Category — Green Appliances

With Thanksgiving less than two weeks away, it’s time to start planning for green Holiday celebrations.  To get things kicked off, I’ve scoured the web in search of environmentally-friendly holiday frills.  Here are a two ideas for getting started.

Do you send Holiday greeting cards?  Here’s an eco-friendly option for you…and one that kindly reminds the recipient to celebrate green this year.  The card above is  made from 100% recycled paper, 50% of which is post-consumer content.  These recycled greeting cards are available at Cards Direct. [Read more →]

You may have recently read our energy saving tips for your refrigerator.  Just to recap- they included keeping your refrigerator full, but not overly full, and selecting an Energy Star refrigerator.  But, did you know there are even more things you can do turn your refrigerator into an earth-friendly green machine?

Glass Storage Containers:  Storing food in glass containers, such as the Pyrex storage containers above, naturally keeps food colder, and reduces your refrigerator’s work load.

Vacuum Coils:  Every few months, use your vacuum cleaner to remove the dust and cobwebs from your refrigerator coils.  Clean coils make for a more efficient refrigerator.  A soft bristled brush may also be handy for cleaning tight areas.

Avoid the Sun:  If your refrigerator sits in a sunny spot, either move it, or cover the nearby window with window blinds, or insulated curtains.  Source:  Ideal Bite.

The Pyrex containers above are available at Cookware.Com.

Wow! Even toasters are getting green makeovers.  As soon as I got over the glee of finding this, all I could think of was “DUH” why hasn’t anyone thought of this before!  The Ecolectric 2-slice toaster uses a third less energy than regular household toasters due to the auto-close lids over the bread slots. Ingenious!  The lids hold the heat in, which cooks the bread faster.  Hey- and that means less time spent waiting on breakfast.

Besides the lid feature, this energy efficient toaster looks like most other toasters.  It includes a reheat setting, a bagel setting (yay!), and a defrost setting.  The Ecolectric toaster is available at Ethical Superstore. Watch a video of this toaster in action.

With Thanksgiving preparation, and whirlwind of cooking plans underway, you may be wondering how to reduce energy use in the kitchen.  Here are a few green living tips for saving energy while preparing your Thanksgiving dinner….or any dinner!

Scrub, Baby Scrub: A blackened cooktop on your kitchen stove absorbs heat, and causes you to consume more energy, but a shiny stove top efficiently reflects energy into the cooking pan.  Now’s the time to clean your cooktop, and get ready for the Holidays.

Join the Hoods: Range hoods can help you quickly whisk away the extra heat in your kitchen, before you’re prompted to turn on the air conditioner!

Ugh…Clean the Oven: The last thing you wanted to hear, right?  Just like a dirty stove top, a grimy oven steals energy, and can cause foods to cook unevenly.  Ahem…just do it.  [Read more →]

So, you’re headed out of town for the Thanksgiving holiday, but not sure if you should completely shut down all your appliances and electronics while you’re gone?  Leaving everything on for the duration of your trip would be a real waste of energy, but on the other hand,  a dark home can be an easy target for thieves or vandals. Appliance timers are handy and affordable little gadgets that can help you conserve energy and play it safe when you are not home, and even when you are.

Here’s how it works.  Begin by plugging an appliance timer into any standard outlet.  Then plug your table lamps, television, or any other appliance into the timer, and set the times you want the appliance to turn on and off.  Now the appliance will come on and shut off on it’s own.

Even if when you’re home, appliance timers can help you avoid wasting energy by shutting things off when you leave for work, or right around bedtime. I found the appliance timer above at Westside Wholesale.  Gotta love an $8 green living upgrade.

Energy-efficient washing machines are a good investment to conserve power and save water.  However, the products you put into your washing machine can have just as big of impact on the environment.  Most run of the mill laundry soaps contain surfactants and chemicals, many of which are derived from petroleum.  Here are a few green living tips for cleaning up your act in the laundry room.

When You Need Bleach: Let’s face it, green laundry isn’t worth it if your clothes don’t come out clean. Sometimes you need some serious cleaning to get out grass stains or foods like tomato sauce.  Ever had a kid in soccer?  Here’s the tip:  avoid chlorine bleach.  There are many bleach alternatives available like oxygen boosting products.  Here’s  a large selection of “oxy” cleaners.  I use one scoop of an oxy booster with almost every load of laundry.  The trick is to put the oxy powder in the washing machine first, let the water fill, and then add clothes.

