tinygreenx2

Times are tough, the economy is in disaster mode, and almost no one can afford solar panels, a solar hot water heater or a geothermal heat pump. I’m going to ask you to go green in baby steps.

Step one, if you can’t afford compact fluorescent bulbs (which are still more than $3 apiece), turn off the lights! If you’re not in a room, the furniture doesn’t need to see.

Step two, it may be winter but your floor lamp doesn’t need to be kept warm. If no one is home during the day, turn the heat down to 65 degrees (or even 62). If someone is home, and not elderly, adopt a layered look - a sweatshirt over a t-shirt, for example.

Step three, buy a carpet sweeper. Yes, I know this one is expensive ($25 and up), but the average vacuum uses 800 watts an hour, almost as much as your dishwasher, and very few vacuums on the market today pick up lint, dog hair and debris as well as we would like.

Using your vacuum throughout the year, for about a half hour a day, consumes 40 pounds of coal, and creates nearly a half-ton of carbon dioxide, which contributes to global warming. A carpet sweeper creates no emissions, and the good ones pick up dog hair as well as a vacuum.

An added benefit of manual carpet cleaning is the exercise. You will have to sweep twice across very messy areas, giving your arms and legs a good workout and your heart muscle a good workout.

The best thing about a carpet sweeper? It doesn’t require bags, which are surprisingly expensive (an average of $2 per bag for most vacuum models). More important, you will never again be stuck in a store trying to find the bag model that matches your vacuum, or retrofitting an old bag because the store was out of stock! Simply open the sweeper as directed and dump the lint, hair and debris in the trash.

But don’t get rid of your old vacuum. Once a month, wheel it out to pick up the ground-in dust and sand (and dust mites or pet dander) to keep your home allergen-free.

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