#184 - The Carpool Lane

Carpooling to Save Gas

Well I am just rollin' with the gasoline saving changes, aren't I? Today I've got a great one -- carpooling! A totally obvious solution to slowing our gas consumption that I've managed to avoid for over six months. But with crude oil prices running over $100 a barrel, I'd say this is a great time to start!

I know, I know, I work from home so where, exactly, would I carpool to? Why, to preschool and the local fish store, of course! My friend, (yes, I have one) Jennifer, and I have decided to start carpooling. For her, it's a way to save some cash, for me a way to save the environment. Both excellent reasons to give it a try!

So, on Mondays - Thursdays, I'll be dropping her son, Conner, off at his preschool, and once a week, we'll head up to the fancy side of town to hit the fish market, crunchy granola store, and coffee shop together to buy us some local seafood. Oh wait, that means we're saving money, saving the environment and having fun running our collective errands -- three great reasons to carpool!

Carpooling is a great way to save resources and money. And if you live in a decent-sized metropolitan area, there's the added bonus of getting to use the HOV lanes. So why not ask around and see if any of your friends or neighbors are up for it? You might be surprised to find that they would like to do it, but feel funny asking. Remember, it never hurts to ask and the worst they can say is "no". Well, I guess the worst they could say is "No you freaky-ass eco-dork, get the hell off my chemically-treated lawn and step away from gas-guzzling Hummer before I call the cops!.... AGAIN" But if they say that, you should really think about whether or not you want to be their friend. And whether it was wise to violate that restraining order.

If you don't have any friends or neighbors to ask, you could always check out a rideshare program like Ridecheck, eRideShare, or google your metro area or state name plus the words "ride share car pool" to find a rideshare program local to your area.


Savings

I'll be saving Jennifer a ten-mile (round trip) drive four mornings per week. Our weekly errand-running savings is a 35 mile (round trip) drive. Together, that's a savings of 75 miles per week. We both drive minivans that average about 20 mpg city driving which gives us a total gasoline savings of 3.75 gallons.

And, at $3.00 a gallon, that equates to a combined dollar savings of $11.25 per week. Sweet.


Difficulty Level: 2 out of 5

The only pain in the ass here will be moving car seats. Other than that, I already drive past Conner's preschool every day so that's no problem. And getting together to run errands is a lot of fun -- much better than going it alone! All in all, this is going to be a fun change to make!

Hmmmmm..... Very Interesting....

Have you joined your local CSA yet? Started planning a Victory Garden? Checked out the local Farmer's Market?

Yeah... based on this article on CNN, you might want to put those things on your to-do list....

#163 - Get My Engine Running

Not Warming Up the Car on Cold Mornings

It's chilly here folks. I know I've turned into a giant, southern candy-ass in the past three years because this 30 degree shit is starting to feel really freakin' COLD!

Now when I lived up in New York, our house was situated about 15 miles due east of Lake Ontario. This put our home smack dab in the middle of the snow belt, where it wasn't unusual to wake up and find three feet of snow had fallen. And we had no garage. And it was bitter, bitter, bitter cold. So warming up the car in winter wasn't a luxury, it was a necessity. You could have an ice pick and flame thrower and it would still take you hours to clear your windshield without the help of the defroster.

But down here? in sunny Virginia? Where it doesn't snow, or sleet, or ice? Warming up the car just keeps your butt from going numb. And so I won't do it anymore.

Now before you old hardcore '69 El Camino restoration freaks drop me a line and tell me how I'm ruining the engine, you should read this article from my two favorite mechanics, Tom and Ray Magliozzi of Car Talk:


With the cold New England winter weather about to swoop down on us, I have a queasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. Why, you ask? Because every winter when my boyfriend and I get into my car, I start it, then I put the car in gear after about 30 seconds and drive off. This drives my boyfriend nuts, and I have to hear about "how bad it is for my car" to put it into Drive before it warms up. He will start his car and sit there for a good five to 10 minutes before he shifts into Drive. My question is this: Am I really doing harm to my car by not letting the engine run for 10 minutes? If not, how can I prove this to him? I found an article in The New York Times a couple of years ago that stated that nothing is gained by sitting in a freezing-cold car while the motor is running before you shift into Drive. He thinks that the reporter at the Times didn't know what he was talking about. But he just might listen to you if you say it's OK. Please help! It's cold here in Boston! -- Lisa


RAY: How do you prove it to him, Lisa? Hand him this column and ask him to read the following aloud:

TOM: Dear Lisa's Boyfriend: You have your head so far up your tailpipe on this one, it may be coming out your air intake.

