Reduce, reuse, recycle... can it go too far?

One of Our Daily Green's favorite forums is The Freecycle Network. We've discussed Freecycle in the past as a great way to share items that are no longer needed, but not ready for the dump. It's a green lifestyle haven, reducing the need to manufacture, reusing usable goods, and recycling other items. What is great about Freecycle is the way to match up goods with people who need them.

From their site mission statement:

Welcome! The Freecycle Network™ is made up of 4,951 groups with 8,520,467 members around the world. It's a grassroots and entirely nonprofit movement of people who are giving (and getting) stuff for free in their own towns. It's all about reuse and keeping good stuff out of landfills. Each local group is moderated by local volunteers (them's good people). Membership is free. To sign up, find your community by entering it into the search box above or by clicking on 'Browse Groups' above the search box. Have fun!

Exhibit A

As the child of a long line of pack-rats (farmers have so many barns so they can keep stuff), I believe in saving things. Exhibit A is the photo from my garden of the string holding up my green bean plant. It is from a dog food bag. I confess that I save the pull strings from dog food bags to use to tie up plants. I also cut old pantyhose into strips to tie up plants, as well.  I'm not sure how much I'm saving the environment by keeping that string out of a landfill... but I've recently received proof that I'm not alone in my commitment to keep stuff out of landfills.

Enter Freakcycle, a site dedicated to the crazy stuff folks try to give away on The Freecycle Network. Set up by an avid Freecycler participant who has a funny bone that is NOT being given away,  Freakcycle accepts submissions from around the nation and I probably spent two hours reading and laughing. My sides hurt and I laughed until I cried.

The site contains stellar examples such as freezerburned leftovers, a chair with broken springs that smells like dog, or dead man's underwear. Some of these items are so absurd, I want to stage an intervention. I want to show up at the homes of these posters with a garbage bag and assure them that it's okay to throw stuff out on occasion.

If you no longer can find a use for it, why on earth would you think someone else may? Do you doubt your personal creativity that much? This coming from the woman who ties up plants with ripstrings from dog food bags. Believe me, if you haven't thought of a way to reuse this item, nobody else will. HAVE confidence in your ability to pack-ratify your life!

In all seriousness, Freakcycle is one of the funniest sites I've found in ages. It will do for the "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" folks what People of BigBoxStore did for well, people who shop at BigBoxStores. Offer a little proof that all of us can go overboard at times.

And perhaps, just perhaps, we can find a use for 10 bags of concrete that were left out in the rain and now are rock solid, but they are free for the taking.

Freakcycle has a Facebook page and Twitter account as well. Give yourself a laugh today and check it out! It's worth it at half (err what IS half of free) the price!

Disclaimer: Our Daily Green would like back the hour we spent guffawing. Other than that, we received no compensation or consideration for this endorsement. Just a lot of laughs, and those are priceless.

Guest Post: How to Use Your Air Conditioner and Be Green

After a short hiatus, just in time for the summer heat wave, Our Daily Green is back today with a guest post from Darin Hansen, an HVAC veteran who has seen just about every side of the HVAC business from web wholesaler to the manufacturing floor. Darin operates an information site that has articles on anything from reviews of specific AC units or heat pumps to what is Seasonal Energy Efficiency Rating (SEER) and Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency (AFUE).

Introduction by Our Daily Green: 
In the past half century, air conditioning has changed the American landscape. The impact of AC on our nation is so immense that when the National Academy of Engineering chose the 20 greatest engineering accomplishments, air conditioning ranked 10th, above even the Internet, highways, and nuclear technology.

from Salon, July 2010,

It’s pretty much unanimously believed that if we had not had air conditioning, we could not have had this huge migration of population from the North to the Sun Belt, and we certainly wouldn’t have seen 70 percent of all economic growth happening in the South since 1960. 

Air conditioning is found in 9 out of 10 homes. We don't want to live without our air. But the energy consumption is tremendous. Rather than go without air conditioning, today's guest blogger has a few tips and suggestions for how to use our air conditioner more efficiently.

Thank you, Darin for your input!

In this day and age it seems that we can’t seem to turn on the TV for more than a few minutes without hearing someone professing that a green lifestyle is paramount to the future of the world. While they do make a solid argument, in all honesty, the majority of people aren’t willing to forgo the sweet environment that air conditioning brings. With that said, finding a way to green up your life a bit doesn’t need to be an effort in futility if you are looking to still enjoy the modern comforts of the world.


