Going Green Saved Me Big Green

"Green" is the latest buzzword among environmentalists and earth-conscious people. If it is good for the environment or reduces a person's (or family's) "carbon footprint" (another buzzword) it is said to be green. And, green is good because this is the only planet we can inhabit at this time so we need to take care of it.

I try to do my part to protect this big blue orb we live on. I reduce, reuse, and recycle. I buy organic and environmentally friendly products when possible. I even "commute another way" during that all-important week each year. But, I, like so many others, thought that "going green" was an expensive endeavor. I envisioned large solar panels, intricate water filtration and heating systems, organic soaps and shampoos bought from the local natural foods store. Building a barn for my own livestock and tilling my entire lot for organically grown fruits and vegetables scared the green right out of me.

Of course, it does not have to be that elaborate, and any step taken is a great help to the environment. What surprised me, however, was the help it gave my wallet, as well. I made small changes, in baby steps, along the way and have found it enjoyable and rewarding, in both the fiscal and environmental aspects.

Wood Burning

While this is still a fringe "green" move, with some people claiming it does as much damage as oil burning, my first move was to reduce my dependence on oil (at least for heat.) My house is a two story, pieced together home that was originally built in the early 19^th century. It had additions built on and torn off through the years. It still sits on a granite foundation. Most of the original insulation has been replaced and gaps and holes sealed. It is not the most airtight house, but it does keep most of the bitter, winter cold out. When we bought it the sole source of heat was an oil, hot air furnace.

Later, I inherited a Vermont Castings woodstove from my wife's grandparents so, being new to the wood burning game, I decided to put it in the basement under our living room and install an exterior metalbestos chimney. This seemed the safest and easiest option to start. The first year, even after paying $200 for a cord of wood and $120 on a chainsaw to cut additional wood, I saved over $500 in oil. This was burning occasionally, when I was home from work or on extremely cold nights.

The next year I cut more wood and burned more frequently, occasionally shutting the furnace off completely. We saved over $750 that year. The next step, since that one stove had a hard time heating the entire house, especially the upstairs, was to purchase a small woodstove for the kitchen. This also allowed my wife to keep a small fire going in the kitchen, making it possible to keep the thermostat turned down all the time. The additional wood was not a great expense either. This led to almost $1000 in savings.

I am sure you are asking, "What about the wood, doesn't it cost a lot?" Buying early and green can save money. Buying the wood tree length and cutting it yourself can also save a lot on the total cost. If you have a large lot with lots of tress you may cut your own wood. Some towns (and even some states) offer permits for residents to cut wood on town (or state) owned land. I actually paid my neighbor $50 to let me cut some of the old growth on his back lot. He got some valuable clearing and growth stimulation and I got 4 cord of wood for $50 plus the cost of the gas.

So, even with the cost of the chainsaw ($120), the small woodstove ($300), the 3 cord of wood I bought over the 4 years ($500), the $50 to my neighbor, and about $100 worth of gas mix, I still saved almost $2200, with a projected average savings of $1000 a year from here on.

Lawn Mowing

Lawn mowing is one of those household tasks that can be done quickly on a large mower with a big engine. A bagger on the back makes clean up easier, as well. However, is this really the greenest option? I stumbled on a greener option.

I have an acre and a half of lawn. Due to the number of trees and rocks on the lot I found it easier (not physically, but mechanically) to use a push mower on the lot. My problem, being a cheapskate, was that I was constantly fixing, or replacing, my cheap push mowers because, well... they were cheap. I finally decided to fix the problem, and go even cheaper.

I hated spending the money on repairs and gas, so I stepped out and bought a rotary style, manual push mower. No more gas, a simple blade sharpening every once in a while (which I learned to do myself) and I had a cheap mower. I did have to swallow the idea of the dandelions popping back up, and some of the tougher blades of grass not getting cut with the first trip around, but the savings make it go down easier. I usually spent about $150 on repairs (or a new mower) over the course of a mowing season. I also spent about the same on gas. So, the $300 I used to spend now becomes simply sweat expenditure.

I also made the switch to an electric trimmer. It has a rechargeable battery, instead of a gas powered motor. It cuts as well as a gas powered model and is easier to use in many of the smaller corners. This saved another $50 in gas mix over the mowing season, with no noticeable increase in electric use for the short charging time.

Vegetables and Fruits

Gardening is a great green option, and my meager garden is not about to put the farms of the Midwest out of business. There are many items I still have to buy, but the foods I grow at home have cut down on my grocery bill. I have a small garden, with several raised beds spread across my lot.

I have a compost pile that allows me to recycle some of my trash and provides a great fertilizer for my garden each year. I recycle some of my plants for seed stock at each harvest and we use the fruits and vegetables fresh out of the garden, freeze some, and can others.