Fabric Softener Alternative: A scoop (1/4 to 1/2 cup) of baking soda added to the rinse cycle is a natural way to soften clothes.  Here’s another chemical free fabric softener.

Stubborn Stains: Soak resistant stains overnight in a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and water.  (8 parts cold water, 1 part peroxide)

The front loading washing machine above is an LG Energy Star washer, and it is available at HomeClick.

Did you know that using your microwave oven to cook a meal or a side dish uses 2/3 less energy than a traditional kitchen stove?  And, here’s the weird thing…minute by minute, microwaves actually use MORE power than your kitchen stove, but because microwaves cook so much faster, the overall energy use is less.

I know you must be thinking that microwave ovens turn out rubbery, gloppy food that no one wants to eat, right?  Although microwaves certainly aren’t the best choice for every meal, these appliances have come a long way, especially when it comes to quality results.

Some new microwave ovens use convection cooking, and even halogen lights to improve food quality.  The Sharp microwave/convection oven above combines microwaves with the circulating heat of a convection oven.  It has two racks for baking, and gives you the option to turn off the turntable when you don’t need it.

Here’s another energy saving tip:  Clean your microwave oven regularly, and it will use even less energy!

You know, the evidence against buying bottled water certainly seems to be adding up lately.  I read this article over the weekend about a recent California study of bottled water that showed bottled water to be just as contaminated as tap water in many cases.  In fact, upon examining the “purity” levels of  10 different brands of bottled water, the study turned up crazy stuff like acetaminophen, fertilizer, and plastic chemicals.  Yuck!  One major retailer’s store brand water had more than 3 times the California limit for chlorine byproducts.

When you consider this information, on top of all the environmental problems caused by bottled water, has there ever been a better time to purchase  a water filtration pitcher and some stainless steel water bottles? Can you really trust anyone but yourself to filter the drinking water your family consumes?

The Brita water pitcher above filters out 95-98 percent of lead, reduces chlorine, and has a bacteriostatic system for preventing the regrowth of bacteria.  I like the sleek, modern design of this thing (proof that going green doesn’t make you a nerd), and the fact that it will fit in the door of your refrigerator.  The Brita 42632 drinking water pitcher is available at d! Mart.

Here’s another reason to go green when it comes to drinking water– bottled water is 1,900 times more expensive that tap water.  At a dollar for a 20 ounce bottle, that equates to over $6 a gallon.  Suddenly the price of gasoline seems like a bargain! Can you believe we pay so much for something with so many disadvantages?

If you read our recent post on garbage disposals, then you’re probably aware of the impact that food waste has on our landfills and water supplies.  Organic waste produces methane gas, a greenhouse which is harmful to the environment, and 21 times more damaging than carbon dioxide. (Source:  NatureMill)

The best way to avoid contributing to the environmental problems associated with improperly disposed food waste is by using a composter as part of your green living efforts.  The compost bin above, recently featured by Ideal Bite, can be used indoors or out, and allows you to add new items at any time during the cycle.

According to the NatureMill, the Plus Edition automatic composter will compost up to 120 lbs. or organic waste per month, and prevent more than 2 tons of landfill waste over the course of its life.  There’s also a ‘Pro Edition’ for large families.  I like the foot pedal for conveniently opening the unit.  The finished compost is automatically sifted down from the heated top “churn” area into a removable  tray.

If you’re worried about your home being overtaken by the icky aroma of composting food, it doesn’t seem to be an issue.  According NatureMill, the composter is odor-free.

Here’s a non-automatic, outdoor composter that requires a manual spin every day or so.

One of the latest advancements in energy-efficient kitchen appliances is induction range. Induction cooktops and kitchen ranges use magnetic friction to deliver heat, through coils, to the cookware you are using. During induction cooking, the ceramic surface of the range stays cool, and that nearly all, (85-90%), of the energy generated is used for the cooking process.

The countertop induction range shown above has a ceramic top and all-stainless enclosure. It includes 100 cooking levels, a timer, and built-in safety features. As with all induction ranges, it must be used with cookware made from ferrous (magnetic) metals, such as steel, iron, or nickel. For more information about the Vollrath countertop induction range, visit the WEBstaurant Store. Com.