It's Easy Being Green

I am a coffee fiend.  Notice I did not say that I’m a coffee addict although I’m sure my friends and family would make a very different testament regarding that label.  My everlasting search for a good “cuppa joe” exceeded my expectations at my favorite local coffee shop yesterday.

Yes, I said a local coffee shop.  I do frequent Starbucks and am a fan when I can’t locate a local barrista to pour me the perfect cup.  My favorite local shop here in Evansville, Indiana is the Penny Lane Coffeehouse. Located in the historic downtown arts district, Penny Lane is an eclectic collecting place for people seeking art, organic vegan eats and of course organic, fair-trade coffee drinks and tea.

These are the composting coffee cups and sleeves used by one of my favorite local coffee shops and made by World Centric

My cup of coffee sent me over the moon yesterday when I realized they had switched up their paper to-go cups.  Emblazoned across the bottom of the paper cups are the words “100% Compostable – Paper with BioPlastic Lining”.  If you read my blog regularly, you know I have a compost heap going in our tiny backyard and divert most of our organic garbage to that oasis of renewal.  Paper coffee cups and drink cups have always bothered me when you think about the amount of waste involved and that’s why I always try to take them home and put them in the recycle bin.

With these new cups though, the environmental impact becomes even easier because I can simply toss them in my composter when I get home, only to feed my garden several months down the road.  I wondered how truly compostable these paper coffee cups were, so I visited the manufacturer’s website.  World Centric claims their cups will break down in a home composter in just 2-4 months.  While most paper cups are lined with polyethylene, a plastic that isn’t recyclable or bio-degradable, World Centric’s paper cup is lined with polylactic acid or PLA.

That PLA lining is made with starch (e.g. corn, potato, tapioca etc), cellulose, soy protein, lactic acid and other ingredients that are said to break down without any hazards or toxins left behind.  The cups are made with sustainably harvested fibers and they say they use Elemental Chlorine Free bleach to whiten the cups.

I’m going to see just how long it takes for World Centric’s paper cups to break down in my compost pile.  I’ve tossed them in and I’ll let you know what kind of results I notice.  Meanwhile, I do like the fact that someone is trying to produce to-go containers with less of an environmental impact than Styrofoam, plastics or non-recyclable papers.  Maybe I’m going to see just how long it takes for World Centric’s paper cups to break down in my compost pile.  I’ve tossed them in and I’ll let you know what kind of results I notice.  Meanwhile, I do like the fact that someone is trying to produce to-go containers with less of an environmental impact than Styrofoam, plastics or non-recyclable papers.  Maybe Starbucks can jump on that bandwagon and really evoke some world change with their cups of joe!

Popularity: 9% [?]

It seems like one of the many products consumers are bombarded with on TV commercials every day are the copious amounts of chemicals and cleaning products to sanitize and freshen your home.  So many of those products contain dangerous chemicals or volatile organic compounds (VOC’s) that may actually be doing us more harm than good.

That’s why green cleaning products like vinegar are so much more beneficial to your house and home.  Not only is it cheap, especially when you buy it in bulk like we do, but you can find it just about anywhere and it’s safe.  White vinegar has so many uses, I was surprised to find out all that it can do.

1)  Have ants?  Vinegar will actually repel ants and eliminate their scent trails so more can’t come looking for their lost friends.

2)  Have lime-scale or hard water spots in your bathroom or sinks?  Simply spray vinegar on the scale or stains and let it sit.  After a few minutes wipe clean and scale be gone!

3)  Coffee pot running a little sluggish?  Run a batch of vinegar through your coffee pot cycle to clean those hard water deposits inside.  Rinse with water when done.

4)  Stinky pit stains or smelly clothes?  Spray vinegar on your clothes before you put them into the wash.  Vinegar works as a fabric softener and deodorizer.

5)  Got pet stains on your carpet or furniture?   Douse the spot with a healthy dose of vinegar.  Not only will it eliminate the odor but it will also deter your animal from coming back.

6)  Chopping onions or cooking them?  Some people have said a bowl of vinegar set out in their kitchen will scrub the onion odor right out the air.

7)  Looking for a scrubby bubbles cleaner alternative?  Mix vinegar with baking soda and dump into your toilet for a clean scrub or pour down your drains to clear and freshen them.

Do you have more ideas for how to use vinegar around the house?  If so, leave a comment about how you put it to use in your green home.

Popularity: 4% [?]

It’s taken me a while to jump on the LED Christmas light bandwagon, mainly because the incandescent strands we have still work and the prices on the LED lights are still a little high for my liking.  Last year though, I noticed I had about three strands that weren’t working properly, so I began pillaging them for bulbs.

Mini-LED Lights

This weekend, Home Depot was running a trade-in deal that I couldn’t pass up though.  For every strand of incandescent Christmas lights you brought in to recycle, you got $3 off the purchase of a new set of LED lights.  I ended up picking up 3 boxes of LED lights for about $9 after the discount, saving me 50% off the original cost.  That’s what I call a heckuva deal!

I can’t wait to decorate for Christmas and see how these new LED light strands look and perform compared to their old outdated cousins.  It will be nice knowing I’m using 80% less electricity to light up my holiday display with LED lights, they stay cool to the touch and you can (if you’d want to) plug in dozens more strands to each other before you risk overloading an outlet.

Have you purchased any LED lights?  If so, share your experience with how they’ve performed and if you want to share a photo of your LED light display, that would be great too!

Popularity: 22% [?]