6 Eco-Friendly Ways of Doing Laundry

Image by Willi Heidelbach from Pixabay 

Every time we do our laundry using the washer, we generate electricity, consume gallons of water, and use detergents that may be harmful to the environment. Are there ways to conserve resources and be safe at the same time? Follow these tips for wiser, more eco-friendly ways of doing your laundry:

* Wash full loads. Fill your washer to the maximum to get the most out of water and energy use.

* Use cold water for rinsing. This not only saves energy consumption, it also saves your fabric. About eighty-five to ninety percent of the energy used to wash clothes actually goes to heat the water for your washer.

* Use eco-friendly detergents. Choose brands that use plant-based and biodegradable ingredients. Any product that does not contain chemical fragrances or dyes is best for the environment, too.

* Avoid using chlorine bleach. What’s the better alternative? Oxygen bleach! It’s color-safe, fabric-friendly, and eco-friendly. 

* Dry clothes in a clothesline. This is the most natural way to dry your clothes. It saves energy and money and preserves the quality of your clothes. 

* Use a highly efficient washer or dryer. Most appliance stores can suggest a good brand and model that can help you save energy, water, and money in the long run. 

Vegetable Gardening Tips

With the costs of living rising all the time, it may be possible to save money and increase your family's health at the same time by growing vegetables in your backyard.

It's a good idea to choose your favourite vegetables to grow and plan beds for early, middle of the season and late varieties.

Most vegetables require at least 6 hours of sunlight per day, some need 8. Some quick growers like lettuce and radish can be grown between the rows of plants that take longer to mature, like beet or corn, thus making full use of the area available.

** Having problems with ants? Get eco-friendly Ant Repellents.

Throughout dry periods, vegetable gardens need extra watering. Most vegetables benefit from an inch or more of water each week, especially when they are fruiting.

Image by Alexas_Fotos from Pixabay

During the growing season watch for insect pests. If you discover a bug problem early it will be much easier, but be careful to not use pesticides once the vegetable are close to being picked unless it becomes an absolute necessity. Organic gardening is one healthy and environment-friendly option. Once you have reaped your crop, put the vegetable waste into your compost pile so that it can be recycled for next spring.

It is important to protect your vegetable garden from wild animals looking for a tasty treat. Make sure your garden is surrounded by a fence that will keep out dogs, rabbits, and other animals. The harm done by wandering animals during one season can equal the cost of a fence. A fence also can serve as a frame for peas, beans, tomatoes, and other crops that need support.

Protection is needed in order for your vegetable garden to yield a bountiful harvest. Hard work will pay dividends if necessary precautions have been made.

Product Review: Hamilton Beach TrueAir

Are you interested in purchasing an air purifier for your home or your business? If so, you are not alone. Over the past few years, air purifiers have rapidly increased in popularity. It seems as if each day, someone makes the decision to buy an air purifier. If you are interested in purchasing an air purifier, have you decided on a product yet? If not, you are urged to examine the Hamilton Beach TrueAir products.

When it comes to examining Hamilton Beach TrueAir products, you may notice something with the names. TrueAir products are associated with Hamilton Beach. Online, you will find that some of these products are referred to as Hamilton Beach products, while other are only referred to as TrueAir products. Just for your knowledge, these two are the same thing. Knowing this important piece of information may make it a little bit easier for you to shop for and research a Hamilton Beach TrueAir product online.

Now that you know how to go about finding an air purifier made by Hamilton Beach, TrueAir, you can begin to examine the products that are available for sale. According the Hamilton Beach online website, there are four different air purifiers that the company has available for sale, at least at the current moment. These air purifiers include an Ionic Air Purifier, a High-Efficiency Air Purifier, a Compact Air Purifier, as well as an Ultra UV Air Purifier.

With the Hamilton Beach TrueAir Ionic Air Purifier, you do not have to purchase any replacement filters. Instead of purchasing replacement filter, you just need to regularly vacuum the one that you have. The Hamilton Beach TrueAir Ionic Air Purifier also keeps the air inside a fairly large space clean. It is noted that this air purifier can effectively clean the air in rooms up to 180 square feet. Perhaps, the greatest thing about the Hamilton Beach TrueAir Ionic Air Purifier is that it looks like a modern product. If you are concerned with the appearance of your home, this air purifier may be perfect for you. This air purifier is available for as low as $140.

The Hamilton Beach TrueAir High Efficiency Air Purifier is also a popular air purifier. The only difference is the fact that the air filter needs to be replaced. However, that filter is a HEPA filter. In the air purifier industry, HEPA filters are considered the best performing filters; therefore, you should be able to rest assure knowing that the Hamilton Beach TrueAir High Efficiency Air Purifier is one of the best on the market. This air purifier sells for around $110 and the replacement filters can be purchased for around $60.

The Hamilton Beach TrueAir Compact Air Purifier is a well performing air purifier that can fit into just about any space. In addition to fitting into just about any space, the small design of these air purifiers makes it easier to move from room to room; therefore, no matter which room you will be in, you should be able to bring your Hamilton Beach TrueAir Compact Air Purifier with you. Despite the fact that this air purifier is small in size, it covers a lot of ground. It has been noted, by Hamilton Beach, that this air purifier can clean the air in rooms up to 250 square feet. If you haven’t already noted, that space is a lot larger than the space cleaned by the above mentioned air purifiers. It is also important to note that this air purifier uses HEPA technology. It retails for around $70, but replacement filters must also be purchased.

