Saving The Planet In 10 Simple Steps

Going green is not as hard as some people may think. Everyone assumes that its going to take something on a massive scale to help save the planet, and that one single person making a change would be insignificant, but this is so untrue. If we all thought like that, there would be no hope of turning things around and helping our planet to go greener.

Getting our children involved is even better as we are doubling our efforts and helping to save the planet by twice the amount. Plus we are passing on our knowledge in the hope that they will grow up and continue on a greener path 

I have put together a list of 10 simple ways to go green and help save the planet. They are easy and simple changes we can implement. You can do them without breaking a sweat or your bank balance :-)

1) Saving water - There are many simple yet effective ways to do this such as turning the taps off while you are brushing your teeth. This is great as the kids can get involved too. What's more is you can save up to 8 gallons of water a day! (Based on brushing morning and night). Another fun way of conserving water is to collect rainwater. Its great for watering the plants and kids will love collecting up the water in their buckets.

2) Wash at 30 or below - I have always washed at 40/60 and 90 degrees depending on the load. But for the past year all I have ever washed at is 30 degrees. My laundry comes out just as clean and reduces your electricity consumption by an average of 40%. Most leading washing detergent brands are now designed to clean just as good at lower temperatures.

3) Switch To Energy Efficient Lighting - By switching just one of your standard light bulbs to an energy efficient one can save you an average of £3 a year and by changing all our lighting to energy efficient lighting can save us up to £55 per year. Most leading supermarkets no longer stock standard bulbs which is fantastic as it gets us all changing to a more efficient source of lighting.

4) Recycle - An obvious one, but many of us still do not recycle our everyday materials like glass, aluminium and card. Most of us don't even have to go further than our doorstep and we have weekly collections of all our recyclable materials. On average, we will all throw away our own body weight in waste in just 7 weeks! That's crazy!

5) Change your batteries - Stop using regular disposable batteries and change to rechargeables. Over 15 billion batteries are made and sold each year, most of which are disposable. That's nearly 15 billion batteries disposed of in our landfills. For a small price tag you can buy a battery charger with a set of rechargeable batteries. Saving you endless money in the long run and believe me come Christmas day you will be glad you have rechargeables.

6) Pull The Plug - We waste a massive amount of electricity every year by leaving things on standby, such as out televisions, dvd players, sky/virgin boxes and laptops. Having something on standby still uses on average up to 90% of there power still. You wouldn't leave every appliance on when you went to bed as you would see this as a massive waste of electricity, so switch off and then turn off at the mains. Less harmful to the environment and your annual electricity bill.

7) Plot it - Making your own vegetable plot is a fantastic way to go green. It is  a brilliant thing to do with the kids, and how satisfying is it to be "living off your own land". Growing your own produce is a fun way to teach your children about going green. It costs millions to transport vegetables to local supermarkets. That's a lot of exhaust fumes!

8) Make Over - Turn your old disused items into something better by giving them a new lease of life! Make over your old furniture or clothes. Make some handmade jewellery. The possibilities are endless and definitely a number one activity that the kids will love being a part of. Don't fill up the landfill with yet more waste! Jazz it up into something you CAN reuse.

9) Bag it - Plastic shopping bags are not biodegradable, even the ones that say they are will never fully decompose. They will hang around our landfill for years to come. Think of the billions of bags used in our supermarkets everyday? That's a lot of waste! Always try to use a cotton/canvas reusable bag which are sold in most shops now. You can use them again and again. You could even get a plain bag and lets the kids paint it for you! 

10) Branch out - Plant a tree! Simple and to the point but just by planting a tree you could be making a massive future change. An adult tree can absorb approximately 48 pounds of carbon monoxide in a single year and produce enough oxygen to sustain two people for a lifetime. That is incredible and your little ones will love being a part of this one! :-)

So there you have it, my top 10 ways to help save the planet :-)

Have fun going that little bit greener...