I recently came across an article on Mother Nature Network that discussed things our grandparents did that we all could take a lesson from, especially the ones that helped conserve personal and natural resources. It got me thinking about things my grandparents (and parents for that matter) did that I really need to rediscover and recommit to.
When you think about it, our parent and grandparents did many “eco-friendly” things long before we knew our ecosystem even needed a friend! Just one more example of “everything old becomes new again.”
17 Eco-Friendly Things Our Grandparents Used to Do
1. Dried Clothes on a Clothesline
Clothes dryers have come a long way in energy efficiency over recent years, but the average dryer is still an energy hog. According to a recent Wall Street Journal article, “the biggest way to cut the environmental impact of cleaning clothes is to stop using a clothes dryer.”
Clothes last longer when they are consistently air dried, and on top of that, is there anything better than sheets and pillowcases hung in the sun to dry? I rest my case.
2. Grew Their Own Food
Not only is there an incredible sense of accomplishment in growing your own fruits and vegetables, but you can also avoid pesticides and control the types of seeds and transplants that you sow and grow, like heirloom varieties. My grandparents ALWAYS grew their own food—all you need to do it is soil, water, and sun!
3. Preserved Their Own Food
Canning the food you grow in your garden is a great way to preserve them without having to invest in an enormous freezer. I would love to have a “root cellar” full of home-canned goods like my grandmother did. Very little food was wasted back then, and if people today preserved even a fraction of the food our parents and grandparents did, there would be a lot less food going to waste today.
4. Collected Rainwater
A rain barrel will save most homeowners about 1,300 gallons of water during the peak summer months. And diverting water from storm drains can alleviate stressed water systems and conserve limited resources, especially if you live in an arid climate like I do.
Note: Several states have rainwater collection laws, including Colorado, Illinois, Arizona, Ohio, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas, Rhode Island, Utah, Washington, and Virginia. Most states’ laws outline allowable methods for collecting and using rainwater, while prohibiting people from “diverting water” in large quantities or selling rainwater without proper treatment.
5. Cooked at Home
Nothing beats a home-cooked meal, and preparing your own food is good for the environment and your wallet alike. Home cooking typically uses fewer packaged ingredients, which conserves resources like paper and plastic.
And if you buy those ingredients from local farmers or grow your own, you’ll make an even bigger impact on the environment by significantly reducing the number of miles your food has to travel to get to your plate.
6. Saved Eating Out for Special Occasions
In the modern era, it’s not uncommon for people to eat out several times each week, but for our grandparents, eating out was saved for special occasions. Even fast food, which wasn’t as common back then, was considered a treat. (I remember my parents used to pack food for our road trips, and we’d stop to eat our meals at roadside picnic tables.)
7. Entertained at Home
Today we spend plenty of time and money on going out. Our grandparents spent more time outdoors during the day, and in the evenings were devoted to board games, reading, and other hobbies. Going to the movies or to a concert was considered a rare luxury.
By finding more free activities to do and family activities you can do at home, you can save a lot of money and get more quality time with the people you love!
8. Drank Water from the Tap
When our grandparents were thirsty, they got their water from the tap instead a plastic bottle shipped from who knows where. Bottled water would have seemed a ridiculous notion 100 years ago, but today it’s everywhere you go.
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9. “Brown Bagged” It
When grandpa or grandma went to work, they brought a packed lunch from home, and it’s still a great way to reduce food waste and conserve resources! Fast food and fast casual restaurants often serve meals in single-use packaging that ends up in a landfill. With little effort, taking lunch to work can be easy, inexpensive, healthy, and green.
10. Played More Games
Hopscotch, red light/green light, jacks, hide and seek, roller skating, tag—the list of outdoor games goes on and on. Being outdoors helps children connect with nature and the environment around them, and outdoor play develops disposition for the outdoors, for physical activity, and for care of the environment.
11. Bought Less
Our grandparents didn’t buy nearly as many new things as we do today. If something had a hole in it, it wasn’t thrown out–it was patched or mended. Christmas and birthday gifts were often homemade, and things were frequently handed down from child to child. These practices not only saved money, but they were eco-friendly too.
12. Spent More Time Outdoors
In our grandparents’ day, being indoors meant you were grounded or sick. The outdoors was everyone’s playground from dawn ‘til dusk! Especially in the age of smartphones and tablets, spending time in nature is a great way for everyone in your family to take a break from screens.
13. Cultivated Community
Before Facebook, texting, and email, Grandma and Grandpa just talked to people face to face. Research shows that connecting with people around you makes you healthier and boosts your lifespan and gathering on front porches creates a feeling of community and family.
