Going Green: A New Year's Resolution

What's your New Year's Resolution?

2015 is only a few days away!  This year, why don't you make a resolution about going green?  Green living is not only a great personal choice, but also yields positive results for the planet as a whole.

For the new year, why don't you try these simple, green, steps:

1. Sort garbage from recyclables.  

Recycling is the easiest way to go green.  Before you dump everything in your trash bin or throw things down the garbage chute, make sure that you are checking to see if any products can be recycled.  It is such an easy tip, but so many people forget!

Having a Green Holiday

Gift Wrapping Gone Green

Have you done all of your holiday shopping?

If so, it's time to think about gift wrapping.  This year, consider this:

In the US, the annual trash from gift wrap and shopping bags totals over 4 million tons. If everyone wrapped just three gifts in reused paper or fabric gift bags, it would save enough paper to cover 45,000 hockey rinks.

Here are some green tips to keep in mind before you give your friends and loved ones their gifts.

1. Use environmentally friendly wrapping paper

Choose wrapping paper made using fibers such as hemp, or paper using recycled content.

Putting Our Waste Into Perspective

Waste By The Numbers

We all know that recycling is good for the environment and an easy way to live a green life.

This is the time of year for holiday and New Years Eve parties. When cleaning up, it might seem easier to just discard of all the trash.  Sorting through recyclables doesn't matter all the time, right? It's fine to take just a few days off?

When committing to a green lifestyle, it is important to take every opportunity you can to promote sustainability. Taking one day off of recycling might seem like not a big deal, but in the long-run, the effects can be devastating to our natural resources.

Consider these figures:

The Life of Your Soda Can

This can will go on a journey!

You walk into the closest grocery store and buy a can of soda.  Simple, right?  You have probably done it so many times that it seems normal, even dull, to think about.

Every time you make the choice to recycle, instead of dispose, a soda can- it goes on a journey.  The life of a soda can really begins from the moment is is recycled.

Here are the steps many of your cans have gone through:

1. Customer takes can to a recycling center or puts it into a recycling bin.

Don't Waste Your Food!

When you were a kid, you might have heard your parents or a family member say, "Don't play with your food!"  Though it may have seemed like a minor reprimand, wasting food is actually a serious issue.  In the United States alone, every year about 40 percent of all food is thrown away.  In our last blog post about Thanksgiving, we touched upon ways to reduce food waste.  Not wasting food is a very simple and easy step to living a green life.

Some simple tips to not waste your food:

1. Eliminate impulsive grocery store buys.
Impulsive buys are not only a huge waste of money but also a waste of food.  Only shop for food you know you will eat.

A Green Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is only a few days away.  On Thursday, when you are dining on a big meal or spending time with your friends and family- the last thing on your mind will probably be staying green and taking care of the environment.  However, here are some simple tips that make it possible to both enjoy Thanksgiving and maintain your green lifestyle.

1) Don't waste food

After your Thanksgiving meal, you might be looking at a lot of excess food.  Don't waste it!  If you can't fit all of the leftovers in your fridge, ask guests to take it home.  So much food is wasted during the holidays because people will throw out the excess afterwards.

Living Green on a Budget

Do you want to live a green life but are worried about your finances?

This is a common concern.  If you think that the only way to live "green" is to spend a lot of money- you are mistaken.  There are plenty of ways to live a green lifestyle and stay on your budget.  Here are just several:

1) Clean the green way!

Many people don't realize that their home can look immaculately clean by using natural products that already sit in a pantry shelf rather than buying cleaners in a store.  Not only are cleaners expensive, but they often are damaging to the air and water.  Here are some great natural products:

• White Wine Vinegar: vinegar is excellent for cleaning stains, especially on fabrics!
• Baking soda: baking soda is great at removing dirt and stains.  Did you know it is also good to mix baking soda with toothpaste to get a sparkling, white smile?
• Lemon and orange peels: instead of throwing fruit peels away, they are excellent to scrub dirt and grime from pots and pans.

Be Careful of Your Batteries

Does your house have unused batteries?

It's the time of year when your battery use will rise.

