Issues > July/August 2006 (#115) > Household Tips from The Green Guide to Keep Your Health and Your Savings Intact

Household Tips from The Green Guide to Keep Your Health and Your Savings Intact

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7. Thinking yet about the holidays? Consider buying an organic turkey, now available in most supermarkets. And organic wines like Badger Mountain Vineyard's 2004 Johannesburg Riesling, a great gift, are coming into their own. Certified organic and fair trade chocolate, which are grown in ways that don't harm the rainforest and return a fair price to the farmer, are also yummy. Try Endangered Species Chocolate's chimp mints. For more gift ideas, see The Green Guide's Top Product Picks special year-end buying guide issue, with over 100 healthy, eco-friendly product ideas for your home and family.

Under The Sink

8. Cleaning supplies and pesticides are major sources of indoor air pollution, releasing chemicals that can provoke respiratory problems and asthma attacks. Choose simpler ingredients like vinegar, lemon juice and baking soda for your cleaning needs, or choose from among the growing number of safer brands, such as 7th Generation, Ecover, and Dr. Bronner's now available in most major supermarkets.

9. Keep pests away by sealing all cracks and entry points, cleaning all foods and residues that could attract them and fixing any dripping taps that provide pests with water. Boric acid can help keep down roaches, or try a Victor Insect Monitor pheromone glue strip to lure them to their doom (but keep both boric acid and glue traps away from pets and children). The Green Guide's Product Reports on Household Cleaning Supplies and Pest Control (see Product Reports for the complete list) give more tips and product advice.

Laundry room

10. Launder clothes on the warm or cold water setting for washing and always use cold water to rinse clothes. Hang clothes to dry whenever you can either outside or on a rack such as the collapsible Wall Shelf Drying Rack at Gaiam.com. Doing all of these will shave up to 9 percent from your energy bill (that's an average of $162 savings annually for a family of four).

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