Save the Planet. Those words are all over the net lately. While some
solutions for preserving the environment can help you save money, like
turn you thermostat down 3 degrees or using warn water to wash your
clothing instead of hot water, many cost you more. I want to save the planet
as much as the next person, but spending $8 a bottle for Eco-friendly window cleaner or buying a hybrid car are just not in my budget. Besides, with all the highway driving I do, my Honda Civic gets better gas mileage than the Civic Hybrid.
So a few years back I accidentally found a way to help mother nature
and save a buck or at the same time. I say accidentally because I was
really only looking to save a buck or two, the thought of going green didn't even cross my mind at the time. Here's my helpful tip along with the story:
I was renting a small apartment with a windows air conditioner in the
bed room. As we all know a windows air conditioner has a constant dip
and non-drinkable liquid waste. Basically water with some chemicals in it. I decided to put this waste product to good use. I sat a 10 gallon bucket below the window and as the AC ran during the day the waste water dripped into and filled the
bucket. When the bucket got full I would take a couple of 1 gallon jugs
down, dip them in the bucket and fill them up. I would then store these
jugs in my bathroom and use the waste water to flush the toilet.
Recycling what would normally by a wasteful byproduct of using an air
conditioner and saving money at the same time.
I once heard that it cost 12¢/flush to flush the toilet. That was a
few years back and in my area they have raised the price of water a
couple of time, so I bet it is at least 16¢ now. Using this method 4 times
per day during the 4 months that I usually run the AC throughout the
year will save about $75/year. Not bad.
A few years ago I saw a report on the news where some families in Japan
using the old bath water to wash the dishes. While I found that
totally disgusting, I don't see anything wrong with using your old bath
water (or even your old dish water) to flush the toilet during the rest of
the year. This would save almost $150.00 a year and if everyone did it,
just think of the impact it would have on the environment and helping
preserve our fresh water supplies.
I may have to start calling myself the accidental environmentalist.
