Green, or environmentally friendly, habits protect the planet and your bank balance. Here are 5 easy habits that can save you money brought by our friends at www.silveranniversarygifts.co.uk – an eco friendly gift retailer. Buy a gift for your beloved woman or man with the money you save and the planet, your finances and your relationship will be in better shape!

1. Reuse and Recycle

If you are looking to replace a high-priced item in your home, consider a second-hand purchase. Reconditioned kitchen appliances, computers and other technology are considerably cheaper than new and reduce environment impact.
Reuse and recycle what you already have. Save money on storage containers by reusing glass and food containers
When wrapping the gift you will be buying for your sweetheart with all the money you’ve saved by going green, use your child’s artwork or pages from a colourful magazine instead of expensive gift-wrap or gift-bags.
Consider buying used clothing. A lot of resources go into making a pair of jeans and can be expensive. A charity shop will sell a pair of jeans at a bargain price. Savings add up over time, especially if you have a large family.

2. Make Your Own Cleaning Products

Commercial cleaners are expensive and rarely environmentally friendly. Make your own household cleaning products using baking soda, lemon soda and white vinegar mixed with essential oils. These inexpensive environmentally friendly cleaners are safe for you, your family, your pets and the planet.

3. Love Food, Hate Waste

It is estimated that 30 percent of all bought household food is thrown away. Food may have become spoiled, passed the expiry date or we may just have bought too much. Remember to use up leftover food. Try to plan menus in advance so you know what to buy and go to the grocery store just once a week.

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There is a massive range of eco-friendly products on the market, many of which make incredible claims that either can’t be substantiated, or are just not true. For some people this can lead to them being totally put-off from buying green as they find it difficult to sort through the eco snake oils and actually practical items that save both money and energy.

There are, however, some fantastic eco-friendly products, which if more people used, would make a huge difference to the environment – and to their pockets. So, to help people distinguish between the wild and ridiculous and the real beneficial eco products, here are five really eco-friendly items that can really make a difference to both the environment and your pocket:

1. Energy Saving Light Bulbs

Lighting is essential to everybody, whether it be in the home or office, few of us could do without the electric light bulbs, and while energy saving bulbs have been around for over a decade now, there are still those that are using the traditional incandescent bulbs. Energy saving light bulbs use far less power than traditional bulbs – with comparative savings of over $150 made on the lifetime of the lightbulb – that’s about $0 per year for each bulb, and you only have to count your light fittings to work out how much money, and energy, that will save you.

2. Radiator Panels

Radiator panels are simple but ingenious devices that can drastically cut heating costs. They reflect heat, normally lost at the back of the radiator, back into the room – boosting power output of radiators by up to a third.
They are easy to fit too and require no plumbing or radiator removal. There are a wide range of them on the market from mini-radiator panels to simpler reflective foil – all of which can cut your fuel bills by up to a quarter!

3. Standby Savers

With so many electrical items from TV’s, DVD players, set-top boxes and computers having a stand-by mode, huge savings can be made by turning these items off. A device on stand-by is still using power and while nobody wants to go around plugging and unplugging items, standby savers do the job for you and will prevent all this wasted power.

4. Solar Powered Chargers

With so many rechargeable gadgets about, from mobile phones to MP3 players, recharging fro free can make a real collective difference. Solar chargers can allow these devices to be recharged completely free – and they also proven another common problem: when transformer chargers are left plugged in – they use power even when nothing is attached to them; another way of cutting back on waste.

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We’re reaching a time in human history where the global energy crisis is at an all time high. Not only is global warming one of the most dangerous threats to our survival on this planet, but the limitations on oil supply and our need for a clean, consistent supply of energy is growing ever stronger. So how do we tackle this problem? Scientists in a range of fields have been working for decades to solve this, and thankfully there are now a few viable options that countries, corporations and individuals can look into to help address it.

Solar

Solar is one of the first ideas that comes into people’s mind when they think of an eco-friendly energy source, and for good reason. Not only is solar one of the cleanest options we have available, but in recent years the price of solar units and installation has come down significantly so that even those of us on a modest income can seriously consider it as an alternative to an oil-based energy source. For corporations, running solely on solar can be problematic as obviously the sun as an energy source isn’t available 24/7. To bridge this gap overnight, generally a combination of multiple energy sources or a battery system are optimal.

Wind

Wind is another great source of clean, green energy. Due to wind occurring potentially at all times of the day it doesn’t have the same limitations that solar does. Unfortunately though the amount of wind can be sporadic, so while it may continue to provide energy through the night, it can be unreliable based on the weather. Wind is already set up in a range of countries and expanding on this would be a great step to achieving a more eco-friendly energy system.

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