10 Unconventional Money Saving & Eco Friendly Tips

It took quite a few years, but the world is finally at a point when most people realise it is a good thing to conserve the Earth’s natural resources. Everyone has the ability to recycle, but there are so many other methods of being eco-friendly that are just out of many people’s price range. Installing solar panels or new energy efficient appliances, for example, can be extremely costly.

Luckily, there are ways for a person to live a more environmentally friendly life while not spending money; in fact there are ways a person can actually save money while being environmentally friendly. These ten tips from We Know Savings will keep money in your pocket while keeping Mother Earth happy.

1. Mineral Salt Deodorant

Regular deodorants and antiperspirants go by relatively quickly. This means spending money on new sticks of the product around once a month and putting all of the empty containers into landfills or recycling centres. Even though the containers can be recycled it is always better to just use less of them. Luckily mineral salt deodorant sticks allow a person to do just that. This deodorant is packaged more environmentally friendly and can last for months on end. Health food and natural living stores usually carry this product, but make sure to wear deodorant when shopping for it.

2. Go to the Library

Going to the library seems like a novel idea in a day and age where books can be purchased for low prices at super centres, and even lower prices on eBay. Visiting the library is one of the most obvious, yet overlooked methods of being eco-friendly and frugal at the same time. Borrowing a book from the library is obviously cheaper than actually purchasing it, even at a reduced price. Many people wouldn’t think borrowing books would stop printers from manufacturing them, but when retailers stop ordering books manufacturers slow production. With enough people using libraries to read books the number of trees cut down to produce them would eventually drop.

3. Reusable Coffee Filters

That’s right… there are reusable coffee filters. This will save paper from filters, and paper in wallets. The environmentally friendly filters are completely safe for both humans and nature.

4. Use a Rain Barrel

A large portion of water use goes to irrigating lawns and gardens. A rain barrel can be purchased from home improvement stores or built at home. The premise of these barrels is as simple as: 1. It rains. 2. Barrel catches rain.

3. Store Rainwater

When it doesn’t rain, use water from barrel. This will reduce water waste and lower water bills.

5. DIY Cleaning Products

Cleaning products can cost a family hundreds of dollars or more every year. What most of these products’ manufacturers don’t want people to know is that their products are easily replaced with non-toxic items around the home. Items such as lemon juice, vinegar, and baking soda can be used for different jobs. Finding which item to use for each job is as simple as conducting an internet search.

6. Change the Way You Shave

Disposable razors make up tons of waste in landfills every year. They may seem like a necessary evil but they aren’t. Our older relatives got by with using safety razors, which was an upgrade from regular razors. The packs of razors that fit into safety razors are cheaper than their disposable counterparts and produce far less waste.

7. Get Real Natural Beauty

It is estimated that women spend around two-hundred dollars a year on beauty products. Many of these products claim to contain natural ingredients, but guess what else contains natural ingredients? Natural ingredients! Using products like eggs, yogurt, oatmeal and avocado can have the same effect as hundreds of dollars worth of beauty products. Finding instructions on how to make natural beauty products at home is simple on the internet.

8. Recycle Socks

Everyone knows that at some point their socks just give out. It isn’t always necessary to throw them out though. Cutting the leg of a sock off just above the ankle creates what can be several new products. A person can put their hand in the sock and use it as a dishrag, a dusting mitten, or even a washcloth. This definitely gives new life to old socks.

9. Tie-Dye

White and lighter clothes and linens can become stained after being worn. This usually means they go in the trash, or at least to the bottom of the drawer. What many people don’t think about is that these materials can easily be tie-dyed and reused. Not only will this method save money, but it will definitely bring out a person’s inner hippy.

10. Outsmart the Toilet

Toilet tanks fill up until the water reaches a specified height in the tank. Putting a plastic bottle full of water into the tank will actually “trick” the toilet into thinking it is full when it really isn’t. The bottle displaces the water that usually fills the tank, and even though a twenty ounce bottle doesn’t save much per flush it will definitely add up over the years.

Most people love to do anything that they can to save their environment. Luckily the myth that a person has to have plenty of money to be environmentally friendly is a complete fabrication. Using a few simple methods and replacing a few products could end up saving both money and the world, which works out great since they say money makes the world go ‘round.