Sustainable products that are better for your wallet
A set of laundry dryer balls last about 3 years for roughly the same price as a box of dryer sheets that last 3 months at best.
Sustainable products have a stigma of being less convenient and more expensive. We are living through a shift where sustainable options are catching up to previously common ones and even exceeding them. Here are more examples:
LED lights are slightly more expensive than incandescent bulbs but last much longer. Off-brand smart LED lights aren't always convenient to set up, but bothering to set them to dim and change temperature at a scheduled time is worth the effort and investment.
Powdered dishwasher soap is older than gel dishwasher soap or pods, but they clean just as well and at a fraction of the cost. Powders also come in cardboard containers vs pods or liquid soaps which are packaged in plastic containers.
Reusable grocery bags were popular in the sustainability movement. While it's true that they are better in the long run, you need to use common polypropylene supermarket bags roughly 37 times to reach parity to single use plastic bags. Reusable bags also carry more product than single use. Remember to bring them to the store and it's worth the investment.
Reusable water bottles are more expensive than single use water bottles unless you buy the disposable bottles regularly. Another popular item from the sustainability movement that is cost effective in the long run.
Reusable coffee filters, especially with pods, are cheaper and more sustainable within a month or two of investment.
Concentrated cleaning products reduce the use of plastics and last far longer.
Bar soap is the one of the oldest forms of soap. It's the cheapest, slightly more effective and environmentally friendly soap products available. Liquid and foam soap are packaged in plastic containers and foam isn't as quite as effective at cleaning hands than liquid or bar soaps. In the end, bar soap is the way to go.
Cloth towels were one of my favorite investments for cleaning the kitchen and bathroom. I've been using the same 20 towels for a couple years and saved hundreds of dollars on paper towels. I still use paper towels at times, but I don't purchase them nearly as often as I used to.
Disposables are slowly being replaced with durables. If sustainable options can continue to develop with consumer demands and environmental needs, sustainable design will no longer be a niche market— it will be the norm.
