Category Archives: Going Green

How to Get Your Children to Become Eco-Conscious

Creating long-lasting habits in children should start at a young age. Kids are quite curious and their little brains soak up information like a sponge. Once a child gets to have an experience, it usually leads to help them latch on to new ideas and gain new perspectives. As a parent, it’s important to teach your children lifelong lessons that will last a lifetime. This includes friendship, sharing, morals, and compassion as well. Compassion comes in many forms from being, animals, right down to nature itself on Mother Earth.

It’s essential to teach your children at a young age about the importance of the environment as they’ll be the ones to inherit it. All it really takes are some gentle pushes and nudges here and there to get your children to pick up habits. Starting small and gradually doing bigger actions is going to be the best way to get your child to become active on sustainability. These are some helpful tips to get you and your children starting today on saving the environment.  

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Begin by spending more time outside

In order to get your child to feel a connection to nature and grasp the understanding of our impact, getting your child outside more often will help them build an appreciation towards it. Appreciating the outdoors will eventually lead to respect for the earth. There are plenty of outdoor activities you and your child can do together such as going to the park, playing games, or even doing some gardening.

Making changes at home

There are a variety of ways you can get your kid involved in the eco-friendly changes at home. Gardening is one of the best ways to get you and your child outside. This allows them to learn about nature, biodiversity, and patience. This can also teach your child about the hard work, time, and labor that goes into growing food such as fruits and vegetables. There’s something invigorating about getting to pick your own harvest and have the chance to eat it. Getting them to experience this form of satisfaction will give them an understanding of how great it is to garden.

There are other changes that can be done at homes such as installing solar panels from one of the best solar companies, switching to Star or other low energy appliances, plus low flow toilets and showers are excellent as well. Letting your children know that you are making changes within the household will give them a gentle nudge that they should also be involved in helping the environment.

Watch movies with them

Kids are very impressionable, plus their active imaginations may need some visual assistance to help them grasp an understanding of what’s happening to the world. There are plenty of TV shows and movies that are geared towards children that do help in pushing the fact that the environment needs saving. The classic 1980s TV show Captain Planet is a good example, but a more modern take would be Pixar’s Wall-E as this movie portrays the harmful effects of consumerism. 

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Talk about where the trash goes

If you’re wanting to know how to reduce your eco-footprint at home then it can first begin by looking at what goes into the trash. This is something that the whole family can get behind. Most neighborhoods have a recycling collection that separates paper, plastic, metal, and everything else from each other. This gives your children an understanding of what material is what but it also helps them in understanding producing waste. Give your child a talk and landfills and why everyone needs to make more of an effort to produce less trash. Talk to them about what can have a second life and why recycling is so important.

Composting and rain collection

If you and your little ones are doing some gardening outside, then there’s a chance that you’re composting as well. Composting sounds a little complex and scary to come families but it’s fortunately quite easy to do. Composting is wonderful for the environment and it gives your children the chance to understand what can and what can’t be composted. 

Composting is also something that many people don’t quite understand the benefits of, but it’s great for your gardens and the environment. It doesn’t need to be costly either, which is one of the best perks. Compost bins are quite affordable and can be found at your home improvement store.

Rainwater collection can also be very handy for your garden and it can save you money. Rainwater collectors can come in a variety of sizes from 100 liters up to 300 liters. However, you should look in advance whether or not you can collect water. Some cities, counties, and even states have a complete ban on it. So it’s best to look into this beforehand so you won’t risk breaking any laws.

Avoid buying anything brand new

One of the best ways to get your children to understand money management and the environment is through talking with them about the harmful effects of consumerism. Children are very impressionable, things are being advertised to their left and right. It makes children want things without understanding why they want them, plus it creates this expectation to keep up with constantly changing trends.

It’s so important to talk to your child as early as you can about the harmful effects of consumerism. Let them know it’s okay to want things but it can be harmful if they’re wanting things that they’re not going to use or need. Buying things that are brand new isn’t always necessary, and there are plenty of thrift shops that have affordable items. Getting into the mentality that second-hand items are just as good and that you’re helping save the environment is going to really help in the long run. This helps your family fight consumerism and stay sustainable.

 Donating items

Just like it’s best to purchase second-hand items, it’s best to try and give a second life to old items. If you and your family have clothes that are no longer being worn, or your kids have toys they no longer play with, then look into getting them donated. You can donate your items to thrift shops, clothing drives, churches, homeless shelters, and plenty of other places. 

This is going to help families have access to clothes and other things that they may have not been able to afford or have access to. Just make sure everything that you and your family are donating is gently used. As in, no stains, broken parts, tears, rips, or anything else in these donated goods.

Think about eco-friendly alternatives before tossing things out

Donating items is a great way to give a second life to something, but what about something that probably can’t be donated? Children tend to throw away things without putting much thought into them. Help get you and your child to think outside of the box. Ask if something can be given a second life before it gets thrown out. Can this item be recycled? Can this item be repurposed? Can it be reused? Can it be sold or donated to someone? These are some things that your family should get into the habit of thinking about before just throwing things into the garbage can.

Make goals

There’s always something new each month that your family can do. Look into making some goals with your children and see what can be obtained. Maybe make a goal about how much can be plated, or how much can be recycled. The possibilities for making goals can be endless. It’s all about making these habits enjoyable for your children so they can stay with them for the rest of their lives.

How to Reduce Eco Footprint at Home

If you’ve decided you want to live more sustainably and reduce your eco-footprint, there are lots of ways to start, and most will actually end up saving you money. Reducing your eco-footprint means using energy and water more efficiently and only when you really need it.

