How to Conserve Energy in Your New Apartment

After going through the process of moving to Chicago and being careful to do it in the most eco-friendly way possible, you'll want to conserve energy in your new apartment. You went the extra mile to hire a green moving company and rent reusable boxes from The Chicago GreenBox, so why not step up your game in your new place?

There are many ways to conserve energy in a new apartment in Chicago. Let's look at a few of the top ways to keep your energy bills low and live a more eco-friendly life in a Chicago apartment.

Insulate your Windows

According to an article found on Mashable.com, you can insulate your windows with draft stoppers to help save you money. These can even fit with your overall decor as there's quite a selection of fashionable draft stoppers on Etsy and other online marketplaces.

Windows offer a good source of natural heat in the winter, but they are not always well insulated. Along with using draft stoppers, you can make a plastic cover to insulate your winders even further. 

Replace your Light Bulbs

One of the best ways to conserve energy in an apartment is by changing out your old lightbulb and using ENERY STAR qualified CFL bulbs or even LED bulbs. According to EnergyStar.gov, ENERGY STAR qualified compact fluorescent light bulbs or CFLs use about 75% less energy and last up to 10 times as long as a standard incandescent light bulb.

Buy Reusable Items

It's easy to become a regular consumer using plastic bags, plastic water bottles, and other disposable items. There's a more eco-friendly solution for just about every disposable item. Let's look at a few:

• Plastic Grocery Bags - Replace with Reusable Grocery Bags

• Plastic Water Bottles - Replace with Glass or Stainless Steel Bottles and a Water Filtration System, such as the Berkey or a Britta Pitcher

• Disposable Napkins - Replace with Cloth Napkins

• Plastic Food Storage Bags - Replace with Reusable Food Storage Bags, Wax Covers, and use other tips for keeping foods healthy without plastic

If you're using anything disposable, spend a little time researching an alternative option.

Adjust your Thermostat

If you have the ability to upgrade to a smart thermostat, it will help you conserve energy in your new apartment. However, even without a smart thermostat, you can adjusts your thermostat when you're not home and save energy. A 10-degree adjustment for eight hours per day will save you as much as 15% on heating every year.

Clean your Fridge Compressor Coils

The refrigeration will use about 25% of the energy in an apartment. If you make sure the compressor coils are clean, it can help to keep you from using more energy than necessary. Your energy bill will remain lower because your fridge will be able to run better. 

In addition, make sure you cover your food, check the seal on the fridge, and keep it full with water jugs and other items. According to an article from HowStuffWorks.com, full fridge runs better and will stay colder while using less energy.

There are several other great tips you can use for conserving energy in your new Chicago apartment. If you haven't made the move yet, make sure to hire a green moving company and rent reusable boxes from The Chicago GreenBox. Not only will you be helping the environment, but you will also provide better protection for your belongings with stronger, easier to carry boxes.

Green Ways of Commuting in Chicago After You Move

You've finally made the move to the big city and you did it in the most eco-friendly way possible. With a green moving company, rented reusable moving boxes from The Chicago Green Box, and plenty of other eco-friendly moving hacks, you're ready to live it up in Chicago.

Now that you're settled in your new apartment or condo, you want to continue living as green as you can. One of the key ways you can help the environment is by choosing an environmentally-friendly way to commute to work each day. Here are some of the best green ways of commuting in Chicago.

Chicago Transit Authority

One of the first choices on the list of eco-friendly commuting in Chicago is the Chicago Transit Authority or CTA. This environmentally conscious public transit option works hard to protect the environment while helping commuters get to and from work every single day. 

CTA offers sustainable transportation helping to replace the need for motor vehicle trips, along with reducing traffic congestion on the roads. Also, the vehicles used for rail and bus transportation provide reduced emissions through alternative fuel sources and advanced technologies. 

As a commuter, you can use the trains and busses offers by CTA for a green way to commute in Chicago. They have also established the Bike & Ride program to ensure better bicycle access to rail stations and bus routes.

Divvy Bike Share 

Maybe the best way to commute to work, if you want to be super eco-friendly is through the Divvy Bike Share Program. With stations throughout Chicago, you can join the program and use bikes to get to and from wherever you need to go. 

