On average we all generate about 4.3 pounds of waste every day according to Duke University’s Center for Sustainability & Commerce and over half of this waste ends up in local landfills. Throwing that amount of trash into landfills is bad for the environment and is a waste of your money especially when there are many cost-effective reusable products that replace costly disposable items. Here are 10 reusable products that get the job done to get you started.
- Use glass food storage containers instead of plastic wrap, aluminum foil or disposable plastic containers. Not only can you reuse glass food storage containers over and over again, glass doesn’t retain food residue or odors like plastic containers do.
- Use reusable coffee filters instead of disposable. You can find a reusable filter for just about any model of coffee maker. You can even purchase a reusable filter if you have a Keurig which is a huge environmental and money saver. If you make one pot of coffee a day, that one filter will replace 365 disposable paper filters.
- Use wool dryer balls instead of fabric softener and dryer sheets. They cut the drying time of clothes, reduce static and they soften your fabrics. You can also add a drop or two of your favorite essential oil to each ball for a light scent.
- Use bamboo paper towel replacements instead of paper towels. My sister recently gave me some Bambooee Reusable Bamboo Towels and they are amazing. They can replace paper towels for any cleaning application. They are softer than paper towels so they work really well for dusting and cleaning mirrors as well. From Bambooee, they are “stronger, more absorbent and more durable than regular paper towels. And they are machine washable up to 100 times.”
- Make your own DIY cleaning products instead of buying commercial products. According to Recycle Nation, “Not only do commercial cleaning products come with a lot of packaging, they are packed with toxic chemicals. If you make your own cleaning products, you know what ingredients are present and you can reuse your containers.”