We’ve become accustomed to having food, energy, and water at our disposal and so we often think of these things as being disposable. But, in reality, these things are not available to everyone and the impact of overconsumption is being felt around the world.

So we’ve laid out some simple steps you can take to reduce your eco-footprint in your home and create a green environment for the long term.

Use Energy More Efficiently

There are lots of easy ways to use energy more efficiently in your home. Some of them you’ve likely heard about. For instance, be aware of when your lights are on and, if you can, set them on a timer to match the sunrise and sunset. Not only will this help you live greener, but it will also help your circadian rhythm match your environment.

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One of the lesser-known ways to improve your energy usage in your home is to clean your dryer filter. A dirty dryer filter will mean you’re not making the most of your energy. If you happen to have an air filter, the same issue can happen, so take the time every once in a while to clean your air filters.

Depending on your state, there are also some lucrative financing options for energy efficient and renewable energy add-ons. For example, the PACE program California helps residents in the state fund sustainability improvements for their homes. Alternatively, you can hire a general contractor in Texas to help you make professional sustainability upgrades to your home.

You can also invest in energy-saving light bulbs to streamline your energy usage at nighttime. Most people say that light-emitting diodes are the most efficient type of lighting because they use less energy and actually last longer than traditional light bulbs. Take it one step further by using solar when possible. For instance, solar powered flagpole lighting is a great option to illuminate outside of your home and it costs nothing to operate.

Use Water More Effectively

Water usage is one of the main problems we face in terms of creating a more sustainable planet. Big industries like the meat industry require massive amounts of water to maintain their production rates. If you’re willing to make a change in your diet, you might consider cutting down on meat consumption since it means saving on water and not supporting the emission of gas from cows that contributes to global warming.

If you’re not ready to make a change in your eating habits, another way to ensure you use water in an efficient way is to install some type of water filter. There are a number of different kinds of filters, but the key is that you get drinking water without having to buy plastics. Plastics are a plague on our planet and the market is driven by the processing of fossil fuels, which is one more reason to think about some type of filter.

If you live in a location that gets a lot of rain, you might think about implementing some type of rain catcher for the tub so that you always have another green way of trapping water for your watering needs. If you don’t get rain where you live but want a similar tip, just drop a bucket in the shower and collect some water for yourself that way.

Don’t Waste Food

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We waste a ton of food in the modern world, which creates problems for the environment. It takes a lot of energy and water to produce our food at a mass scale and, once we’ve wasted it, it usually ends up in a landfill where the waste creates a gas that some say is more harmful to the ozone layer than carbon dioxide.

Make sure you only shop for what you need, use eco-friendly containers, or try an Oregon food delivery service that delivers ready-made meals to local residents. That way, you don’t have to worry about wasting food someone else could have enjoyed or the environmental impact of your diet.

You don’t have to break the bank or completely change your lifestyle to be more eco-friendly. Following these simple tips can help you transition to a greener lifestyle.

How To Prevent A Car Breakdown: Top Tips

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Car breakdowns never come at a great time. When they happen, you can be pretty sure that the next few hours are going to be ruined. If you’re on the way to something important, like work or an appointment, then this could be a disaster.

You’ll naturally want to know how to prevent a car breakdown. Taking care of the vehicle will be obvious. You mightn’t know exactly how to, however. While there’s a wealth of car maintenance tasks you could do, you could focus on a few specific areas.

Carrying these out should minimize the chances of a car breakdown.

How To Prevent A Car Breakdown

Don’t Miss A Service

The most obvious part of knowing how to prevent a car breakdown is never to miss a service. If there aren’t any professionals regularly looking for potential problems, then they’ll go unnoticed. Left for long enough, they’ll become a problem.

Getting an MOT or service done every six months or so to maximize their benefits. If you plan on selling your car eventually, you’ll need to do this regularly to speed up the process.

Update The Tires

Since your tires are where your car will make contact with the road, they’ll put up with a lot of wear and tear. That makes them one of the likelier areas to suffer from damage and break down. You should pay particular attention to them when inspecting your vehicle.

You’ll need to rotate these relatively regularly, alongside getting new ones after a certain amount of time. When you should do these depends on mileage and can often vary from brand to brand.

It’s worth being on the lookout for new tires for sale and picking up high-quality options when your tires are close to needing changing. You wouldn’t want to drive on bare tires, after all, so it’s recommended that you replace them not long beforehand.

Get Rid Of Any Unnecessary Weight

The more weight that’s in or on your car, the harder it’ll have to work to turn corners, speed up, and otherwise operate effectively. While this typically doesn’t affect a vehicle too much, it could if your car is overloaded. It could be worth giving it a clean and removing any unnecessary weight.

In most cases, that’ll focus on getting rid of any belongings in the vehicle that you wouldn’t need. You’d also be surprised by how much dirt can be in your vehicle, which is worth cleaning out for obvious reasons.

Wrapping Up

There’s a lot involved in knowing how to prevent a car breakdown. Taking good care of your vehicle can be more complicated than many people think. Alongside the above, you’ll have to think about oil changes, air filters, suspensions, and much more. Transmission repair in Bradenton, Oneco & Whitfield (or wherever you are) is also something you may need at some point, especially on an older car. The transmission system is complex and contains many parts, so the older your car gets, the more it’ll need looking after.

That could be more than enough to overwhelm some people. Taking care of things as they come up should be more than enough to take care of things. The largest part of knowing how to prevent a car breakdown is knowing when to go to the mechanic.

If there are unexplained noises and other problems worrying you, then it wouldn’t hurt to get a professional to look at it. Your car should run smoothly after that.