Go Eco in the Office and Save Money for your Business

The recent inkjet printing scandal involving a Sinn Fein TD in Dail Eireann illustrated perfectly how careless people can be when using office equipment and materials. The whole “sure it’s not coming out of my pocket” attitude often takes over from common sense.

Having a green office policy in your business could potentially save thousands of euro every year but you will have to get all the staff involved and keep reinforcing the green message until their eco actions become second nature to them.

So how can we do our bit to save the planet in the office and save money for your business in the process?

Eco Office Lighting Tips

If they don’t need to be on turn them off. There is nothing worse than walking past large

Solar and USB Charged Table Light

office complex building at night-time and seeing all the lights on when you know perfectly well bar some security personal there is nobody home.

Change over to LED bulbs which are up to 20 times more efficient that your traditional light bulbs and will thus reduce your energy bill significantly.

Why not go a step further and use an Office Table Light which can be powered by daylight or through the included USB plug in facility. Simply plug into your computer and charge the light as you type!

Office Waste Management Tips

Unfortunately you can’t ask all the employees to bring home all the waste they create everyday but you can take some steps to reduce it.

Installing and ensuring that staff use Shredders in the office is a great way of protecting sensitive company information from getting into the wrong hands. It will also allow you to compact your paper waste more effectively and potentially reduce your waste charges.

Eco Stapler

Go a step further on the compacting end of things by using a Bin Thrasher which will help you to fit about 40% more waste in your bins.

Research carried out by UK company Wasteonline suggests that if all UK based office workers used one less staple a day 72 tonnes of metal would be saved every year. When you only need to staple two or three pages together try using an eco stapler.

Office Heating Tips

Leitrim Customers Far Infrared Panel Installed

With energy prices at a record high reducing your office heating bills has never been more important.  Far Infrared heating panels not only provide a healthier heating option than your traditional heating systems it could also help you to reduce your energy bills by up to 82%. As the far-infrared heating panels are ideally placed on the ceiling it can also help you to optimise your office space as you will no longer have heaters hanging off walls and taking up space. Also no more tripping over fan heater cables.

If you are not in a position to replace the existing heating system you can still take small steps to help you conserve energy such as placing Radiator Reflector Panels behind your radiators. This will prevent heat from being lost through walls and ultimately mean that your room will heat up 40% faster.

Radiator Booster fan for gas heating

If you got a gas heating system you could always install Radiator Booster fans on your top of your rads so that the heat is better distributed throughout the house.

If you are sick of constantly bleeding your radiators but want to ensure that they are working efficiently at all times consider installing Automatic Radiator Bleeding valves.

If you are in an old style office with unused fireplaces ensure to draught proof the room by installing a chimney balloon.

Saving Water at Work

Flush Wiser helps save water in toilet

In the office toilets install flush wisers or toilet tummys to help conserve water. Older toilet cisterns use up to 12 litres of water every-time you flush when 6 litres is more than enough.

By installing an autosave flushing control system on toilet urinals you can reduce the amount of water used by up to 80%. The flushing control has a built in infrared PIR sensor which detects when a person is in the toilet area and initiates a cistern fill and flush cycle. The return on investment from installing this system is about 6 to 12 months and thus well worthwhile.

You can also save thousands of litres of water a year by installing tap aerators in all the sinks in the building. These restrict the amount of water that come from the tap without compromising the water pressure.

If your are lucky enough to have a green area outside your office consider installing Water Butts on the downpipes of the building so the gardener doesn’t have to use mains water to feed the plants.

Office Cleaning Products

Go truly green in the office by using eco cleaning products which are made from natural plant extracts and have been certified by the Vegan Society. A wide range of products are available in this area including Eco Washing Up Liquid, Eco Dishwasher Tablets, Eco Multi-Surface Cleaner and even an Eco Toilet Cleaner. Buy these products in bulk and they cost no more than traditional cleaning products.

The Inkjet Scandal Solution

E-Letters more economical way to communicate with customers

So back to where the inspiration for this blog post came from! Instead of wasting all that paper, ink and petrol getting your message to your customers or clients send them an email. Stay in touch with them regularly by sending a monthly newsletter via email. Use a system like mailchimp which will allow people to unsubscribe if they so wish. Remember its 2012 and the vast majority of people have an email address. Incidentally more and more people also have a sign outside their front door saying NO JUNK MAIL!

