Environmentally friendly living doesn’t have to be expensive. In this post, I am sharing with you some of my favorite tips on making your home healthier and helping the environment at the same time. And as a bonus, you will save some money too!
- Stop using dryer sheets.
Dryer sheets are used in dryers to eliminate static cling, soften clothes and add artificial fragrance. However, there is a growing concern about the chemicals used in dryer sheets. In addition, used dryer sheets go straight to the garbage and add to the global waste. I don’t use dryer sheets and never left my home with socks sticking to my sweater; plus the artificial fragrance used in dryer sheets is not really that nice.
- Do you really need fabric softener?
Fabric softener is a liquid used while laundering to make clothes soft and eliminate static cling. It also adds some fragrance to the clothes. As with dryer sheets, chemicals used in fabric softeners are a concern. Why pollute our lakes and rivers? White distilled vinegar is a perfect natural fabric softener and static cling reducer. Just add ¼ cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle.
- Use your dryer sparingly.
Did you know that dryer is actually damaging to your clothes? It makes fabric thinner and ruins elastic. By hanging your clothes on a drying rack or clothes line, you are not only preserving energy and reducing your electricity bill, you are also taking better care of your clothes. In addition, you won’t have to worry about static cling because most of it is produced in the dryer.
- Make your own glass cleaner.
It’s environmentally friendly, costs almost nothing and works just as good as the one from the store. In a spray bottle mix 3 cups of water, ¼ cup of white vinegar and 1 ½ tablespoons of lemon juice.
- Buy a water filter.
I used to think that bottled water was better than tap water. I just assumed that it was cleaner and better tested. Recently, I found out that bottled water isn’t necessarily less contaminated than tap water. In addition, plastic bottles are a huge problem for the environment. A pitcher with an activated carbon filter is a simple solution to reducing contamination of you water. A reverse osmosis filtration system is even better. Although it will cost you some money to install it, the benefits are plenty.
- Skip air freshener.
Another absolutely unnecessary item in a home is an air freshener. Did you see that commercial where a mother smells a bunch of dirty gym clothes; they obviously stink because she is making this face – yak! And then she sprays the clothes with some spray and right away the clothes smell nice and fresh. Why wouldn’t she just wash the clothes? Well, this would be too simple. Ever wondered, why air freshener commercials are constantly running on TV? That’s because they need to convince us that we really need to buy it. To instantly refresh the air in your home for free – just open the window.
Do you have some favorite tips on making your home greener and healthier? Share them with others by leaving a comment below!