Driving Green: Fuel Conservation Techniques

Fuel is one of the most expensive and sought after commodity in our world. We use it for our transportation, for other businesses and for manufacturing companies to name a few. Due to it’s never ending price increase, every person who drives or owns a car need to learn how to conserve his or fuel so they can go on the best road trip ever!

Conservation tips

Properly inflate your tires
Drivers must always remember to check their tires. This is probably one of the cheapest and easiest way to control a person’s fuel intake but it is often overlooked. If a diver will travel with tires that lack air, they will end up burning more fuel to gain more power to move on.

Weight Check
Make it a practice to clean up or de-clutter your car. When they are loaded with too many heavy things, the tendency of most machines will be to bring out more power thus using up more fuel. According to studies, for every 200lbs of weight added to your car, it will trim about one mile off your fuel efficiency.

Buy in Morning
It is probably not a known fact that consumers are charged based on the volume and not the density of what they are buying. This is why they say its best if you purchase gasoline early in the morning when the temperature is cold enough and gasoline will be at its densest.

Idling
Did you know that when your engine is idling for a longer period of time, you are probably consuming gallons of gas but your mileage is zero? That’s probably one of the saddest things ever that you will see on your dashboard! Plus when you are restarting your engine, you are more or less using up the same amount of gasoline when you are idling by for about thirty seconds. So remember, when you are pulling off the road to make a call or text to someone, just do yourself a favor and turn off your engine.

Scheduled Maintenance
Just like any appliance, cars must also be well maintained. If you properly maintain your vehicle’s air filters, you will have better fuel economy. Remember that when your engine’s air supply is clogged up, you will end up with a higher air to fuel ratio. Whenever this happens, your engine will try and make up for it and end up using up more gasoline.

Energy Conscious
Remember those tips about turning off lights and unplugging etc? Well, it also applies to your car. Drivers should always practice energy saving with their vehicles as well. The best example of this would be to turn off your air conditioning if you are not using it. It can reduce 5% to 20% of your gas consumption and drain your engine power if you’re not careful.

Follow the Speed Limit
If a driver adheres to the speed limit and anticipates the traffic flow, he will be able to save up on his fuel. If you keep on traveling at fast speeds you will only end up burning up more fuel. You’re more likely to spend around 15% more of your fuel if you drive at 65mph rather than 55mph.

Plus, if you already anticipate the traffic flow, stops and other road changes, you won’t have to subject your vehicle to jackrabbit stops or starts and consume more fuel. A driver can probably save about 20% of his fuel economy if he chooses to drive smoothly rather than aggressively.
.

Green Energy: Alternative Fuels

With the spark of the green energy in the scientific world, people have gone on to discover alternative fuels. These are the types of energy resources that can replace their more expensive versions like diesel and gasoline. Plus, they are very eco-friendly that more people have taken an interest in them. With their discovery, we can already help the conservation of natural resources that are needed to produce gasoline.

Alternative Fuels

With all our advancement in science and technology, alternative fuels are now readily available to anyone who may want to use it. The most common use for alternative fuels is powering up our cars. Ever since its discovery, numerous cars are already being powered with liquefied petroleum gas, methanol, ethanol, electricity and even compressed natural gas.

The best part about this change is that alternative fuels are way cheaper than their oil based counterparts and you can also travel without sacrificing the mileage of your car. Without the harmful substances or residue that comes with gasoline, alternative fuels are proven to be very clean and will clearly help reduce air pollution.

Alternative fuels can help save the world and pollution can be avoided if we just simply try them out. A basic example is an electric powered car. Without all the harmful chemicals that gasoline produces, there will be lesser chances that air pollution will worsen for every mile that you travel on wheels.

To give you a feel on what our earth eats up while you drive, here are the harmful chemicals or pollutants that are emitted by your car for every mile that you cover - Carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, particulate materials and unburned hydrocarbons. Imagine all of that and multiply it by every single car in the whole world. Can you imagine it now?

With alternative fuels, there will be none of that. With their use, people will be able to minimize all of these pollutants or get rid of all of them completely.

Another good thing about alternative fuels is that its components can be found everywhere, even in your own backyard! Imagine the following items, recycled paper, plant waste, animal feces, used vegetable oil, or old frying oil as power for your vehicles. Isn’t it amazing? Don’t think about stuffing all of this into your gas tank though, everything still has to undergo different procedure to make it useable for your vehicles.

In line with the discovery of alternative fuels, people have also developed specific vehicles that can only run with the designated fuel made for it. The best example for this would be the electric cars. Electric cars no longer need regular fuels or even the alternative choices. Electric cars run on electricity and can be recharged via an outlet. It’s just like charging your cellular phones.

Unfortunately, though, not all good things are perfect. Alternative fuels may be the ideal solution in lessening air pollution but it is also expensive since all the materials have to undergo specific processes. Also, gasoline or diesel can also provide better mileage for your cars since it produces more power. Alternative fuels cannot do that just yet so people will just have to settle with cruising down the street and not zooming by.

Green Energy: What Does It Mean

Green energy is the name that is used to supply, call or classify all the different forms of resources that are eco-friendly and non-polluting. The most common examples are type of power resources the humans have found throughout the years. These samples are the geothermal, win, solar and hydro resources.

A controversial member of this group though is nuclear energy. This power supply already has the two basic requirements to be considered as a green energy source, less pollution and low carbon emissions.

Due to all the controversy and dangers that it possesses though, most of the people do not consider this as a clean source of energy. Nuclear power plants are filled with radioactive materials; waste and their reactors can create or end up in horrible meltdowns.

 Meaning of Green Energy

The most common form of green energy though is the production of energy resources for the whole world. The United Nations (UN) is leading the campaign all throughout the different countries that promotes the use, creation or discovery of green energy. They are urging all the different institutions, businesses, offices or organizations, to switch to more energy saving materials and energy resources and help save mother earth.

