GOING GREEN FOR 2005... AND 2006!!! Tips on how
YOU can contribute.
BASIC
WAYS
1. RECYCLE! Probably the most obvious but there are still
people that can't be bothered. Well guess what? BE BOTHERED.
When a product is described
as "recycled", this means that it contains
some material which has been recovered or
reprocessed. This does not necessarily
mean that it is made from 100% recycled material,
but could contain any proportion of recycled
and virgin material
The
mobius loop is the most widely used
symbol, but can mean both recycled
content and that the product is recyclable.
Products
today bear many different labels linked
to different corporate or national
labelling schemes. Some, like
the German Green Dot (two arrows intertwined
in a circle)
Recycle your Xmas cards (there are many places where you can recycle your xmas
cards, the closest is the Blue or Green Wheelie bin you have right outside
your house! (areas vary). Remember that foil and glitter cannot be put in these bits
so please dispose of them normally.
Recycle your wrapping paper, yes there must be quite a bit! Remember though
NO FOIL.
2.
Only use the heat and light appliances
you really need - don't leave TVs or videos
on standby. Also switch off this PC screen
when it's not being used!
3. When purchasing new appliances look for the Energy saving logos:
4.
Try turning your heating thermostat down
by 1°C. You will probably hardly notice
the difference and it will save about £10
a year. And keep furniture away from radiators,
if possible: the foam in an upholstered
chair is a very effective heat insulator!
5. When cooking choose the right pan size for the food and the cooker, cut
food into smaller pieces and put lids on pans as the food will then cook a
lot quicker. If you are defrosting food, or just warming things up, then microwave
ovens are ideal as they use much less electricity than conventional ovens.
6. Regularly defrost your freezer and try to keep it packed full, even if this
is with scrunched up paper to avoid wasting energy. You should also check the
seals on your fridge/freezer to ensure no warm air is getting in - the seals
should be tight enough to hold a piece of paper securely when closed.
7. Try to have full loads when using the washing machine and use the lower
40°C wash. With today's washing powders this temperature is more than adequate
to clean clothes and will save you up to three quarters of the cost of the
hottest cycle. On some washing machines, only cold water is used to fill the
machine when it is set to a low temperature, which means that there is no need
to heat up the central heating boiler: look at your washing machine instruction
manual to see if this applies.
You also don't need to have your domestic water heated to a scalding temperature
either, for most people setting the thermostat to 60°C/140°F is quite
adequate.
8. The sun is the most readily available source of heat there is - and the
cheapest! So make the most of it by opening internal doors of any rooms which
get more sun than others and let the warm air travel through your home. Avoid
using tumble driers and radiators to dry your clothes; on nice sunny days clothes
can be dried outside.
DOING
THAT LITTLE EXTRA
1. Fit energy saving light bulbs (CFLs) in areas where lights
are left on for long periods of time, or in difficult to reach places. They
use about a quarter of the electricity and last eight times longer. Look for
CFLs with a European "A" Rating on the box; these have electronic
ballasts and are guaranteed to be efficient with a long life. Unfortunately
CFLs cannot normally be used with dimmer switches or electronic timers.
2. Go CarbonNeutral by off-setting your personal Carbon Emissions
just like we have using www.futureforests.com
3. LOFT INSULATION: As much as 20% of your energy bill can
be saved by good loft insulation. Lofts should be insulated to a minimum depth
of 150mm (6 inches) - preferably 200mm (8 inches) - and this can be done by
either a contractor or DIY. Mineral wool (such as Rockwool or Rocksil), fibreglass
and recycled paper products all work well. Remember to wear a facemask, goggles
and protective clothing if you do it yourself, and leave sufficient gaps around
the eaves to avoid condensation. Do not insulate under water tanks that may
freeze and ensure all pipework and the loft hatch are insulated.
4. WALL INSULATION: Most heat (up to half the total) is lost
through the walls of an uninsulated house. Wall insulation can reduce this
loss by two-thirds and make your home more comfortable. If there are cavity
walls they can usually be safely filled with insulating fibre, beads or foam.
If the walls are solid, internal insulation (often applied in the form of an
insulated board fixed to the wall) is highly effective, but means rooms have
to be redecorated and may lose architectural detail. This can be done by competent
DIYers and may be done on a room by room basis at the same time the home is
redecorated. External insulation usually needs planning permission and should
only be carried out by specialist companies.
5. WINDOWS AND DOORS: Draughts are the most uncomfortable
and obvious signs of a badly insulated house and can be fixed easily with either
draughtproofing, secondary or double glazing. Don't be tempted to save money
by fixing cheap foam draughtstripping, as it only last a couple of years before
it becomes permanently compressed. Polypropylene tubes are a little more expensive
but last longer and are more effective. BEWARE! Don't add draughtstripping
to a room with an open fire or a gas fire that does not have a balanced flue,
where there is no airbrick near the fire. Fires need a good flow of air to
burn safely and there is a danger of being poisoned by Carbon Monoxide fumes
if a room is too tightly sealed.
Double glazing is the UK's most popular energy saving measure, although it
actually saves less from a typical fuel bill than putting in (much cheaper)
cavity wall insulation. If your windows need replacing, make sure that you
specify "Low-e" glazing, which has a special heat-reflective coating
between the two panes of glass. This will reduce heat loss through the glass
by nearly half. You can also ask for Argon gas filled windows: argon is a gas
found naturally in ordinary air, but it transmits heat much less readily than
the other gases in air, so helps you save even more money. Finally, look at
the air gap between the panes; 6mm or 8mm are not really adequate, but 12mm
to 20mm are much better are stopping heat losses (and also for reducing noise
transmission).
6. THE FLOOR: You can lose as much as 10% of heat through
uninsulated floors. There are a number of ways of solving this problem, including
insulating blankets under suspended floors and laying boards over concrete
floors - ask your energy advisor for details.
7. DRIVING TIPS: Reduce
your driving emissions and the amount
you spend on fuel and wear and tear on
your car, by following these simple tips:
- Avoid hard acceleration
- Keep your speed down
- Only make essential car journeys
- Walk or cycle on short trips
- Share car journeys with others
- Work with your school to reduce the school run
- Make sure your car is serviced regularly
- Check your tyre pressure every week
- Travel outside the rush hour to avoid congestion
- Travel light and remove unnecessary loads and roof racks
8. TRAVEL TIPS: By
2020, there will be 1.56 billion tourists,
double the current numbers. The Association
of British Travel Agents found 85% of
British tourists on package holidays
believe it is important not to damage
the environment. But the majority don’t
do anything about it – here’s
how you can reduce your emissions whilst
on holiday and help prevent global warming.
- Ask for your towels to
be washed every other day instead of
every day (only 17% of people do this
already)
- Switch off your air conditioning when you are out or if the weather does
not necessarily demand it (only 18% of holiday makers do this). If just 50%
of everyone staying in air-conditioned hotel rooms turned off the air conditioning
for their week away – we could save more than 5 million tonnes of CO2
from being emitted into the atmosphere*
- Hire bicycles instead of a car if you are exploring locally – it
will help to burn off any holiday excesses whilst saving your carbon dioxide
emissions – and your pocket
![[ left piece ]](http://www.camberleyonthe.net/images/backleft.gif){kind=small}
![[ right piece ]](http://www.camberleyonthe.net/images/backright.gif){kind=small}
![[ left piece ]](images/backleft.gif){kind=small}
![[ right piece ]](images/backright.gif){kind=small}
![[ left piece ]](http://www.camberleyonthe.net/images/backleftx.gif){kind=small}
![[ right piece ]](http://www.camberleyonthe.net/images/backrightx.gif){kind=small}