14. Used Home Remedies
Many of us have been taught home remedies that have been passed down from generation to generation. Learn how to combat a cold with garlic, ginger, and onions, or soothe a bug bite with lavender essential oil or a plantain poultice.
15. Made Their Own Cleaning Products
Our grandparents used basic cleaning agents to keep their homes clean, and they still work just as well today. In fact, baking soda, vinegar, lemon, castile soap, and essential oils can cover most of your cleaning needs.
16. Used Public Transportation, Rode Bikes, and Walked
It was common for many of our grandparents to walk or bike to and from work, and more people used public transportation because they didn’t have a car to drive. People took the bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked, and if we drove less today, we could save money and help the environment.
17. Recycled
Our grandparents may not have had a recycling center in town, but they knew how to make something into something else. Dresses became quilts, and milk bottles and soft drink bottles were returned to the store to be washed, sterilized, and reused. Everything had a secondary use and nothing was thrown away until it simply couldn’t be reused again.
Did you pick up any environmentally friendly habits from your parents or grandparents?
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Because of my dad, I grew up always having to take a shower with a bucket or plastic gallon milk containers in the shower stall with me. This was used to collect the cold water when turning the shower on while waiting for it to get hot. The water was then used for the plants he grew.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I do that when I draw water to wash my dishes (I don’t have a dishwasher). I hate to waste all that water while waiting for the hot water to arrive at my sink. I use the collected water to water plants or add to my washing machine when I do a load of laundry.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Forgive me, this is not meant to sound rude in anyway. The shower water saving idea I get. The sink one I don’t.
Don’t you have to temper your water anyway so that your water isn’t too hot for your hands to begin with. We have our hot water tank set at 120F. When doing dishes, I run just the hot water. The cold water in the lines tempers the water just enough that it is bearable for my hands. No water wasted.
Just a thought.
Now THAT makes sense to collect the water that comes out before it’s shower temperature! Good way to have plant water on days you can’t collect rainwater.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.i looove clothes fresh off the line. unfortunately, husband and kids have pretty serious allergies (eyes, skin, breathing) and i have to stick with a clothes dryer. =( have to attempt a few more on this list. i come from a long line of cityfolk so a lot of these practices haven’t been a part of my family’s traditions.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Allergies over here, too. I would much prefer to skip the clothes dryer, but most of the year, my allergies just can’t handle it.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Same here. I am allergic to cottonwood big time as are some of my kids. What do I have in the yard? 7 cottonwood trees.
Love your post!! I do most of these things and glad that my kids follow along too. My 22yr old just put in his clothes line posts at his house this summer and have a drying rack for use in the winter. He brings in his recycle over to put into our bin.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I recently put together my second queen size quilt made from recycled denim from my family. I would keep all of the jeans that were too beat up to donate or sell. The first quilt is made from 3 3/4 in squares and the other is make from 6 in squares. I made my clothes pin bags from some of the left over denim and used some scraps to patch oldest sons work pants.
Both sons, husband and myself take our lunches to work, daughter eats at home between classes and work.
Another thing we like to do is buy used, garage/yard sales and thrift stores are great. My 25yr old son bought jeans for work at a thrift store.
I just don’t understand people who are quick to throw away useful things and replace with new.
I like the people that get rid of/donate and buy new…more goodies for me!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.We have our own garden, use a clothes line, preserve our food and other stuff that is listed. However in the state of Colorado it is illegal to collect rain water unless you live somewhere that has no access to public water or a well.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Great post! We do some of these things but not enough of them. I have a question about the saved rainwater, what is it used for???
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Gardening is the biggest thing. It’s also great for washing your hair.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.This is a fabulous list. My Mom has commented to me that we live very similar to how her Mom used to…and this list is why I think that’s great. Moving forward doesn’t always mean forgetting the past! I am sharing this with my Facebook readers https://www.facebook.com/YonderWild Thank you!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Agreed that a lot of people don’t do these things (I do most, including patching up jean crotch-holes for the bf!), but “Bottled water would have seemed ridiculous 100 years ago” isn’t exactly true, it’s been around since the Georgian period. However it was seen as something for the rich, even with ‘medicinal’ properties. My tapwater tastes funny – like chemicals, so when I afford it I use bottled (the cheap kind from scotland not Evian ;p) for the coffee machine etc. as it affects the taste. Water people assure us there’s nothing wrong with it, which probably means it’s just the 25 types of disinfectant I can probably taste :/ I know bottled water has it’s health issues too, but what’s the point in buying nice coffee and it tasting weird (even the first time around :p)?
