It is no coincidence that people have increasingly started to pay attention to their lifestyle habits. On the one hand, this is crucial for protecting our planet by reducing pollution and individual emission of greenhouse gases.
On the other hand, numerous personal benefits are in close connection with living in an eco-friendly way. Namely, green living can save you tons of money as well as improve your standard of living. For this reason, we will talk about a few lifestyle changes you can implement to join this noble cause.
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How does green living save money exactly?
It is a common misconception that living green is necessarily expensive or time-consuming. One in five people states that they do not live in an eco-friendly way because they believe it will disrupt their day-to-day routine.
Humans are creatures of habit, which is why this finding is not entirely surprising. Unfortunately, this established opinion does not allow people to see that green living is a great passive income idea that will build you real wealth in the long run. How so?
Well, advances in green technology make this way of living more accessible than ever before.
This means that leading an eco-friendly lifestyle is financially more prudent, sustainable, and reasonable than relying on traditional energy sources. In the long run, you will save more money than what you initially had to spend on committing to green living.
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Switch to an electric car
A case in point are electric cars. The fact that they reduce or even completely eliminate the need to use fossil fuels makes them a poster child for ways to make extra money with your car by also protecting the environment.
Green-oriented technologies sometimes cost more, but the overall quality of production, their durability, cheaper sources of energy they rely on, and elimination or reduction of pollution make investing in electric cars and other green technology a great way to save money responsibly.
Buying energy-efficient appliances is one way green living can save you tons of money
Unfortunately, many people are unaware that they can save a lot of money by buying environmentally friendly appliances. These devices are made to be as energy-efficient as possible.
So, they use far less electricity than your average household appliance.
This means you will need less carbon or hydroelectric energy to run your appliances. After a few years, you will return your investment by reducing your energy consumption, or in other words, your household expenses.
Ovens and fridges make up an enormous part of your daily energy consumption. This is why it makes sense to switch to brands that build these machines while considering their energy consumption and environmental impact.
So, a fridge made in the ’80s consumes as much as 1000 kWh per year. In contrast, most environmentally-friendly refrigerators use up only 100 kWh a year. Multiplied by $0.12/kWh, and you have a staggering $120 to pay in bills just because of your old inefficient fridge. In comparison, the green alternative amounts to a mere $12 in incurred energy expenses.
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Buy green, small appliances
The same goes for smaller appliances such as toasters, hairdryers, and hand mixers. Cheap brands intentionally produce smaller appliances so that they break down after a certain period. On the other hand, green technology is made to be durable. An eco-friendly toaster has a greater chance of remaining in your family for several years, even decades.
Eco-friendly appliances are typically made from recycled plastics such as used water bottles.
Repair your appliances
Alongside investing in green tech, environmentalists also recommend repairing appliances in licensed repair shops. In this way, you are making sure you do not unnecessarily pollute the environment by buying a new device the first minute your old one breaks. Not to mention investing in repairs is much cheaper than buying new.
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Recycle your trash
Make sure you get rid of your broken appliances or other trash without harming the environment. If they cannot be repaired, these machines usually end up in landfills to spend their eternity polluting the planet.
The best solution to this problem is to contact environmental organizations in your city. They should provide you with information as to where and how you can recycle your old appliances without causing ecological harm.
Furthermore, you might even earn some money in return if you make an effort to recycle your old household appliances.
Recycling is one way to earn money by getting rid of unwanted things.
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Make structural changes in your home to save energy
Of course, there are other ways to live green if you are reluctant to buy expensive energy-efficient appliances. So, if you have bought a house and plan to do a major remodel before you move in, you should ask your contractors about different green living strategies that can reduce your energy consumption.
For example, proper insulation can save an exorbitant amount of money each month. Investing in structural changes such as window or door replacement is a great way to reduce your everyday living expenses. Not to mention your home will heat up and cool down more easily and with less energy consumed to do so.
Hence, if you plan to move to a new home, you should consider renovating it while specifically aiming at reducing your environmental impact. In fact, there is no reason for you to wait and relocate to your new home to start making changes.
Instead, you should also try to pack in an environmentally friendly way to save money on packing materials, equipment, service fees, etc. The bottom line is – the sooner you start living in an eco-conscious way, the more money you will save at every step.
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Eating green makes you clean and lean
Unfortunately, it is not just the appliances and structural features of our homes that impact our environment negatively. The food industry is one of the main culprits for the dismal state our planet is in.
Luckily, there are so many tasty and environmentally-friendly food alternatives at your disposal nowadays; it is almost a shame to eat mass-produced, processed, sweetened, or unhealthy food.
There are so many alternatives to meat and dairy nowadays in the form of plant-based foods.
Be sure to search for labels such as ‘eco-friendly’ or ‘fair trade’ to ensure the product is organic and green. Foods with these labels are produced with no pesticides or artificial supplements. Moreover, these foodstuffs are typically grown by consuming less water and fertilizer.
Yet, organic foods can be almost 50% more expensive than non-organic products. So, how does green eating save your money then?
Switching to groceries that are produced in a green way does not concern only money per se. It also improves your consuming habits.
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Let’s face it – you will be much more reasonable when it comes to throwing away food if you know you have paid for it dearly. Also, by eating organically produced goods, you are not wasting money on sweets, fried foods, and other unhealthy, money-grabbing products. In this way, frugal, green living can save you tons of money on food that you otherwise throw away excessively.
