Sustainable Living

Sustainable Housing – A Step Towards Sustainable Living

The first and most important thing to consider when transitioning to a sustainable lifestyle is your home. Back in the late 1960′s early 1970′s there was a back to the land movement that found people, especially young people looking for ways to get back to the land and learn to be self sufficient, and start living off the grid (The grid being the electrical grid). These where people in the quest for sustainable living even though it was not called that at the time. Old farmsteads and rural property was their quest and many people were successful in their attempts to become modern day homesteaders.

While today there are still those who have the dream of working the land and being self sufficient, there are many more who are facing financial pressures and the bad economy who are looking to survive while taking care of their families and are being forced to do things in a new way. Today the focus has moved towards
sustainable living to help make it possible to provide for the family. Many people are finding that in order to make ends meet they have to do things differently and take on more projects themselves.

Energy Audit – Start Saving Money

The first step to helping you to be sure you can afford to maintain your home is to eliminate waste and start saving money. Electricity, gas/oil, and water are the three main cost we will talk about here.

Lighting – a CFL bulb saves about $6.00 a year over a regular incandescent light bulb and last about 6 times as long. Using about 75% less energy than a regular light bulb it cuts down on electricity saving you money while reducing emissions of green house gases by utility companies and is 75% cooler which cuts down on summer energy bills for air conditioning. Turn off the lights when you are not in the room burning energy needlessly is expensive and a waste.

Gas/Oil – Heating is another big expense by tuning up your furnace cutting down the thermostat a degree or two and changing your filters regularly you can cut down on your heating cost. Check for air leaks around widows and doors that cold air will quickly run up your heating costs. Insulate with spray foam and caulk those leaky windows install door sweeps on exterior doors check your attic insulation. The more cold air you keep out and the more warm air you keep in the more money you will save.

Water – Water is not only a precious resource it is expensive as well with the aging water treatment systems municipalities are raising their rates to rebuild the infrastructure and keep the systems going. Start using rain barrels to provide free non potable water for gardening, washing, and cleaning. Install low flow faucets and toilets, Use a dishwasher rather than hand washing a full dishwasher uses less water than washing and rinsing by hand. The more you cutback on water use the lower your utility bill.

Sustainable Living Is Creative Living

Sustainable living is sometimes creative you need to think outside the box and sometimes utilizing the box. Cardboard boxes are compostabel and can also be used as mulch. Wooden boxes can be used for storage or burned for heat or taken apart and the wood re-purposed for many small projects. It is all about reusing and re-purposing what ever you can. If you can get something for free it is money in your pocket. Second hand furniture can be refurbished and will serve the same purpose as brand new yet save you hundreds if not thousands of dollars.

If you are in need of building materials there are many recycled building material stores around the country that can save you hundreds of dollars by buying good material looking for a new home. Stop at new construction sites and ask for the scrap lumber all they can say is no. If you see someone remodeling see if they have any materials you can use that they are throwing out. And don’t forget about trash day you would be amazes at the amount of wood you can salvage out of an old couch.

Yes this may be a new mind set for you and take some getting use to but not only will you be saving money and honing new skills you will help to save landfill space helping the environment as well. The idea of taking something that is essential garbage and turning it into a useful item again is truly a great feeling.

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Sustainable Living The Time Is Now

What Is Sustainable Living
Wikipedia Describes it as
“Sustainable living is a lifestyle that attempts to reduce an individual’s or society’s use of the Earth’s natural resources and his/her own resources.[1] Practitioners of sustainable living often attempt to reduce their carbon footprint by altering methods of transportation, energy consumption and diet.[2] Proponents of sustainable living aim to conduct their lives in ways that are consistent with sustainability, in natural balance and respectful of humanity’s symbiotic relationship with the Earth’s natural ecology and cycles.[3] The practice and general philosophy of ecological living is highly interrelated with the overall principles of sustainable development.”

While this is a good explanation of the general concept I find it too Broad and vanilla for my tastes. Of course the older I get the more I find that I am inclined to say what I think and I really don’t seem to be able to sugar coat it too much. My definition of sustainable living is Wake The Hell Up!

It seems to me that earth as we know it is going through a lot of changes a lot quicker than anytime is the past. Water is polluted, the weather is changing, the food we eat is not safe anymore, we are running out of nonrenewable energy, plant and animal species are disappearing everyday, the world economy is in the crapper. I can go on and on

Why You Need To Start Practicing Sustainable Living

Lets face it the world is a mess and our leaders are very busy with their own greed, egos, and personal agendas to be able to straighten everything out!

People are tired of the lies and the theft and the incompetence that the leaders are offering us and that is good because we, you and I are the ones who need to take action if anything is going to get done. I am not talking about banding together like The Occupy Wall Street group, although that is a very good example of the anger, rage, and frustration people are feed up. There is another thing behind this as well and that is fear of what the future holds for them and their families and friends. I think it is time that that all that energy and emotion started to be channeled into a more productive way of bringing about change.

How Can Sustainable Living Bring About Change?

If we take responsibility for ourselves, our families, our friends, and our community and start to set the right example then we are focusing energy into a positive activity. By moving towards a sustainable lifestyle not only are we proactive we are showing others by our example and benefiting the whole community as well.

There are so many things we are not doing in our day to day lives that with a few different choices could be easily implemented. None of these things individually will save our planet or make it more healthy but they will save you and your family money and provide for a healthier lifestyle. Combine these things and they will make an impact.

Five Things To Do Today To Start Living A More Sustainable Lifestyle

1. Leave the car at home – Take less trips by consolidating all your errands into one day a week. Use public transportation whenever possible. Best idea is to walk or ride instead of driving where you are going.
2. Stop Buying Plastics – When ever possible stop buying plastics be it water or milk or frozen vegetables plastics are one of the biggest polluters of the worlds oceans. Use glass or paper and recycle them.Buy a water filter for your faucet instead of buying bottled water.
3. Grow Your Own Food – You may not be able to grow everything your family needs but even if it is just a couple of tomato or pepper plants that’s less food that has to be transported and stored and that will save some energy not to mention chemical free safe food for you and your family.
4. Start Using Rain Barrels – Not only will you save money on your water bills You will be practicing water conservation.
5. Re-Purpose Reuse Recycle – Instead of always buying new try using 2nd hand furniture or resell clothing. Make it a habit of recycling items you never use and save money as well as landfill space.

I know these are just a couple of many things that can be done but in upcoming months you will find many more ideas and suggestions under sustainable living that will make your life healthier and save you and your family money, not to mention improving the health of the planet.