Looking for easy ways to live a greener life? 

You’ve come to the right spot.

This site started with a simple green living question: Is it better to wash out the peanut butter jar, using all that hot water, or just recycle it as is?

Since then, I’ve written over 350 Green Living Investigations.

Even I’m having trouble remembering what is the best path to a green life!

So here, in a simple, easy-to-remember format is a green living ebook with 105 of my most popular investigations.

You’ll get:

The Question
The Answer
The Best Green Solution
and the Don’t Be Tempted warning

Start with one or two changes and find your path to a green life, without the guilt and without giving up completely on the realities of modern life.

And if you can’t find an investigation, reach out! I love hearing from my readers!

Thanks for joining me on this journey!

Danielle

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Comments (0)

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  10. All great info. Thank you for giving all this amazing advice.

  11. I’m so glad that you mentioned it releases 60% less carbon monoxide than gas heaters! My husband and I want to find more ways to make our home better for the environment, so we were wondering if we could find a better way to heat our home in the winter. I really appreciate you helping me learn more about the benefits of propane heating. https://www.marinpropane.com

  12. I liked how you wrote that beeswax candles are the best eco-friendly option. That’s probably why my mother wants to burn beeswax taper candles. I should advise her to go for it since it is non-toxic.
    https://beehealthycandles.com/

  13. The wool dryer balls work really well!

  14. I like what you said about how firewood is a 100% renewable resource. I need to a lumber specialist to help me with y remodel. I’ll have to hire someone with good contacts to help me. https://mfcestimating.com/multifamily-lumber-takeoffs/

  15. It’s an excellent idea to use reusable produce bags as I have for at least the past year.
    But what can I use instead of a plastic bag when I am cleaning the cat litter?

  16. I agree that drano shouldn’t touch surface water. I need to unclog some pipes in my house. I’ll have to hire a plumber to snake everything out.I agree that drano shouldn’t touch surface water. I need to unclog some pipes in my house. I’ll have to hire a plumber to snake everything out. https://associatedmechanical.com/specialties/

  17. I really appreciate you talking about how locally available propane is. Using something that isn’t very hard to get and is green in the process sounds much better than trying to rely on other fuels that could take a lot of processing to ship over. I’ll look for any propane services I can rely on immediately so they can help me out with arranging something like this.

    https://www.toccoaservicegas.com/services.html

  18. I’m looking for a way to reuse the same form over and over, like your bingo card example. But I also think plastic is a terrible solution. My interim solution is using a digital version but it’s not ideal since I want this sheet in my line of sight basically all day.

    Any ideas for a planet friendly reusable/rewritable paper? Something that works with wax pens that can be erased.

    1. If you have a sheet of paper you want to keep using, try a reusable plastic sleeve. You can still use dry erase pens on the top surface but exchange and recycle the paper within. Or maybe a small dry erase board or chalkboard would serve your purpose!

  19. PVA learn something everyday. Now I feel more knowledgeable when referencing pods as an option.

    Thanks.
    sydneysuds.com

  20. What is your opinion on candles that are made using ca rapeseed and coconut wax?
    I’m UK based so aware things are different.

    1. Great question Ally! I haven’t done an investigation on rapeseed yet, nor specifically on coconut wax, but here’s my findings on coconut products. I’ll add the others to my list!

  21. I was looking up laminating because I make contemporary holy cards. It came to me as a suggestion. I knew I didn’t want to add more plastic in landfills. Even if a saint or prayer is memorialized in laminated paper, it doesn’t mean someone will have it forever. I like my non-laminated cards. I know people prefer not to have a bent card, but wear and tear on a holy card is a good thing. Thanks for affirming my choice not to invest in a laminating machine! I love your site, by the way.

  22. I know foil is bad for the enviroment but how does that compare to all the water used to wash a metal roaster? Thank you

    1. Good question! While I haven’t researched that question exactly, it’s similar to the question that inspired me to become the Green Living Detective: washing the dreaded peanut butter jar. Of course, the answer to that question is now completely out of date, so check out this post as well.

