Simple Actions that Matter

At One Change, we empower people to believe that simple actions matter and to make smart choices that protect the environment. We give people the tools to help take the first step towards making a difference—like an energy-saving compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulb or a tire gauge.

Often folks ask us: “What else can I do to help protect the environment while also saving money?”

In these tough environmental and economic times, we are all looking for ways to reduce our impact on the environment and save some money. Below you will find a number of Simple Actions that Matter—easy steps that you can take to save the planet and money at the same time.

Now that’s something we can all use more of.

• Simple Action of the Month: Get a programmable thermostat
• Replace old-fashioned incandescent light bulbs with CFL bulbs
• Check and maintain proper tire pressure on your vehicle
• Install low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators
• ‘Green’ your BBQ
• Carry a reusable water bottle and a travel coffee mug
• Plug electronics into power strips and shut them off when idle
• Air dry your laundry
• Use the energy-saving or economy setting on your dishwasher
• Use reusable bags when shopping
• Stay cool with a ceiling fan
• Wrap your water heater in a blanket
• Got your own Simple Actions that Matter? Tell us today!

Replace your old-fashioned incandescent light bulbs with energy-saving CFL bulbs

Compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs use 75% less energy than old-fashioned incandescent light bulbs and last up to 10 times longer. For every bulb you swap, you will cut as much as 1,000 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions each year and save up to $50 on your energy bills over the lifetime of the bulb.

If every household in North America replaced just one incandescent light bulb with a CFL bulb, it would be like taking 2 million cars off the road for a year. Considering the average home has around 45 light bulbs, imagine if we replaced all of our lights with CFL bulbs.

So what are you waiting for? Swap your bulbs today! And to maximize your energy savings, remember to turn off your lights when they’re not in use. And remember to look for the ENERGY STAR symbol to ensure a good quality CFL bulb.

For more information about CFL bulbs, please visit projectporchlight.com.

Helpful hint: It’s important to remember that CFL bulbs contain a very small amount of mercury, so they should be handled with care and recycled properly when they burn out. For more information about recycling CFL bulbs and to find drop-off locations near you visit our Project Porchlight website.

Check and maintain proper tire pressure on your vehicle

Did you know that checking your vehicle’s tire pressure on a regular basis and making sure they are inflated to the correct level can improve your fuel efficiency by 3.3%? That will save you 2 weeks’ worth of fuel each year, and reduce the amount of smog, air pollution, and greenhouse gas emissions coming out of your tailpipe—a win-win indeed!

If everyone in Canada and the United States maintained proper tire pressure on their vehicles, we’d save $9 billion on gas, cut 24 million tonnes of air pollution, and prevent thousands of traffic accidents caused by poorly inflated tires! Not to mention, your tires will last longer.

So save money, help the planet, and protect yourself and your passengers. Keep an accurate tire gauge in your car and remember to check and maintain your tire pressure at the beginning of each month and before any long road trips (after you load the car).

While you’re at it, if you are parked and going to be idling for more than 10 seconds, save even more fuel by turning off your vehicle. It will take less gas to re-start your car than to leave it idling.

Helpful hint: The proper tire pressure for your vehicle (in pounds per square inch or psi) is usually found on a sticker in the driver’s side door jamb or the glove box, as well as in your owner’s manual. Do not use the maximum pressure printed on the tire’s sidewall. Also, be sure to check your tires while they are cold—when your vehicle hasn’t been used for at least 3 hours (and try not to drive more than 2 km or 1 mile before checking them).

See more videos on tire maintenance and other helpful resources to help you be more fuel-efficient by visiting the Rubber Association’s Be Tire Smart web site.

Install low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators

Get an adequate flow for less dough! Installing low-flow showerheads and low-flow aerators on your kitchen and bathroom faucets is the single most effective water conservation action you can do for your home.

Inexpensive and simple to install, low-flow shower heads and faucet aerators can reduce your home water consumption as much as 50%, and reduce your energy cost of heating the water also by as much as 50%. You likely won’t even notice a drop in water pressure—just in your water and energy bills (to the tune of over $150 a year)!

To save even more water, be sure to turn off the tap when you’re not using it—like when you’re shaving or brushing your teeth.

Helpful hint: Low-flow showerheads have a 2.5 gallon-per-minute (gpm)/9.5 litre-per-minute (lpm) flow rate or less, and low-flow faucet aerators have a 2.75 gpm/10.4 lpm flow rate or less. To maximize savings, look for showerheads with a rating as low as 1.5 gpm/5.6 lpm and faucet aerators with a rating as low as 0.6 gpm/2.3 lpm.