An annual membership runs $99 and you'll be able to commute via bike to many of the major areas throughout Chicago. With more than 570 stations and over 6,000 bikes available across Chicago and Evanston, Divvy offers the ultimate solution for the eco-friendly commuter.

You can even use Divvy Bikes to connect to the train or bus station of your choice making your commute both eco-friendly and fast.

Pace Vanpool

A rideshare program offering larger vans to transport 5 to 13 people at a time, Pace Vanpool is offered all throughout Chicago and surrounding areas. You can use this rideshare program for commuting to work, the airport, or anywhere you need to go. 

While a rideshare may not be the greenest way to commute in Chicago, sharing a vehicle does help lower emissions. If you live near other people working in a similar area as you, a regular rideshare with Pace Vanpool may be the perfect solution.

By Foot

Of course, if you can walk to work, you will have the best option for a green way of commuting in Chicago. Walking to work is the dream for many people living in Chicago. If it's possible, walk to work whenever the weather cooperates.

After moving to Chicago, you have plenty of options to make your daily commute eco-friendly. Whether you choose to commute by bus, train, bike, rideshare, or foot, you'll be doing your part to help preserve the environment.

What is the Importance of Eco-Friendly Products?

You want to use the best products for your family's health and you need those products to be effective. It doesn't matter much if a product claims to be eco-friendly if it doesn't do the job it was designed to do.

There was a time when you didn't have to label products as eco-friendly because nearly everything was already made from natural substances. Today, with all the toxic chemicals found in products, the importance of eco-friendly products has never been bigger.

What does Eco-Friendly Mean?

When a product uses the label of eco-friendly it is meant to communicate that the product can be used without harm to the environment. However, just because a product is labeled as eco-friendly doesn't mean it's 100% eco-friendly in every single way.

It's possible for the actual product, such as a cleaning solution, to be eco-friendly, while the packaging isn't. It's important to understand the differences and check products for eco-friendly packages, as well as natural ingredients.

How to Know if a Product is Eco-Friendly

Several types of labels will tell you if a product is truly eco-friendly or just using a claim of natural ingredients as a marketing ploy. Many companies confuse consumers by offering natural products or products made with natural ingredients. These types of labels don't guarantee the product is eco-friendly.

Some of the labels to understand include:

• USDA Organic - This seal is used on food and cosmetics for products that are actually organic.

• Energy Star - A label used for electronics and appliances showing the product will provide energy-saving benefits.

• Green Seal - Used on cleaning products, if it has the green seal, it's an eco-friendly product

• Forest Stewardship Council Logo - This logo is used for eco-friendly wood and paper products.

If the product doesn't have one of these labels, it likely isn't eco-friendly.

Benefits of Eco-Friendly Products

Sometimes, consumers don't buy eco-friendly products due to the cost. They may seem more expensive, but many of these products last longer and offer several benefits over other products, such as:

• Lower Costs

• Sustainable to the World

• Healthier Living

• Better Quality of Life

• Recycled

• Reusable

• Lower Maintenance

• Cost-Savings on Energy Bills

Of course, the main benefit is the ability to save the environment. With the right eco-friendly products, you can move forward with confidence knowing you're not causing any harm to the environment.

Most Common Eco-Friendly Products

There are several common products you can find in an eco-friendly version, such as:

• Appliances

• House Decor

• Grocery Bags

• Toilet Paper

• Clothing

• Toys

• Reusable Moving Boxes

• Cleaning Products

• And More!

When you use products, such as reusable moving boxes, you will help to keep the environment from becoming harmed. Any damage you can avoid to the environment is a good thing. Plus, many of these products are better for your health and provide several other benefits, as well.

If you plan to move soon, make sure your move is eco-friendly with the help of the experts at The Chicago GreenBox. We will help you pack your goods without needing to waste a large number of cardboard boxes.

Three Smart Home Devices to Help You Live More Eco-Friendly

When you want to make a difference, living more eco-friendly is a good start. Trying to find small ways to decrease the impact you cause on the environment helps everybody take a step forward.