  23. Thrift Drain is a very good cleaner. thanks for this cool guide.

  24. Would like to see a source for this one other than the companies that produce the item in question. This page is usually better about sources than this, with multiple good sources of differing opinions before offering a conclusion. This source, however, is quintessential bias.

  25. When the popup invited me to receive emails from you, I typed my email address and pressed return. A salmon (?) colored bar showed up saying “There are errors below.” Since the only thing I had provided was my email address, the implication is that your application thinks that my email address is wrong. That happens once in a while and it really irritates me.

    1. Looks like you’re all signed up! Thanks for letting me know there might be a problem with my application. 🙂

  26. How green are HEPA filters?

    1. Great question Marie! I don’t know, but look for a future investigation on this question! 🙂

  27. I’ve been having issues with my drains getting clogged, and I’m not sure what the problem is. It makes sense that it could be something more! I’ll be sure to work with a professional to see if they can clean it out for me. https://www.snbcservices.com/drain-cleaning

  28. Can you confirm what overland means? Is that by aeroplane, truck or freight train?

    1. Sure! In this case, overland is a generic term that’s meant to juxtapose the wines from Europe traveling by ship. The previous paragraph says: “The biggest impact is in the distribution. Planes are the worst, followed by trucks. Container ships are the least harmful.” So in talking about wines distributed from California to the East Coast of the U.S., they use a combination of both truck and freight train. Hope that helps!

  29. New study on detergent pods – Detergent Pods: Not As Eco-Friendly As Advertised https://kjzz.org/content/1704176/detergent-pods-not-eco-friendly-advertised

  30. The article ends with a recommendation to use laundry detergent sheets instead of the pods for a more earth-friendly option. But the sheets all appear to be made with PVA as well, so I am confused by the recommendation. Could you please explain why sheets containing PVA would be better than pods containing PVA?

    1. Hey Johanna,
      Great question! I did not come across laundry sheets that were coated in the plastic polymer that detergent pods use. I’d recommend looking through the recommendations from The Environmental Working Group, as they definitely go through the fine print of every brand and their products. If you find any that don’t contain PVA, please let us know!

  31. “Aluminum will leach into your food at unsafe levels and has been associated with Alzheimer’s, bone diseases, and can even reduce your brain cells.” Are there any sources that could support this statement, need it for a school project.

    1. Hi Goodall – All the sources I’ve used in this article are represented as hyperlinks within the text. Good luck with your school project!

  32. Glad to hear that elementary teachers get a bit of a lamination pass. When I cut out my laminated items, I recycle the trimmings. However, I’m not willing to let thousands of personal dollars and hundreds of hours assembling learning materials go unprotected. As a result, I’ve been able to use these same items for over a decade. Your solution of protective sleeves works for larger pieces, but you offered no green solution for all the little game cards I need to protect. Ideas?

    1. Hi Bonnie. I found this blogpost when I was wondering the same thing – are laminating pouches bad for the environment.

      Stumbled upon these pouches just now. I doubt they’re biodegradable – kind of defeats the object – but the manufacturing process seems to be a little kinder at least.

      https://swedex-uk.com/eco-friendly-laminating-sleeves/

  33. I enjoyed reading this, especially as I’m trying to figure out just how much I need to change in my laundry habits. Most of the mesh laundry bags I’ve found are also polyester, however.

    Won’t the microplastics of the bag also wash down the drain? Or is it a situation where the benefits of catching more microplastics from other clothing outweighs the amount of microplastics released from the mesh laundry bag?

    If you have any non-polyester mesh laundry bags you recommend I’d love to hear your thoughts!

    1. I was wondering about the same thing!

  34. Wow, I never knew just how harsh these products can be to your drains, especially if you use them constantly. With the number of times we’ve used these to solve our drain clogs, I am starting to feel slightly afraid of the current state of our pipes. I’ll hire a professional plumber to do some inspections and replace any pipes that might have already been damaged, along with making sure we never use these kinds of products in the future.

    https://www.aspenplumbingjackson.com/

  35. Hey! Awesome blog… Thanks for sharing this informative post. This tips you have mentioned in this post, it’s really informative. You are really helping people by providing the such useful information. I want to suggest you that you can use the best dishwasher tablet for easy cleaning.

