Trying to save the planet should concern us all. If we intend to be responsible and do our part to keep the earth green and as healthy as possible, we need to start sooner than later. Every small change that you may make can definitely leave the earth a better place and is not that difficult to follow such as some of the eco friendly tips I want to share with you.
Instead of non-abrasive cleansers like Soft Scrub, I found making a paste of baking soda with a small amount of water makes an excellent gentle cleanser for cleaning tubs, sinks and pots. I used to clean the stains from a glass coffee carafe with salt, but baking soda does a more thorough job as I explained in an earlier post.
In the past, I would just use white vinegar to clean out inside the coffee maker to remove mineral deposits. However, there is a better way that produces a more delicious cup of coffee just by using baking soda. What you do is to first line the basket of your coffee maker. Next, mix one-fourth cup of baking soda and enough cool water together to fill your coffee before running it through the machine. This seems to draw out the mineral deposits more thoroughly. Afterwards, you just run a fresh pot of cool water through the coffee maker again. I usually wash the carafe for any lingering residue.
I still use vinegar once a month to run through the coffee maker. The reason for this is because vinegar is a disinfectant whereas baking soda cannot. It is solely a cleaner. Therefore, I double clean my coffee maker, which I highly recommend for those coffee lovers like myself.
Another of the environmental tips concern sponges. Sponges can be handy for cleaning and bathing, but have crevices to accumulate bacteria. If you want to retire your old sponges, you won’t be wasting them. You can use them for starting seeds to grow in your garden. All that you do are stick individual seeds in the crevices before misting the sponge with water and placing in a container with a little water. Keep misting the sponge when needed. Your seeds will start sprouting before you know it. Once the seedlings grow a bit, you just transplant them as you normally would.
Metal tea kettles with their narrow spouts can be challenging to clean. Instead, you might want to try another of the simple eco friendly tips by adding some orange, lemon, lime or grapefruit peels before filling the pot with water and putting it on to boil. Once it comes to a brisk boil, turn off the heat and let the brew remain undisturbed for about an hour or more to dissolve the mineral deposits built up in the pot naturally.
If you typically munch on peanuts still in the shell or pistachios sold that way, then you end up with a lot of nut shells to throw out. A great solution is helping start the fire on your outdoor grill or fire pit since they take a while to burn.
Those with green thumbs also can use nut shells to line the bottom of their planters so your plants get better drainage.
Walnut shells also have a value. Get a mortar and pestle to crush a few with some baking soda and enough water to make a paste for rubbing over a scratch on walnut or other dark wood furniture. This can help lessen the severity of those scratches once you work it into the wood.
The eco friendly tips presented here are just a few that can help the green cause. If you have any more eco friendly tips that you would like to suggest, I hope that you let me know.
These are all great ideas! I am so trying the coffee maker trick!