Wednesday, March 11, 2009

"Tips that help your wallet, and the planet..."

These are some useful tips for reducing your "ecological tireprint" I found on the environmentnetwork.org website.


Drive Efficiently


-Slow down and save (For every 10km/h over 100km/h fuel efficiency drops by 10%.)


-Easy on the pedal (Jackrabbit starts from one set of lights to the next increases fuel consumption by 37%)


-Smooth sailing (Keeping a steady speed uses less fuel. Accellerate smoothly and avoid hard breaking.)


-Be idle free (10 seconds of idling uses more fuel than restarting your engine.)


-Combine trips (Combining several trips into 1 [like trips to the grocery store, etc.] can cut fuel use and emissions from 20-50%.)


-Travel light (Every additional 100 lbs. increases fuel consumption by 2%.)


-Use a fuel consumption display (You can keep track of instantaneously how many litres per hundred kilometres you are using. If you can adjust your habits, you could reduce consumption by 10%.)


Maintain and Save

-Tire pressure (one under-inflated tire can increase fuel consumption by 4% and reduce the life of the tire by 15 000 km.

-Motor oil (Using worn out oil can increase fuel consumption by 4%.)

-Air Filter (Fuel use can increase by 10% if air filter is clogged.)

-Tune ups (Keeping your car in tune can reduce consumption by up to 15%.)

Drive Less

-Carpool (It saves you money and reduces pollution.)

-Let someone else do the driving (Take transit, you can relax on the way to work and it's cheaper than taking a car.)

-Get active (Choose to bike or walk instead of drive!)

-Telecommute (Work from home - save the drive.)

More tips are available at http://environmentnetwork.org/ecoDriver.htm. It is worth it to take a look! These tips are not only pretty easy, but they'll save you money and cut emissions at the same time. Take it upon yourselves.

No comments:

Post a Comment