How Do You Figure Out What You Can Recycle?

In some areas recycling is required. In others, it’s all but impossible due to a lack of facilities. How do you figure out what you can and cannot easily recycle in your area?

The simplest solution is to check with the company that handles garbage in your area. Many are also in charge of recycling too. If you’re lucky they’re already providing you with a bin for recyclables that you don’t even need to sort yourself. The information you need may even be on the company website.

Many are pretty picky. It’s not too uncommon for plastics recycling to be limited to #1 and #2 plastics in bottle form only. Others will take pretty much any kind of plastic.

Then there’s paper recycling. It’s generally not as restrictive as it used to be, but you do still have to be careful. Most won’t want food stained paper, paper towels or paper napkins. But it’s often not a problem to include glossy paper, envelopes with plastic windows or staples in with the paper.

Glass recycling can be a bit interesting. Glass jars are fine. Most companies ask that you not put in broken glass of any kind. They also generally don’t take light bulbs, glass from dishes, mirrors or windows.

If you have a local recycling company that picks up at your house but is a bit pickier than you’d like, it can pay to check out options for places you can bring your recyclables. Sometimes they’ll be within a reasonable driving distance. Just search for your area and include the word “recycling” and see if anything good comes up.

If the recycling companies don’t have websites, you’ll just have to call them to find out if you can bring anything to them and what they will take.

In general, recycling companies prefer that glass and plastic be rinsed. You probably don’t need to scrub things out, but a quick rinse isn’t a bad idea. It also means your indoor recycle bin won’t get dirty so quickly even if you don’t line it with a bag.

But don’t just think of the everyday little things. You can recycle big things and things you don’t often dispose of too. Just be picky about how you go about it.

Some electronics can be recycled. Be picky, as too many companies aren’t all that honest about how they recycle electronics. Sometimes they’re just shipped off to other countries, where the recycling is done in a rather hazardous and polluting manner. Check the e-Stewards website for reputable electronics recycling. You may even be able to mail your electronics in.

For cell phones that still work, consider donating it instead. There are companies that will send old cell phones to people in developing countries or domestic violence victims.

Compact fluorescent bulbs don’t belong in the trash when they burn out. They have mercury and really aren’t good for the landfill. But IKEA, Home Depot and some other stores may take them in. Check with your nearest location.

Don’t forget the reuse option, of course. Anything that can be reasonably reused consider offering up on Freecycle or donating to a local charity. That’s even better than recycling!

What Are Some Easy Ways to Protect the Environment?

Not everything about protecting the environment has to be a big step or expensive to get started, such as adding solar power to a house. Some of the things you can do are relatively simple and won’t take a lot of your time.

1. Switch to CFLs or LED lighting.

Both types of bulbs cost more than conventional bulbs, but they last longer. CFLs have the problem of containing mercury, while LED bulbs as yet are quite expensive, take a bit more effort to find and not everyone likes the color of light. Either will save you money on your power bill compared to conventional bulbs, with LEDs using even less power than CFLs and having the potential for a longer life.

2. Check your car’s tire pressure.

Low tire pressure is a big drain on your mileage. The impact can be something you’ll notice with each refuel of your car. That means you’re saving money and using less gas, not a bad deal at all for trying to be a little greener.

3. Stop using paper towels.

Yes, I know how wonderfully convenient paper towels are. But they’re also a huge waste. People cleaned in their homes just fine on a regular basis without them.

Use newspapers to wipe windows and mirrors instead. They do a good job when combined with your preferred glass cleaner.

Get some good microfiber cleaning cloths for other types of cleaning. Microfiber does a really good job on many tasks. If you don’t want to spend the money, there’s really nothing wrong with sticking to the towels and cleaning rags you already own, of course.

4. Use reusable shopping bags.

This one can actually be kind of challenging. Remembering to bring the bags after you buy them is tough for many people.

Cheap reusable shopping bags can be bought at many stores now, and you can buy better quality ones online. More and more stores are getting used to customers bringing in their own bags, and some even give you a nickel or so off your total purchase for each reusable bag you bring in.

5. Eat vegetarian meals sometimes.

Meat production is really hard on the environment, especially meat that comes from factory farms. You can save money and do a bit of good for the environment if you cut down on how much meat you eat.

The simplest way is to just decide to have one vegetarian meal a day, week or month, whatever works for you. Try out some new recipes.

Toys R Us Baby Gear Trade In

I’m pretty excited about a deal Toys R Us has going on right now. I heard it on the local news the other day, and it can be found on their website too. But you have to go into your local store to participate.

From now until February 20, 2010, they’re allowing people to bring in certain types of used baby gear to trade in for a 25% off coupon toward one new baby gear item. The categories for both include car seats, strollers, cribs, play yards and more. It’s only for participating brands also.

You don’t have to have bought the item from them or have a receipt. You do have to make your purchase on the day you do the trade in, and only in the store.

The condition of the item doesn’t matter. The whole idea, in fact, is to get unsafe baby gear out from where it might be used.

This is exciting for me because I have a car seat that is on the old side. Selene’s about the age where she’ll be going into that size, so it’s nice that we’ll be able to upgrade to a newer model for a nice savings. The car seat is heading toward 7 years old, which is older than is commonly recommended for use, especially since it has spent most of that time installed in the car as my two older kids used it.

