Eco Friendly Car Tips

Posted on by
Share:
Reply

Tips for Fuel Friendly Cars

BMW Vision Efficient Dynamics Mechanism

Energy Efficient Concept, BMW “Green Cars”

We have heard of the term eco drive.  “Eco drive” or “eco friendly driving” simply means how fuel-efficient one drives a car. If we search online, we will find websites of car manufacturers offering eco drive or environmentally friendly cars according to their latest “green” car model hybrid level concepts and friendly driving tips. They relate to techniques of eco driving, such as smooth braking and acceleration, car maintenance, and other vehicle controls, if only to label vehicles as “fuel friendly cars” or  “environmentally friendly cars.”

Maintain Your Car Efficiency

If you keep your car in good condition, you’ll get the most of fuel by increasing its efficiency or saving on it and reducing repair expenses. In terms of greenhouse emissions, you’ll pump fewer gases into the atmosphere.

  • Fix it when it has failed an emission test to boost petrol mileage.
  • Check tire pressure monthly, advisably, in the morning when the tires are cold. Make sure tire pressure is right; under-inflated tires wear down faster.
  • Clear heavy junk of your car in your trunk, like golf clubs and other similar items. The heavier the weight, the more petrol mileage drops.
  • Watch out on your engine’s air filter, that it’s not dirty, clogged with dirt and insects. Have it checked at each oil change. Clean air filter improves petrol mileage.

Reduce Your Car Air conditioner Use

On a hot, humid day, it’s fair enough to use your air conditioner but when the weather is pleasant, switch it off. If you cut down your AC use by half or better still, two thirds, this can make a difference in your annual savings.

  • Ask yourself if you really need to use your car air conditioner. Depending on your car and driving conditions, your fuel consumption can increase enormously.
  • In buying a new car, consider one with tinted windows and a light-coloured exterior to reduce your AC need.  For an existing car, consider having your windows tinted with solar control film.
  • The air conditioner reduces fuel economy most during acceleration. Wait until you have reached cruising speed to turn on your AC.
  • If possible, park your car in the shade. Otherwise, use sunshades or car covers to screen your car and stop it from absorbing so much heat.

Take Fewer Short Trips

Plan and combine your trips, family or personal, if necessary. All it takes is some planning in the day’s work. You save money, time, petrol and carbon.

Use Car Cruise Control

Accelerate and decelerate slowly and gently. The use of cruise control is meant to improve fuel consumption by cutting down on carbon deposits – the more carbon the more could be spent in propelling the car.  The cruise control function doesn’t really make a difference as to how the engine performs but it hinders (or stops) you from rapid acceleration  that could cause traffic jam, burning up fuel and pumping out pollution.

Having a car has a lot of advantages. For one thing it gets us much faster where we want to go and to be.  Sadly, motor vehicles are a significant contributors of human-caused carbon emissions. Concerns for the environment can no longer be taken for granted.  Aside from saving expenses, one most recent issue that has constantly evolved to help keep an eco friendly environment is how to cut carbon in terms of better fuels.

Image Credit:
www.environmentteam.com – Energy efficient concept from BMW “Green Cars” with “Vision Efficient Dynamic” mechanism

Green Wedding Theme

Posted on by
Share:
2

Planning your green wedding

For the committed environmentalists who are getting married, their kind of green weddings could focus on mountain hiking for a pre-wedding date. However, if you are like the majority with enough concerns for a more environmentally friendly nuptial and you are conscious of making a difference, then you can look towards a practical green wedding theme. A wedding is a time to celebrate with friends and family and your happiness should come first. It is one of the most important day of your life as a bride or groom.

Suggestions for a Green Wedding Theme

Wedding announcements and updates.  Instead of snail mail or constant use of telephones to communicate with relatives, friends and other guests about the progress of your wedding, start a web site or blog. Nowadays you can easily get a blog for free and setting up is easy.

Wedding dress. If you are the bride, and you are buying a new dress, try one made from natural and organic materials. Otherwise, a previously owned dress can save you some cash.

Wedding venue. Have your wedding at a local venue to reduce the distance your guests have to drive. Try to find a middle point by considering your guests. The shorter distance, the less oil consumed and cheaper. If you have decided for an outdoor ceremony, select a venue with the best use of natural light.

Wedding invitations. You could choose paper made from recycled cotton or wool that doesn’t use as many chemicals in the production process. Consider also treeless paper made from materials like bamboo and hemp. Wedding invitations can generate large amount of paper consumption. Perhaps you can give one invitation to a family or another one to a group of friends.

Wedding flowers.  Try to use locally produced flowers. Most of the more expensive ones require to be transported.

Wedding rings. Consider a simple re-fashioned previously owned ring. It’s incredible to think of the amount of natural resources that goes into a ring’s creation.

Wedding gifts. In going green, set up your wedding gift registry with a green theme, that is, a wish list of eco friendly products you would like. Without a practical registry list, wedding gifts can generate all sorts of unwanted items though well-intentioned.