Green Your BBQ

We all love the delicious taste of food cooked over the fire, but what about the environmental and health impacts?

No matter what type of BBQ you use, they all release carbon dioxide into the atmosphere—a greenhouse gas. Americans alone emit 225,000 tons grilling each summer, equivalent to cutting down 2,300 acres of forest.

Minimize those emissions by using a propane, gas, or electric grill, which emit less than using charcoal or wood (i.e. 6 lbs. of CO2 per hour for propane vs. 11 lbs. per hour for charcoal).

If you do use charcoal, be sure to choose an eco-friendly natural lump brand that doesn’t contain unhealthy additives like lighter fluid. One way to know your charcoal is sustainable is to look for the FSC label on the package. You can learn more about eco-friendly charcoal and purchase several varieties here.

Save money at the grocery store by buying only as much food as you need. And be sure to include lots of veggies (perhaps even from your local farmers’ market), which tend to be cheaper, healthier, and have a smaller ecological footprint than meat.

Once you’re fired up, grill with the cover down to maximize your energy efficiency and cook your food more evenly.

When it comes time to serving your grilled delicacies, use reusable dishes, glasses, and silverware. Cloth napkins add a nice touch, too. You’ll keep more change in your pocket and less trash in the landfill.

Last, but not least, let your leftovers cool before putting them in the refrigerator (in reusable containers, no less). You’ll save energy and money, and keep other food in your fridge from spoiling.

Carry a reusable water bottle and a travel coffee mug

Surely we’ve all heard that we need to drink 8 glasses of water a day to stay properly hydrated. But if we buy bottled water, that’s a lot of waste—and money!

Globally, people spend $100 billion per year on bottled water. Canadians alone drank 2.1 billion litres of bottled water in 2006, up to 88% of which were not recycled. That’s a staggering amount of plastic bottles clogging our landfills, littering our neighbourhoods, and washing up in our rivers and oceans – bottles that take up to 1,000 years to biodegrade. Plus, it takes up to 150 times more greenhouse gas emissions to produce and transport bottled compared with tap water, contributing significantly to global warming and pollution.

To make matters worse, many types of plastic used in those bottles leach toxins and carcinogens into the water you drink. Yet, in most jurisdictions in North America, the tap water is some of the safest in the world.

Buying bottled water simply doesn’t make sense. So avoid bottled water, and opt to drink from the tap. Keep a glass or mug at work and carry a reusable water bottle when you’re on the go. By buying even one less bottle of water each day, you’ll help protect the environment and save more than $500 per year! That’s a lot less water and money down the drain.

While you’re at it, use a travel coffee mug! Whether it’s coffee or tea, many of us need our daily caffeine fix—sometimes several cups a day! If we drank all of those in disposable paper or Styrofoam cups, that would add up to a lot of unnecessary waste.

Stay and drink your brew out of a real cup, or carry a travel mug instead. You can even keep a mug at the office to use on coffee breaks.

These days, many cafes will offer you a discount if you bring in a reusable mug. If your favourite barista doesn’t yet, tell them they should!

Plug your electronics into power strips and shut them off when not in use

Fight what’s known as phantom or vampire power. Your computer, printer, TV, DVD player, stereo, kitchen appliances, and other electronics are still sucking power while you have them shut off. In North America, 75% of the electricity used to power home electronics and appliances is consumed while the products are turned off!

Luckily there’s a simple solution. Plug your electronics and appliances into power strips (also known as power bars) and cut standby energy losses by switching them off when you’re not using them. This will cut all power to the appliances and save you loads of money on wasted energy—as much as 15% of your monthly bill!

Air dry your laundry

Did you know that your clothes dryer is the second biggest electricity-using appliance in your home (after the refrigerator)?

Why not hang up your laundry to dry on a clothesline or a drying rack? This simple action will cut greenhouse gas emissions and save you as much as $100 on your electricity bill each year.

If you use a coin-operated machine, save your quarters—in these tough economic times, every little bit helps. The best part: it won’t cost you a dime and your clothes will last longer and smell fresher than ever!

While you’re at it, wait until you have a full load before starting the washing machine, and wash your clothes in cold water to save heaps of money on your water heating bills.

Use the energy-saving or economy setting on your dishwasher

If you’ve got one in your home, most dishwashers have an energy-saving, economy, or other similar setting. Selecting this cycle will reduce the amount of hot water and energy used to clean your dishes.

If you can believe it, as much as 80% of the energy your dishwasher uses goes to heat water. So the less hot water you use to wash your dishes, the more energy and money you save.

For an additional 10% energy savings, select the no-heat dry cycle (or simply open the door) to air dry your dishes. And be sure to wait until you have a full load before starting your wash cycle.