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Here in AZ our tap water is safe, but it is warm and tastes terrible. My hubby uses a Filtrete water station and refillable bottles. It tastes OK when it’s really cold, but not as good as spring water. When we lived in Montana we were on a community well water system, that water tasted good!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I hope you do realize that bottled water in plastic is full of the plastizers from the bottle. It’s a fact that they leach toxic junk into the contents, especially when frozen or especially in the heat in cars. I can’t stand the taste of bottled water. It tastes like plastic! Besides, it is nothing but bottled tap water run through a charcoal filter at best. You can buy your own filters–whole house, pitchers, sink, refrigerator, even water bottles with filters in them. Not all filters remove the same thing. Some are only for taste, not for toxins.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I LOVE my clothesline! My husband bought it for me as a birthday present years ago and friends/family were horrified! BUT, it was what I wanted!!!! And USE a lot.
Also, my friend Ann, several years ago started a new business on the West side of Cleveland, rainbarrelsnmore.com has many good ideas for going green, including her wonderful Rain Barrels & the BEST diverter for your downspout. I don’t know if she can ship a rain barrel, but you may like her diverter.
I hope you get a chance to look at her website!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Thank you for sharing your friend’s link, Ann. I live one city over from her store, and honestly, never knew that place existed! I will definitely be checking this out in the future!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Oh how I wish we could go back to that simpler time in life. People were respectful to each other (even strangers) and everybody helped their neighbor just because they needed help, no other reason. **sigh**
Just a head’s up though, about the collecting rainwater tip, the State of Colorado has made that a crime, so you might want to check local laws and regs before going to the trouble of setting up a rainwater collection system at home. I’m sure Colorado isn’t the only state to do so :(
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Why on earth would that be a crime? I can’t even imagine…
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I would guess in a state like Colorado that is at risk for forest fires, that might be why there is regulation of rain water? Don’t know for sure though.
It all has to do with water law. (Fires are a whole different critter due to criminally bad forest management by the currently shut down federal government. You’ll see that the fires here are mostly on federal land or parks. The state does a much better job of commonsense forest management. People forget that long ago a fire was allowed to burn out as long as it didn’t come near property. The Indians used to burn large swaths of land to allow for better grazing the following year. The mindset that ‘we can’t touch it, it’s natural” is a bad idea and we’ve had devastating fires to prove i.t
Back briefly to water law. We ship a LOT of our water to the West Coast…anything on the ‘surface’ can be used by anyone (I think I understand it that way) but anything that has the potential to seep into the ground is state owned water. For instance, you can’t have a rain barrel to catch the water running off your roof because if that water were to fall off the roof onto the ground, then it will sink into the groundwater and the state owns it. I worked for a water company temp a couple of times and that is what I gathered the law was. Don’t quote me, I am not a water law attorney or paralegal :D
I still hang out clothes,can my own veggies and drink water from the faucet. But it seems like young people now days thinks it’s a really good idea….but they want YOU to do it for them, so they have their own little stockpile. I also remember that a toy from the store was a treat and we had to do chores and make an allowance and buy it ourselves. However, we appreciated it more and took care of it instead of breaking it right off the bat and going out to buy a new one. It scares me knowing that if the power grid ever goes down…wow…these kids won’t have a clue as to how to kill and clean their own game, raise their own food and preserve it and make their own cleaning products, and most of all entertain themselves and use their brains for things other than playing games on the computer. and having to add and subtract without using a calculator, and figure out how to make dinner out of last night’s supper. LOL
Please log in or create a free account to comment.These are all great reminders to be more satisfied with a simpler existence – the one that I’m dying to know more about is reusing coffee grounds??? Does anyone know anything about this? We put them in the compost when I was growing up, but I have never heard of reusing them the next day!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I still haven’t master reusing the coffee grounds. I feel like no matter how much I add, I still end up with weak coffee. :/
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Becky, if your coffee doesn’t turn out the way you like it, try saving your coffee grounds and putting them into a compost pile or in your plants. You’re still recycling, even if it’s in a different way.
I add about half the amount of coffee grounds i would use to the old… and do this to get two pots of coffee . Also sometimes make a pot, usually it makes three days worth, i drink one cup and leave the rest in the fridge for the next two days. yes, the coffee is weaker and yes doesn’t taste as great .But honestly coffee is a luxury item for me. I do so many things to be frugal because I must ….. buying from thrift stores, not buying expensive household products.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Anyone else trying to live without all the products? Such as… the tons of hair and skin care products constantly pushed on us… scented candles, air fresheners, the “wipes” for every situation imaginable, the mops with wipes on them , etc etc. I doubt these things even existed and people lived just fine with out them back in the day……..
