April 22 is Earth Day: Green Tips You Can Use

You’ve most likely heard of Earth Day since it’s been happening every year since 1970. But have you or your family ever celebrated Earth Day before? This April 22, observe this international day by committing to green habits, by reducing your carbon footprint, and by using these green tips to save energy, water, money, and the planet.

Five Easy Ways to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

The size of your carbon footprint is determined by how reliant you are on fossil fuels. This Earth Day, you can do your part to save the planet by taking steps to reduce your carbon footprint, and a few easy ways to do this are:

1. Drive less and opt for walking, biking, or finding other alternative methods of transportation
2. When lights burn out around the house, replace them with energy-saving CFLs or LEDs
3. When appliances wear out, replace them with energy-saving ones that have the ENERGY STAR seal
4. Turn off lights when you're not in the room, turn off TVs and appliances when you aren't using them, and find other ways to conserve energy around the house
5. Insulate your house better and install a programmable thermostat that will reduce energy use and costs

One Easy Way to Reduce Your Energy Bills

Install a tankless water heater. When your older storage-tank water heater is up for replacement, upgrade to a tankless water heater that will use 30 percent less energy, and save you plenty of money in the process. Standby loss means that storage-tank water heaters waste about 20 percent of the energy they use, and they only have a lifespan of about 10 years. On the other hand, tankless water heaters don’t experience standby loss, and they last about 20 years.

Nine Easy Ways to Save Water

The global water shortage affects billions of people across the globe, and you can help save water and do your part for the environment by adopting water-conservation habits at home. Here are nine simple ways you can save water and the planet:

1. Install low-flow toilets
2. Turn off the taps when you aren't using them
3. Install water-saving shower heads
4. Upgrade to motion-sensor faucets that turn off when you don’t need the water
5. Use waterless car wash cleaners instead of soap and water
6. Catch rainwater with a rain barrel to use in the garden
7. Install water-efficient faucets in the bathroom and kitchen
8. Take shorter showers
9. Only run the washing machine or dishwasher when there's a full load

One Easy Way to Save the Planet

Stop buying water bottles. Water bottles need millions of barrels of oil (to produce the plastic bottles), they sit in landfills for about 1,000 years, they use fossil fuels transporting them from production plants to stores, and each liter of bottled water requires 3 liters to produce it. Instead of buying bottled water, install a whole-home water filtration system that will give you clean water for cooking, cleaning, drinking, and bathing. And in just two years, you'll recoup the cost with the money you save on bottled water.