climatechange

Insulate for Winter

 

Tips to Warm Your Winter from Union of Concerned Scientists

 Insulation prevents heat from leaking out of your home in winter and into your home in summer, making it more comfortable year-round and reducing your energy consumption, global warming pollution, and heating and air conditioning costs.

The many options on the market today include fiberglass rolls, spray foam, rigid foam, and loose-fill cellulose made from old newspapers. To determine the best fit for your needs, consider these factors:

R-value. This number represents an insulation’s ability to resist heat; the higher the R-value, the more effective the insulation. The U.S. Department of Energy recommends specific R-values for different areas of your home, based on where you live and what heating fuel you use (see the related links). If space is limited, choose the option with the highest R-value for the given thickness you need.

Local foods, home cooked

This is the best time of year (in the Northern Hemisphere) for local produce - corn, tomatoes, and fruit are at their peak. Looking for local unprocessed food near you?
Check out this directory of local farmer's markets across the United States.
In the UK look here -- In Australia look here

Make your own meals.  Instead of buying prepared meals, frozen dinners, boxed and packaged stuff,  start with fresh meats or seafood, vegetables and herbs – local and organic where possible – and keep it simple but nutritious and delicious. At first, it seems like more time and trouble but once you make it a habit and rediscover cooking, you can get pretty fast and efficient. And save money, too.

Modified from Jane's Tips from Cave Creek AZ.
Photo from thesituarionist.wordpress.com

Want to grow your own vegetables? Here is a great article from the San Jose Mercury News, with plenty of detail about a couple growing a lush in the yard of their new home.

Cold Water Clothes Washing

You can save energy by making a few changes
in the way you wash clothes:

Cold water keeps your clothes looking newer longer than hot water washing. No special detergents are needed for cold water washing. Use any eco-friendly detergent like Seventh Generation, or make your own.

Locator for plastic recycling drop off

This site will give you a list of every location in your zip code (or by city if you prefer) where you can bring plastic bags for recycling.

Ten Easy Steps

1) Use compact fluorescent bulbs. Replace three frequently used light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs and save 300 pounds of carbon dioxide and about $60 a year. The Council on the Environment and Jewish Life is organizing a campaign called "How Many Jews Does It Take To Change A Light Bulb?" to encourage synagogues and other Jewish groups to replace conventional bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs, which last four times longer but use 25 percent of the energy.

Composting Simplified

Compost is garden soil made out of things that used to be alive. Plants love it. What is the easiest way to start a compost pile? Designate a space in your yard to be the compost pile, about three feet wide. Then add weeds, straw, leaves, dirt, water, and kitchen scraps. That is all you have to do. If animals get into your compost, enclose it in a cylinder of stiff wire mesh fence. (Editor's note: I have posted a link to an article that goes into greater detail that follows this "basics" one).

What Goes Into a Compost Pile?