  36. Thanks for helping me understand that heating using propane is odorless and it doesn’t emit that much carbon dioxide upon usage! My friend is looking for a heating option that he could use for his home. Hopefully, he’d consider looking for a propane delivery company that can help him with his propane supply. http://www.southallgas.com/fuels-n-more

  37. I think there are a lot of other factors here that need to be considered.
    – There’s a lot of talk of the packaging, energy use, landfill space used for making and disposing paper towels. There still is packaging, landfill space, and energy for making and disposing cloth products. This is similar to the grocery paper bag vs. the bring from home cloth bag debate. Some studies have shown that you have to use a cloth bag like 7,000 times to make it better than a single use bag. Cloth has a very large carbon footprint, and many people aren’t saving rags that long.
    – Rags require water and energy to wash. Paper towels require 0 water and energy to wash and that needs to also go into the environmental equation. If you are living in the West where there is often water shortages, the amount of water something takes can be very important.
    – Very few paper products now come from virgin forests. Most come from tree farms. Like the produce we eat, these are 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, etc generation trees. In sum, we aren’t losing trees, like crops, these are replanted. These trees are still producing oxygen and taking out CO2
    Anyway, paper towels aren’t great, but there is such a broader environmental footprint than just a few factors. It really depends on the situation, where you live, what paper product you are using, etc. If you had to wipe down a greasy pot, it’s probably way more environmentally friendly to use an unbleached paper towel and dispose of it than use a rag, which then needs to be washed in hot water (that needs to be heated by gas or electricity), use soap, use precious fresh water, use electricity for the washing machine, use electricity or gas for the dryer, the water then needs to go to the sewage station which requires energy to be cleaned, etc, etc. The broader environmental picture is pretty large in scope.

  38. Wow, I had no idea that using wood-burning stove fireplaces can both warm your home and naturally help the earth. My friend is interested in installing a fireplace in his home as a part of his home improvement project. I’ll share this with him so he’d consider looking for a stove that works perfectly for his home. https://www.a-1rooftopchimneysweep.com/products

  39. Hi there! None of the “Try one of these greener solutions…” links are working. 🙁

    1. Hi Maria! Did you ever get the links to work? Let me know if you’re still having trouble! 🙂

    2. All the links were working fine for me just a few mins ago!

  40. Thanks for sharing such a wonderful article. I recently bought a new drain cleaner. I learned from your article how to use a drain cleaner which helped me a lot. Thank you very much ..!
    take a look at the site here https://cleaninglounge.co.uk/best-drain-unblocker/ hopes it helps you

  41. Are there any pencil refills that don’t come in some sort of plastic? If you don’t know what something means, instead of assuming it can’t be good, why don’t you just look it up? It took about 2 minutes to find out what that means and to find the MSDS for it as well. I look at it this way. If I only throw away one pencil every 35 years, and maybe a refill container once a year (if that) I’m not having a very large environmental impact.

  42. What are the health risks of using “traditional” deodorant? Numerous scientific studies have shown that there is no link between aluminum chlorohydrate and breast cancer or Alzheimer’s. And what are those social dangers you mentioned?

    1. Hi Karen,
      You’re right! I say the same thing in my article on deodorant. The social dangers relate to the communities who live around the bauxite mines and, of course, our continued reliance on single-use plastics, the dangers of which will outlive us all.

  43. I’ll agree to use eco-friendly solutions that plumbers approve. I think the first time I’ll have a plumber clean my drain. They could show me what works best for me drain.
    https://www.brucesdraincleaning.com/services

  44. I was surprised when you said that drain cleaners have been tied to issues like chemical burns and skin irritation. I was thinking about getting a chemical cleaner from the store because my kitchen sink got clogged yesterday evening. Thanks for helping me see why hiring a professional drain cleaning service instead would be worth the cost! https://www.jarrachcesspool.com/sewer-and-drain-cleaning https://www.jarrachcesspool.com/sewer-and-drain-cleaning

