Monday, February 2, 2009

It's the little things...

Little changes in our home I've been experimenting with in the past two weeks.
  • We ran out of plastic wrap and foil. I decided not to buy anymore right now...see what happens. It's hard at first and I've found that some things REALLY need to be wrapped in plastic wrap and/or foil like quick bread that you're freezing. I did learn that I use these products WAY too much, and it's really a waste of money to cover a bowl with plastic wrap when a plate placed on top will work just as well. I'll buy some more, but try to use them more sparingly. Less trash and less money thrown away...it's a win/win!
  • I wash my hands constantly when I'm cooking, so I've started putting the stopper in the sink to catch all that nice warm, sudsy water for washing the dishes when we're done eating. Not sure why I didn't think of this before, but I'll be saving a bit of water AND a bit of dish soap. Obsessively frugal? Perhaps.
  • I'm going back to making my own laundry detergent soon. A friend of mine, who can find ANYTHING on the internet, let me know it is safe for front loading HE washers, so I'll be making some this week sometime. I'll post some instructions and photos later. This saves a ton of money and I think this soap cleans our clothes much more effectively than the store bought stuff.
  • We have an aerobic sewer system like this one. It's all self-contained at our house. What is really nice is that the treated water is sprayed out every night to water our lawn and a few carefully placed trees. I'm thinking we need to reroute one of the sprayers onto the pecan trees. More effeciently use the water.

4 comments:

Sarada said...

I really liked the idea of avoiding the use of plastic wrap. When the world is talking about going green, it becomes every ones responsibility to do what they could.

HermitJim said...

Been using a plate to cover dishes in the fridge for many years...works fine, plus it allows things to be put on the covering as well.

The Hills said...

I was given a huge roll of freezer paper and have found it works fine for keeping our bread in the freezer for a week or two. Not sure what it costs, b/c I've never bought it, but FYI if you come across any. I used to do bread in gallon ziplocs and wash them out to re-use, but I ran out and haven't bought any in a while.

Or what about making quick bread mini-muffins, then freezing in old yogurt/margarine containers?

It's foil I use too much of---I've gotten addicted to lining pans with it so I don't have to clean up....

MommaofMany said...

I always draw a half-sinkful of hot water and add a squirt of detergent before I begin cooking. I wash my hands as needed, and also dishes as I go, so clean-up is much easier after the meal.

It's so convenient!