Turn down your wattage

It isn't always necessary to have a room fully lit.  Here are some ways you can lower electricity usage.

Dining Room
I enjoy being in my dining room, so sometimes I bring my laptop in and work on it there, like I am right now.  My dining room has a lovely brass and glass light fixture with 6 light bulbs hanging over the dining table.  Every now and then, I take off the glass shades and wash them.  This allows better light and it looks nice when they are sparkling clean.

The first option I have to use less electricity is a dimmer switch.  We dim the lights when we do not need the full brightness, which is most of the time.

The second option is a little lamp I put in the corner that has a 13w curly fluorescent bulb in it.  I have had this lamp for years and it was sitting on a shelf in the storage room with no lamp shade because it had gotten old and fell apart.  I was at a garage sale where they were selling a brand new, still in the wrapper lamp shade that fit this little lamp perfectly.  I only paid 50 cents for it!  It ads a nice ambiance and works well when not a lot of light is needed.

Family Room
The television is in our basement family room.  We can light this room by turning on 4 wall sconces or using a lamp.  When I am watching a movie, sometimes I will use the lamp which has a curly 13w bulb.  Other times I will use no electricity at all to light the room.  Instead, I light a scented candle.  There is really no need for more light than that.  I can enjoy my candle and save electricity.

Not only am I saving money using dimmer switches, less light bulbs, lower wattage bulbs and candles, I was also able to make use of something that another person did not need.

Green Highlights:

• use less electricity by using dimmer switches
• use less electricity by using lower wattage bulbs
• use less electricity by using less light bulbs
• use candles for light
• shop at garage sales

Have you lowered your energy usage by using less lighting when you don't need a fully lit room?

-TJ

Corn on the cob

It's always a treat when the time of year comes around for fresh corn on the cob.  I cook it on the stove by putting the shucked cobs in a pot of boiling water and boiling them for 7 minutes.  The husks get taken out to the composter.  Once the cobs are removed from the boiling water, I carefully take the pot outside and pour the water on weeds that grow in my driveway between the asphalt and sidewalk or between the patio stones to get rid of them.  It works great on dandelions that grow in cracks where you can't dig them out.  You might have to do it a couple times before they die.  I have also used it on ant hills.  I do the same thing with the water I boiled eggs in.  This is an environmentally safe way to get rid of weeds and insects by using something that would otherwise have been poured down the drain.

(source)

Green Highlights:

• killing weeds and bugs without using chemicals
• finding another use for boiling water instead of pouring it down the drain
• composting produce waste

Do you have an environmentally safe way to get rid of weeds?

-TJ