Smart home devices have made it easier to live a more eco-friendly existence. You might already go without plastic straws, use your own grocery bags, and skip the disposable water bottles, but there's more you can do for the environment.

With so many smart home devices becoming more affordable and more common, it's now possible to make greener choices at home. Technology may have a negative impact on the planet in some ways, but using less energy through smart devices can help.

Here are three of the best eco-friendly smart home devices you can use to live a greener existence.

Smart Thermostat

The easiest way to make your home more eco-friendly and use less energy is with a smart thermostat. This is by far the best smart home devices for saving energy and living more eco-friendly.

With a smart thermostat, you can save energy by letting it learn your daily habits. It will adjust the temperature accordingly so you're not using energy when it's not necessary.

Imagine if you walked out the door in the morning without changing the thermostat. Then, you come home after a long day of work and your home feels comfortable, but you used energy to heat or cool your home the entire time you were gone.

With a smart thermostat, you won't have to worry about wasting energy to cool or heat your home when you're gone. It will adjust when you're not there to ensure you don't use nearly as much energy as you do with a traditional thermostat.

Energy Efficient Light Bulbs

Did you know as much as 17% of the carbon footprint caused by a home comes from lighting? http://www.apo-tokyo.org/publications/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2012_Sep-Oct_p4-5.pdf

Smart energy-efficient light bulbs give you the ability to reduce your lighting use and your carbon footprint. When lights are on and nobody is home, it's a waste of energy. In addition, using standard light bulbs requires more energy than new, smart LED light bulbs.

With the right energy-efficient light bulbs gives you the ability to turn your lights off from a smartphone app. If you forget, you don't have to wait until you arrive home to stop using energy with your lighting.

Smart Outlet Monitors

Are you wondering which appliances use the most energy? With a smart outlet monitory, you can track the amount of energy used by appliances and other plug-in devices. These plugs will also allow you to turn your appliances off and on with a voice assistant or from a smartphone app.

If you want to reduce your energy usage, finding out how much energy each device uses helps.

These three smart home devices will help you live a more eco-friendly existence. It's important to think about the environment with everything you do from moving with Chicago Green Box to outfitting your home with the right smart home devices.

3 Ways to Support Eco-Friendly Businesses in Chicago

Supporting eco-friendly businesses in Chicago starts with recognizing businesses using eco-friendly practices. Companies such as the ones talked about in this article from Built In Chicago, use eco-friendly practices. Without knowing these companies are working hard to become greener, it's hard to support them.

While the first step in supporting any Chicago eco-friendly business is figuring out which businesses are green, it's also important to understand how to support these businesses. Here are three ways you can make sure you're supporting more eco-friendly businesses in Chicago.

Do your Research First

Before you start shopping for a new product or service, start with a bit of research. Most likely, there are several options for you to choose from when it comes to whatever product or service you desire. However, they won't all be eco-friendly options.

Resources, such as the Illinois Green Business Association may help you find the right eco-friendly business for your needs. IGBA offers a list of certified green businesses in your specific area. They also offer several other resources to help you support eco-friendly businesses in Chicago and throughout Illinois.

Another resource to use is called The Conscious Guide: Chicago. This guide provides a list of many businesses using green practices.

Build a List of Chicago Businesses

As you start looking at ways to support eco-friendly businesses in Chicago, you should start building your own list of businesses using green practices. From stores you go to every week for groceries to the way you get from one place to another, there are eco-friendly options. Supporting these businesses regularly will help the local economy and the environment.

Identify green businesses you can use as an alternative to the mainstream options and build a list for your own reference. As you build this list, consider other products and services you use regularly, which could be provided by an eco-friendly local business.

Be Willing to Sacrifice Convenience

If supporting eco-friendly businesses in Chicago is important to you, it may be necessary to sacrifice some convenience. The perfect eco-friendly grocery store may not be the one closest to your home. However, if the environment is important to you, a little inconvenience to support a green business in Chicago may be worth it.

While Chicago is filled with green businesses, it's also important to go beyond the local businesses. Supporting local and green is great, but when you shop online, make sure to do your research and find the right eco-friendly company online, as well.