Maybe you'll use batteries when it is an overcast, November night, and you reach for a flashlight to take the garbage out to the curb.  Maybe you'll use batteries to power a decoration as you are setting up for the holidays, or to power a new gift.

Whenever new batteries are used, the old ones need to be disposed.  Before you think you can just throw the battery in the garbage, know that not all batteries are the same and some should not go in with common trash due to environmental concerns.

You Can Still Conserve Energy in the Winter!

The air is turning colder, the days are getting shorter, and people are putting away their Halloween decorations.  That can only mean one thing- winter is right around the corner! 

If you are interested in living a green life, you might think that it is tough to conserve energy in the winter.  While it can be a challenge, it is possible!  Here are some green tips we have compiled to save you energy during the winter:

1. Check your thermostat

Arguably, a huge amount of the energy used in your home this winter will stem from using heat.  And that makes sense: no one wants to go through winter cold!  However, there are certain ways to reduce the amount of energy used on heat.  For example, setting your thermostat to a temperature you know is comfortable for you, and keeping it on that temperature.  It actually wastes more energy to constantly turn on and turn off your heat instead of keeping it at a constant temperature.  Also, a lot of thermostats now have programmable, energy saving, settings on them; investing in one will ensure that you are living the greenest (and warmest) way possible!

Don't Be Scared by Energy Vampires!

Energy Vampires can strike any home!

With Halloween right around the corner, it's a good time of year to be aware of vampires!  Not Dracula or the characters of Twilight, but energy vampires.

Energy vampires are appliances that drain energy even when turned off or not in use.  Examples are one-use appliances, such as coffee machines and toasters.  Even lamps can drain energy when turned off but still plugged into a wall outlet.  Not only do energy vampires destroy an otherwise green household, but these appliances are a huge waste of money for any apartment renter.

Here are some ways to stop energy vampires during Halloween:

1) Watch the lights you use!

• Instead of incandescent light bulbs, switch to LED lights.  LED lights last longer and use less energy as well.

What is Hapenning to Our Natural Resources?

There are over 7 billion people in the world today.  While an impressive number- that means that there are over 7 billion people using the Earth's natural resources.

Before you think- "well, just stop using natural resources!" it is important to note that it isn't that easy to just stop the heavy usage of these resources.  Water is essential to life.  Phosphorous is vital for plant growth.  However, being mindful of the fact that our natural resources shouldn't be wasted is never a bad thing.  Turning off a running tap might not seem like a big deal, but imagine if even a fraction of 7 billion people did the same thing.

What Exactly Is GreenLiving?

We have been giving you weekly GreenLiving tips for some time now, but this week we wanted to impress upon our readers exactly what going green means.

Since starting this blog, people will ask about the point of GreenLiving.  It is not so much taking out the recycling once in a blue moon or choosing to turn off your faucet once a month.  GreenLiving truly makes up a lifestyle choice, and as any lifestyle, it takes time and dedication.

Love Indoor Plants? Want to Conserve Water? It Can Be Done!

One question we often encounter is how it is possible to properly maintain and care for plants while also trying to conserve as much water as possible.  It definitely can be done, and here are some tricks to caring for indoor plants:
Many homeowners love taking care of potted, indoor plants.

Be sure to care for low-maintenance indoor plants!  Some examples include:

1. Succulents- the easiest houseplants to keep alive. They like dry soil, so they almost beg to be ignored. Generally, they need to be watered every three to four days, but it depends on the humidity in your home. Aloe Vera is a particularly good choice in succulent, because the gel from the leaves can be used in a variety of ways (most notably soothing sunburn). Succulents like sunny spots, and a row of them looks charming in a windowsill.

2. Spider plants are also very easy to care for and notoriously hard to kill. These also do great as hanging plants, which is a bonus if you have pets or small children that can’t resist digging around in soil (or eating leaves). Spider plants can even survive without natural light, so it’s a good choice if you don’t have a particularly sunny home.