Wedding favours. These are the token gifts you give to guests. Make them eco friendly. It could be a nifty gift basket of green items or a small green product souvenir.

Flower confetti. Instead of the traditional rice or seed confetti, use flower petal confetti. It’s beautiful.

Wedding cake. How about asking your baker to use only organic ingredients and/or local products? It shouldn’t be that costly.

Wedding photos. Instead of sending out numerous printed photographs, save on processing with chemicals that could be toxic and mailing cost expense. Store the digital images on your wedding website or blog for family, relatives and friends to download. Only print what is necessary. This way you can also save.

Wedding catering. Try to use an eco friendly catering company that produces local or organic food ingredients. Maximise the use of seasonal fruit and vegetables. Go slow with the amount of meat on your planned menu.  You can also consider hiring non-disposable cutlery and crockery. Disposables like plates, cups, cutlery and napkins can create lots of waste and can be messy.

Wedding cleanup. Whether your family and friends do the cleanup or you hire cleaners, remind them to separate recyclables from non-recyclables. This minimises the trash that winds up in the landfills.

Going green in your marriage ceremony, reception and other activities that go with your important day is an opportunity to practice being earth or eco friendly. All the best!

Photo Credit:
“Inspiration Board: Naturally Green“. aisledash.com. Accessed May 24, 2012.

Going Green Working from Home

Posted on by
Share:
1

Eco friendly home office
Image Credit: Hometone.com

Has it ever occurred to you that simply, by working from home you are going green?  How, you ask.  For one thing, you have wiped out a large stretch of your carbon footprint by avoiding the daily commute beating the stressful rush hour and heavy traffic. And another, you can set up your own standards when it comes to recycling and energy use in your home-based business.

With the advent of the Green Revolution, working from home has become a part of the environmental agenda – a potential solution to traffic congestion and carbon emissions.

The green home office

If you are working from home, being at home all day has a staggering effect on the amount of energy you consume. On top the extra equipment plugged into the sockets particularly in your work area, there is substantially increased demand on heating, lighting, hot water and kitchen equipments such as microwave, toaster and kettle. The more normal guidelines advised for all households becomes more important. The internet from government entities and other community organisations feature information of recommended energy-saving products including household appliances and lighting, heating and insulation equipment.

Handy tips for an eco friendly home or home-office

  • Reassess your energy supplier at least once a year, not just for competitive pricing but also for green credentials, including clean electricity products.
  • If you are able to set up your home office from scratch, whether as an extended room or a garage, there are now available materials that are environmentally friendly. Sometimes they can be a bit expensive, but there are other creative ideas you can do. For the adventurous, you may try an eco friendly design, like an eco-cabin with solar panels on the roof and a rainwater butt outside. Seek the advice of a professional or a knowledgeable friend who could help.
  • Maximise natural light wherever possible.
  • Choose office furniture with the environment in mind. Seek out materials from green retailers, such as those that require no pesticides and is biodegradable. To minimise energy use, position your home office furniture to benefit from natural light, as much as possible.
  • Check out the chemical components for toxins in glues, paints and other products before they are applied, and look out for other options from people who are familiar with environmentally friendly materials.
  • If you love indoor plants, choose a species with a large overall leaf surface to boost oxygen levels and reduce air temperatures.

Going green by recycling paper

In recent times, with much importance given on the Green Revolution, recycling has become one of the buzz words in an eco friendly society. Paper, being a top waste generator, has been subjected to classification and accreditation, with recognisable recycling symbols or labels, the Mobius Loop as the most popular.  Paper includes envelopes, folders and brochures.

It is enlightening to look beyond the sustainability and recycling claims of some paper manufacturers, and scrutinising deeper into the factory processes, there are now brands that use only biodegradable cleaners and chlorine free bleaches for the whitening of paper.

Home office use of eco friendly products

Do you really need printed copies? About 70% and 80% of the waste generated by offices is paper. Do we really need hard copies of email correspondence, reports, and other accounting statements? Various software packages have been developed specifically to allow people to access these documents on the computer faster. Anyway, if a print copy is really needed, both sides of the sheet of paper can be used. You can also adjust the printer to select the draft setting to minimise ink, unless something of higher quality is required.

Other handy tips in going green on eco products:

  • Practice returning empty toner of ink cartridges to the retailer for reuse if they operate a kind of program, or donate them to charity or organisation that does.
  • Use energy-saving light bulbs that consume almost 80% less energy that traditional bulbs.
  • Enable energy-saving features of computers, copiers and other work office equipments where applicable. (Research for websites or companies offering applications that can optimise your computer power settings.)
  • Switch off computers and other equipments when not in use. (Some office machines could use as much energy on standby as they do when in use.)

Working from home is a green option, but first, how to go green at home has to be carefully laid out. Think of your home office with a touch of eco friendly design. These practical tips about going green in your home-based business can make a difference.