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Sustainable Home Sustainable Life: Become EcoSmart
Try the Carbon Diet
I am encouraging all of you to go on a diet! Not a food diet, but rather a carbon diet. Why? Because, the fastest way we can reduce the impacts of climate change is by reducing carbon emissions.
Our new carbon diet has two components,
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Reduce our energy consumption and
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Reduce our water consumption,
There is, however, an upside to reducing our energy and water consumption; we can save money and reduce our energy bills! Something everyone likes to do during this current economic climate.
So here are the Top 10 Carbon Diet Tips. Some of these are free and some cost money now, but will save you money in the long term.
Top 10 Carbon Diet Tips
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Turn off the "on/off" button on your appliances.
Did you know that standby power can consume up to 10% of the electricity used in an average Australian household?
When the appliance is off and not performing its primary function it is in "standby mode". You can tell when an appliace is in standby as it will have a "light on it" somewhere to suggest it is in standby.
By simply switching off the "on/off" button or the power point you can save more between $50-$100 a year.
The appliances that consume the most in standby are:- Computers: 15.7% of the total standby power
- TV: 6.7% of the total standby power
- Stereo: 5.8%
- Modem: 3.7%
FACT: Some appliances use nearly as much power when they are on standby as when they are in use.
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Take shorter showers and turn the water off while brushing your teeth
Everytime you run a tap you are using up to 17 litres of water a minute and everytime you have a shower it is using 15 litres of water a minute!!. Are you wasting it?
A good tip is to use a cup while brush your teeth - don't leave the tap running and try to have a 3-minute max shower if you need to shave your legs or wash your hair. Turn the water off whilst you are standing there.
FACT: You can save over 130,000 liters of water a year if each person in your family of four showers 3 minutes less a day and uses a cup to brush their teeth. That's nearly 20,000 balloons full of Green House Gases saved. -
Reduce, Reuse and Recycle.
Reduce your waste by buying re-usable instead of disposable products. My pet hate is water bottles, just buy one and keep reusing it. Decide against plastic bags when shopping, take your own eco-bags. Recycle paper, plastic, newspaper, glass and aluminum cans and put all your organic waste in a worm farm - which is then brilliant fertilizer for the garden.
Another idea to reduce your waste is to take your own mug to the coffee shop when you get your morning take away coffee or take your own plate to the sandwich shop when you get your lunch. This reduces the amount of waste.
FACT: You can save up to 1100kg or over 20,000 balloons of carbon dioxide by recycling at least half of the waste your household generates. -
Turn down your thermostat 2 Degrees in winter
FACT: This small adjustment will save you up to $150 on your energy bill and will reduce your Green House Gas emissions by 17, 888 ballooons.
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Replace a regular light bulb with an energy saving light bulb.
Energy saving light bulbs are up to 80% more efficient than regular light bulbs and save you each 2,800 ballooons of carbon dioxide emissions a year. An energy saving light bulb will lower your yearly electricity bill by $25.
FACT: Energy saving light bulbs last up to eight times longer than regular light bulbs.
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Insulate your home.
Top up your insulation and save up to $350 on your yearly electricity bill. Insulating your home keeps the heat in the house in the winter and out of the house in summer.
FACT: Insulating will save over 40,000 balloons of Green House Gases emissions per year. -
Invest in a solar energy system or solar hot water system.
The government is supporting our Carbon Diets reduction by offering two amazing offers:
a. $8000 rebate for 1kW solar energy systems. So take up this amazing offer, but hurry the offer is about to run out!
b. $1600 for a solar hot water system.
A 1kW solar energy system can reduce your electricity use by 25% and save you approximately $250 a year.
FACT: Did you know water heating is the largest single source of greenhouse gas emissions from the average Australian home, accounting for around 28% of home energy use (excluding the family car). Installing a climate friendly hot water system can save a family $300 to $700 off electricity bills each. -
Install a Grey water systems or rainwater tank
Grey water systems reuse your water coming from your showers, washing machine, dishwater and basins. Rainwater is great to use for washing your clothes, watering the garden, flushing your toilet and washing your car. There are rebates available for both grey water systems and rainwater tanks worth $500.
FACT: Using grey water instead of our precious drinking water for outdoor purposes could save each household up to 50,000 litres of drinking water every year - about the same amount of water required for your backyard pool. -
Replace your toilet with a dual flush toilet
Save about 25,000 litres of water every year and up to $200 on your water bill.
FACT: On average, a single flush toilet uses around 12 litres of water per flush. A 4-star water efficient dual flush toilet uses less than half this amount. -
Get your home audited by an independent audit company
A home assessment will show you how to save on electricity and water costs while keeping your lifestyle. For example, Mojarra can assess your home and provide you with a detailed action plan on how to make your home greener. Book a home assessment
FACT: A home assessment can save you hundred of dollars a year and make a significant difference in your green house gas emissions.
What is holding you back? Now is the time to go on a carbon diet start save energy and water and put money back in your pocket.