  45. I agree about avoiding a drier and using a clothes line or drying rack indoors. I wonder if you have looked at dehumidifiers. Portable units can be purchased for around $200. Most draw in air and condense any water out on a refrigerated plate inside, then blow the dry air out over the vanes of the refrigerator, which are now warm from the condensed water, rather like the back of a fridge. if you have to dry clothes indoors and are fed up with eternally damp towels or sheets, they offer a solution that is more energy efficient than a drier. Most use circa 300 watts of energy, have timer modes but also create some dry heat which is retained in the house and not pumped outside as with a drier. Most also have air filters built in. Not perfect, but better than a drier

  46. probably commenting the obvious, but just wanted to add: buy it in a box (that can be recycled) rather than the plastic wrapping

  47. 100% good advice if it’s not necessary, but as with any green choice, your health has to come first — like for vegans, B12 is really difficult to eat enough of naturally. If your supplement is recommended by your doctor, don’t feel bad for taking it.

  48. Hygroscopic substance can absorb moisture hence it is use to dehumidify air. Substance like baking soda has hygroscopic properties and is a very good substance to absorb moisture. This is one of the natural ways to absorb moisture in case you are very far from store or if the items that absorb moisture are not available in your area.

  49. I wanted to thank you for this excellent read!! I definitely loved every little bit of it. I have you bookmarked your site to check out the new stuff you post.https://theraksa.com/best-toilet-paper-tablets-reviews/

  50. Are there any ways, simpler ways by which the existing years get cleared from the landfills? Any sort of efforts are made in this direction ?

  51. Hey what’s your thoughts on abc bakers cookies being green palm/ rspo certified. I have been selling girl scout cookies for 12 years now and am honestly not going to stop. But this article was certainly very interesting. Also I love your suggestion that people can buy cookies and donate them to a good bank. In my council we have a program called cookie share where the girl scouts accept the boxes donated to charity and then the council distributes them to an organization in need. In the past they have been given to food banks, blood banks, and veterans organizations to name a few. Thanks!

    1. Good question Emily. I actually wrote this article because my daughter has been a Girl Scout for the past 5 years, and my curiosity got the better of me. As for green palm/rspo certified… it’s pretty complicated (Check out the article I wrote on palm oil). Green Living activists will tell you to boycott it at all costs. But experts don’t quite agree with that. Good luck, and good for you for your Girl Scout longevity! 🙂

  52. Used the same Pentel P205 pencil for over 35 years before I had to replace it. Now I am on my 2nd one and I anticipate the same longevity from this one.

    1. That’s incredible Lenny! And a perfect example of how a good quality product can be useful for a really long time. Love it!

    2. Except that the refills for the Pentel P205 come in plastic cases and Pentel say that their leads are “Super Hi-Polymer” – not sure what that means, but surely that can’t be good :-/

  53. if you need a beverage, you can bring in a water bottle and they will refill it (with water) for free. Better for the Earth and yourself

  54. Hello

    As a 70 year old grandmother I was delighted to find your blog – our generation is constantly blamed for the current crisis – in many cases, rightly so, BUT – as a child of the late 1940’s, I grew up in a household where food waste wasn’t talked about – IT JUST DIDN’T HAPPEN. All our meals were prepared at home, so we used a fraction of the packaging now consumed, and I learned to cook, as did my children. My wardrobe was tiny compared to that of my grandchildren and my toys likewise.

    I am becoming rather fed up with all the self-righteous vegans (many of them using soy or almond milk) lecturing us on what we should and shouldn’t do. I first became aware of environmental problems back in the 1970’s, and have been doing my best to minimise my impact since then.

    I wish they would all read your blog before questioning OUR lifestyle choices.

    With kindest regards and keep up the good work.

    1. Thanks for the support, Monica! Both my parents have similar stories to yours, as I bet a lot of your generation do. And it’s this idea that inspires me to keep going with this website – that no one is responsible for our choices except ourselves. Thanks for your efforts and compliments!

  55. Just sharing,.Many moons ago, whilst travelling and working in africa, I learned that the wee african children refrred to their clothing as “dead white man’s ” clothes. Why I asked? Well they assumed the donated clothes were from dead people otherwise why would anyone give away perfectly good clothes? From the mouths of babes. Patti

    1. Wow, that’s an incredible visual, Patricia. Thanks for sharing. And actually, I can see their point! 🙂

  56. FWIW, Trader Joes receipts are not coated with BPA. I asked the company, and they said the do not use BPA in any of their products.

