I tried to find cleaning ingredients that you could mix in bulk, not recipes that you would need to make for individual instances.  This way you only need to make the products once and it will last awhile.

PLUGGED DRAIN:
1/2 Cup of Baking Soda
2 Cups Boiling Water
1/2 Cup of Vinegar

**Pour baking soda and vinegar into the drain.  Make sure you cover tightly to allow the chemical reaction to break up the gunk. Finally, pour the boiling water down the drain to rinse.

TOILET CLEANER:
1 cup borax
1/4 cup vinegar or lemon juice

**Mix the ingredients together to make a paste. Put the paste along the inside of the toilet bowl, let sit for 1 to 2 hours, and scrub.

KITCHEN CLEANER:
Kosher Salt
Water

**If you have tough stains and grease sprinkle on kosher salt, and scrub.

GLASS CLEANER:
2 tablespoons white vinegar, club soda or undiluted lemon juice
1 gallon of water
Newspaper

**Combine white vinegar with water. Add both of these to a used spray bottle. Spray on glass and scrub with newspaper. Do not use towels; they cause streaking.

CARPET FRESHENER:
1 cup crushed dried herbs (such as rosemary, southernwood, or lavender)
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking soda

**Mix all ingredients together in a jar. Shake well. to freshen carpets, sprinkle some of the mixture on your carpet. Let it sit for an hour, and then vacuum it up.

WOOD FLOOR POLISH:
1/4 Cup Vinegar
30 Ounces of Warm Water

**Mix the white vinegar and warm water. Add to a used spray bottle, then spray on a rag.  Use the rag to polish your floors.

emPivot is just that! emPivot states that, “it is the online network for green video.”  I would definitely rather watch videos about saving the environment than continuously reading articles relating to it.  The site allows you to search for videos based on the most recent, most viewed, etc. along with specific categories including energy & climate, green building and the list goes on.

This site is its own little community.  You can sign up to be a part of it as an individual, business or organization.  All are welcome!  Anyone can upload videos, but make sure that they are specifically green related media or the video will be flagged and removed. emPivot believes in their site and wants it to be used for what it is intended.

In particular, emPivot wants to represent choice; the choice to educate yourself to become part of the solution instead of the problem.

Be sure and check it out!

Arbor is a company that takes pride in moving toward environmental conservation.  Their snowboards are made from eco-friendly wood sources and prove to be lighter than the average snowboard.  When making the boards they try and use as many organic materials as possible.

The site states that they are committed to:

• Using forest products that are sustainable and environmentally friendly.
• Being conscientious about the environment in designing our products.
• Giving back to the environment and the environmental movement.

Another eco-friendly option is Venture.  Venture is also a snowboard manufacturing company that strives toward conservation of the environment.  Not only is their entire operation ran by wind power, but they are also becoming a member of 1% for the Planet, which means that one percent of their business will go to preserving the environment.  They strive to use recycled and sustainable products while providing the quality and performance that you deserve.

Snowboard maintenance is very important to keep the board in tip top shape.  This includes waxing your board every three trips.  Typical snowboard wax is made with toxic chemicals such as perflurorchemicals (PFC’s).  Once you are on the slopes, these chemicals are being transferred to the snow and then into the waterways after the snow melts, which is horrible for the environment.

Instead of the usual snowboard wax try:

Beaverwax – contains all environmentally friendly additives, which repel water and reduce friction.

Enviro Mountain Wax – for $15.97, this wax is also eco-friendly and is made from renewable resources.  Plus it naturally enhances the speed and control of the board.

Why wouldn’t you want to preserve the mountainous land that gives you the opportunity to do what you love?  Without the environment this wouldn’t be an option.  Make sure to open your eyes.  With technology, just about anything has green alternatives, so take advantage!!

And I took notice of the bags that the one lady was using, they were from JoAnn Fabrics.  I can’t find them online or I would give you the price, but they were perfect.  They looked very sturdy and they could carry a bunch of groceries; a lot more groceries than those little bags that are usually sold at stores.

Over Christmas I bought myself Love This Planet bags, not only are they cute and stylish, but they are affordable at only $5.50 a bag.  I know they are more expensive than the bags that you see in the stores, but they hold two to three times more items and they have a solid bottom to keep the bag balanced.

