Search Results for: blog 6 ways to reuse cereal box liners

What is a Home Geothermal System?

Install a home geothermal system, and you may never need oil or gas to heat or cool your home again. The system, while ingenious goes back may centuries. Many cultures around the world and through time have uses the Earth’s nature temperatures for keeping warm or cool and for heating water. For the home, a geothermal pump system is put into place. Rather than generating heat by buring fuel, as does a traditional home furnace, a home geothermal systems collects the earth’s natural heat and brings it up from below to your home heating your home and even providing hot … Continue reading →

How to Clean Green

Having a clean home doesn’t mean that you have to expose yourself and your family to tons of chemicals that can linger in your home and may negatively impact both your health and the environment. The old days of strong chemical cleaners that eradicate everything in their paths is gone. Welcome in a new era of cleaning, one that will leave your home clean and smelling wonderfully without causing harm. First, let’s talk a little bit about the traditional cleaning solutions that are on the market. Most of them are petroleum based, which we know is not a renewable resource. … Continue reading →

Six Ways to Have a Greener Home

The little things that you do around your home can make a big impact in how much energy you can save. if you want a greener home, concentrate on the following six areas. 1. Conserve hot water. You can conserve hot water by taking shorter showers, washing your laundry in cold water and lowering the thermostat on your furnace or water heater. 2. Replace your blinds. If you have traditional metal blinds on your windows, you’ll save money when you replace them with wood or fabric. This is because blinds will suck up the heat and the cold from outside … Continue reading →

RecycleBank: Getting Paid to Recycle

Yesterday morning, there was great anticipation in our household while we expected a large arrival. I had just signed up for our local RecycleBank (http://www.recyclebank.com) program, and we were awaiting our new large recycling container, complete with RDIF chip. Through the RecycleBank program, our household will be rewarded for recycling. The amount of recycling that we do is directly related to the number of rewards. The literature that I received said that good recyclers could earn hundreds of dollars worth of rewards in a year. The RecycleBank website and the literature about the program doesn’t go into great detail about … Continue reading →

Green Home Tips

Did you know that a plastic shower curtain can be dangerous to your health? It can release dangerous levels of volatile organic compounds. If you want to protect your health and your environment, you’ll want to read the following green home tips. First, let me offer a reading recommendation for anyone who is interested in being more aware of healthy products. There is a magazine called Body & Soul that offers a lot of great information on this subject. Many of the tips I have for you today were inspired by some recent issues. Now let’s get back to that … Continue reading →

How to Recycle Crayons

Did you know that when crayons are tossed out in the garbage, they can spend almost an eternity in a landfill? Who knew that such a little think could contribute to the trash on our planet? As a household with three young children, crayons are everywhere. There are the broken ones, the ones that are of unpopular colors and the ones that get replaced when a gift of a new box of well-dressed crayons appears. Ah, it is that new crayon smell that no one can resist. There are several ways that you can recycle crayons and keep them out … Continue reading →

Weight Loss: Cheerios or Lucky Charms?

Does anyone else share my passion for dry cereal? I have found a great snack with only 100 calories in a box. It requires no cooking or preparation either. Just one cup of it and only 100 calories. I have found that it fills up the empty spot that lies in your belly. I discovered cereal one day as I headed out the door to go to work. I was pressed for time and saw the box of cereal sitting there. My stomach ached a little bit out of hunger, but there was no time to make anything. I reached … Continue reading →

Your Reuse Ideas Could Earn $100

Reusing is a great way to be frugal and green at the same time. Here in the Frugal Living Blog and the Reuse Category in this blog, we have found many ways to reuse all sorts of things from tennis balls to sawdust. But now, one magazine is asking for your ideas, and they are willing to pay $100 for them. Frugal people are so clever at reusing things. I think of one friend of mine who creates amazing furniture out of discards, using them in unique ways. Almost anything can be reused, even things we might normally think of … Continue reading →

Frugal Living Month in Review: August 2008

With August passed, it will be hard to hold on to summer, but fortunately, we have a lot of memories of the “dog days.” We also have lots of great articles about saving money, something that is pretty important these days. Take a look at what was posted in August. August 1st Frugal Living Month in Review: July 2008 July went by so quickly for us! There were so many fun and frugal activities and events for us to explore, from a science camp to free movies and sand sculpting. I hope your July was equally fun and frugal. Summer … Continue reading →

Is It Cost Effective to Bring a School Lunch?

When planning out whether our eldest child will buy lunch or bring lunch to school, the cost involved is one factor. Last year, he brought lunch most of the time, and was allowed to buy a lunch for a special treat or as a reward for good behavior. With the cost of groceries increasing, I have been wondering if it still cost affective to have homemade lunches. I like the idea of packing a lunch, for a few different reasons. The first is that since my child is still young, I can have a bit more control over what he … Continue reading →