Saving money when you go green can and will happen, and there are a lot of benefits in making steps toward a greener life. Besides saving you money, it can improve your health, reduce energy and natural gas consumption, and save and even improve your property value in some cases! Going green can be difficult for some people, but trying even one or two of these tips can make a big difference in the amount of money you save, and help improve your lifestyle.

1. Try Using More Veggies And Less Meat

Use Veggies

Use Veggies Source

This tip makes the phrase “go green,” seem really literal. The average American eats a lot of meat. Meat is a heavily processed food source, and cutting back on buying so much of it for your own home can greatly impact your budget in a positive way. Try using veggies for your main course, and serve meat as a topping or side. It’s a healthy, clean way to save yourself a few extra dollars.

2. Start A Garden

Start A Garden

Start A Garden Source

This tip goes hand-in-hand with the first one. It can be a challenging feat to start a garden depending on what climate you live in, but the rewards are amazing. Home grown produce is hormone and pesticide free, so you know exactly what’s going in your body, and provides mostly free (minus seeds, water, tools, etc.) food for you and your family.

3. Plant Trees

Plant Trees

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Go green: plant a tree! Planting trees can save you money by providing shade in the summer, and buffers from harsh winds and weather elements in the winter. This will lower your heating and cooling bills all year long, lowering your total energy consumption, and will also give your give your land a fresh face lift. If you’re looking to sell your house, then you’re in luck! Property value can potentially increase if you have older, well established trees surrounding your home. Read more about that here.

4. Weatherstrip Your Door And Window Frames

Weather Stripping

Weather Stripping Source

Weatherstripping the spots in your home that leak air can save you up to 15 percent on your heating and cooling bills. You’ll reduce your energy consumption, and have a much more comfortable climate in your home if you make sure to seal those edges up the right way! Installing weatherstripping is also a good thing to do if you’re looking to sell your house fast, as it’s a basic home repair that you can do quickly and easily. Click the link under the picture for a full list of weatherstripping materials available, and for tips on how and where to install it.

5. Go Green: Switch To Solar Water Heating

Go Green: Solar Water Heater

Solar Water Heater Picture Source

Making the decision to switch to solar water heating can be a huge step in going green, and after getting past the initial costs, it can be very rewarding. Installing this environment-conscious water heating system can also make your house value rise steeply, especially if you’re located in the North-East. Solar water heating can save you up to 80% on your annual bill, depending on your geographic location, the cost of fuel in your area, and other variables. For more information on how this could benefit you, click here.

6. Cloth Instead Of Paper

Cloth Napkins

Cloth Napkins Source

Switching from paper napkins to cloth can save you tons of money. At a dinner table full of people, dozens of napkins get used per meal, and using cloth napkins can eliminate the bulk of that cost, and cut back on your household paper waste. If you’re really looking to cut back, replacing your paper towels with washcloths and dishtowels can also help!

7. Make The Switch To LED

LED Light Bulbs

LED Light Bulbs Source

LED light bulbs are a much more cost efficient way to light your home than using your average, run-of-the-mill light bulb. They can be a bit pricey to buy, but they have the potential to run for about 50,000 hours (as opposed to your average incandescent which lasts about 1,200 hours), they contain no mercury vapor, and consume a very low amount of energy. It may take some time for you to switch all your light bulbs for LED’s, seeing as though they are not the cheapest lighting source to purchase, but the end result will have you one step closer to saving money and going green! For some more in-depth information on the benefits of LED light bulbs, click here.

8. Line Dry Your Clothes

Line Dry Your Clothes

Line Dry Your Clothes Source

Your dryer is a major energy hog. Line drying your clothes instead of using the machine can save you money, and cut back on the amount of carbon dioxide that is emitted into the air during it’s use. Air drying also saves your clothes from the regular wear and tear that comes from being regularly put through the dryer.

9. Carpool

Carpool

Carpool Source

Carpooling is an simple enough way to save money AND go green by helping keep gas emissions down. Splitting the cost of gas with one other friend could save you nearly $1000 dollars a year, and splitting that between more people can save you even more than that! If you rotate the main vehicle you all use, you can also slow the normal wear and tear process down by a lot.

10. Switch To Power Strips

Power Strip

Power Strip Source

Electronics that are left plugged in, even when they aren’t being used, are sucking up energy; granted, it’s not a ton of energy, but it’s enough that you may want to consider unplugging some of them. I don’t recommend unplugging things like your refrigerator, cable box, or wi-fi, but you can find some things that can be turned on and off with ease, put them all on a power strip with an on/off switch. Some of the things you can put on a power strip would be your:

  • Television
  • Gaming consoles
  • Office appliances (paper shredder, copier, lamps, coffee machine, etc.)
  • Toaster oven
  • Microwave
  • Lamps/side lighting
  • Computer