10 Easy, Fun Ideas for Renters to Get Their Green On
Wondering how to green your home when it isn’t technically yours?
Green your rented space with these simple ideas that add up to big results.
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1. Share the Green Love With Your Landlord.
Show your landlord the energy-efficient light – pass on some eco-tips that speak to their bottom line, like energy-efficient appliances, eco-options for floors, countertops, and paint, and efficient windows. If 10,000 landlords of high-rise apartment buildings make Energy Star-suggested changes, the energy saved could power their each of their TVs for 1,640,625 years.
MORE INFO: Share the Green Love With Your Landlord
2. Use Power Strips to Avoid “Phantom Load.”
A phantom load is the energy sapped by appliances when they are plugged in but not turned on – in the average home this accounts for 40% of the energy bill! Plug your appliances into power strips to turn off your TV, DVD, stereo, and cell phone charger in one fell swoop. If 10,000 people plug their cable boxes into power strips that are turned off when not watching TV, we’ll save about $300,000 per year.
MORE INFO: Use Power Strips to Avoid “Phantom Load.”
3. Go Soy With Your Candles.
Looking for a cleaner burn? Soy candles are free of petroleum, unlike conventional wax candles, and are nearly soot-free so they won’t pollute the air in your apartment or leave those nasty smoke marks on your walls. They burn up to 50% longer than wax candles and cost about the same – good for those of us who don’t exactly have money to, um, burn.
MORE INFO: Go Soy With Your Candles
4. Plant an Indoor Lawn for Your Pet.
Many pets graze on grass for digestive reasons. Since apartment living often means living without a lawn, provide your pet with their very own patch of grass suitable for nibbling. It will give them something to eat besides the houseplants, and ensure that they aren’t consuming fertilizers or pesticides.
MORE INFO: Plant an Indoor Lawn for Your Pet
5. Get a Green Shower Curtain.
And get rid of the one that’s green from mold! Go natural with a hemp or organic cotton shower curtain paired with a nylon liner. It’s healthier than a PVC-coated curtain (PVC offgases potential hormone disruptors) and can be tossed in the washing machine for easy mold-preventing cleanup.
MORE INFO: Get a Green Shower Curtain
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