Eco-friendly home products- rants and raves

[bimbi284]

These feels somewhat related - Have any of you used terra cycle? I’ve heard of them through specific brands that have recycling programs, and didn’t know just how much they accept. They also do zero waste bins that you can fill and send back. I’m considering the kitchen bin.

www.terracycle.com/en-US/brigades?fbclid=IwAR3XR_9tZABX8vFVVgSviAlR7RI4bBswxMGMbdvRwv43cOZ3NzAEB057WMI

shop.terracycle.com/products/kitchen-separation-zero-waste-boxes?taxon_id=36

[jene]

Feb 15, 2021 11:17:58 GMT -5 bimbi284 said:

These feels somewhat related - Have any of you used terra cycle? I’ve heard of them through specific brands that have recycling programs, and didn’t know just how much they accept. They also do zero waste bins that you can fill and send back. I’m considering the kitchen bin.

www.terracycle.com/en-US/brigades?fbclid=IwAR3XR_9tZABX8vFVVgSviAlR7RI4bBswxMGMbdvRwv43cOZ3NzAEB057WMI

shop.terracycle.com/products/kitchen-separation-zero-waste-boxes?taxon_id=36

Yes, we’ve used them for years. They’re super.

[pixy0stix]

Feb 4, 2021 13:13:29 GMT -5 aspentosh said:

New best glass and window cleaner product:

us.e-cloth.com/collections/glass-and-window-cleaning-products/products/10603-glass-polishing-cloth

It's like our windows aren't even there.

After using these, I also highly recommend them! They're fantastic.

[mouse]

Our natural gas furnace is coming to the end of its useful life. It’s not installed to current code, but an exact replacement would probably be grandfathered in (and not a safety issue). I kind of hate that idea though, because the current configuration it’s in the attic, the upstairs gets the heat first, heat also rises and throughout the winter, even with the upstairs vents all shut, it’s a good 10+ degrees hotter upstairs. So we’re sweltering, the bedrooms downstairs are freezing. It’d be nice to take this as an opportunity to replace it with something that works better.

Looking into it briefly, it doesn’t seem like natural gas is as environmentally friendly as I’d thought. Our electrical grid here is pretty green (hydro, wind and electric). We don’t use a gas stove and the water heater is electric. I think we can switch and get off natural gas altogether. From the sound of it, ductless heat pumps are a green and popular choice. Maybe we could even upgrade to something that also cools? That would be nice.

Has anyone here made the switch from gas to electric? Or have a heat pump and thoughts about it?

[nospaekae]

Feb 16, 2021 10:15:00 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

Feb 4, 2021 13:13:29 GMT -5 aspentosh said:

New best glass and window cleaner product:

us.e-cloth.com/collections/glass-and-window-cleaning-products/products/10603-glass-polishing-cloth

It's like our windows aren't even there.

After using these, I also highly recommend them! They're fantastic.

I received a few of these as gifts and they do work great, however, they are made of microplastics (polyester and polyamide) and they are not recyclable. I was bummed to learn that because they are awesome for dusting.

[aprilsails]

Feb 16, 2021 11:07:32 GMT -5 mouse said:

Our natural gas furnace is coming to the end of its useful life. It’s not installed to current code, but an exact replacement would probably be grandfathered in (and not a safety issue). I kind of hate that idea though, because the current configuration it’s in the attic, the upstairs gets the heat first, heat also rises and throughout the winter, even with the upstairs vents all shut, it’s a good 10+ degrees hotter upstairs. So we’re sweltering, the bedrooms downstairs are freezing. It’d be nice to take this as an opportunity to replace it with something that works better.

Looking into it briefly, it doesn’t seem like natural gas is as environmentally friendly as I’d thought. Our electrical grid here is pretty green (hydro, wind and electric). We don’t use a gas stove and the water heater is electric. I think we can switch and get off natural gas altogether. From the sound of it, ductless heat pumps are a green and popular choice. Maybe we could even upgrade to something that also cools? That would be nice.

