Recycled Toilet Paper

If every household in the U.S. replaced just one roll of virgin toilet paper with one roll of recycled toilet paper, 424,000 trees would be saved.

Virgin paper tissue paper = clear cut logging of our forests.

The cheapest recycled TP I have found is at Trader Joes. Does anyone else use a different brand? Is it any cheaper?

Vinegar

I made pickles last weekend with my sister and mom in law (I am really getting into the idea of canning after having read Barbara Kingsolver's book "Animal Vegetable, Miracle"...HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT)
Anyway, I accidentally bought the white vinegar at Costco for the canning project instead of brown and was about to return it when I read the box and learned how many uses it actually has.
Some of the hundreds of uses for vinegar are:
-Kill unwanted grass and weeds by pouring undiluted vinegar on them
-Deter ant invasions by countertops and floors with vinegar
-Clean and deodorize toilet bowl by pouring undiluted vinegar into bowl, wait 5 minutes, scrub if needed and flush.
-Remove film buildup in bathtub by wiping down with vinegar and baking soda.
-Add tsp of vinegar to water when making rice to make it fluffier.
-Keep cheese moist and fresh by wrapping it in a cloth that has been dampened with vinegar and sealed in an air tight wrap.

Using vinegar instead of chemicals is not only environmentally friendly but is also economical. I bought 2 gallons at Costco for less than $3.50.

push mower

I mowed our lawn today with our push mower which we got as a hand me down from friends last summer.
I really like it for many reasons:
1) No exhaust in your face while mowing
2) Quiet (can mow while kids are sleeping)
3) Good exercise
4) No need to worry if there's enough fuel in mower
5) No need to empty grass clippings (they spread onto the lawn and act as mulch which is good for the lawn)

If you ever see one at a garage sale or even want to buy one new (or you can borrow ours), I highly recommend it.

turning off computer at night

I read today that leaving on a computer overnight can waste enough energy to laser - print 800 8 1/2 x 11 pages which adds up to 2600 kWh of energy per year producing up to 1.9 tons of CO2...YIKES!

Stocking the freezer

I found out today that it takes more energy to chill a freezer that has empty space than a freezer that is full so an eco-friendly tip is to stock the freezer full.
We usually have the opposite problem (not having enough freezer space) but for anyone who keeps an near empty freezer, I read that just filling it with empty cardboard boxes conserves energy.