Green Tips of the Week

Automate light use with sensors, motions detectors, and timers

5/23/2025

Having both indoor and outdoor lights with light sensors, motion detectors, or on timers automates turning lights on only when you need them, saving energy and money.

PECO estimates that you can save up to $15 per year by installing wall-mounted light sensors in your house and putting devices on timers so that they are turned off during the hours that they are not needed. You can save another $25 per year by installing outdoor lights with light sensors, so that they only turn on after dark, and motion sensors, so that they turn on just while you need them to see while you unlock your door. You get the benefit of security lights while minimizing the use of these higher wattage lights.

Read more from the Department of Energy.

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

Buy sustainably harvested wood

5/16/2025

For your building projects, buy wood harvested from sustainably managed forests by choosing FSC and SFI certified materials.

When shopping for wood for building and projects, look for the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) certification labels. When you see these labels, you can be confident that the wood was harvested from sustainably managed forests.

SFI promotes responsible forest management in the US and Canada while the FSC operates worldwide. The certifications offered by FSC ensure that forests harvested for wood are “being managed in a way that preserves biological diversity and benefits the lives of local people and workers, while ensuring it sustains economic viability.” SFI certification requirements “include measures to help protect water quality, biodiversity, wildlife habitat, species at risk and forests with exceptional conservation value.”

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

Reuse glass jars for food storage

5/9/2025

Glass is safer than plastic for food storage: give used glass jars a new life by using them to store food.

This is especially the case for hot food which can cause chemicals to leach from the plastic container into the food. You can buy canning jars and re-usable screw-on lids, or even better, wash out jam, peanut butter, or spaghetti sauce jars and use them for storing leftovers. They are also great for storing food items that you buy in the bulk section, like dry pasta, dried beans, and rice. Another advantage to glass for storage is that you can see the contents so that you can remember what leftovers need to be eaten (link to other tip). When your glass jars are no longer useful, recycle them at the Swarthmore Recycling Center.

Extend the life of fresh asparagus

5/2/2025

Spring is the season for fresh asparagus! Cut down on food waste by following these steps to keep your asparagus fresh longer:

When you get your asparagus home, trim off about 1 inch of the bottom ends.
Stand them upright in a jar or other container filled with about 1 inch of water.
Cover the tops loosely with a plastic bag
Store in the refrigerator
Change the water if it gets cloudy
They should stay fresh this way for at least 3-5 days.

Read more here:
Southernliving.com
Foolproofliving.com

Nutritional yeast

4/25/2025

Nutritional yeast has an umami flavor that enhances many dishes as well as being a complete protein and high in B12, an important vitamin that much of the population is deficient in.

Nutritional yeast can be used in rice and pasta dishes, salads, soups, popcorn, and more. The key when using it is to add a bit of liquid since it’s dry and flaky—olive oil or fairly moist food works well.

Read more at TreeHugger.com

Plant-based milk for baking

4/18/2025

Bake with plant-based milk even if you still use dairy.

Stick with the plain, unsweetened version. Nut milks, coconut milk, and oat milk are all good choices. Their taste aligns perfectly with sweet foods and tends to have a creamy consistency.

Read more at Earth911.com

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

Edible weeds

4/11/2025

Eat your weeds. Seriously, dandelions, purslane, and other common garden weeds are highly nutritious and can be eaten raw or cooked.

Dandelions are rich in vitamins A, C, and K. They also contain vitamin E, iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium, and B vitamins. Every part of them can be eaten raw or cooked. The list goes on.

Read more at TreeHugger.com

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

Mulch mow leaves into lawn

4/4/2025

Mow leftover leaves into your lawn to provide a natural source of nutrients, reduce weeds and insects, and require less water.

Spread out piles of leaves or simply go over fallen leaves with your mower. They will settle down into the turf and be decomposed by valuable microorganisms within the soil.

Read more at MSU Extension.

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

Turn off your computer at night

3/28/2025

Turning your computer off at night could help you reduce its energy costs by 33%.

There is a misconception that the small surge of energy when turning on a computer uses more energy than leaving it on. It is also untrue that turning a computer on and off is harmful to the computer. Turning your computer off for the hours that it is not in use is the best way to reduce its energy consumption. Electronic devices, including your computer and monitor, draw some power even while turned off. Plugging these devices into a power strip and turning it off when you're not using them will save you even more. Allowing your computer to go into sleep mode when you are away from your desk is the helps reduce energy use during the day.

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

Reduce use of printer ink

3/21/2025

Use font and printer settings that waste less printer ink

Printer ink cartridges are expensive and run out remarkably quickly. Consumer Reports has some ideas for ways to make your ink cartridges last longer. For printing that does not require high quality, use the draft mode or eco mode in the printer settings. Print versions of documents, particularly those created from a web site, that don’t include ads and logos. Consumer Reports found that some fonts, such as Ariel, use more ink than others, like Times New Roman and Calibri. When possible use e-versions and skip the printing altogether.
Read more from ConsumerReports.org.

Photo by Susan O'Donnell

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