Has anyone here made the switch from gas to electric? Or have a heat pump and thoughts about it?

The heat pump systems work best in areas without extreme hot or cold. They are really awesome for all the in between. So depending on where you are they could be a good solution. One thing I will say is that they get less efficient in larger sizes. I almost think it’s worthwhile to put two little ones in, like one for upstairs and one for downstairs so you can have separate temperature zones.

[mouse]

Feb 16, 2021 11:34:01 GMT -5 aprilsails said:

The heat pump systems work best in areas without extreme hot or cold. They are really awesome for all the in between. So depending on where you are they could be a good solution. One thing I will say is that they get less efficient in larger sizes. I almost think it’s worthwhile to put two little ones in, like one for upstairs and one for downstairs so you can have separate temperature zones.

We’re Portland, Oregon so generally a moderate climate (rarely above 100 or below 30), just damp. I was assuming we’d need more than one. Our house is kind of an L shape, so maybe one upstairs and two downstairs, but I’d see what was recommended.

[onomatopoeia]

Feb 16, 2021 11:19:56 GMT -5 nospaekae said:

Feb 16, 2021 10:15:00 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

After using these, I also highly recommend them! They're fantastic.

I received a few of these as gifts and they do work great, however, they are made of microplastics (polyester and polyamide) and they are not recyclable. I was bummed to learn that because they are awesome for dusting.

I just bought these based on the raves here and love them.  I honestly hadn't thought about how they were actually made, that's disappointing that it's from microplastics.  I see some of the reviews mentioning they last for years though, so I'm hoping that the long term benefit of using less chemical-based cleaner (and therefore also less packaging) evens out.   

[aspentosh]

Feb 16, 2021 11:52:42 GMT -5 onomatopoeia said:

Feb 16, 2021 11:19:56 GMT -5 nospaekae said:

I received a few of these as gifts and they do work great, however, they are made of microplastics (polyester and polyamide) and they are not recyclable. I was bummed to learn that because they are awesome for dusting.

I just bought these based on the raves here and love them.  I honestly hadn't thought about how they were actually made, that's disappointing that it's from microplastics.  I see some of the reviews mentioning they last for years though, so I'm hoping that the long term benefit of using less chemical-based cleaner (and therefore also less packaging) evens out.   

I had seen that they were made from micro plastics when reading up on them, but even though mine were a gift, I don't regret it. No plastic in the packaging of the product, 3yr 300 wash guarantee, and no other cleaner necessary. I had yet to find a plastic free glass cleaner I liked (I did find some lower plastic options but that still adds up). I hope they do last so it can even out. And who knows... maybe in three years there will be some recycling options for micro plastics?

Still a bummer.

[bugandbibs]

Feb 16, 2021 11:07:32 GMT -5 mouse said:

Our natural gas furnace is coming to the end of its useful life. It’s not installed to current code, but an exact replacement would probably be grandfathered in (and not a safety issue). I kind of hate that idea though, because the current configuration it’s in the attic, the upstairs gets the heat first, heat also rises and throughout the winter, even with the upstairs vents all shut, it’s a good 10+ degrees hotter upstairs. So we’re sweltering, the bedrooms downstairs are freezing. It’d be nice to take this as an opportunity to replace it with something that works better.

Looking into it briefly, it doesn’t seem like natural gas is as environmentally friendly as I’d thought. Our electrical grid here is pretty green (hydro, wind and electric). We don’t use a gas stove and the water heater is electric. I think we can switch and get off natural gas altogether. From the sound of it, ductless heat pumps are a green and popular choice. Maybe we could even upgrade to something that also cools? That would be nice.

Has anyone here made the switch from gas to electric? Or have a heat pump and thoughts about it?