If you don’t want to spend the extra money to buy reusable bags there is another option.  You can keep your plastic bags and return them to the stores.  It doesn’t have to be the store you got them from though, so that is convienient.  Most of the stores have bins available when you walk in or you can take your used bags to the customer service desk.

Let me know what you think about buying and having reusable bags!!!

Mosaic: You can break the CDs up and turn them into a creative mosaic.

DiscsforDogs.org: Donate your used CD’s and DVD’s to help support dogs and cats at the local SPCA.  CDs are made of polycarbonate which does not degrade in landfills, therefore the need to be recycled.  This organization takes in used CD’s and DVD’s and sells them for $1.00 each and 100% of the profits goes to the SPCA.  This isn’t a lot, but anything helps.  The instructions are very easy to follow and they reimburse you for shipping!  Hence, it’s free!

Clock: Make your old CD’s into a clock for your room.  All you need is a CD, paint markers, clockworks and a metal washer (the one that is supplied with the clockworks won’t be big enough).  Check out how to make it here.

I bought a bunch of CDs a couple years ago and I just finished putting them on my hard drive, so I will be sending those to DiscforDogs.org.  With all of my burned CDs, I am going to try and make a mosaic. I’ll keep you updated!

HostPapa can be used for as low as $4.95 a month. Here are a few more features:

• 100% Green Energy Web Hosting
• Unlimited Web Hosting
• Unlimited Data Transfer
• Host unlimited domains on one account
• Free Setup – No hidden fees
• Free domain for life

A second green hosting service is Good Avocado. They also have unlimited disk storage and bandwidth along with 100% uptime guarantee. And the best part…they are powered by wind energy! Check them out for more information.

If we compare packages with a well known hosting company called Go Daddy, then both of the green hosting companies above take the cake.

Go Daddy’s Unlimited Plan can be used for only as low as $12.74 a month and contains:

• Unlimited Data
• Unlimited Transfer
• Unlimited Web Sites
• Unlimited Number of MySQL Databases

If you choose HostPapa or Good Avocado over Go Daddy, you will be getting the same package for about $7.00 less a month. PLUS you are hosting you site with green energy!!!

Saving money and helping the environment!!!

You may ask yourself, why would I pay for a service to repair a hole when I can just sew it myself?  The answer to that is simple…if you don’t mind the end result of stitching a hole together and the bunched material that results or if you just plain old don’t mind those holes then this service is not for you.  However, if you wish to, for a small fee, have your holes patched and the result be that no one can tell where the hole used to be (notice the picture to the right) then this is just for you.

Why does this company belong on a site dedicated to green technology and environmental friendly ideas?  In short, this process allows people to use a single pair of jeans longer and not worry about whether or not they have holes in them.  In a sense, you are recycling old jeans that you may not have ever worn again.  You are doing your part to decrease the amount of jeans that need to be made to satisfy the market demand.

The best part about this service is its ease of use.  In 6 short steps you can have your jeans shipped, fixed, and returned back to you good as new.  For further information concerning these steps, please see the following link, http://www.denimtherapy.com/default.asp?contentID=616.

Again, I am just trying to make it as easy as possible to help you put a little green in your life.  Enjoy!

PRODUCTS

Browser

• Flock: Eco-Edition (Free)

Office/School Supplies

• Smencils ($14.00)
• Water-Powered Clock ($16.99)
• Mac Book Pro

Kitchen

• Blue Honey Pot Composter ($29.95)
• Reusable Coffee Filters ($5.95)
  

Bathroom

• Preserve Toothbrushes (4 for $11.00)
  
• Preserve Tongue Cleaners (4 for $11.75)
  

Misc.

• Recycled Bottle Coat Rack ($75)
• Love This Planet Reusable Bag ($5.50)
• Totes Eco-Umbrella ($17.99)
• Organic Magnets ($1.99)
• Used Cardboard Boxes
• USB Cell Rechargeable Batteries (2 for $17.49)
  

Vehicles

• 100% Electric Car by Tesla Motors

Cleaning Supplies

• Make Your Own Laundry Detergent

SERVICES

• Faxing
• Stop Junk Mail

And it was.  Call 1-800-524-1328, one box is $3.99, which is already cheaper than before!

Keep in mind if you buy 3 or more boxes of Arm & Hammer Washing Soda they wave the shipping.  I bought 3 boxes yesterday for a total of $12.71.  That is cheaper than it would have cost me to get one box from the link I gave you in my previous post.

To return to the post about how to make your own laundry detergent, click here.