Quick Fix for Ironing.

Take a large spray bottle, put 1 capful of liquid fabric softner and fill with water. shake well to mix place your clothing on a hanger, spray the front and back of item and give it a good shake. Let it hang for a few minutes or overnight.

Or While taking a steaming hot shower, leave the item of clothing in the bathroom with you and steam out the wrinkles.

BPA & Recycling Plastic

There has been a lot made of BPA lately. One of the mailing lists I am on, the question was raised if it was safe to heat foods in plastic bags, or did they contain BPA. So I went in search of the answer.

BPA is Bisphenol A. It's an additive to some plastics, and according to Wikipedia, It is an organic compound with two phenol functional groups. It is a difunctional building block of several important plastics and plastic additives. With an annual production of 2–3 million metric tonnes, it is an important monomer in the production of polycarbonate.

Suspected of being hazardous to humans since the 1930s, concerns about the use of bisphenol A in consumer products were regularly reported in the news media in 2008 after several governments issued reports questioning its safety, and some retailers removed products made from it off their shelves. (More can be found on this at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bisphenol_A)

So right now you are probably freaked out going "I'm never going to use anything plastic again!!!" Well don't freak out yet. All Plastics have a recycle number on them. BPA is only in #3 & #7


Plastic Identification Code
Type of plastic polymer Properties
Common Packaging Applications

#1 -- Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET, PETE)
Clarity, strength, toughness, barrier to gas and moisture.
Soft drink, water and salad dressing bottles; peanut butter and jam jars

#2 -- High Density Polyethylene (HDPE)
Stiffness, strength, toughness, resistance to moisture, permeability to gas.
Milk, juice and water bottles; trash and retail bags.

#3 -- Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) (Contains BPA)
Versatility, clarity, ease of blending, strength, toughness.
Juice bottles; cling films; PVC piping

#4 -- Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE)
Ease of processing, strength, toughness, flexibility, ease of sealing, barrier to moisture.
Frozen food bags; squeezable bottles, e.g. honey, mustard; cling films; flexible container lids.

#5 -- Polypropylene (PP)
Strength, toughness, resistance to heat, chemicals, grease and oil, versatile, barrier to moisture.
Reusable microwaveable ware; kitchenware; yogurt containers; margarine tubs; microwaveable disposable take-away containers; disposable cups and plates.

#6 -- Polystyrene (PS)
Versatility, clarity, easily formed
Egg cartons; packing peanuts; disposable cups, plates, trays and cutlery; disposable take-away containers;

#7 -- Other (often polycarbonate or ABS) (Containts BPA)
Dependent on polymers or combination of polymers
Beverage bottles; baby milk bottles; electronic casing.

For more information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_recycling

A useful Site: Urban Homemaker

This is a site that I thought might be useful for people interested in making their own bread. I was asking around about the price of Yeast. Most Typical grocery stores and the small 4-5oz jars anywhere from 5-8 dollars. The packets are even more costly for how much you get. This site has Yeast and some other items that can be used for bread making, including Vital Gluten, which I will talk about later.

http://www.urbanhomemaker.com

Vital Wheat Gluten adds Protein, Increases Volume, Higher Rising baked goods, Improved Shape, Enhanced Flavor, Additional protein, and can Extended Freshness. It is also Dairy Free, Sodium Free, Cholesterol Free, Fat Free Food and is Vegetarian. It is also all natural.

Mailing List

I've also recently started a Mailing List, and welcome people to come join it. It's called Frugal in Chicago, and is hosted on Yahoo Groups.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FrugalInChicago
Feel free to Join. I'm not fully limiting it to Chicago, but it's going to be based off trying to be frugal & green in a large city type area.

Suggestions for Helping your Refridgerator & Freezer Run better

One of the topics that I have come across today is how to help your refrigerator and Freezer(s) run better.

Did you know a Single Refrigerator/Freezer can consume 1/6th of the energy of a typical household? That's more then any other household appliance! (Reference link posted at the end of this blog)

Tips for using your Refrigerator more Efficiently:

Clean & Take care of your Fridge inside & out! Make sure air can circulate around the condenser coils. Leave a space between the wall or cabinets. Keep your refrigerator's coils clean. Brushing or vacuuming the coils can improve efficiency by as much as 30 percent. Regularly defrost manual-defrost models. Frost buildup increases the amount of energy needed to keep the motor running. Check door seals to make sure they are airtight. To test them, close the door on a dollar bill and try to pull it out. If the dollar slides out easily, kiss that dollar away because you're wasting energy and money by letting cold air leak out!

Check the temperature - a fridge that is 10 degrees colder than necessary can use 25 percent more energy. Refrigerators should be kept between 35 and 38 degrees - freezers at 0 degrees Fahrenheit.

A full refrigerator retains cold better than an empty one. If your refrigerator is nearly empty, store water-filled containers inside. Breads and other items you might normally leave out of the fridge also work well. The mass of cold items will enable the refrigerator to recover more quickly after the door has been opened. On the other hand, don't overfill it, since that will interfere with the circulation of cold air inside.

Open the door as little as possible. Get in and out quickly. Label leftovers so you can quickly see what they are. Organize your Fridge/Freezer!

Cool Hot foods before refrigerating or freezing.


http://www.consumerenergycenter.org/home/appliances/refrigerators.html

Storing School Work!

Have Files you want to keep that you can divide by year? Have kids, and you want to save their art projects and school tests, and report cards and other such things?

Well get a couple of the Flat Rate Express/Priority Boxes from the Post Office. One for Each Year/kid. Fill with the paper, and label.

Also for kids, you could have the kids decorate them each year.