RAY: How's that, Lisa? Will that do it? You're absolutely right, as is the reporter from The New York Times. On modern, fuel-injected cars -- basically anything made in the past 20 years -- you're not helping the car at all by warming it up for five or 10 minutes.

TOM: On older, carbureted cars, that kind of extended warm-up can actually cause damage to the engine by diluting the oil with excess fuel. So it's even worse if you have a really old heap.

RAY: But with modern cars, all you're doing with a long warm-up is wasting gas, increasing pollution, raising the temperature of the planet and making yourself 10 minutes late for your chiropractic appointment. The proper procedure is to start the car. If it starts and keeps running, put it in Drive and go. Go gently (don't back out of your driveway and floor it right onto a highway entrance ramp), because you'll be warming it up during your first few minutes of driving, but DO drive it.

TOM: If it's bitterly cold out, like 10 or 20 degrees Fahrenheit or lower, you can let it warm up for a minute or two to allow the oil to thin out a bit and circulate completely. But other than that, if it runs, driving it gently is the best way to warm it up.

RAY: So tell your boyfriend he not only needs to get off your case about this, but he needs to stop warming up the car himself.

TOM: AND, to make up for all the misplaced grief he's given you over the years, he needs to start going to bed 10 minutes before you do, to warm up the bed for you on cold winter nights. That's a warm-up activity he can do that's actually useful!


So there. It's good for the environment and not damaging to my car. Now if I can only figure out how to thaw out my butt, I'll be fine.

Savings:

Warming up the car -- what is that -- like a ten minute run? And we've got about 30 days of really cold weather down here. So that's a total of 300 minutes of needless gas consumption. By curbing the urge to heat up, I'll save 3.75 gallons of gas this winter. Now if I could get all the other Virginians to join me, that would be 28.5 MILLION gallons of gas saved. Now that should get your motor running!, er, I mean, not running.



Difficulty Level: 1 out of 5

It's not difficult to do, just a bit chilly. I guess I'll just need to bundle up and wear gloves until it warms up again.

Day 102 - Time for a Change

Getting My Oil Changed When, And Only When, Required

Do you change your oil every three months or 3,000 miles? If you do, you're even more anal than I am. And that's saying a LOT! It's also saying that you're probably changing your oil more than is necessary and wasting resources each time. While having your vehicle in tip-top shape is important to ensure the best possible gas mileage, there is such a thing as too much maintenance.

I am going in tomorrow to get my second oil changed for only the second time this year. Why only twice? (I know what you're thinking -- L A Z Y -- But you'd be wrong! Kind of.) I'm only on my second oil change because my vehicle's manufacturer does not recommend/require an oil change every 3,000 miles. Most cars don't these days.

I have decided that Honda knows more about what its engines can handle than I do and am going to abide by their recommendations for all my maintenance items. I will simply ignore that annoying sticker JiffyLube insists on attaching to my windshield and will instead listen to what Honda tells me. After all, they're not looking to squeeze another $39.95 out of me every quarter.

Savings:

If I followed Jiffy Lube's instructions, I'd be on my fifth oil change. By following my owner's manual instead, I have saved more than 50% of the oil I would otherwise have consumed during that time. Of course, I do still go to Jiffy Lube, since I know they properly dispose of and recycle the oil. They're not entirely evil, afterall.


Difficulty Level: 1 out of 5

Can I start giving some of these negative ratings? Seriously, my car tells me when to get the oil changed, how much easier could it get?

Day Eighty-Four - Where Am I?

Learn World Geography

Every day I learn something new. Some days, all I learn is just how ignorant I am. Like yesterday. And the day before that. And Tuesday. And last week....

