorry for the one handed typing-feeding dd at same time.....thats another thing=breast feed-absolutely no harm to the environment at all-we're almost to 11 months and not a single bottle used!

cloth nappies, buy local, light bulbs etc but lobby mps to make them get off their backsides