Sign Up for the Purchase.ie Monthly Newsletter here (No paper, ink or petrol used in its creation or delivery)

If you got any eco office tips which can help businesses to save money please share them by adding a comment in the field below.

Eco Garden Tips

St Paddys Weekend usually marks the beginning of the gardening season in Ireland and thankfully the good weather helped make it a great weekend to get started in 2012.

I visited the wonderful Ballyseede Garden Centre in Tralee over the course of the weekend and it was buzzing with loads of people looking forward to the summer season ahead.

Not that I’m ancient or anything but in my younger days in Kerry, St Patrick’s Day usually meant the beginning of the potato setting season. I fondly remember warming my hands and drinking tea from old glass bottles of Nash’s Red Lemonade whilst chewing on a nice ham sandwich midways through a tough day setting spuds.

So how can we garden in a more eco friendly manner and save ourselves some money in the process? Below I have outlined some green gardening tips to help you along your way.

1: Conserve Water.

Did you know that on rain free summer days in Ireland it is estimated that up to 50% of all mains water used is put towards watering the garden?

With water rates eminent it is vital that we change our attitudes towards this carefree use of water. Installing a Water Butt Kit in your garden will allow you to collect rainwater from the down-pipes of your house. This water contains more nutrients than tap water and is better for your plants and garden grass.
What sometimes puts people off Water Butts is that they dread having to revert to using the watering can having spent many hose happy years gardening. There is a solution to this in a Solar Powered Water Butt Pump. Not only is this eco friendly in so far as it doesn’t require any mains power but it is also powerful enough to wash the windows, clean the paths and patio and even wash the car.

There is also a Fully Submersible Water Butt Pump available which is battery powered and can even be used to clean out the fish tank.

It is also important to move over to water saving hose nozzle when gardening. These nozzles are aerated. This essentially means that only half the water comes out when compared to a standard hose nozzle but it comes out at twice the pressure meaning that it essentially has the same spray power. The water saving hose nozzle has seven different spray patterns from mist (great for seedlings) to full spray (great for washing the car)

Finally on the water conservation topic use a moisture meter to help you prevent over-watering your garden plants. Simply insert your meter to the roots of the plant and water until it reaches the moist level.

2: Eco Weed Control

You can help to prevent weed growth by shredding untreated wood and leaf waste around the garden and converting them into chips for your garden beds. If you do need to use a weed killer please use an organic type. Why not go a step further with Irish Organic Weed killer. This is available in either a concentrate or ready to use formula. This non-selective weed killer is the safest to use if children or animals such as cats and dogs are likely to be in the vicinity. You will also be supporting Irish innovation in the green sector of course.

3: Solar Garden Lighting

As the quality of solar garden lighting continues to improve there really is no excuse  anymore to use mains powered outdoor lighting in your garden.
Stainless steel solar garden lights provide up to 20 hours of light when fully charged and come complete with a ground stake so they can be easily installed in your garden.

If you are looking for a strong outdoor light for your garden do consider the remote control operated Astron Solar Floodlight. Unlike the regular motion detected outdoor solar floodlights the Astron can stay on constantly for up to 12 hours a night and best of all it won’t add a cent to your electricity bill.

Sun Jars are a wonderful solution if you are looking for a colourful decorative feature in your garden. Available in traditional Yellow, Blue or Pink the Sun Jars are powered by natural daylight and again won’t add to your energy bill.

We have also recently added Solar Garden Globes to our product range. These are available in four colours and made from hand blown glass. Definitely a colourful feature which will help your garden stand out in the neighbourhood.

Other Green Garden Tips

Ideally and especially if you have got a small garden you should consider reverting back to the old style motor-less push lawn-mover. No fuel costs and the added little exercise is completely free! If you do continue to use the motor based lawnmower do remember to take simple steps like using a funnel when refilling the tank.

Don’t bag grass clipping instead allow them to return nutrients to the soil rather than take up landfill space.

When you get your spring clean in motion this year and the paths and patio finally get a dust down consider using the chemical free Irish Organic path and patio cleaner.

Got any good eco garden tips? Please let us know by adding your tips in the comment field below.

You don't have to paint it green to go green!

Eco Kitchen Tips

By going green in the kitchen one will not only be living in a more sustainable way but they will also probably be saving money. It is not very difficult to move over to a more environmentally friendly kitchen. Below please read some eco kitchen tips.