We purposely do not have a gas line to our house. We have a ductless system by Mitsubishi that works well in our house. We have to units that run off of one main box outside. It is heating and cooling. It works very well for us. Depending on your house design, you will need to figure out the configuration and may need more units since the flow goes from one room to another. The only issue we have is one bedroom that doesn’t get as cool as the rest of the house, but a small fan takes care of that. We also have a heat pump water heater. In the really cold (like now), we run it on traditional mode to ensure constant hot water other wise we run out with back to back showers. The rest of the time it runs in eco mode fine without ever running out of hot water.

[bugandbibs]

mouse ours is rated to -10*F. The newer models have a much higher range. It also handles the 100*F heats waves over our summer just fine. I’m across the river from you, so same general climate. Our system is doing fine to heat the house now with all the snow and ice (we got over a foot). I did go outside and dig out the main unit as a precaution because of snow drifts.

[bimbi284]

FYI thredUP seems to be doing clean out kits again!
I had signed up to receive notice when they opened that up again, and just so happened to think about it today and went to the site directly to check. It looks like 16 weeks for processing which is a lot, but perhaps a good time to review your summer/fall wardrobe for stuff you can part with?

[aspentosh]

Feb 16, 2021 15:30:04 GMT -5 bimbi284 said:

FYI thredUP seems to be doing clean out kits again!
I had signed up to receive notice when they opened that up again, and just so happened to think about it today and went to the site directly to check. It looks like 16 weeks for processing which is a lot, but perhaps a good time to review your summer/fall wardrobe for stuff you can part with?

I am fascinated by this. Have you (or anyone else) done this?

I see on average only 40% is accepted and the rest is recycled. I'd rather give to local shelters if this is truly accurate but don't really want to pay $11 for items to be returned to me. 

[juliachild]

Feb 16, 2021 16:13:15 GMT -5 aspentosh said:

Feb 16, 2021 15:30:04 GMT -5 bimbi284 said:

FYI thredUP seems to be doing clean out kits again!
I had signed up to receive notice when they opened that up again, and just so happened to think about it today and went to the site directly to check. It looks like 16 weeks for processing which is a lot, but perhaps a good time to review your summer/fall wardrobe for stuff you can part with?

I am fascinated by this. Have you (or anyone else) done this?

I see on average only 40% is accepted and the rest is recycled. I'd rather give to local shelters if this is truly accurate but don't really want to pay $11 for items to be returned to me. 

I did it once. I sent in a bunch. Some with tags still on. They recycled everything except one item.

Ebay is a better way if you want to make money. But more work.

[Pibs]

Feb 16, 2021 12:05:37 GMT -5 bugandbibs said:

mouse ours is rated to -10*F. The newer models have a much higher range. It also handles the 100*F heats waves over our summer just fine. I’m across the river from you, so same general climate. Our system is doing fine to heat the house now with all the snow and ice (we got over a foot). I did go outside and dig out the main unit as a precaution because of snow drifts.

We're in suburbia west of PDX. Our house was built in 1993 and I believe our heat pump is original to the house. Our gas back up was running quite a bit this past week. I feel like it generally runs like that for the one or two weeks each winter that it gets cold here but that's it. It costs less to heat our house each month than it did our 1000sf townhome we rented (same suburbia) with a gas furnace.  

[AAM2012]

Feb 16, 2021 10:15:00 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

Feb 4, 2021 13:13:29 GMT -5 aspentosh said:

New best glass and window cleaner product:

us.e-cloth.com/collections/glass-and-window-cleaning-products/products/10603-glass-polishing-cloth

It's like our windows aren't even there.

After using these, I also highly recommend them! They're fantastic.

Just got mine today...so I just use water and then dry?

[mae141]

Feb 16, 2021 11:58:32 GMT -5 aspentosh said:

Feb 16, 2021 11:52:42 GMT -5 onomatopoeia said:

I just bought these based on the raves here and love them.  I honestly hadn't thought about how they were actually made, that's disappointing that it's from microplastics.  I see some of the reviews mentioning they last for years though, so I'm hoping that the long term benefit of using less chemical-based cleaner (and therefore also less packaging) evens out.   

