Act Green Blog

Archive for the ‘Eco Home Improvement’ Category

Although you can use mechanical methods to preserve your garden, you may lose the very idea your garden stands for: Being green. Organic pest control is thus way better for keeping your garden green. You may repel bugs, small animals, cankers and other plant problems through organic substances.

Garlic is perhaps the best controller with its acidic taste and pungent smell. It drives away insects and bugs. You can also use beneficial insects that eat molds and save plants from fungal infection. Milk is another effective fungicide.

Tomato will keep certain insects away. Onion will repel the bugs present on your plants. Neem is a brilliant repellant and also induces freshness.

Boric Acid is perhaps the most versatile organic pest controller taking care of termites, fleas and cockroaches. You should however use these pest controllers wisely. For instance, boric acid should not be used on dried plants.

Green your garden with them.

Energy efficiency is a quick route to saving some money. You can check its practical meaning by taking certain steps in various facets of life.

You may reduce your monthly electrical bills by just using fluorescent and ENERGY STAR illuminations. Washing machines should be boycotted in cold times or used seldom.

You may alternatively walk to office or use your vehicle. This will be an asset for environment as well as less gas expense. You may also reduce your cholesterol intake. Most cholesterol carriers are somewhat expensive. Going green with vegetables helps your wallet too.

Water conservation is another facet that saves money in the long run. Insulate pipes to avoid leaks and circulate them wisely. Do not waste water indiscreetly.

Create and package your own fertilizer. This will hone your gardening skills. Use gadgets made of recycled materials. They come cheaper and are highly ecological. Live in fresh and quality air.

You may save money and still save lots of energy if you install solar panels. These include solar cells; 36 or 108 in number (according to your need) and generate .5 volts each. Thus you get good enough power through solar energy.

If you want to DIY your solar panel for a green home, you need to first get quality solar cells. These are best acquired through eBay auctions. Then create a wooden container for holding solar cells. Use pegboards for attachments and silicone material for caulking and wiring.

For wiring attachments, you will need some glue and appropriate knowledge. Set these cells in right manner so that they connect with each other to produce volts. You should use plex glass for covering the completed panel. You may test in direct view of the sun and check whether the panel is producing desired results. Solar panels will not bear you down with costs.

Now, constructors and owners are rooting for homes that have better energy efficiency resources. This needs to be worked up in every aspect of your home, not least plumbing. Your water circulation has ever been hazardous in the sense that it takes lots of power and electricity. Here are a few tips to spruce up your green home plumbing.

Firstly, insulate your pipes with resistant material. This will keep it secure even in damaging circumstances.

Secondly, install a new water heater and look after your water supply. You may also invest in rain water harvesting for best energy pooling.

Take your pipes off the outer walls. This damages its configuration. Get an inherent set up that remains largely invisible.

Have inspection of your plumbing works done periodically.

Also keep an eye on how efficiently your sewages work. It is a DIY and you just need to plug the drips. Always have a plumber handy.

Environmental pollution does not only occur in the wake of factory operations or the smoke from the engine of a locomotive. Homes too are environmental hazards that need to be upgraded in order to maintain a healthy atmosphere in the interior and the surrounding. Green housing is needed for several reasons. One is that homes around the globe account for one quarter of the energy resources that are consumed and that lead to the production of carbon dioxide and other harmful gases.

Cooking, heating, laundry and air conditioning purposes at home account for some of the biggest emissions that are apparent every day in a typical home. One of the starting points with a green home is replacing electricity with solar panels that only rely on the sun energy that is not converted to carbon dioxide. Green housing can also mean living on recycled materials like certified wooden houses, and discounting the use of paper bags at home.

Mulch is prerequisite to any garden for among other things it assists in moisture retention, curbs the top soil from being eroded, and can act as a weed killer. However not all mulch is good for the garden, including cypress, since it does not promote the growth of the plant it serves. Furthermore, commercial exploitation by mulch companies kills off a whole population of the tree that produced the mulch.

Environmentally friendly mulch includes eucalyptus and Melaleuca. Eucalyptus proves to be eco-friendly in the sense that it does not discolor for long and its mulch has pesticide effect on fleas. It is also easy to preserve the population of the tree because the species has the capability to undergo renewal of growth after the tree has been cut down. Melaleuca easily spreads into fields of other native plants which make it a great proponent for varietal mulch that can be used to re-grow fields of obsolete trees like cypress.

Lawns mean much to the landscape around the home. In this respect they do not have to be sprayed with synthetic chemicals like fungicides which have environmental effects on the air and the soil. But with organic lawn care means it is easy to eradicate parasites from the elegant grass yard using green means.

Going green with organic lawn care means the use of designated composite made up of bacterial and fungal components that is mixed with water to compose a thick substance that is sprayed on the whole compound. The theory of the composite derives from the fact that pests have the power to destroy themselves hence their incorporation into this organic lawn care. Unlike standard chemicals, the substance has no side effects on the environment or on the health of the people using the lawn. Furthermore there are additional benefits on the lawn in form of decomposed matter from the composite.

Plastic bottles are one of the most common sites in rubbish pits, but these bottles can be used to make crafts, or other useful items. One can take an awl or a knife and use it to poke holes in the fabric softener’s center, while working from inside the cap.

The container lid can then be removed, and sliced through the bottle, starting from above the top of the handle, to the bottle’s body, and then slanting downwards to the side of the bottle where there is no handle. Once this is complete, one can place the yarn inside the bottle, and then thread the loose end through the handle. This easy steps are a sure way of coming up with a yarn holder.

One can also go ahead and make templates, centerpieces, pincushions, and so forth. To make all this, one only needs to have a sharp knife, and then follow instructions. Otherwise, disposing of old softener containers is not fit for the environment.

A major aspect of organic gardening is coming up with alternative ways of dealing with insect menace, without necessarily going for chemical products. These alternative ways are friendly to the environment, and should be encouraged.

Using chemicals to keep away pests is not advisable, for it has severe consequences on the soil, as well as the plants one is trying to prevent. The first organic insect control idea is for one to prepare the soil well, and considering whether it is right for the particular plant. Secondly, ensure that any compost matter or manure to be used is well rotted before planting. Crop rotation is also a known organic way of keeping away pests from gardens.

Mineral oil, and liquid soap plus petroleum jelly is a sure way of trapping insects and pests. Garlic tea spray can also be used to treat most plants diseases, and this is made by mixing garlic tea, with water.

Most people have at least one sweater that they do not use, and which they haven’t worn for the past several years. But these sweaters can be recycled, and used to make other items. Wool used to make sweaters is easy to craft since the fibers are held together strongly. The best sweaters for recycling are those that may have an 80% wool concentration, and they do not fray easily. Sweaters that are 100 5 felted can be made using sewing machines or a hand stitch.

The sweater can be recycled to make leg warmers for instance. Others can be made to cover their hands during the cold season, and such covers may just cover the wrists only, or extend to the arms. One thing worth noting about these sweaters is that much as they may be unused and dormant for long, their fibers are strong, and can last longer. By recycling them, and making items that are usable, one is preventing a scenario where some people throw them away.