a lot of our animals, plants and sealife are dying. There has to be an explanation for this and hopefully a solution can be found.

They have been dying out since the first life formed.  That is neither bad nor good. It is nature.  And until we understand the how and why, doing something may be more harmful than doing nothing.

I think that everyone should do what they can to reduce waste as it's just a good idea regardless of whether the global warming thing is man-made or a natural thing (I lean toward the latter).

I do pretty much everything on the list. I carry my own mug for coffee to avoid using disposable cups. I use the compact florescent bulbs. I will often just carry a backpack to the store so I don't need the plastic bags. I buy paper towels and toilet paper made from recycled paper.

As for the water heater thing, a far better thing to do would be to replace the outdated water heater tank with a tankless heater. They only heat the water when you actually need it instead of wasting energy and money keeping water hot in a tank 24/7. I plan on installing one myself in the near future.

They are also very expensive (although they pay for themselves in the long run). A far cheaper method of conserving is to create a basic solar water heater (which we intend to do once we can fence our yard). In many areas, it would only work to preheat the water and you'd still need a water heater, but around here, in the summer it should work fine.

What you do is take a water heater tank and paint it black (after moving all the insulation, etc). You then create a wooden box around the tank and line it with reflective material (many plans suggest aluminum foil, but I'm thinking seriously of cutting cans just because of the eco-"coolness" factor of it). You place a glass or plexiglass cover over the frame.

I'm also working on a solar powered swamp cooler (looking for parts). This should also be a simple project. A swamp cooler is basically a "squirrel cage" (a type of fan), a pump, a motor and pulley, pads, and water lines (including the "spider" up top). The only electrically powered parts are the pump and the motor. Both of these items have DC powered units easily available. The plan, then, is to get a DC powered pump and motor, a deep cycle marine battery, and either one or a few small "trickle" type solar panels, such as the ones used to recharge a car battery (the number will depend on the calculated load). I can mount the swamp cooler on the south side of the house, so I should be able to mount the panels on the swamp cooler itself rather than the roof.

You may have rust problems with that around the point where you cut the cans. Maybe coat the ends in reflective paint? The glass might not be enough to protect your tin from moisture.

True the initial expense is higher than a tank heater, the savings will indeed pay off over the life of the unit.

Solar systems are quite good as long as you live in an area with abundant sunlight and it doesn't get too cold in the Winter. You also need the space which can be a problem for many people, especially those living in apartments. I do like the idea though.

We used a swamp cooler when we lived in Nevada, but they're useless in Florida where the humidity is so high.

I was thinking aluminum cans, but your comment got me thinking, maybe tin cans would be cooler, because we can recycle aluminum already but not tin.

Wow, this is all very interesting! Glad you guys are doing what you can!

Let me correct that. We can recycle them, we just get nothing back off of them. And since we have to haul them 15 miles to recycle them vs. dumping them, it would make sense to re-use when we can.

Serenity,

We do a lot of these things already. The biggest issue on this list, as far as I'm concerned, is number 10. There are still people who don't recycle their household waste. In most parts of Australia, there are good recycling programs and these programs have been in place for years now. This includes different bins for different waste materials (glass, plastics, containers, paper and green waster). It is annoying to see people simply too lazy to bother putting their waste into the right part of the bin.

The other big one that gets to me is irresponsible smokers who simply throw their butts onto the footpath or into the gutter. These butts end up washing into water catchments or out to sea.

There are still people who don't recycle their household waste. In most parts of Australia, there are good recycling programs and these programs have been in place for years now. This includes different bins for different waste materials (glass, plastics, containers, paper and green waster). It is annoying to see people simply too lazy to bother putting their waste into the right part of the bin.

This is true of places in my area as well!

The other big one that gets to me is irresponsible smokers who simply throw their butts onto the footpath or into the gutter. These butts end up washing into water catchments or out to sea.

Good point! My hubby smokes outside our home when he wants to light up and I make sure to remind him to toss the butt in the trash, not on the grass or in the lake.

I've yet to see where they are pratical. I've replaced many bulbs in my house and my experience is this:

The light quality doesn't measure up. The light from CLF bulbs is mediocre for a max of two months then the light begins to fade drastically. I installed them a year ago in the storage area of my basement where they are not normally on all the time. The light is now insufficient for me to look for stuff. They are not practical in areas where one does any reading, or in a bedroom or bathroom where women put on makeup.

The life of the bulbs is nowhere near what the package claims. My husband went through and wrote the install date on each base. We're lucky if they last two years. My understanding is that the more they are switched on and off the sooner they go bad. Thus not very practical in bathrooms, bedrooms, hallways, etc..

Add to this the problem of disposal - because they do contain mercury. I don't have a recycling program for them around here so they end up in the trash.