When I re-use coffee grounds to make coffee, it’s by accident. As soon as I discover the tea-looking liquid in the carafe, I know I skipped a step and forgot to put fresh grounds in. I can’t imagine using old wet grounds and fresh dry grounds to make coffee. I worry about those old wet grounds not being safe to use.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Collect the grounds and add them to the soil around your plants. You can also do this with egg shells (break up into small pieces first). There are many nutrients in the coffee grounds and egg shells that help the plants grow.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Actually bottled water still seems ridiculous to me… WHY PAY FOR SOMETHING FREE (well, that is still paid in charges), heavy when shopping, and that can be highly carcinogenic due to the material ?
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I don’t get it. We don’t live in India or Mexico ?!
All a person needs is one glass or bottle , and refill it from the faucet to carry with you. I remember growing up and everyone had an outside pump coming from a well of fresh sweet water…and most of the fun was pumping the handle and getting a drink before it stopped running out, cause while you pumped…everyone else was drinking it…heeee
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I have tried filling my own bottles and the water has a funny taste to it. Any suggestions? I’ve tried different bottles ($). I like Sam’s Choice from Walmart. I guess I’ve always thought that was healthier than a Diet Coke.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I bought a water purifier (more than just a filter). The purifying cartridges (2) last 5-8 yrs & are $99 a set. My unit uses no electric & was about $200 to buy. I will have it forever. The company is Berkey & I get no kick back from them.
Can’t afford one right now–do what your grandparents did–save a little at a time.
A water filter is a great idea. What I meant though, was when I put my own water into a store bought water bottle I thought the bottle gave the water an icky taste. I have tried several kinds of bottles and had the same results with them all.
I can’t remember at all where I heard this, but my understanding is that you shouldn’t reuse plastic water bottles. I have pretty much zero understanding of chemistry, but I’m sure they aren’t using the best plastic in the world to make the bottles in the first place, so I’d hate to think of what might leach out of the bottles and into your water as they age. When my aunt had breast cancer, her doctor told her that drinking bottled water that had been left in the sun (like in the car) had been linked to cancer. Again, I don’t understand how any of that molecular mumbo jumbo works, but it’s something to think about.
Maybe I was duped by the man and it isn’t really making any difference, but I bought one of those Brita water bottles at Walmart for about $10. One filter cartridge is supposed to last about 400 refills (4 refills per day is roughly the eight 8 ounce glasses you’re supposed to drink, so that’s about 3 months for one filter). I think the bottle will probably work without a filter cartridge in it too.
I have no advice about making the water in reused bottles taste better, except maybe to add flavoring to it (citrus juice, or Crystal Light if you don’t mind the chemicals). But the flavor would probably linger in the plastic and flavor future refills too, whether you want it or not :-)
I am very sensitive to one-use plastic. My inner lips and tip of tongue swell and feel sore when I reuse a water bottle. My doctor said she never reuses one use plastic, never puts
anything plastic in her microwave; and tries to avoid any plastic in her kitchen. Dee
I bought an individual water bottle at Walmart for $10. It is safe plastic and has a filter that you replace every 2-3 months. I just fill it with tap water. It really works.
Are you re-using bottles that were purchased with water in them or using something like a Nalgene bottle that is made to be refilled over and over? There are all sorts of great water bottles out there that are made to be reused – something like a Nalgene may cost a little upfront, but are super durable and can be cleaned and refilled thousands of times.
I like to drink water from glass – not plastic. Here is a great bottle that I use. It is durable and will last indefinitely.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=sr_1_1_acs_h_4i_2595455011_3395091?ie=UTF8&qid=1380920705&sr=8-1-acs&node=3395091&srs=2595455011&field-keywords=lifefactory+bottles
I use filtered water and it is simple to carry with me. You can google to find a lid that fits a standard canning jar, which converts it into a water bottle. I refuse to pay for bottled water. You don’t know what you’re getting anyway, and plastic is not good.
Most of these ideas are already being implemented at my home. It is how I was brought up anyhow.
Thank you for all the great replies. I can’t tell you how much money I’ve spent on the bottles that are meant to be refilled. I’ll try these suggestions. I like to carry water in my purse to public events like programs and church b/c sometimes I get a tickle in my throat. It sure isn’t b/c I’m trying to be cool. Thanks again! p.s. My dearly departed loved ones would roll over in their graves if they knew we buy bottled water!
Bottled water is not regulated like the public water systems are–can’t imagine how people (including me) would scream if we had to pay as much for the water coming from our tap as people pay for bottled water.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Tap water is regulated by the EPA, and bottled water is indeed regulated, but by the FDA.
