Are you looking for ways to reduce your waste? Learning tactics to reduce your waste should be accessible to everyone. Although we sometimes get caught up in the sustainability aesthetic of expensive eco-friendly swaps, there are ways to be eco-friendly for free!
This blog post is all about free ways to reduce your waste.
1. Save your jars
Convert old spaghetti jars into mason jars or cups! Mason jars are a common item in the eco-friendly world for multiple reasons.
Glass is a great material for several reasons it is infidelity recyclable, microwavable, made from sand, and nontoxic!
Here are some ways you can reuse your mason jars:
- Salad dressings
- Ice coffee, smoothies, and other drinks
- Airtight fruit and food storage
- Storage
- Decor
2. Stop buying water bottles
Fact: bottled water is conveniently packaged tap water. Between 25 – 50% of all bottled water is tap water. In fact, Pepsi had to change the label on its Aquafina water bottles to reflect the fact that the water came from a public drinking water source.
Did you know it costs 2,000 times more to drink bottled water than tap water? In addition, bottled water is also less regulated than tap water (source).
Bottled water is not only costly to you, but it also comes at an extreme cost to the environment. Yes, plastic water bottles are recyclable, however, only about 9% of plastic actually gets recycled. A better way to reduce waste is by using a reusable water bottle and filling it up with your own filtered tap water.
3. Use old rags
Instead of paper towels and purchasing towels, use old rags for cleaning and wiping your hands!
Repurposing rags reduces your need to have to buy paper towels or new towels for cleaning/hand drying. You can use old shirts or unwanted towels. If you’re a cloth diaper momma, you can even use old cloth diaper liners for cleaning up spills! As you can imagine, they’re incredibly absorbent.
4. Eliminate aluminum foil and plastic wrap
While incredibly convenient, I’ve found that I don’t actually need aluminum foil and plastic wrap. Plastic wrap (used or not) is not recyclable in your curbside bin and aluminum foil is not recyclable unless it is clean and completely free of residue.
These two items were some of the first things my husband and I stopped buying to reduce our waste. I can honestly say, I don’t miss it!
5. Bring out the good dishes
I know we’re all incredibly busy, but using regular dishes instead of single-use dishes make an incredible difference in our waste stream. The kitchen is the heart of the home. If we can reduce our waste in the kitchen, we can make a huge positive impact on the environment.
Single-use plates are often made of toxic materials that do not easily biodegrade. Instead, use those “good dishes” you only use for special occasions. The best part is you most likely already have them in your home so it’s no additional cost to you!
6. Avoid the freebies
I know this may be a hard one for some people, but to reduce waste, say no to those freebies.
This means avoid those flyers from solicitors at the grocery store, walk past those tables with the free handouts, and say no to the free “gifts” you know you don’t need.
A few weeks ago I decluttered our kitchen cabinets and discovered 12 reusable water bottles. Seriously…who needs that many reusable water bottles? About half of those reusable water bottles were freebies given out at our gym or community events.
We have to avoid the idea of “more is better”. Just because it is free doesn’t mean it belongs in your home.
7. Recycle
Over time recycling has become an overused buzzword. However, if done correctly, there is still value in recycling. Every city around the country has different rules for recycling. Outside of the United States, the rules are even more different.
To make sure you’re following the guidelines of the place you live, try sticking to the basics: paper, aluminum, and glass. As long as they are clean, they are almost always recyclable.
8. Take care of your items
When we treat our items carelessly there is a tendency for them to become damaged and break resulting in us having to throw them away and replace them. Instead, take care of the items you do have to make it less likely that you have to replace them as quickly.
9. Shop sustainably for school supplies
Also, consider which items can be used from the previous year. This blog post is all about sustainable items for the school year that can help you reduce your waste and support sustainable businesses.
10. Stop buying disposable “zip-loc” bags
If you’ve never heard of Stasher reusable bags, you’ll want to check them out. Once you build up your stockpile, you’ll never need to buy disposable “zip-loc” bags again.
11. Properly donate or dispose of electronics
Don’t crowd the landfill with harmful metals and toxins from electronics. Instead, make sure to donate or recycle electronics properly. This will not only help to reduce your waste, but hopefully be able to r
12. Fill up your dishwasher completely before you run it
Make sure you’ve filled up the dishwasher before pressing the start button to save on water waste. Instead of constantly running your dishwasher with just a few dishes, fill it up.
In addition, did you know it is more environmentally friendly to use a dishwasher than to handwashing? The reason is because of consistency and energy efficiency. With a dishwasher, you’re using the same amount of soap and water each time. In addition, most modern dishwashers have energy and water saving features which will help you reduce your waste!
13. Compost food scraps
Using a compost bin will help to reduce food waste. In turn, you’ll also receive healthy compost that will nourish your garden.
14. Unplug devices
Eliminate vampire (or phantom) energy by turning off appliances when not in use to save electricity. Even when you’re turned an appliance off or it is not connected, if the plug is still in the electrical socket, it is still pulling energy – wasting electricity and costing your money.
15. Hang your clothes to dry
Skip the dryer and let your clothes air dry. Even if you don’t want to hang dry all your clothes, hang drying delicates and jeans are definitely an energy and cost saver! In addition, this will help your clothes last longer too, meaning you won’t have to repurchase clothing as often.
16. Host swaps
Hosting swaps is one of my favorite things to do. Instead of simply donating, make sure items go to a new loving owner and get some “new to you” times in exchange.
17. Collect rainwater
This is on my New Year goals list! I’m so excited to get a rain barrel to collect rainwater to use for irrigation. This not only saves the cost of water, this also helps you water your plans and clean outdoor areas. If you’re looking to implement this concept with no cost, simply place buckets outside to collect rainwater.
18. Go the library
I’ve become a bit of a book snob lately, instead of constantly buying new books, I’ve started to utilize my local library! I can get boos for free and the deadline of having to return them motivates me to read them quickly instead of leaving them to collect dust in my home. I’ve even been using our library Libby app on my phone which is a way I can access my books all the time!
19. Print front to back
If you have a have a printer, print on both sides. This will cut your paper usage in half. As a homeschool mom, I try my best to reduce my paper waste by printing on both sides as often as possible. This is a great practice to introduce at work as well!
20. Shorten your showers
Don’t get me wrong, I love a good everything shower as much as the next person, but that doesn’t mean every shower has to be 20-30 minutes long. Reduce water waste by limiting your shower time.
21. Learn about sustainability
It costs nothing to read more blog posts, follow me on Instagram, and stay turned into what is going on in our world. Watch videos, read articles, or even listen to podcasts to keep yourself informed.
Related Post: The Best Sustainable Living Books You Need To Read Right Now
I hope you enjoyed this post with these free ideas to reduce your waste!
Have you been working to reduce your waste? What are some free ways you reduce your waste?
Related Posts:
This blog is amazing, I’m glad I gave it a read. I honestly can’t wait to see what’s next.
Derrick,
Thank you so much! I’m so glad you found it helpful. I make new posts every week!