    Thanks for the great site!

    1. Hey, that’s great to know! Thanks for sharing Roberta!

  57. YAY for you! Congratulations on switching! Yes, seems it is a hard swap for anyone to make.

    I was in my kitchen recently with a heading to zero-waste friend, and we started talking about the old ziplocks, that both of us are reusing until they fall apart along with new products. We were laughing about how long we will have them (not that its funny). I do have in my kitchen the Stasher and another brand also… I definitely prefer the Stasher. And I like Lunchskins for some things too, particularly taking sandwiches and snacks to college. I have the new before running out of reusing the old, partly because I think it is important to get my teens comfortable with the new containers so that they don’t start their households using “disposable” products.

    My favorite thing to keep in my Stasher is cheese. I know people often use beeswax wraps for cheese, but i can fit 2 or 3 small wedges of cheese in one Stasher and it is very convenient to get in and out of it.

  58. Triclosan was actually banned in 2016 and has since been completely circulated out of any soaps (I believe 2017 was the last time it was allowed to be added to soaps) by now. I strongly suspect that any soaps still labeled “antibacterial” are doing so purely for the marketing aspect since most people don’t know how bad antibiotics really are.

    https://www.news-medical.net/health/What-is-Triclosan-and-Why-is-it-Banned.aspx

  59. Great article and statistics. Thank you.

    1. Anytime! 🙂

  60. I have never seen such a good article before. I appreciate your efforts. I will come again to check new updates. Thanks for sharing this article.
    gaming shop

    1. Gosh, thanks! You just made my day! 🙂

  61. I don’t get it … So if I eat the whole fruit mashed with my teeth it’s different than drinking smoothie mashed by blender?

    1. Sounds like it should be the same thing, right? What’s really the difference between the blender and my teeth? But, according to nutritionists, it is actually a difference! We end up getting a ton of sugar and not much of the fiber. Of course, this is a case of pick your battles. It still is better than reaching for a candy bar. 🙂

  62. I think using a wood stove is less green than this. I watch a lot of videos about tiny houses, and most of these are heated using wood stoves. The residents often complain that the wood stove heats up way more than they need, and they can’t do much to lower the temperature but open windows.

    I suspect propane is much greener, but I haven’t yet researched the difference.

    1. I have researched it for you! 🙂 A wood stove is one of those items that has a lot of caveats attached to it. It is green if you live in the suburbs or country and have local access to firewood. If you live in a tiny home in the city and have asthma, it’s probably not so much. Plus, I’m guessing from your description that the people in the tiny home videos aren’t regulating the heat from their wood stoves correctly.

  63. I loved when hotels started letting people opt out of housekeeping. I never thought I needed someone to clean up after me every day. I’m no slob!

  64. Composting at home is one of thevgreenest decisions I ever made.

  65. I read once that humans could stop producing clothing for 10 years, and we’d still have enough for our needs. I wish I could find that source again.

    https://manicpixiegreengirl.com

    1. Wow! That’s an amazing statistic, although I completely believe it. I’m not a huge shopper and I have many clothes in my closet that are a decade (or even two!) old that I still wear regularly. Imagine if we all did that!?

  66. I couldn’t agree more! I remember when Uber first came out, they advertised themselves as a way to earn money while you were already driving around doing errands. You’d pick up someone on your route who was traveling in the same direction.

    Now it’s a glorified taxi company, and we have more cars on the road than we need. I will take public transportation over ride sharing any day.

    http://manicpixiegreengirl.com

  67. My husband and I decided to skip getting rings altogether when we got married. Diamonds were only recently denoted as a signifier of romance. I believe it was in the ’40s. And I think it was a marketing effort by a jewelry company that started it.

    http://manicpixiegreengirl.com

    1. Very cool! Since writing this website, I’ve been amazed at how much we do and consume based on simple marketing efforts. (Don’t read the investigation on bananas if you don’t want to know how we got duped into relying on them for healthy food!) 🙂

