Green Home Investments Save Future $$$

There’s a lot of green talk in the news these days and you may be considering some eco-friendly upgrades to your home. If you do your research, green changes in your home can add up to serious savings down the line. Sure, most eco-friendly changes involve an initial investment on your part, but they cut your power costs, water costs, and repair costs from now on into the future. The initial money you spend will come back to you with interest.

First, let’s start with our water resources. Have you considered a low-flow showerhead? Making the switch can reduce your household water usage by half. The Roadrunner model shuts off water flow to a trickle until you’re ready to get in. An easy valve on the head switches pressure on and off. Or, maybe you’d like to upgrade your toilet. The latest low-flow toilets have dual-flush options that let you decide whether you need a powerful 1.6 gallon flush or a 0.8 gallon flush. Also, manufacturers have improved many models to provide the same amount of power with less water. I read that caromausa.com and kohler.com have dual-flush models. You can also consider installing a rain barrel outside your house to save some clean, healthy water during the rainy months. Use the H2O you catch to water your grass and plants for free. Clean Air Gardening a has brown 50 gallon rain barrel and a blue 60 gallon rain barrel.

How about your electric bill? First off, buy some energy-saving power strips and put them all around your home. The USB Ecostrip and Smart Strip brands will automatically switch off the power to all your devices and appliances when they’re not in use. If you can manage, you could always unplug everything when you’re not using it…but most people can’t be bothered. Also, take the obvious eco-friendly step and switch out ALL of your indoor and outdoor lights to Compact florescent bulbs (CFLs). The CFLs use only 25% of the energy that traditional bulbs use. They also last much longer than the traditional kind. Energy Star’s “Choose a Light Guide” helps you decide on the right bulbs.

As for your appliances, many models are now sporting the Energy Star approval. This joint program of the U.S. EPA and DOE boasts that energy-efficient choices in the home can help families reduce their energy bill by up to a third. You can find qualified ceiling fans, washers, dryers, ovens, refrigerators, televisions…and the list goes on and on. Ceiling fans and floor-model oscillating fans can save you big sums of money in air conditioning. Also, experiment with dark curtains and window coverings to keep the sunlight out during the day.

Don’t forget about your computer. The EPA says that setting your computer to automatically switch to sleep mode after a specified amount of time can reduce your household electric bill up to $75 a year. Get in the habit of fully closing programs that always search for updates (for example, iTunes and spyware) and turn off any screen savers (use sleep mode instead). Support.com has a free Green Computer service.

The key with saving money on green improvements is to do a little at a time. You don’t have to be overwhelmed by changing everything all at once. Instead, gradually upgrade your home to be more energy-efficient and watch your monthly bills shrink over time.

Mass Transit Is Not The Enemy

In my first post here at Wealth Junkies, I talked about how “going green” could help you save money. One of the most common pieces of advice people will give you when you talk about “going green” is to “use public transportation or walk!” While it is certainly true that using mass transit and walking are good for the environment (and your health), they are also fantastic money savers! Public transportation is not the enemy. It is one of the best ways to save yourself hundreds of dollars every month!

Consider this: gas prices are expected to hit four dollars per gallon this summer. In some places, this number is already real. If your car has a fifteen gallon gas tank, that means it will cost—at minimum—sixty dollars to fill your tank. If you drive back and forth to work each day and spend your weekends driving all over town to do your errands, it is quite possible that you will need to fill your gas tank three to four times a month. That means that you will be spending as much as $240 every month on gas alone!

Figure into this number the amount of money you are paying on your car payment and how much you pay for insurance. Did you know that you can lower your insurance payments each month by driving your car less? It’s true! Even if you cut down to just one tank of gas a month, that is about $180 in savings in gas and however much you are saving on car insurance.

Still not convinced? Let’s approach this from another direction:

How often do you go to the gym each week? Taking mass transit or walking increases your daily amount of exercise which will cut down on your need to visit the gym. Heck, you could purchase a simple weight set to keep at home and not have to go to the gym at all! Gym memberships are expensive—how much will you save if you cancel your gym membership? What’s more—if you had been driving to the gym, that’s even more money in gas savings!

Another reason to use mass transit (aside from saving you money on gas, insurance, gym memberships and keeping you healthy with the walking to and from the transit stop) is this: If you are walking or taking mass transit, you are less likely to go crazy when you go shopping. Why? Because you have to carry everything home!

While it is true that mass transit is not completely free, it is still cheaper than what you will spend on car insurance, gas and a gym membership. In Portland, Oregon (where I live) a mass transit pass costs seventy dollars per month. This gives you passage on the commuter train, the multi-county wide bus system and the city-centric street car.

Seventy dollars will also buy you a tank of gas and lunch. Which is more cost effective?

]]> http://www.wealthjunkies.com/green/mass-transit-is-not-the-enemy/feed/ http://www.wealthjunkies.com/green/going-green-in-the-wallet/ http://www.wealthjunkies.com/green/going-green-in-the-wallet/#comments Wed, 16 Apr 2008 03:51:40 +0000 Erin http://www.wealthjunkies.com/?p=721 This article was syndicated from: Wealth Junkies

Going Green in the Wallet

Believe it or not, going “green” isn’t just good for the environment; it is great for your wallet as well. We’ve all heard about how we need to stop using so much gas, shrink our carbon footprints and a dozen other environmentally striking “buzz phrases.” While saving the environment one person at a time is certainly noble, have you ever looked into the money you would save by going green?

Here are some very popular “green” hints that also save you money:

1. Reuse tinfoil and Ziploc bags. Most generic sandwich bags sell for around two dollars per box. A two person household probably goes through a box per month. Even if you buy generic brand bags, by rinsing them out and reusing them, you are saving around twenty dollars a year. Tinfoil is even more expensive (especially if you use the heavy duty variety) and a single roll usually sells for around three dollars. If you reuse your tinfoil, you can save as much as $36 per year.

2. Use napkins instead of paper towels and Kleenex. Paper towels and tissues range in price, but napkins are close to free, especially if you know how to sew. Old clothing can be cut up and used for cleaning rags. If you are an adept sewer, you can probably turn old clothing into cloth napkins for fancy dinners as well! Cleaning them is a breeze; all you have to do is toss them in with your regular laundry loads.

3. Get crafty with your trash. Soup cans can be cleaned out and used as pen cups, toothbrush holders and small vases. They look fine plain but also work well when painted or decorated. Butter/margarine tubs, oatmeal cans, coffee cans, etc can all be washed out and used to store other dried goods. Cool whip and butter/margarine tubs also work well as containers for leftovers and as cereal bowls when you have company.

4. Whenever possible, buy in bulk. Not only does buying on bulk cut down on the amount of packaging that will get thrown away, but it is often cheaper. Instead of spending six or seven dollars per bottle on spices, buy your spices for a few cents an ounce from the bulk bin. Cereals, spices, baking products—these are all cheaper when bought in bulk—and you can store them in your washed out food containers!

5. I would be remiss if I didn’t take at least one hint to talk about saving money on gas. Gas prices are expected to reach four dollars per gallon this summer. With the weather getting nicer, wouldn’t it be better to walk to the grocery store or local market when you run out of something?

These are just five hints to help you save money (and the environment). I’m sure you can think of plenty that I haven’t mentioned. If you have your own hint or tip, please leave it in the comments section. This is something we would all appreciate learning more about.