Whether you're moving and you want to use Chicago GreenBox because they are an eco-friendly company or you just want to go out to dinner at an eco-friendly restaurant, make sure you're supporting the right business. Going green isn't as hard as it once was for companies and it should be a pre-requisite for your business if you want to support eco-friendly businesses in Chicago.

Use the resources in this article to help find the best green businesses throughout Chicago and start building your own list. A small sacrifice of a little bit of convenience may have you supporting more eco-friendly businesses and feeling like you're doing your part to save our planet.

How to Reduce Food Waste Before a Move

Moving is a rather stressful process and it becomes a bit more stressful when you want to move in the most eco-friendly way possible. However, the right planning can make your eco-friendly move easier and give you a clear conscience at the same time.

One thing you will need to deal with when moving is the food you have leftover. If you want to move in the most eco-friendly way possible, you will need to reduce food waste to as close to zero waste as possible.

There are several ways to make your food waste much less, if not zero. Here are a few things to consider when moving and trying to reduce food waste during the process.

Meal Plan

About a month before moving day will arrive, start planning your meals based on what you own. Obviously, fresh foods won't last an entire month, but you likely have pantry items and frozen items you need to use up.

Start by taking a full inventory of your frozen items and pantry items. Make sure you know what you own a month before moving so you can start planning meals based on the food you already have.

Once you have your inventory list, you can start creating a meal plan to use up what you already own. Choose recipes using the ingredients you have on hand with minimal added ingredients.

Note: Be careful of recipes with ingredients you'll struggle to find in smaller quantities. If you want to make a meal requiring you to buy a new ingredient only sold in amounts higher than you really need, consider other recipes using the same ingredient.

Shop the Bulk Aisles for New Ingredients

After setting your meal plan, you will likely need to hit the grocery store for a few ingredients. However, you don't want to buy huge amounts or you'll just have a new food waste problem on your hands.

Shopping at a store with bulk aisles letting you buy only what you need is a great way to keep from creating new food waste. These stores will allow you to buy a small amount and charge based on the weight of the item, in most circumstances.

Eat the Most Perishable Items First

Moving with fresh and frozen foods isn't fun and will likely create food waste. Even if you have a big cooler filled with ice, frozen foods become a pain to move and they may not stay frozen.

Eat the most perishable items first. Start with anything found in your refrigerator and freezer. These items are most likely to spoil if you try to take them with you.

Some of the food items you can easily move with you include:

• Canned goods

• Sealed boxed goods

• Spices

• Oils, properly sealed and packed

• Condiments not requiring refrigeration

Meats, dairy products, fresh produce, frozen vegetables, fruits, and other fresh items should be eaten before moving.

Non-perishable items can also be donated if you don't want to bother moving them from one home to another.

Share Food with Friends

If you're getting close to moving day and you simply don't have enough days left to eat the 12 steaks in your freezer or the whole turkey you scored after Thanksgiving, it's time to share.

You can ask your friends if they would like any of the food you cannot eat or you can throw a dinner party and cook it up for everybody showing up. Either way, you'll be able to use up food without throwing it out and letting it go to waste.

Use these tips to help reduce your food waste. If you must move with food, make sure you properly pack the items you will be moving and make sure they make it into your new home first, especially if they are perishable items.

How to Properly Dispose of Garage Items During a Move

It's time to move and you forgot about all the things you've collected in the garage. You have cans of paint, varnish, and plenty of other unique chemicals found in half-empty containers.

When you're ready to move, you'll have to clean out the garage and figure out how to deal with these chemicals. It may not be a good idea to add a half-can of paint to your moving truck. It could open and cause a huge mess.

If you need to dispose of your garage items because you're moving, make sure you know the proper way to get rid of these items. Here are some of the things to consider when disposing of paint, varnish, and other garage items.

Disposing of Paint

Paint is the most common garage item needing to be disposed of before you move. Often, when updating rooms or painting doors, you end up with extra, which you might keep in case you need to do a touch-up.

Regardless of why you have five half cans of paint, it needs to go before you move. There are a few steps you want to take and a few options you have for disposal.

If you don't want to waste the paint, you can try to use it up on your walls before you move. Another option is to ask around and see if anybody could use the paint you have. Sometimes, local schools can use paint for art projects or other projects.