One of the things I've always been bad at is world geography. I don't know why. I can put most of the states in their proper places on Ethan's United States Puzzle, but beyond that, I'm an absolute moron. I'm definitely not one of the 3% of Americans who can point to Kobul on a map. But what does any of this have to do with the environment? Lots.

According to American Economic Alert, the 2007 to-date national trade deficit is roughly $540 BILLION. That number increases approximately $60,000,000 per month. Americans buy tons and tons of imported goods every year - literally. I won't get into the effect this has on the economy (but did you check out the fun Jib-Jab cartoon I posted?) because I'm certainly no expert, besides, I'm here to focus on the environmental impact of it all. An article from Environmental Health Perspectives gives the following "standard distribution path" of a toy doll:

A $9.97 doll is made in Asia by low-wage workers under conditions that may
subject them to a myriad of unregulated hazards. This doll is packed with 10,000
others into a container and loaded onto a marine vessel holding 4,000 other
containers carrying dolls, shoes, and electronics. Fueled by low-quality bunker
fuel, the ship leaves one of the world’s largest ports in Asia, chugs across the
Pacific, discharging nitrogen oxides, sulfur oxides, particulates, and other
pollutants into the earth’s environment. Arriving at the Southern California
ports of Los Angeles or Long Beach (where 40% of all U.S. imports arrive), the
container is unloaded by longshore workers, who breathe exhaust from the
idling ship as well as emissions from a row of idling trucks with drivers
waiting for their loads. For the next leg of the trip, the doll may be placed on
a big-rig truck and sent for repackaging to a mega-warehouse 50 miles from the
ports, an area that was formerly all dairy lands that has now given way to
million-square-foot warehouses for consumer goods (drawing thousands of diesel
trucks a day into formerly rural communities). Finally, the doll is trucked to
her destination, a big-box retailer in suburban Chicago. By this time, she has
traveled more than 8,000 miles—on diesel-burning conveyances the whole way.

So you see, just like eating locally grown produce and buying local fish, it's important to buy consumer goods that are produced "locally" as well. Unfortunately, due to the nature of manufacturing, "local" consumer goods won't likely be found in a 100-mile radius. This is where my ignorance of geography becomes important. Case in point:

I had to go to Target a couple weeks ago to pick up some miscellaneous clothing items for the kids, that I wasn't able to find second-hand. (Have I mentioned just how hard Compacting is?!?!). Anyhow, my choices for Ethan's clothing included items made in: India, Egypt, Vietnam, Philippines, China or Indonesia. Now without peeking, which is closest to the US and therefore uses less fuel to get here? Am I the only one who has no idea? In my mind, this is what I came up with:

Anyone who wants to keep their image of me as a semi-intelligent human being, please stop reading here!

• I'm 99% sure India is in the Middle East.
• Egypt is somewhere in the top part of Africa (notice the word "northern" never came to mind...)
• Vietnam is in the Pacific, but not Hawaii-type Pacific, ya know?
• The Philippines, Hmm.... not really sure.. I think they were affected by that tsunami a few years ago... now where was that?
• China is what cartoon characters hit when they dig straight through the earth and come out the other side, so it's the farthest.
• Indonesia sounds a little like "India", but also has an Asian flair, so I'll go with "somewhere between India and Asia"... but I think they also got hit with that tsunami. Where was that damn thing?

Yes, folks, I am really that dumb. Sadly, I bet I'm STILL on par with your Average American in terms of geographical knowledge. So I've come to realize once again, that to make better decisions, I need to be a more knowledgeable consumer. MUCH more knowledgeable.

I know, I know -- I didn't even touch on the fact that I should also learn about each country's environmental laws, whether the employees are treated fairly, the country's stance on the Kyoto Treaty, and all sorts of other things, but my tiny brain can only work on one thing at a time, and honestly, geography actually seems like the least daunting of those tasks.


Savings:

Damn near unquantifiable. I guess that if nothing else, the thought of having to learn all that geography has strengthened my resolve to search for second-hand goods, thereby eliminating the need for thought entirely. :-) And pre-used goods are always a better choice for the environment.


