Green on a Dime

How to go Prius green on a Chevy Nova budget.

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What the eco-elite recommend:

The cheap alternative:

An efficient convection oven

Baking with heat-retaining glass or ceramic dishes rather than metal ones means you can set your oven 25 degrees lower.

A green dry-cleaning service

Hand wash silk, rayon, wool, and cashmere.

A hybrid car such as a Prius

Ride a bike. You’ll save a bundle in gas, maintenance, and insurance.

Energy Star washers and dryers

Always fully load your washing machine and wash with cold water. String up a clothesline for drying.

 

Reverse osmosis to purify drinking water

Drink tap water where practical. Clean water is one reason you pay taxes, right?

Brand-name, ecofriendly cleaning products

Ever heard of distilled vinegar, club soda, hydrogen peroxide, and baking soda?

A low-flow toilet

Make your own by submerging two full plastic bottles in the tank.

A new, energy-efficient refrigerator

Let your leftovers cool before putting them away.

A tankless water heater

Turn down the old one to 120 degrees from the standard 140.

Whole Foods

Produce from a local market may not be certified organic, but it’s possibly fresher.

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BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

Mother Jones was founded to do journalism differently. We stand for justice and democracy. We reject false equivalence. We go after stories others don’t. We’re a nonprofit newsroom, because the kind of truth-telling investigations we do doesn’t happen under corporate ownership.

And the essential ingredient that makes all this possible? Readers like you.

It’s reader support that enables Mother Jones to devote the time and resources to report the facts that are too difficult, expensive, or inconvenient for other news outlets to uncover. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

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