Another way to get rid of the paint without disposing of it is to contact your local Habitat for Humanity ReStore. They will usually accept latex paint. FreeCycle.org also offers another option to give away the paint.

Maybe you cannot find anybody to take your paint. If this is the case, you can dispose of the paint.

Start by hardening the paint by letting it dry out. When latex paint is hardened, it takes away some of the hazardous properties. You can dry it out in the sun, add kitty litter or newspaper to speed up the process, or even use a paint hardener to make it easier to throw away.

Make sure to check with your community, but many will allow you to throw out dried up paint with your household trash.

Disposing of Other Hazardous Garage Items

You probably have more than just paint hanging out in your garage. Maybe you have combustible materials, reactive materials, or toxic chemicals you need to get rid of before moving.

Getting rid of anything falling into the category of hazardous waste means you will need to read the labels and research your local county laws. Each county is ab it different and you should search "how to dispose of hazardous waste" + YOUR COUNTY" to find the right way to handle it.

Typically, you will either need to schedule a home pick up or find a drop off location for hazardous waste. Some materials may be recycled. If this is the case, you may be able to request a mail-in recycling kit for your hazardous materials.

It's also possible you can donate any hazardous items to a friend or a local company in need of the item. Depending on the items you need to dispose of, you may be able to take leftovers to businesses or charities in need.

Getting rid of any hazardous garage items is a part of making your move more eco-friendly. If you're looking to move in the most eco-friendly way possible, Chicago Green Box is ready to help with the right reusable moving boxes.

What Can You Expect From A Green Moving Company?

When you move, whether for a new job, for family, or for any other reason, you'll invest plenty of time and money into your move. It's a process as you have to move all your things from point A to point B.

Moving requires fuel, packing supplies, time, money, and other resources. If you want to move in the most eco-friendly way possible, hiring a moving company and renting plastic moving boxes is a good start.

However, you can't just hire any moving company. A green moving company will make your move more eco-friendly, but you need to know what to expect. Not all moving companies are green and some claim to be green but are not as eco-friendly as you might desire.

Here are a few of the things you can expect from a green moving company.

Minimum Cardboard Usage

While cardboard is recyclable, and a very popular choice for moving companies, green moving companies use very little cardboard. Instead, they will likely rent you reusable plastic moving boxes, which means far less cardboard to recycle or throw out after the move.

Packing Supplies Will Be Recyclable

Many of the most common packing supplies cannot be recycled, including clear plastic tape. In addition, most packing supplies are not easy to recycle, which means they end up in the trash most of the time.

Since a green moving company will use plastic moving boxes, there won't be much need for packing tape. In addition, they will likely recommend that you use your soft goods (towels, linens, clothing, etc.) for packing materials before purchasing anything additional.

Any packing materials you do buy will likely be recyclable.

Moving Trucks Will Use Biodiesel

Instead of moving trucks running on diesel, a green moving company will have trucks using biodiesel fuel made from biodegradable, natural sources.

Along with using a better, cleaner fuel in their trucks, a green moving company will also have trucks with battery-powered curbside lifts. These lifts don't require the engine of the truck to idle while the lift is being used. This ensures less fuel is used during the moving process.

Provide Connections to Location Recycling and Donation Sites

When you hire a green moving company, they will likely provide you with a list of places to donate things you don't need or want. They will also know where you can recycle anything you need to recycle from cardboard to old electronics.

Offer Eco-Friendly Storage Facilities

It's not uncommon to need storage during a move. Maybe you're moving from out of state and you need to store some of your things while shopping for a house. You may be living in a smaller apartment or even in a hotel temporarily.

If this is the case, a green moving company will either offer eco-friendly storage facilities or be able to recommend a green facility for you. Green storage facilities take advantage of natural light through skylights and windows. It's also common for these facilities to provide efficient insulation for climate control, along with recyclable and renewable containers for storage.

When it's time to move, you want to make sure you have the right green moving company for your needs. These are just a few of the many things you can expect from a green moving company. Look for these traits and ask plenty of questions before settling on the right moving company for you.