Question of the Week: What do you do at home to help protect the environment if you don’t own your home?
Posted on February 3rd, 2009 - 10:30 AMEach week we ask a question related to the environment. Please let us know your thoughts as comments. Feel free to respond to earlier comments or post new ideas. Previous questions.
Many people don’t own their living space such as renters or workers assigned to temporary housing. Non-owners general don’t make major changes to their homes, such as buying more efficient large appliances or improving insulation. Concerned citizens
What do you do at home to help protect the environment if you don’t own your home?
Tags: rental home
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Question of the Week
February 3rd, 2009 at 11:02 am
When I lived in an apartment, I turned the heat down on the water heater, I made sure to open the blinds in winter (for passive heat) and close them in summer (so the AC didn’t have to work as hard). I washed clothes in cold water as well. My apartment complex had recycling bins for bottles, cans, and newspaper so I made sure to recycle as much as possible. Renters can sometimes do minor fixes such as repairing a leaky faucet or replacing the air filter on the furnace.
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February 3rd, 2009 at 12:12 pm
I have two other roommates and I live in DC. The last one out of the house always turns down the heat, or turns up the AC to help save on heating/cooling costs. We recycle everything we can. When old bulbs die, we replace them with CFLs (Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs). We try to eliminate drafts from windows by using drapes. It really helps when everyone living together are like-minded in their environmental concerns.
In DC, residents can receive free home energy audits and other services to help “green” their homes, thru the DC Dept of the Environment. See: http://green.dc.gov/green/cwp/view,a,1244,q,461275.asp
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February 5th, 2009 at 3:40 pm
Either this question is badly worded or it is just dumb. You do not have to own your home to turn off the lights when not in use or separate your trash for recycling. A thermostat that you use to control the heat / air might be rented as part of your home, but the landlord doesn’t control the setting. You don’t rent the electric - or the water - or the gas.
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kchick reply on February 5, 2009 4:17 pm:
I’m sure the question was intended to ask what someone who was not at liberty to make permanent changes to their home (install more insulation, change to a programable thermostat, install thermal windows, etc) might do to protect the environment either by reducing energy use or some other means.
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Matt reply on February 6, 2009 9:32 am:
Actually I think it was more an attempt to “connect with those who have been historically underrepresented in EPA decision making, including the disenfranchised in our cities and rural areas, communities of color, native Americans, people disproportionately impacted by pollution”. I hope this segement of the constituency is getting a lot of usefull info from this blog as they check it from their Iphones and laptops while waiting on line for their next round of stimulation from their leaders.
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February 9th, 2009 at 10:21 am
The obvious ones, yes. Turn off the lights, adjust your climate control temps, use CFLs, request air filter changes, etc…
Many complexes do not have recycling, as mine does not. I take my recycling to a friend’s house, in a neighborhood that does get recycling pickup. If that’s not an option for you, consider taking periodic trips to the nearest collection center. Coordinate with your neighbors too - maybe each take a turn going once a month.
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February 10th, 2009 at 2:23 pm
I am sorry that anyone would think teaching and implementing new ideas to improve the environment are “dumb”!
I personally grew up with parents that were “Depression era” babies so some of the things that conserve energy come naturally but I was actually trained to do it to save $$!..it amazes me now that so many things that were done to pinch pennies help the environment as well..turning off the lights, etc.
A lot of people did not grow up this way..
please send general enviro-comments to above
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February 18th, 2009 at 4:10 pm
M,Stewardessfortheenvironment says… I agree with gogreenblah and anonymous… I think its great that we finally have awaken to the 21st century..and realized that if we do not take initiative whether we own or rent..we need to teach, and better yet show by action (example) to do our part to save energy, recycle, and be conscious of how we use our water, and other natural resources. As a contemporay song says: Mother earth can’t take much more….so we must be a light to furture generations…an oldie but goodie song says: will man be still alive in the year 2525???
Many rental properties do not have recycling, mine does not..but it should not stop us from doing our part…I have sent and paid for phonebooks to go to recycle centers (and collected as many as I could from neighbors) before they had drop off sites, or waste bins available for public use…just look around..and you can see that more avenues are opening up for recycle, and reuse..hooray…do not forget to power down computers when not in use and use surge protectors for all electrical equipment…and yes..the last one out…should flip the switch off and check the thermostat…thats the easy part…also you can recycle old magazines, books..donate to hospitals, retirement homes and centers…alot of people would like to read and browse if they have the material there…knowledge is our greatest asset and gift in a free country…so keep on blogging…m
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