I had seen that they were made from micro plastics when reading up on them, but even though mine were a gift, I don't regret it. No plastic in the packaging of the product, 3yr 300 wash guarantee, and no other cleaner necessary. I had yet to find a plastic free glass cleaner I liked (I did find some lower plastic options but that still adds up). I hope they do last so it can even out. And who knows... maybe in three years there will be some recycling options for micro plastics?

Still a bummer.

Aside from not being recyclable, microplastics are also turning up basically everywhere. Tiny pieces break off from fabrics like this in the wash and are then introduced to the water supply.

[bimbi284]

Feb 16, 2021 16:13:15 GMT -5 aspentosh said:

Feb 16, 2021 15:30:04 GMT -5 bimbi284 said:

FYI thredUP seems to be doing clean out kits again!
I had signed up to receive notice when they opened that up again, and just so happened to think about it today and went to the site directly to check. It looks like 16 weeks for processing which is a lot, but perhaps a good time to review your summer/fall wardrobe for stuff you can part with?

I am fascinated by this. Have you (or anyone else) done this?

I see on average only 40% is accepted and the rest is recycled. I'd rather give to local shelters if this is truly accurate but don't really want to pay $11 for items to be returned to me. 

I’ve done it twice. The first time I made $52 and the 2nd time I made $88.

[pixy0stix]

Feb 16, 2021 19:03:42 GMT -5 mae141 said:

Feb 16, 2021 11:58:32 GMT -5 aspentosh said:

I had seen that they were made from micro plastics when reading up on them, but even though mine were a gift, I don't regret it. No plastic in the packaging of the product, 3yr 300 wash guarantee, and no other cleaner necessary. I had yet to find a plastic free glass cleaner I liked (I did find some lower plastic options but that still adds up). I hope they do last so it can even out. And who knows... maybe in three years there will be some recycling options for micro plastics?

Still a bummer.

Aside from not being recyclable, microplastics are also turning up basically everywhere. Tiny pieces break off from fabrics like this in the wash and are then introduced to the water supply.

The thing is, nothing we do is going to be 100% perfect. If you wear any type of fleece, it's doing the same thing. I'm at the point where I've cycled from trying to be perfect, to realizing I can't be.

[mae141]

Feb 17, 2021 2:37:49 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

Feb 16, 2021 19:03:42 GMT -5 mae141 said:

Aside from not being recyclable, microplastics are also turning up basically everywhere. Tiny pieces break off from fabrics like this in the wash and are then introduced to the water supply.

The thing is, nothing we do is going to be 100% perfect. If you wear any type of fleece, it's doing the same thing. I'm at the point where I've cycled from trying to be perfect, to realizing I can't be.

Yep. I try to stay away from synthetic fabrics, but there are problems with how natural fibers are produced and processed as well. It's hard to know what's right. We need to move away from being such a consumer driven society, but that's a much bigger issue.

[aspentosh]

I do agree that micro plastics are a problem, but I am on the same page as pixy on this. If I try to be perfect, I am going to fail and throw my hands up and say "it's not going to happen!!" and be done.

Instead, I am trying to take manageable steps that mean progress. Like ALL of my bathroom routine from shower to teeth to toilet are recycled or no plastic except my toothbrush. I haven't found a toothbrush option I like, but I am not going to throw my hands up and say it's not worth it because of that.

I look at those cleaners the same way. I used to use (yeaaaars ago) paper towels and a plastic spray bottle with whatever cleaner I found. Then I switched to green cleaners and microfiber. Then I switched to low plastic cleaner and microfiber. That e cloth allows me to go no cleaner and use that cloth for potentially three years. That's huge to me! Perfect? No. But for sure better than where we were.

It's a long process, one that I regularly read up on and try and improve, so I guess we shall see.

