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wayoutwest · Joined: 28 Dec 2006 Posts: 184 Location: west clare

The issue of being 'green' is everywhere. The press pick it up as an easy headline, radio 4 argue the toss on cardboard coffins and the book shops are filled with volumes on how to be more green.

this past few weeks we've been experimenting:~
we consider ourselves quite green-minded, and quite frugal, the levels dip and soar throughout the year. however, to see how much we could imporve we have charted a few week's energy usage. the first week was just normal, to see what we usually used, marking up electricity, petrol, water, where food comes from, etc. all the things we could think of monitoring. then the second week we have been doing things as 'greenly' as possible. the third week, which we are now in the middle of, is to do things as frugaly as possible.

i really thought there would be a huge electricity difference - we turned off practically everything, and yet in the green week there was such little difference, really minimal. The car miles did change, and if the weather had been vaguely more supportive they would be next to nothing. The only real difference to our pockerts was that we spent three times as much as usual on food, as it was all local, or at least Irish. we certainly ate well! The quality of food isn't a huge change from usual life (we used to provide all our own veg, white meat and eggs all year and barter for red meat) but the expense is.

as we're renting, we really can't go putting in solar pannels and so on, but although we're on the road to being fairly green, I want to be better at this green stuff. any ideas apreciated.

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blowin · Posted: Fri Feb 16, 2007 2:04 am Post subject:

" Pragmatically Green " , I'd say .
A bit like " Drifting Purposefully " , which is what I have told the RC crowd we are doing with regard to this social event of ours which is publicised on their forum . Laughing

It is interesting to read your observations . Will you keep us informed ?

Moonwaves · Joined: 14 Dec 2006 Posts: 80 Location: Dusseldorf

It [i]is[/i] everywhere these days. I haven't been on boards.ie for ages but went on there last week to try and find a supplier of reusable sanitary towels in Ireland (fwiw ended up ordering from the UK, seems hard to find anywhere in Ireland). A thread similar to this one has just started over there too.

I have been trying to eat locally/seasonally since last year. I don't find I'm spending more on food but I am buying less and throwing almost nothing away. Because it's a bit more expensive I am really careful to use up absolutely everything before it goes off rather than leaving it to rot in the back of the cupboard. The aspect of my food consumption I really need to work on now is the food I eat that I don't prepare myself. Too easy sometimes if I haven't been organised enough to bring lunch to work to just get a sandwich laden with stuff I would never cook or use myself.

Speaking of saving energy, does anyone know if it's possible to get CFL bulbs with screwtop rather than bayonet?
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wayland · Joined: 14 Dec 2006 Posts: 1171 Location: Campile. Wexford

tringle · Posted: Tue Feb 20, 2007 11:35 am Post subject:

We recycle and compost (well we put it in the compost bin and then it satys there) But driving is a problem for us, driving a lot for work and running around the country collecting kids. I would use public transport but we dont have any and the shortest journey is usually about 7 miles.

We built a house and tries to do it so that is is well insulated and warm without costing a fortune to heat.

We are not growing anything yet but it is planned.

I do my best to buy local and /or organic but sometimes I do look in my purse first to see waht the cost implications to me are first.

We try to recycle and reuse as much as possible, and freecycle aswell, a wonderful thing by the way.
I agree with wayoutwest in that electricity usuage does not drastically decrease by trying to be careful with it, though I dont leave lights on unneedlessly.

Its a balance between personal comfort and complete enviromental welfare, Im somewhere in the middle at the moment
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wayoutwest · Joined: 28 Dec 2006 Posts: 184 Location: west clare

I've been adding to our ever-growing library of books with a selection of 'green' issue ones. (by the way, the majority of which are not printed on recycled paper. doh! Rolling Eyes

)

top tips are things like if you clear the dust from the back of your fridge or freezer they run 30% more effectively!
did you know you can buy a freezer plug? I'd never heard of this. evidently fridges and freezers need wads of power to get going and then not much to tick over from there, so these plugs do something that works along these lines, or something...

I could get reallly boring about this topic! Laughing

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admin · Site Admin Joined: 13 Dec 2006 Posts: 227

wayoutwest · Joined: 28 Dec 2006 Posts: 184 Location: west clare

no no no no no no no no no no no no

and no.
Laughing

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keithrawlins · Joined: 18 Feb 2007 Posts: 152 Location: banbridge

when we built the house last year we put in 6 inchs of insulation on the exteryer wall and 4 inchs on the interyer ones, and i have to say we have noticed how easy the house is to heat in the winter, with the price of oil you need to find ways to save mony. but i dont think it was the green isue that made us do it.

chook · Joined: 14 Mar 2007 Posts: 305 Location: North Clare

Regarding the cost of organic food:
We've been involved in a food-coop (bulk purchasing group) for going on ten years now. A friend does an order with Munster Wholefoods once a month, sorts, packs, and invoices the goods for about a dozen households and we pay her the wholesale price plus VAT if applicable plus 10% for her time/work. Makes organic food very affordable. Of course you have to plan ahead, you don't always get everything you want or might have to take more than you really fancy but on balance it's just great. Highly recommended.