The Hamilton Beach TrueAir Ultra UV Air Purifiers come in a number of different makes and models. Both these models use HEPA filters, which as mentioned above, come highly rated and recommended. They are also affordable and easy to clean. One of the models is able to work in rooms with up to 350 square feet of space, while the other model works in rooms with up to 200 square feet of space. These highly recommended air purifiers retail for around $140 dollars and the replacement filters can be purchased for as low as $14, which is often the price for a pack of filters.

Keeping Your Garden Green

There are many things we do to add a little splash of color to our summer gardens but we often fail to focus on keeping our summer gardens looking lush and green just a little bit longer even though we know that by doing so we are essentially prolonging the life and therefore our enjoyment of our summer gardens. The focus of this article is to keep your summer garden looking crisp and green as long as possible by taking a few extra steps a little earlier in the summer months to prepare for the inevitable beginning of the end.

One thing to keep in mind is that once your summer garden begins to take on that yellowish brown hue that indicates the end of summer it always seems to be a downhill ride into the fall. That ride, more often than not is over far too quickly and your summer garden is but a dim reminder of its formerly glorious summer greenery.

First things first, get rid of the yellowing leaves and dying flowers as they make their appearance. They rob the remainder of the garden of its splendor and leave the pallor of decay on the garden far too soon in the season. You will be glad you did, as it will immediately restore the look of health and vitality that your summer garden is missing while also providing a much perkier attitude and bearing from the remaining plants.

Weed. Remove those pesky weeds that detract from the beauty and lushness of the greenery in your garden. By removing the weeds your entire summer garden looks better almost immediately. While you are at it, reapply mulch. This will delay the inevitable return of the weeds while also providing an extra layer for holding in moisture to keep your plants from drying out and looking green. Another great thing about mulch is that it simply makes things look neat and orderly.

Fill in the gaps. While you are in the process of plucking leaves, weeds, and dead flowers from your summer garden it is quite likely that a few gaps will be created. Fill them in other greenery, small shrubs (evergreens are a good idea in this situation), or nice garden art for smiles and a little dash of color among the green. The effects are often stunning and you have the look of an almost new summer garden for only half the effort and expense of creating one. You may also want to scour the local plant stores for late season offerings and markdowns. These are often well cared for and in good condition to add a little touch of color or green to your garden.

Another way to keep your summer garden green is to plant plants that are appropriate to your climate. On an ordinary summer, excluding drought or excessive rain conditions this will be the best way to achieve maximum greenness from your garden. This is actually one of the best ways to prolong the life of your garden as well because the plants being used are accustomed to the weather patterns that exist in your locale. For this reason they will be much better suited to stay green and healthy much longer than most implants that are not accustomed to the local weather patterns.

Creating a greener garden is a worthy cause for most gardeners. We plant our summer gardens because we want to enjoy them. By keeping them green, healthy, and vibrant a little bit longer we are able to prolong our enjoyment of our gardens as well as the productivity of our summer gardens. This means more flowers, more fruit, more vegetables, and much longer spans of greenery for the uninitiated. Taking the steps mentioned above in order to prolong the life and your enjoyment of your summer garden seems to be a worthy sacrifice for an extra month of enjoying your lawn and outdoor living space.

You might also want to read: Common Rose Diseases and How to Treat Them

What You Need To Know About Drip Coffee Makers

Drip coffee makers are some of the most commonly used coffee makers in the United States. They are easy to use and inexpensive to own and operate. Available in a wide variety of styles, colors and sizes, there's a drip coffee maker to fit any kitchen. One study reports that automatic drip coffee makers are the most purchased small kitchen appliance. Approximately 14 million automatic drip coffee makers are sold each year.

Mr. Coffee is one of the best known automatic drip coffee makers. Other well-known coffee maker companies include Black and Decker, Braun, Cuisinart, and Proctor-Silex.

Automatic drip coffee makers are used in many homes and businesses. They work by dripping water through a filter containing ground coffee. Two types of filters are available for these machines: paper and permanent.

Paper filters can affect coffee taste as can some plastic permanent filters. Plastic filters do not last as long as metal filters. Metal filters may require that coffee beans be ground a bit coarser than is needed for paper filters.

Automatic drip coffee makers offer a variety of special features. From basic machines to high end models that do everything from grinding the beans to brewing it at a pre-set time. Basic automatic drip coffee makers feature a water reservoir, a filter basket, and warming plate to keep carafe warm. Most feature filter baskets that swing out or lift out and simple on/off control.

Extra features include indicator lights, a brew-pause selection, digital display and /or digital control panel, clocks, timers, permanent filters an automatic shut off. High end features include water filtration, flavor settings, and a built in grinder. Single cup machines are available, as are machines making anywhere from 4 cups to 12 cups.

Drip Coffee Maker Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best temperature for brewing coffee?

Most experts agree that 200 degrees is the best temperature for brewing coffee. Many restaurants do not allow the temperature to get that high because of liability issues should a consumer spill coffee and get burned.

What affects the quality of a cup of coffee?

Several things can affect the quality of brewed coffee. The cleanliness of the brewing equipment, the quality of the coffee beans, how long it has been since the beans were roasted, how long it has been since the beans were ground and the quality of the water used in brewing.

How do I clean my coffee maker?

Coffee makers should be cleaned at least once a week. Some experts suggest using dish detergent and water. Other experts suggest running one fourth part vinegar and three fourths part water through the brewing cycle a time or two followed by running plain water through the cycle. This removes hard water deposits and other buildup.

Can Espresso beans be used in drip coffee makers? Yes.

Where did the term 'cup of joe' come from?

Some say that Admiral Josephus (Joe) Daniels once outlawed alcohol on ships, making coffee the most used beverage, hence the 'cup of joe.' Others say that the term comes from 'Joe' as 19th cent, slang for coffee. Automatic drip coffee makers allow coffee lovers to indulge their senses whenever they please.