They are also promoting the purchase of green power to help fund the research and development programs for renewable energy and, aid in clean-up drives or programs that can help reduce or clean-up all the waste the humans have left with mother earth.

The UN also wants people to know that with renewable energy we can actually have a perpetual supply of power with less or no pollution at all. In support of their cause for a greener earth, UN also distributes green tags of certificates. These will allow various consumers and businesses to be updated on the campaign and show their support to the cause.

Green energy can be associated with renewable sources of energy, alternative solutions, Eco friendly technologies, non-polluting energy and even the source of fossil fuels. Green energy basically stands for energy that was developed from green sources. In contrast to this though, Brown energy is the name given to resources that do not use earth friendly materials or methods.

There is no energy source that has a zero production of pollutants but with the going green suppliers, pollution is kept close to a bare minimum. Resources like the geothermal energy, solar energy, tidal power, wave power fall, small scale hydro power, anaerobic digestion and more are renewable resources of energy that can used for everyday consumption.

In terms of energy efficiency though, people say that renewable resources produce a significantly lower level of power, which is why we have “wind farms” or solar farms. Others say that if you want to create a renewable resource even for your home, you should be prepared to shell out some serious cash. Both of them do have points but what matters is that it is doable and that they are doing the earth a huge favor.

Plus, if you want to save up from your energy bill and win with more rebate points, you should inquire about it at your local government units. Depending on different states, they have 2-3 programs that will help you set your equipment and reimburse you for all your hard work.

The Benefits of Going Green for the Earth and Our Wallets

It is quite obvious that there are plenty of benefits to reap from going green. The first and most important benefits go to the environment. The Earth is the only planet that we live in and it has everything necessary for our survival.

Of course, we want to do everything in our power just so we can continue living in this planet. There may be no further explanation needed why going green can benefit the Earth, but what people do not realize is the extent of this positive impact.

Advantages

Reduced Pollution

Choosing to uphold a green lifestyle helps reduce the amount of pollution distributed to the soil, air and water. By limiting your dependence on fossil fuels and more on alternative energy resources; recycling materials; and reducing waste, there will be fewer pollutants for the environment to take in.

Conservation of Natural Resources

Majority of the world’s source of electricity comes from burning fossil fuels, such as natural gas, coal, and oil. Burning these fuels only emits greenhouse gases, which can have a detrimental effect to the environment. You can cut down emissions by choosing to use alternative energy sources and reducing energy consumption.

Preservation of Different Species

Going green is going pro-life as this lifestyle helps preserve natural habitats of different species of plants and animals. Various plant and animal species are threatened to extinction due to deforestation. If you reduce too much consumption on paper products or support recycling, you can decrease the rate at which these species extinct. In addition, pollution also finds its way to the waters and for that, going green also helps in the preservation of marine life.

Less Waste Production

A green lifestyle encourages people to minimize their consumption and recycle items to help reduce waste production. If you reduce, reuse, and recycle, you are doing something to decrease the amount of waste that ends up in landfills. These waste materials biodegrade, they release carbon dioxide in the process which can harm the environment.

Going Green Also Benefits Your Wallet

Apart from the environmental benefits, going green can also help you save money without you realizing it. Prices of gas could go on a hike but you have the option to take your bike to work or even walk to get to your destination. This not only helps reduce carbon dioxide emissions from cars, but also saves you money on transportation, and at the same time get some exercise.

It has been mentioned in the previous chapter how climate change and global warming can have a detrimental effect on your health. If you put an effort to saving the planet by going green, you are also doing something to minimize the risk of developing health problems brought about by climate change. In turn, this could save you a lot of money from medical expenses.

Developing a New Relationship with Mother Earth

In order for a relationship to work, it should be a matter of give and take. The relationship humans used to have with Mother Earth is all about taking advantage. Since Mother Earth has provided us with just about everything we need, we tend to just take it willingly to the point of abusing the privilege, without realizing the possible negative consequences. For many years, our planet has not ceased to provide us with rich natural resources, but today, the story has come to a twist. There is always an end to everything and it won’t be long before Mother Earth stops giving.

What humans took from the planet, they never gave back, for if they did, things like global warming and climate change would not have happened. However, it is not too late to develop a new relationship with our dear planet. Nothing is ever too late if it is simply for the benefit of the planet we call home. Do what you have to today and reap the benefits later on.

Saving Mother Earth

When our relationship with Mother Earth was once just taking advantage of what we are provided for, the new relationship should now be about giving back to her by saving her. Since people are now aware of the consequences of abusing the natural resources, others have put in their efforts to do something about it.

Fortunately, people have awoken and are starting to take those steps. Since the advent of global warming, different campaigns have been launched to protect the Earth all the more. In addition, the major corporations that were once a major source of pollution are also doing their part to help save our home planet.

Even amidst the raging modern technology, efforts to save the planet have not diminished. In the modern world, people are fond of using electronic gadgets, one after the other, supporting the fad.

While at this point the demand for such goods cannot be controlled, the big corporations are stepping up to at least make up for the energy they consumed to make those products, as well as the electricity required for the product to work. In a more specific sense, take the web hosting industry as an example – it is much needed for businesses and they, too, have decided to go green with their services.

Going Green Choices

Going green does not have to be lavish as installing expensive solar panels or wind turbines to be able to harness renewable energy sources. Although it may involve a change in lifestyle, it does not require you to be someone that you are not. If you cannot afford solar panels, do not push it - you can still do so many things to contribute to the protection of the planet, even in your own little way.

Going green is a choice to make, and a simple one for that matter. Every little thing you contribute to save the planet makes a very big difference. Start small and it can go a long way in developing that new positive relationship with Mother Earth.