Difficulty Level: 4 out of 5

Again, geography is NOT a strong suit of mine. My first choice will definitely be to buy second-hand so that I don't have to worry about determining the distance to the country of origin. My second choice, as the daughter of a card-carrying AFL-CIO member will, of course, be to look for the MADE IN THE USA tag. Regardless, before I buy anymore consumer goods, I'll pull up Google maps of each continent and see if I can figure out where the hell I am in relation to the rest of the world. And I'll definitely add "Used World Globe" to my Christmas Wish List. :-)

Day Fifty-Three - Idle Chatter

Turn Off the Car When Idling

Here we go again, another post on reducing gas consumption. Sorry to all you folks who use public transportation, but as you know, I don't have that option where I live so I do what I can to conserve gas.

The gas mileage on my minivan averages between 19-25 miles per gallon, depending on how I drive, road conditions, traffic congestion, tire inflation, and many other factors. During an average run around town, the mileage can vary greatly. At no time, though, is it lower than when I am just idling. Sitting there, with the engine running and wheels stopped, my gas mileage drops to zero. zilch. nada.

Now before you start switching off the ignition at every stop sign and traffic light, let me make a safety note here. DO NOT SHUT OFF YOUR ENGINE WHILE IN TRAFFIC! I'm talking about the time spent in the McDonald's drive-thru, at the bank teller window, in line at the drive-up pharmacy or even just "warming up" on a cold winter morning. I don't know about you, but I bet I average about 30 minutes per week, just sitting in the car, going nowhere, with the engine running.


Savings:

According to an article on Edmunds.com, where they tested gas-saving tips, you can save you up to 19% by avoiding excessive idling. Another article published by Hamilton County Environmental Services gave me the math for the following calculations: The cost of idling my minivan for those 30 minutes is equal to 0.078 gallons of gasoline, or a little over 1.75 pounds CO2. In one year of idling, that equates to over four gallons of gas, or 91 pounds of CO2.


Difficulty Level: 2 out of 5

The only reason I didn't give this one a "1 out of 5" is because, after 20 years of idling, I know it's going to be difficult to remember to shut the car off. Like all habits though, it can be changed and I'll be well on my way to saving another 100 or so pounds of CO2 each year. :-) And as Martha Stewart used to say, "That's a very good thing".

Day Fifty-One - The Runaround

Combine Errands and Map Them Out to Save Gas

You may have noticed that I do a lot of posts that relate to saving gas. That's because now that we've switched to wind energy, I'm pretty sure the minivan is the biggest polluter in the household. Fortunately for me, there are a lot of things I can do to improve my gas mileage or, better yet, reduce the miles I drive.

Did you know that your car uses more gas when the engine is cold than when it is warm? According to the Department of Energy, several short trips all begun with a cold start can use twice as much fuel as a single, longer trip that covers the same distance. So I am going to create two "Errand Days" per week when I can get it all done. They will probably be long days, but I'll save lots of miles (and wear and tear) on the van.

As you know, I've got two little ones at home, ages two and four. I'm a WAHM (work-at-home-mom) who manages the household and, therefore, runs all the errands. And believe me, there are a lot of them! There's also kid activities like tumble and dance class, playgroups, preschool and the occasional birthday party. Adding to the stress is that we're still kind of "new" here and I don't always know the quickest route from point A to point B.

Enter my friend, mapquest. When I have errands to run that really take me around town I can hop online and plan out my trip. A tad OCD-ish? You bet. That's why I like it! Anyhow, you can input your starting and ending destination, but then it lets you add other stops to you route. Don't forget to add your home address back in again, so you'll get your total miles, including the trip home from your last errand. Once you've got all your stops keyed in, take a look at the map and see if re-arranging them a bit reduces the miles traveled.


Savings:

You'll be surprised at how shaving off a couple miles here or there and not doubling-back can really add up. I tried it last week when I had errands to run on the other side of town and by just switching the location of a chain store I hit (after all, they're all the same), I saved 6 miles. May not seem like a lot, but multiply that by two errand runs per week and that's 625 miles per year. That's about 25 gallons of gasoline saved, or 475 pounds of CO2.


