Issue Date: May 31, 2009

Waste not want not

Holter Graham and Annabelle Gurwitch of Planet Green's TV show "Wasted!" divulge their 5 top tips to save you hundreds in cash while you go green.

By Dennis McCafferty

WASTED! airs Wednesdays at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT on Planet Green. Find more info on the sho and network at planetgreen.discovery.com

Did you ever look around the house and consider how many of the Earth's precious resources are being frittered away? No? Well, then, allow Annabelle Gurwitch and Holter Graham -- stars of the Planet Green network series "Wasted!" -- to clue you in. Armed with eye-popping factoids about day-to-day household mistreatment of the environment, offset by their engaging, witty approach, the two steer participants on the path to green living by tapping into the makeover-style reality show format. They also deliver bottom-line results -- with hundreds to thousands of dollars saved in the process.

Beyond the budget boost, the most compelling aspect of the "Wasted!" game plan is that it doesn't require much adjustment. To find out more, we asked Gurwitch and Graham to offer up five surefire steps that you can take right now. (Note to readers: Cost savings provided are estimates. Actual savings may vary from household to household, depending on the size of your house and other factors.) Here's what they had to say:

1. Cheaper. Safer. Cleaner than ever.
The problem: Spending too much on household cleaners, many of which are loaded with toxic substances.
The solution: Take a do-it-yourself approach and make them -- using only natural ingredients.
The "How-to" from Gurwitch: "Did you know that exposure to cleaning products may reduce your lung function and increase the risk of asthma by 30% to 50%? It's so much safer -- and easier and cheaper -- to make the cleaner yourself. You can make an all-purpose cleaner by mixing water, baking soda and vinegar together, and store it in an old Mason or jelly jar. You can get great recipes for all kinds of cleaners at our site, treehugger.com. And best of all: It doesn't take much time. You can whip up a jar in less than 60 seconds and save yourself at least $250 a year in the process!"

2. Don't just recycle. Freecycle!
The problem: Junk, junk, junk everywhere. And nowhere to put it but the landfill.
The solution: A communal approach that shows that one household's junk is another's salvation.
The "How-to" from Gurwitch: "The concept of 'freecycling' has exploded in recent years, especially with the website freecycle.org. You go there and type in where you live and what you need to get rid of -- it could be a baby crib you no longer need or a set of old golf clubs. Once you've posted the availability of items, you could get dozens of responses from people near you who need them. Then, you put it on your curb and it's gone! I worked with one woman who had a ceiling fan and aquarium to get rid of. She was ready to pay for a salvage company to pick them up. I steered her toward freecycling instead, and she got 20 responses in one day. And she was able to get baby clothes that she needed from a mom whose child had outgrown them. I have gotten rid of our child's crayons and magic markers doing this -- someone had a day-care business and needed them."

3. Pump up your car fuel saving.
The problem: Driving all the time results in big-time gas bills and emissions.
The solution: A few changes in driving technique and some homespun vehicle design tweaks.
The "How-to" from GRAHAM: "Fuel mileage is becoming a point of pride for many of us, and it's easy to cut down on the gas you use. Most modern vehicles have a couple of inches of space at the 'bottom' of the gas pedal range that doesn't actually help your speed. It just sprays wasted gas into your engine. Sometimes, we're tempted to press all the way down to 'floor it.' But this does nothing, really. To save gas, pretend like you're driving with an egg under the pedal.

"I own a pickup, and I'm amazed at what I've saved just by making a small change in the design. I can take a light cover -- formally known as a tonneau -- and cover the entire bed when I'm not using it. This stops air from whipping into the tailgate and slowing the truck down when I drive, resulting in less fuel used. You can save on gas on a nice spring or fall day by rolling up the windows and using a vent -- not the AC -- to get that cool, natural air blowing inside your ride."

4. The brick trick.
The problem: Water in short supply but high demand.
The solution: Save gallon after gallon in the bathroom alone.
The "How-to" from GRAHAM: "Water has become such an issue because of drought, and we waste so much of it. There are all kinds of steps you can take, such as taking shorter showers and turning off the tap while brushing your teeth. But my all-time favorite way to save water is the ol' brick-in-the-toilet trick. Just take a brick and put it right there in the tank. Think of how much water you use after every flush as the toilet refills. If you put a brick in there, you'll save approximately a third of a gallon every time you flush. I estimate I'm saving 8% of my water costs with this."

5. The power (non-) play.
The problem: Electric bills skyrocketing because of constantly plugged-in gadgets.
The solution: A simple way to shut them down.
The "How-to" from Gurwitch: "Assuming half of all video game consoles are left on all the time, Americans would save $1 billion a year if we just turned them off when we're not using them. And do you know that even if you turn them off but don't unplug them, these consoles are still using power? We call this 'vampire power' -- the non-essential appliances that are constantly wearing down the grid, amounting to what can be nearly 20% of a home's monthly electric bill. Earlier this year, we visited a college sorority house where the girls there never unplugged the hair-styling iron. After arguing with them over whether the iron was an 'essential' or 'non-essential' appliance -- you can guess which side the girls took on that one -- I showed them that they could save hundreds of dollars a year by unplugging this and other products when not in use.

"But we realize that people don't care to constantly plug and unplug their products. That's understandable. You can buy a "smart" power strip that has multiple outlets for your game consoles and desktops. You don't need to unplug it from the wall. It's engineered to not use any energy if it's turned off. So when you're finished bowling or golfing with friends on the Wii, just flip the power strip switch and you'll be fine."

Cover photo (leaf): Richard Pasley, The Stock Connection/Science Faction/Corbis
Cover photo illustration: Leon Lawrence III