Washing Up and Cleaning in the Kitchen

Many people waste thousands of litres of water every year by pre-rinsing pots, plates and pans before putting them in the dishwasher or cleaning them fully in the sink. If you scrape off dinner remains using a dish squeegee you can help conserve water and the power consumption needed to heat the water you used.

Go a step further on the water saving by installing aerators on your taps which reduce the amount of water that comes from your taps without compromising the water pressure.

If you got a dishwasher use Eco dishwasher tablets with have a wonderful lemon fresh scent and also use Magno balls which crystallises limescale particles in the water preventing them from clogging up the heating elements in the pipes of your dishwasher.

If you do all your washing up in the sink move over to Eco washing up liquid.

Eco Dishwasher Tablets

Use a Multi-Surface Cleaner made from natural plant extracts to clean your kitchen tables and floors.

Managing your kitchen waste

Always ensure to separate your food waste, paper waste and glass properly before disposing of it. You can use a Loofen Food Waste Dehydrator to treat your food waste before putting it in the bin or composting it. A Loofen will reduce the weight of your food waste by 80% and the volume by 70% whilst also eliminating bad odours from your kitchen.

Loofen

Compact your waste by using a Bintrasher which will help stop the dog or cat from decorating your driveway with your waste.

Using your Refrigerator

By turning off the automatic ice-maker you can reduce energy consumption by up to 20%. Avoid storing stuff on top of the refrigerator such as cereal boxes as it can block heat from escaping and force the machine to work harder and consume more energy. Remember that the correct temperature for your fridge is about 2.8°C and the freezer is -17.8°C if you have set it any lower than this your are unnecessarily wasting energy. Use a fridge thermometer to keep this issue in check.

Heating and Lighting your Kitchen

Reduce the heating costs in your kitchen by opening the oven after cooking to allow it to

Far Infrared Plates

heat the room. This will also allow the fan of the oven to switch off quicker and save energy.

Also consider installing Far Infrared Heating Plates in your kitchen which are significantly more energy efficient that conventional heating methods.

Also consider moving over to LED Bulbs to light your kitchens. These are 20 times more energy efficient that your traditional bulbs.

Using Your Kettle 

Optimise the performance of your kettle by regularly cleaning the limescale. You can use a

Eco Kettle

tailor made product such as the Kettle and Iron Descaler. If you are in the market for a new kettle consider buying an Eco Kettle which has two separate water chambers. You can fill the kettle to the brim but just release what you require into the boiling chamber when you fancy a cuppa.

Kitchen Entertainment

When cooking or cleaning in the kitchen it is always nice to have the radio going on in the background to take your mind off the daily grind. Instead of using a plug in or battery operated radio why not move over to a Mini-Eco- Radio which is solar and wind-up powered.

Have an Eco Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day is nearly upon us again. What is Valentine’s about for you? Is it about overpriced chocolates, overpriced restaurants and over-sized cards ? Read on to find out how to celebrate this occasion in a more ethical fashion.

If you fancy a eco-weekend away in Ireland the Eco Award winning Glenribbeen Lodge in Co Waterford might be just for you. Based in a nice tranquil setting between Lismore and Cappaquinn you can relax and meditate by the fish pond and even pick your own fresh warm eggs for your breakfast.

A simple way to show your love that won’t cost you an arm and a leg is to go on a nice romantic walk. The Kells Girley Bog Eco Walk is a wonderful 3.5 Mile walk through forest and bog. Over the course of this walk you are bound to see a wonderful array of birdlife, plant and animal life.

Instead of buying those overpriced chocolates why not make your own organic chocolates with this Chocolate Making Kit. The kit holds everything you need to create your own decadent and delicious chocolate using simple instructions and magic ingredients.

Instead of buying those overpriced bouquets of roses which your loved one will watch die in front of their eyes why not consider handmade Fairtrade Felt Flowers. Available in Parma Violet, Passionate Pink and Tempting Turquoise.

Go with a Plantable Valentines Card this year made from recycled paper and embedded with high-grade, pure North American wildflower seeds

Finally tell your loved one that they “light up your life” with a cute Sun-Jar. Available in Yellow, Blue and Pink the Sunjar will make for a lovely candle alternative if you decide to have a romantic night in.

Tell us your top Eco Valentines Tips for a chance to Win a €50 Shopping Voucher from Purchase.ie – Ireland’s Favourite Online Eco-store.

Winner Announced Valentine’s Day!