Four Easy Ways to Conserve Water

Water is a precious resource, and a great way to live a "green" life is to learn simple ways to reduce water use in your home!  Four easy ways to conserve water are:

1. If you have a toilet that runs or a faucet that drips, contact your property manager as soon as possible. It’s probably an easy fix, and it will save you money on your water bill, too. If the city has to go into stage three water restrictions, it’s likely that utility customers will also see a rate hike. Taking care of small leaks now will definitely pay off in the long run.

Your New and Improved Green Life

So, you want to live a green lifestyle?  You've come to the right blog!  This week, we are discussing several personal practices to live green. You might even be on your way to living green already and not even know it!

Some simple ideas are:

1. Buy locally produced items, including produce and other goods. It reduces the amount of fossil fuels required to transport the things you buy from other parts of the country or the world. It also reduces the amount of plastic and paper products consumed in the packaging of such far-traveling products.
2. Instead of using grocery stores' disposable plastic or paper bags, bring your own reusable tote bags, which are available for sale at many grocers and other retailers. The bags are sturdier than disposable bags, making the trip home easier, and they don't waste resources or end up in landfills. You alone could keep up to 1,500 bags per year out of landfills! If you must use disposable bags, ask your bagger to avoid double-bagging whenever possible.

It's More Than Recycling!

Last week, our blog post was about the importance of recycling!  While it is important to recycle, living a green life isn't just about recycling and sorting out re-usable supplies; there are a lot of other ways to live green!

From cleaning your home to getting to work, read these tips for simple ideas to go green!

Cleaning

1. Use non-toxic, environmentally safe, biodegradable cleaning products, including laundry products, which you can find at any natural grocery and even many mainstream stores. Just read the labels carefully. 
2. Don't pollute your indoor air or mask odors that could alert you to a problem. Choose fragrance-free products.

Reducing, Reusing and Recycling

Recycling is important, and the ultimate lesson is: use less whenever possible. Don't think you can't make a difference by recycling- recycling just one aluminum can saves the amount of energy required to run a TV for three hours!

Here are a few suggestions that will help reduce our use of precious natural resources:

1. Many computers, monitors, cell phones and other electronics include toxic materials that should not sit in landfills. You'd be surprised how many retailers and other companies will take your old gadgets for recycling. The Environmental Protection Agency can help you find local electronics recyclers here.
2. Say no to junk mail - 100 million trees' worth are sent out each year. Visit the DMAChoice website to opt out of the Direct Marketing Association's member mailings.
3. Packing peanuts and other loose fill will sit in a landfill for centuries, but there are many places you can bring them for recycling. Call the Peanut Hotline at 1-800-828-2214 to find out where these products can be recycled.

Simple Energy-Saving Tips!

Read some simple, energy saving tips below!  Anyone can do these in their own home to reduce energy used!

1.   Unplug the "secret energy addicts" in your home: TVs, VCRs, DVD players, cable TV boxes, computers and printers, video game consoles, microwave ovens and AC adapters for cell phones, digital cameras and other electronics. Most electronic equipment, including anything that uses a remote control, is designed to consume energy when it is turned off. That "off" setting is actually a "standby" or "idling" mode. Standby power in the average household consumes 1,000 kilowatt hours of electricity annually. That's enough energy to power an entire home for two months, or more. The solution? Unplug anything that isn't being used.
2.   Swap out incandescent bulbs for compact fluorescent bulbs. CFs use about 66% less energy and last up to 10 times longer.
3.   Turn down your thermostat by two degrees in the winter (and up two degrees in the summer). You'll save 2,000 pounds of carbon dioxide this year!
4.   Switch to cold-water washing and save 80% on laundry energy.

Welcome to Our Green Tips!

Hello everyone!

Thank you for reading Grady Management Inc.'s first blog post on our brand new Green Tips blog.  This blog is a step in our process to inform more people about Grady Management news and initiatives through social media and a brand-new website (debuting later this month!).

Here at Grady Management, we know that you would always "do the right thing" for yourself and the planet if it were convenient, fun, inexpensive, and made you feel good. Being green doesn't have to be complicated or difficult! Let’s go beyond recycling and replacing light bulbs and take a look at a few ways to truly make an impact on the environment with green apartment living.