- Place an old sock on your hand and rub over surfaces, frames, sills, ornaments for dusting - so easy.
- Use your outside washing line to dry washed re-usable cloth nappies. Sunlight kills germs and whitens nappies, saves you money and precious energy.
- It is that time of year when citrus is in abundance. Here is a great healthy tip for using Lemons. Lemon juice provides a sodium-free substitute for those looking for a subtle flavor enhancement for your favorite foods. It can enhance just about anything. Try squeezing lemon juice on chicken, beef, seafood and vegetables. Lemon juice even complements tofu. Many people actually find that lemon brings out many of the natural tastes and flavors that salt covers up.
- Turn your single mix tap to cold once you have washed your hands, and save on hot water. (Single Mix Taps left in centre position still draw on hot water even though it feels like only cold is coming out).
- Some basics ready for an emergency - a filled reusable water container, a battery or solar powered charged radio and torch.
- Make the switch back to environmentally friendly Tap Water instead of bottled water.
- Recycle your old eyeglasses - contact your local Lions Club for directions on where you can drop off your old eyeglasses. The glasses collected are cleaned and graded at the two Lions eyeglass collection centres in Auckland and Christchurch and utilised by VOSO (Volunteer Ophthalmic Services Oversea) during their visits to South Pacific countries.
- Vinegar can be used as a fabric softener by adding half the amount of vinegar as you would of your usual softening agent.
- For cold drinks keep a pitcher of water in the refrigerator instead of running the tap. This way, every drop goes down you and not the drain.
- Mixing a spoonful of lemon juice into boiling water will prevent rice from clumping up and sticking to the pot.
- Producing clean organic Merino wool in New Zealand takes far less energy than the synthetic alternatives that are hugely popular in modern garments according to the Merino Life Cycle Assessment project.
- Stains on porcelain sinks, toilets and plastics can be removed by applying a layer of baking soda and then use a damp sponge to work off the stain.
- Stain Remover - Work a baking soda and water paste onto stains prior to washing to help remove them from the fabric
- An equal amount of lemon juice and water added to an atomizer will create a wonderful synthetic chemical-free green air freshener for your home.
- Baking Soda, also known as Bicarbonate of Soda is a non-toxic, eco-friendly replacement for harsher chemically made cleaning products eg. to elimate dog or cat odor, sprinkle on carpet, leave for half an hour and vacuum up. It will also freshen up your vacuum cleaner.
- You can get ENERGYWISE™ funding to help insulate your house, and install clean and efficient heating under the government's Warm Up New Zealand: Heat Smart programme starting 1 July 2009.
- Revive soggy lettuce - To transform limp greens to their previous more palatable state, simply squeeze a halved lemon into a bowl of cold water. Then, refrigerate the lettuce in the bowl for about an hour, dry it off, and presto! Like magic, your lettuce is revitalized and ready to be the star ingredient in a fresh, crisp salad.
- Don't tip the oil from sundried tomato jars down the drain - RE-USE it - it is great used for stir frying vegetables, or add it to savoury muffin recipies, the additional flavour is superb.
- Re-use newspapers, by shredding for fill in packaging, dampening and placing on ground before making a new garden bed, or shredding and adding to compost.
- Snip the plastic ring left on bottles or containers where you have had to break a seal, this will prevent birds from dying a horrible death when getting trapped in them when scavenging at landfills.
- Cut down on your energy use at Christmas - use eco-friendly candles to light up your festive Christmas meal.
- The most eco-friendly Christmas Tree is a Living Christmas Tree in a pot. Plant it out in your garden once Christmas is over.
- When not in use turn off appliances, with LED displays, at the wall. These use more energy on an on-going basis.
- Take your own Re-useable Cup when purchasing your 'To Go' coffee, and save on paper cup waste going to Landfill.
- Start a compost bin. If all you do is dig a hole somewhere in your garden and fill it with vegetable waste from the kitchen, when full cover with earth and start another hole, repeat process. This will reduce green waste going to Landfill and eventually help improve your garden soil.
- Remember to place bananas away from other fruit to avoid them ripening too quickly.
- Shop local - look at where products are made and buy local
- Improve indoor air quality by using eco-friendly cleaning products inside your home.
- Pay your bills online and cut down on paper.
- When shopping - look at minimal packaging on the product you are purchasing. Is the packaging biodegradable or recyclable.
- Recycle your coffee grounds - Sprinkle used coffee grounds around the outside of your home, nearest to the foundation. Ants, slugs and snails don't like the taste of coffee. Sprinkle them in your garden to keep cats from using it as a litter box. Used coffee grounds are a great plant food. Azaleas, carrots, radishes all can benefit fromo the grounds.
- Reduce food waste - buy less (make a shopping list). Reuse - freeze left overs. Recycle - compost food waste (don't send to landfill).
- Reduce your plastic use - Every bit of plastic ever produced is still in existence in some form today.
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