Difficulty Level: 3 out of 5

Yeah, it doesn't sound it, but this one is a little difficult because it takes some planning, and that means you can't just wake up and head out the door. However, I've found that it's pretty mindless work that can be done on the laptop at night, while drinking a beer and watching tv. And what red-blooded, lazy American doesn't like to do that?

Day Forty-Seven - Start Your Engines!

Stop Driving Like I'm in the Monte Carlo Rally

I'm definitely a "Type A" Personality and nowhere does this shine through more than when I'm behind the wheel. I never realized just how aggressive I was though, until last week when my four year old hollered from the backseat "that light's not gonna get any greener, buddy!" followed immediately by "why you not say that this time, Mommy?". Ahhhh, like little sponges, aren't they?

Well, besides the fact that I am almost always carrying really precious cargo with me, driving like an a$$hole also wastes a ton of gas and increases overall wear and tear on my vehicle, thereby decreasing its life expectancy. And so, in the name of the planet, I hereby vow to be a less aggressive, road-raging driver. Here's how:

1. I will not drive over the speed limit on the highways - For each 5 mph I drive over 60, I lose about 10% in gas mileage.
2. I will not stomp on the gas like a stock car driver shooting off the starting line - This will save about 3% in gas mileage.
3. I will not tailgate and then slam on the brakes to avoid hitting the guy in front of me, just to ensure "no budgers" get in - This will save another 3% in gas mileage.

Savings:

All told, if I drop the NASCAR attitude in lieu of a more Zen approach to driving, I should save about 16% in my gas mileage. Combine this with my properly inflated tires, and, in theory, I should be saving 19% in gas mileage. What confuses me, though, is if I take ALL of the tips I see on the web, it looks like at some point I'll actually be PRODUCING gas, and I don't think that's right. I guess you can't believe everything you read anymore ;-) But I digress. Regardless of the actual percentage, I know that driving like a normal person will save gas and any savings is better than none.

Difficulty Level: 4 out of 5

What can I say? Old habits die hard, my friends. This is one change that is going to take a lot of willpower, meditation and excessive curse words whispered softly enough that the kids can't hear them. Fortunately for me, using the horn does not increase my gas consumption, so I'm still allowed to point out other drivers' mistakes to them. That is how they will learn.

Day Thirty-Eight - All Tired Out

Keeping My Tires Properly Inflated

According to the US Department of Energy, keeping your tires properly inflated can save you up to 3% in gas mileage. Under-inflated tires can lower gas mileage by 0.4 percent for every 1 psi drop in pressure of all four tires. Plus, properly inflated tires are safer and last longer.

I also read a very interesting article written by the Environmental Defense, that said that transportation accounts for 25% of all the energy consumed in North America. The article also stated that 80% of vehicles' tires are underinflated and that if we all just fixed that, we could save more than two million gallons of gas each day!

If you're like me and you don’t know the correct tire pressure for your vehicle, there's several places you can check to find out. Try looking in your owner's manual, on the door of your glove compartment, on the driver’s side door pillar or even on the tires themselves (although that last one gives you the MAXIMUM pressure you should use). At least one of the places should tell you. I checked my vehicle for the proper psi and found it should be at 35 psi, which, according to hubby, is pretty standard for regular passenger vehicles.

Hubby also gave me instruction on how to check my psi and inflate my tires at the local Mobil Station. I wouldn't want to miss anything in translating for you, so if you need instructions, click here to read them at www.ehow.com. Suffice it to say, that it's not that hard to do, but if for whatever reason you're not up to the task, just swing into a full-service station and ask them to do it for you.


Savings:

For me personally, assuming I'm consistently underinflated, I'd be looking at approximately 3/4 of a gallon per week, or about 39 gallons per year. And, since every gallon of gas saved translates to 20 pounds of CO2 kept out of the air, that means I would be saving 780 pounds of CO2. Cool.


Difficulty Level - 2 or 3 out of 5

I'm definitely glad I had help the first time and I'm sure I'll end up hissing and spewing air all over until I get the hang of it, but all in all, a pretty simple thing to do. After all, it's not rocket science, just car science.