Your dishes will be just as clean, but your pockets will be fuller!

Use reusable bags when shopping

Each year, an estimated 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are consumed worldwide, many of which end up as litter, polluting our waterways, or in a landfill.

Say no to paper and plastic. Bring reusable bags with you when you shop. Keep a bunch in your trunk and one tucked in your backpack or purse for those quick pit stops. Each high-quality reusable bag you use has the potential to eliminate an average of 1,000 plastic bags over its lifetime.

If stores you visit charge for paper or plastic bags or give a credit for bringing your own bags—as many have already started to do—the reusable bags will more than pay for themselves. Plus you will look more fashionable and encourage your friends and neighbours to follow suit.

So keep your bags out of the landfill and your change in your pocket!

Stay cool with a ceiling fan

When it gets warm outside, many folks look to cool down their homes with air conditioners. While A/C may be effective, it isn’t efficient. Air conditioning sucks so much energy, it can cost more than $40 a month to operate!

Instead, consider installing an ENERGY STAR-qualified ceiling fan, which can cost as little at 10 cents a month in energy. With temperatures rising, wouldn’t it be nice to see your energy bill melt away?

Inexpensive and easy to install yourself, ceiling fans often include lighting options and come in many decorative designs, which can add a lovely accent to your home.

They operate by circulating room air and pushing it towards the floor. Contrary to what you might expect, fans don’t actually cool a room; they cool you by creating a wind-chill effect when they blow relatively cool air across the skin.

Because your thermostat is already at roughly the same temperature as the room air, it can’t ‘feel’ the cool breeze. So when you leave a room, be sure to switch the fan and light off to save even more energy and money.

ENERGY STAR-qualified ceiling fans move air more efficiently and can cut your electricity bill by as much as 60% compared to standard models. So to maximize your savings, be sure to look for the ENERGY STAR logo. And if you install a model with lights, don’t forget to use energy-efficient CFL bulbs!

Helpful hint: Want to save money when the temperature drops, too? In winter, forget about your space heater and turn down the thermostat. Instead, reverse the direction of your ceiling fan motor so that cool air is pushed up towards the ceiling, drawing warm air down into the room. Rather than cold floors and warm ceilings, you’ll have a more even temperature throughout the room. Now, can your air conditioner do that?

Wrap your water heater in a blanket

As the temperature drops, many folks put on a sweater. But don’t forget about your water heater—it could use a blanket too! Installing an insulation blanket around your water heater tank will reduce heat loss by as much as 45%, and cut your water heating bills by around 9%.

If you think heating water for all those showers, loads of laundry, and dishwashing is cheap, think again. American households spend an average of $400-$600 each year to heat their water!

Water heater blankets are inexpensive and will pay for themselves in less than a year. They can be found at most major hardware stores and cost as little as $10. Better yet, check with your local utility company first: many have programs that offer discounted or even free water heater blankets to their customers.

Water heater blankets come in a variety of sizes to fit most standard tanks and have different warmth ratings. Be sure to check your tank’s owner’s manual to determine which is appropriate for your model.

For all you do-it-yourself’ers with an electric tank-based water heater, check out this handy guide to installing an insulation blanket. If you have an oil or gas water heater, it’s advised that you have a professional plumber install your blanket, for safety reasons.

While you’re at it, add an insulating bottom board under your tank to prevent heat loss into the floor and insulate the first 3 feet of all pipes coming in and out of your water heater. You’ll save an additional 9% or more off your water heating bill!

And, if your water heater is more than 10 years old, consider replacing it with an ENERGY STAR qualified model. Depending on the unit you choose (and the one you’re replacing), you can cut your water heating costs in half!

Helpful hint: There’s no sense paying to keep a tank full of water scalding hot, when you’re just going to dilute it with cold water to reach a comfortable temperature. Keep your water heater at 115 degrees Fahrenheit (46 degrees Celsius) or less, and turn it off when you are away for more than a week. For each 10 degrees Fahrenheit reduction in water temperature, you can save up to 5% off your water heating bill! Plus, you’ll extend the working life of your water heater unit. (Note: Don’t forget to adjust both temperature dials on your tank—most have a separate switch for the top and bottom half.)

Helpful hint: One of the best ways to spend less money on your water heating is to simply use less. Check out some of our tips to reduce your water use here.

Got your own Simple Actions that Matter? Tell us today!

If you have ideas of other Simple Actions that Matter, please fill in the form below and share your ideas with us. If we add one of your Simple Actions to our web site, you will be entered into a draw to win a prize pack full of One Change goodies.

Thank you!

Simple actions matter.