Thankfully finding a way to save energy and still enjoy the comforts of a cool house do not need to be mutually exclusive.  Even without one of the top rated central air conditioners on the market, these tips will apply to you. There are several ways to increase the efficiency of your HVAC systems but some ways are better than others.


The purpose of air conditioning is to keep heat out of the house and allow the cool air your AC system creates its easiest way to get into your home. The best way to keep your house cool in the summer is to keep the heat out in the first place. Many people plant trees to shade their house, and if you have a couple decades this is a great approach! For those of us that don’t thankfully there is a great way to keep the heat out. Close your shades or blinds during the day. The sun’s rays heat up whatever they hit, so if it hits the floor, furniture and so forth it is simply going to heat up your home. Many have reported savings up to 20% simply by closing their shades during sunny day.


The other great way to lower your cooling bills and save energy is to change your filter often. Companies are inundating consumers with advertisements for high tech allergen reducing filters that claim to last 3 months to a year.  Unfortunately, while that will indeed keep your air cleaner, it will also reduce the air flow through your coil and in turn slow the flow of cool air to your home. 


Additionally, if you do the same thing in the winter with your furnace, you are going to have furnace problems. Cracked heat exchangers and other furnace maladies are common in the winter for people who don’t change their filters often enough.  We recommend replacing the filter at least once per month. If you follow these two tips this summer you will save money on your electrical bill and use less energy at the same time.


Stay cool this summer!

Hand Sanitizer Green

One of the most popular ways to clean up when soap and water isn't available is with hand sanitizer. Be warned that not all hand sanitizers are created equal and there are a number of health risks associated with certain kinds of hand sanitizers.

In fact, a popular antibacterial ingredient, triclosan, has been found to be a hormone disruptor as well as a possible carcinogen when exposed to chlorine (think public pools). In fact, the American Public Health Association proposed a policy to ban the ingredient in 2009. Such concerns are valid and it's an ingredient to avoid when choosing a hand sanitizer.

The next most popular ingredient is an alcohol based sanitizer. In order to be effective, there must be a 60% concentration of alcohol in the sanitizer. This can lead to excessively dry skin and actually has also caused intoxication in small children, who may lick their hands after application. A popular email warning regarding the dangers of alcohol based hand sanitizers has been confirmed on Snopes.com and Clinical Pediatrics warns against alcohol based hand sanitizers.

New England Journal of Medicine:

Alcohol-based hand sanitizers are widely used in the United States as low-viscosity rinses, gels, or foams. They contain 60 to 95% ethanol or isopropanol. Ethanol has greater activity against viruses than does isopropanol, and the ethanol-based formulations are used much more commonly in the United States than are the isopropanol-based formulations. Many of the ethanol-based sanitizers also contain small amounts of polyethylene glycol or isopropanol.

Prefense has an active ingredient of benzalkonium chloride, which has been used as a disinfectant in hospitals for years.  It can be allergenic in people with eczema or skin conditions, but is generally considered safe for topical use. While benzalkonium chloride is toxic when ingested, the dilution is .12%,  a small percentage of one-percent. Prefense works by creating a germ barrier on the skin with a silica-based, non drying, formula.

We took Prefense with us on a family vacation, where we spent hours away from soap and water, but still exposed to germs and bacteria in crowded airports, amusement parks and restaurants. A peace of mind pump of Prefense was perfect for such moments. The travel size bottle of 1.5 ounces is small enough to keep in a bag and still go through airport screenings.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) warns that overuse of antibacterial products can create "mega-resistant" strains of bacteria, leading to a greater resistance to antibiotics, as one side effect. While Our Daily Green suggests soap and water as a first defense against germs, we also recommend Prefense as the next line of defense when soap and water is not available.

Just in time to kick off summer fun, Our Daily Green has teamed up with Prefense to offer a lucky reader an 8 ounce bottle of Prefense. To qualify for the giveaway, you must leave a comment on THIS post. For an additional entries, follow the Prefense Facebook page, the Prefense Twitter page, and Our Daily Green's Facebook page. When you follow Prefense, please tell them you found their page from Our Daily Green. Leave a comment for each entry. Good luck! All entries must be received by May 31, 2011 at midnight EST. The winner will be drawn by random number generator June 1, 2011.


Our Daily Green received a 1.5 ounce sample of prefense hand sanitizer for free using Tomoson.com created by WebBizIdeas, a Minneapolis SEO and Web Design firm. Regardless, we only recommend products or services we use personally and believe will be good for my readers. Our Daily Green is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson product review & giveaway disclosure.