  68. Your post is really researchful and informative. Thanks for sharing your helpful post.

    https://homeplix.com/best-juicer-under-100

    1. Thank you!!

  69. Hi! I really enjoy reading your blog posts. I read this post and was worried about your recommendation to feed dogs grain-free food. The vet community and the FDA have issued warnings about an increase in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in dogs. DCM is a serious heart disease and there is some evidence that it may be related to eating grain-free food. We first heard about it from our veterinary cardiologist in April 2018 (after you published this post) and have only heard more and more about it since then. The evidence is not conclusive, but right now vets are recommending that only dogs with actual grain allergies be on grain-free diets. I’m totally with you on avoiding beef-based foods for environmental reasons (unless your dog is allergic or intolerant of other proteins), but hope you’ll consider taking out the recommendation about grain-free food.

    Here’s a link to the FDA website with more information about this: https://www.fda.gov/animal-veterinary/news-events/fda-investigation-potential-link-between-certain-diets-and-canine-dilated-cardiomyopathy

    1. Hi Nicole! Thanks for this comment. I didn’t know anything about the issues with feeding dogs grain-free food! I took that bit out from the recommendations. Thanks for the information! I’d hate to think my recommendation was harming a dog!

  70. Before global warming, the earth was covered with many times more hoofed animals than it is today. Buffalo were in the millions, as were deer, reindeer, sheep, and other animals when the climate was at its best! If these hoofed animals are so bad for the climate, how could that be? Though methane does affect our atmosphere, it’s impact is considerably LESS than CO2 (I refer anyone to the American Chemical Society which now embraces green chemistry), and the benefits free range animals can give to land restoration is essential to healthy soils. Healthy soils, in turn, sequester carbon.

    That said, not all animal farming is equal. Massive stockyards are terribly hard on the environment and does not produce healthy food. But we’re not talking about that. We’re talking about sheep!

    Sheep are usually sustainably free-range. They are often, even usually, on land that is not useful to other kinds of agriculture, and their manure fertilizes and rehabilitates the earth. Their diet is often 100% grazed, though here in North America it may be different.

    If you compare the environmental impact of wool to cotton, wool is the clear winner by a landslide. Even organic cotton uses huge amounts of water to process, more than other fibers. But most of the cotton we wear is grown with a lot of herbicides and pesticides.

    I’ve been a fiber artist all my life, and learned over the years. There are many misconceptions about the environmental impacts of certain fibers. Tencel, for example, a man-made fiber is a green choice.

    I, for one, will keep wearing wool. I shudder to think that the wool market has been going down while plastics go up. It has meant that some sheep breeds that have been with us for thousands of years are endangered or extinct. It also means that some sheep farmers are having to sheer their sheep (domestic sheep must be shorn for the sheep’s comfort) but the prices are sometimes so low that it costs more to process and they are having to throw out the fleece!!! Then the farmer suffers, too, and sometimes has to give up their farm. These are small farmers that get into sheep, not big businesses. Small, sustainable farms.

    1. I totally agree, Holly! I also believe wool has far more benefits than drawbacks. I also dislike the idea that we can keep our plastic habit alive because we continue to downcycling it for garments like fleece. Give me a wool sweater any day.

  71. I think it really depends on where you live. In Australia, we have to remove Lids otherwise someone at the recycling plant has to do it. We can recycle lids and any small plastics by putting them all into a plastic milk bottle and putting the lid back on. This way it gets recycled rather than heading to landfill

    1. That’s a good point Amy. I think local regulations on recycling are different everywhere, even between counties and cities in the same state, let alone different countries! Your comment is a good reminder to make sure and be up to date on what works where you live! Thanks for reading!

  72. Holy cow, this is scary. I’m also someone that just vaguely knew that styrofoam was bad but didn’t know why. I hope that more and more cities ban styrofoam and we can find some way to use the styrofoam that we’ve produced already so we don’t create more and contribute to harming ourselves and the environment.

    1. I totally agree Aya! I had a strong notion that Styrofoam was bad, but a pretty vague understanding of why or just how bad it really is!

  73. Thanks to Travis from Ashburn, Virginia for asking the Detective about wool sweaters!