I have several fruit trees (apple, cherry, and crab apple), strawberry patches, raspberry and blackberry brambles, and rhubarb patches. We plant potatoes, corn, peas, beans, lettuce, spinach, carrots, tomatoes, peppers, squash (various varieties), pumpkins, kohlrabi, onions, and cucumbers.

We also buy into a farm co-op, so we can get fresh vegetables each week throughout the summer. We get roughly $600-$700 worth of vegetables for $250. We do the same with our meats. We pay a local farmer to raise a beef critter, a pig, and some chickens, and then when they are slaughtered, we get the meat, which we freeze. These animals are all raised organically and under humane conditions (except for the slaughtering part.)

Last year I decided to extend my growing season. I built an inexpensive greenhouse onto the side of my house. I framed it with 2x4s and used plastic on top. I boarded in the bottom and painted the plywood black. I also painted the interior boards black as well to catch, and retain, more heat. Since it gets very cold up here I had to find an inexpensive way to heat the greenhouse. I piped an extension out from the hot air duct work from my furnace, and then extended the duct work I had from the wood stove, into the space under the greenhouse tables. I was able to maintain a 50 degree temperature in there at all times (with the radiant heat from the house, and the heat pumped in), with the temperature climbing when I had the lighting turned on or during sunny days. I did install a small electric heater with a thermostat in case the temperature inside dipped below 50 degrees. This greenhouse gave us fresh vegetables to supplement our frozen and canned ones all winter.

Overall, our annual grocery bill dropped over $1500 dollars (6 people in a house go through a lot of produce.) The greenhouse cost $200 to build, even with the extra duct work for heat, and this was a one time expense. I use soil from the forested area around my house and my compost pile for the potting soil.

Snow Removal

One of my biggest spring clean up jobs each year was raking the rocks and dirt off the lawn that the snowplow had deposited there. We paid $35 per storm to have the driveway plowed. I have a 4 wheel drive SUV that allows me to get out when emergencies occur, and my wife is home with the children, so immediate snow removal is not a big concern. We were often the last on the route to get plowed, anyway.

So, I cancelled my plowing contract. I contemplated investing in a snow-blower, but my cheap side did not want to spend the money on the machine or the gas, so I invested in a very good snow shovel (actually two.) My oldest daughter and I make it a snow-day adventure to shovel the driveway.

We have a circular drive, but in the winter, to save a little labor, we shovel only one side of the drive and our parking area. This takes generally 30 to 45 minutes to complete. Over a snowy winter, this move saved $350 to $450.

Who Needs a Gym

One of the biggest savings over the long run has come on the health side of things. I used to spend $450 a year on a gym membership, and close to that in gas to get there and back 5 times a week. With my new "green" adjustments I found the gym was not necessary.

Pushing a manual mower around an acre and a half is a great cardiovascular workout. Shoveling snow or dirt is a great arm and shoulder workout. Raking targets the back, while squatting to plant and cultivate seeds, and then weed the garden, is great work for the legs and hips. Cutting fire wood, dragging it out of the woods, splitting it by hand, and stacking it is a great overall body workout.

I played football for many years (through high school, college, and beyond) and competed in power lifting at the national and world championship levels, so I know a thing or two about intense workouts. Going green can be a great workout regimen. I purposely do things the hard way at times for the health benefit. I split most of my wood by hand, carry it all the way to my stacks by hand, limb the trees in the woods and then drag them out by hand, even cut some of the smaller trees by hand, just to get a good workout.

Truth be told, the manual mower, cutting my own firewood, shoveling the snow, and even the compost pile all came about due to their workout benefits. I built my raised beds out of cement blocks that I recycled from a building that had been torn down near my home. I carried those blocks, two at a time, from the site back to my lot because of the great forearm and shoulder work.

So, the savings in gym membership is a tangible savings, the intangibles include reduced healthcare costs, longer life, and improved quality of life.

My Green Savings

So, to sum it all up, I actually saved green by going green. I fought it like many because I figured it was going to cost me bundles of money. There are still many things I would like to do (solar powered hot water, bigger greenhouse, composting on a larger scale, and a better sealed and insulated house) but for now I am doing my part to cut down on greenhouse gases and oil consumption. If I can save some money in the process, I am all for that.

So, what are my actual annual savings from all of this? With the examples listed above, along with keeping it cooler in the house and wearing an extra layer in the winter, lowering our hot water heater 5 degrees, being more conscious about turning off extra lights, computers, televisions, etc., lowering the shades during the day in the summer and opening them during the day in the winter, we saved over $4500 and improved our health. Worth it? Every penny and then some.