[aspentosh]

Feb 16, 2021 18:11:50 GMT -5 AAM2012 said:

Feb 16, 2021 10:15:00 GMT -5 pixy0stix said:

After using these, I also highly recommend them! They're fantastic.

Just got mine today...so I just use water and then dry?

Yes! I tried it dry but it didn't work. So I dampened one end, wiped down with that, then dried with the other end. 

[wawa]

I'm bumping this up to ask if anybody has a low waste razor they like?  do I  need to figure out how to use a safety razor?  Is it hard?  
halp

[juliachild]

Apr 14, 2021 14:51:56 GMT -5 wawa said:

I'm bumping this up to ask if anybody has a low waste razor they like?  do I  need to figure out how to use a safety razor?  Is it hard?  
halp

Leaf! It's a metal handle that is a three blade razor. It has magenta that hold the blades in place.

[aspentosh]

Apr 14, 2021 15:23:46 GMT -5 juliachild said:

Apr 14, 2021 14:51:56 GMT -5 wawa said:

I'm bumping this up to ask if anybody has a low waste razor they like?  do I  need to figure out how to use a safety razor?  Is it hard?  
halp

Leaf! It's a metal handle that is a three blade razor. It has magenta that hold the blades in place.

I'm so glad to see you say this. When my razor blade supply runs out, this is my planned purchase!

[AAM2012]

Apr 14, 2021 15:23:46 GMT -5 juliachild said:

Apr 14, 2021 14:51:56 GMT -5 wawa said:

I'm bumping this up to ask if anybody has a low waste razor they like?  do I  need to figure out how to use a safety razor?  Is it hard?  
halp

Leaf! It's a metal handle that is a three blade razor. It has magenta that hold the blades in place.

Oooh thanks for sharing! I honestly didn’t think about the plastic components of razors until now since we only replace the heads (yes I know, still plastic).

Purchasing two now for DH and I.

[mrspez07]

Apr 14, 2021 20:44:33 GMT -5 AAM2012 said:

Apr 14, 2021 15:23:46 GMT -5 juliachild said:

Leaf! It's a metal handle that is a three blade razor. It has magenta that hold the blades in place.

Oooh thanks for sharing! I honestly didn’t think about the plastic components of razors until now since we only replace the heads (yes I know, still plastic).

Purchasing two now for DH and I.

Also, one way to get the blades to last longer is to put them into a bit of rubbing alcohol after you are done (just a few minutes), and then air dry. This is a hack DH learned a few years ago and it really extends the life of the metal blades. It does tend to trash the moisturizing strip, etc. if there is one

[wawa]

Apr 14, 2021 15:23:46 GMT -5 juliachild said:

Apr 14, 2021 14:51:56 GMT -5 wawa said:

I'm bumping this up to ask if anybody has a low waste razor they like?  do I  need to figure out how to use a safety razor?  Is it hard?  
halp

Leaf! It's a metal handle that is a three blade razor. It has magenta that hold the blades in place.

jeeez...does anybody like one that isn't pushing $100?

[mbcdefg]

Apr 15, 2021 9:27:46 GMT -5 wawa said:

Apr 14, 2021 15:23:46 GMT -5 juliachild said:

Leaf! It's a metal handle that is a three blade razor. It has magenta that hold the blades in place.

jeeez...does anybody like one that isn't pushing $100?

I don’t have this razor (I use Billie), but a local low/no waste shop just opened near me and they have this for sale: www.goodbottlerefillshop.com/shop/sx4qrkvp9t9sg0qgkbuer3dnhy1f7f?rq=Razor

[juliachild]

Apr 15, 2021 9:27:46 GMT -5 wawa said:

Apr 14, 2021 15:23:46 GMT -5 juliachild said:

Leaf! It's a metal handle that is a three blade razor. It has magenta that hold the blades in place.

jeeez...does anybody like one that isn't pushing $100?

Pretty sure I paid like $50. Still pricey, but lasts forever and refills are pennies.