I agree Why people buy bottled water is beyond me.It’s expensive (here in Australia) and what’s wrong with tap water? I think it just became ‘trendy’ to be seen with a bottle of water in your hand .Who knows. I am 66yrs old and drink tap water. Go figure * So many things people buy these days is not because they are ‘ time poor ‘( an excuse) it’s the ‘ can’t be bothered ‘ attitude.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.This was a really good Post Thanks :D
I don’t use bottled water myself, but if I lived where my father does (in Illinois) I would. The water is not drinkable, even with a house filter. It is not just the taste. There is some oily slime that rises to the top if it sits too long (like the dog’s water dish or the toilet). City claims it is the pipes. I don’t know, but I don’t know anyone in the town that drinks the water or uses it for much of anything. Even taking a shower – you just don’t feel clean. My dad has a water service (brings those big jugs of water), rather than individual plastic bottles.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.It sounds like the city’s water wells are getting crude oil leaching into them and they don’t know how to filter it.
I can’t even begin to tell you how much I love love loved this post! It is a great display of everyday ideas that can be easily implemented into our lives, but it brought back a tidal wave of memories of visitng to my grandparents in the summer!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.love this article……we try to still do most of those things……my mom who is now 82 continues to hang all of her clothes on the clothesline…God forbid if it rains too much and she has to use the dryer…..nothing can beat sheets that were dried by the sunshine :)
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Thanks for the excellent reminders! I am already doing some of these things, but the best for me has been making my own cleaning products. As just one example, it cost me around $30 to purchase the items needed to make your recipe for laundry powder. I made a batch last November and I’m just now getting to the bottom of the bucket. I used to spend $15 per month on a bottle of Tide, and my clothes are just as clean now. (In fact, I think the homemade detergent works better on my son’s dirty baseball pants!) I’m saving money, using better ingredients… and that’s just one little change!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Thanks for reminding me. While I still practice some of these old ways of being green, I think it’s great to remind us that there were and still are people who are frugal and satisfied with what they have.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.And my kids just thought I did some of these because they think our family is poor. Ha! Nope! It’s called taking care and preserving what you have. Thanks Jillee!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.It is great to be reminded that these things that
Please log in or create a free account to comment.some people do out of neccessity used to be a way
of life. It seems, these days, these are practiced by
the “green” and poor.
Echoing Rebecca B, my mom would always make her grocery list on the back of an envelope. Birthday present wrap was the colored Sunday comics and my parents told us “no” when there wasn’t money for an activity, instead of going into debt.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I can honestly say I do every one except the transportation. I love having my own farm. We live off our own and only buy what we need.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I remember how much fun it was going to gramma’s. We didn’t necessarily go places, except the occasional matinee, (never bought snacks at the theater, neither do I) and we always played games in the evening. Gram was a great card player, (bridge) till she passed. She had a note paper pile made from the backs of recycled envelopes that she got in the mail.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Popped corn from a cast iron skillet beats ANY microwave popcorn you can buy in the store. And for some reason..it taste better the next day.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I don’t understand it..back in the day, we smoked,drank water from the garden hose,rode our bike or walked everywhere (without the worry of being kidnapped or molested by some pervert) found ways to entertain ourselves without electronics, went potty in the outhouse, ate veggies from the garden as we were picking them without washing them off, played outside till dark (and then played hide and seek in the dark) got sunburned, had class outside when school started up and it was hot out…AND we lived through it all, healthy as ever…go figure !
I was talking to a man at work ( I’m mid 20’s he’s in his mid 70’s) who told me no one EVER wore suncream when he was younger. He was silent a few moments and then said “Of course I’ve had skin cancer 3 times, but they cut it right off.” and laughed. It was so funny! :p
AMEN to that Kathy
So true, I miss those days…
I just <3 this list! Thanks for reminding us of the importance in returning to and preserving the ways of our ancestors. Technological advancements are not always "the best thing since sliced bread"…
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I live in Europe and when we just bought our new house – it has three 10,000 Liter rain tanks buried in the ground that gets filtered but we can use the water to flush toilets, wash car, water the lawn, etc. So clever. The gutters go straight into the ground!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.AWESOME!
Please log in or create a free account to comment.Is this common there, or are you just very lucky? Man, what I would give to have that. Reminds me of the old cisterns my grandparents had.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.In a word… YES! I couldn’t agree more. I grew up in a remote country area, so these things were just everyday life for us, even in the 1970s-1980s.
Please log in or create a free account to comment.I love all your articles but this one seems so natural to me as i do 99 % of these things. Keep them coming. x
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