I gather they destroy the trade ins, and I hope they recycle what materials can be sent for recycling. An awful lot of baby gear has significant plastic content, so I don’t know how easy that is. But it’s nice to think that some of it could be recycled.

Figure out what you want and contact your local store to be sure they have what you want before you bring in your trade. That step could save you a lot of trouble if what you want is out of stock.

Are Cloth Diapers Too Much Extra Work?

Cloth diapers have become pretty popular in recent years There are tons of styles to choose from and many parents rave about them. But many fear that they’re a lot of work. Are they really worth all the trouble, the extra laundry, rinsing in the toilet? And what about leaks? And stinks?

I’ve been using cloth diapers on my daughter for about a year now and I can tell you that for me these things are really not a problem. It’s just not as bad as you might think.

For starters, the extra laundry really isn’t that much. Yes, you’ll be doing a load every 2-3 days. One load of cloth diapers. They’ll need an extra rinse cycle to be sure the detergent gets out, but they only use 1/4 the amount of detergent a regular load uses. The diapers should smell clean after washing.

You can dry cloth diapers outside in the sun (I strongly recommend this if at all possible) or in the dryer. The sun does some nice natural bleaching as well as saves energy, making it a generally good deal. Hanging the diapers out is certainly some extra effort compared to just throwing them in the dryer, but if you have the time it’s really not so bad. I find they stay freshest this way.

If you put them in the dryer, dry them on hot for most brands. You can check with your particular brand to be sure of care instructions.

But what about solid wastes? Aren’t they a pain?

Strictly speaking, even with disposable diapers you’re supposed to put the solids in the toilet. I think most packages even say that, although I don’t know that many parents obey that part, and that’s why this seems like such a big deal with cloth diapers.

For the most part solids shake out pretty well, especially as baby gets older. For wastes that are on the runny side of solid I like a diaper sprayer, which is a simple attachment to the toilet. No dunking required. Other parents just use some toilet paper to wipe the excess out.

And leaks?

On the whole, I’ve had less trouble with leaks with cloth diapers with this baby than I did with disposable diapers and my two older kids. We use bumGenius 3.0 cloth diapers, and they really don’t have a leak problem if you care for them properly and change the diapers regularly. Any diaper will leak if you leave it on the baby too long.

I would also say we’ve had very few blowout poops, which is something to be dreaded. It can just be an individual baby thing, but she’s had some impressive outputs at times, so I don’t think it’s that.

If leaks start to be a problem it’s time to strip the diaper to be sure that you don’t just have a buildup problem.

So do cloth diapers stink?

They can, sometimes. But that generally means that your washing routine isn’t quite right. Maybe you use too much detergent. Maybe they need to be stripped, which is a special wash of cloth diapers using original Dawn dish detergent and hot water, plus extra rinses because that Dawn can be a bit hard to get completely out. Be careful with this if you have an HE machine, because Dawn most certainly is not low sudsing!

Some parents also use tea tree oil to help with stinks. Bio-Kleen Bac-Out is another popular solution to stink issues. Just spray it on the diapers as you drop them in your bucket. It’s an enzyme cleaner and is very effective.

I know, this is sounding like a lot of effort. It’s really not that bad. Baby care in general is a lot of effort. At least with modern cloth diapers you aren’t fussing with pins and such. Some brands go on the baby in ways that are very similar to how disposables go on. It’s simple.

Just think of all the advantages. Over time cloth diapers tend to be cheaper than disposables. They’re less wasteful. You can even use them for more than one baby. Many babies get less diaper rash with cloth, and you can’t forget to note how many cute styles there are in cloth diapers.

And best of all, many cloth diapered babies potty train younger! The slight inconvenience of laundry is much offset by the potential to be fussing with diapers in general for less time in my opinion.

One Small Change Month Two & Month One Review

Here we are in the second month of the One Small Change challenge. Month one went all right for me. I didn’t get to go to the co-op as often as I would have liked. First week was easy, but the second and third weeks weren’t possible.

The last weekend of the month we were out of town. My grandfather’s 90th birthday and my daughter’s first birthday were the same day, so we had to have them together. The family had a big party for grandpa, mostly. But having them together like that was pretty special to me.

We’re still planning on continuing with the co-op as time allows. The produce was good.

So What About This Month?

This month I’m going to focus on what I use for hair care. I’ve kept it simple for a really long time – almost never use hair spray or other styling products, and I’ve found it rather thrives on being washed just over once a week. Unlike the rest of me.

No, I haven’t really tried delaying washing the rest of me for a week. I’m joking!

My hair is very long. I can almost sit on it. I’ve been meaning to switch from traditional shampoo and conditioner for a long time, but haven’t gotten around to doing the research to figure out quite what I want to do. I’m so far not up to the “no shampoo” level I’ve heard about. I’m considering the baking soda and vinegar route for starters.

I already use coconut oil sometimes in my hair. Makes it amazingly soft and is supposed to penetrate the hair. It’s also a good reminder to myself that natural products can work really well. I’ve tried jojoba oil too, which is lighter and also does a good job. Either only needs to be applied to the length and ends of the hair, not the scalp.