Just because you’re moving into a dorm doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice your eco-friendly values for the sake of convenience. Instead, you can get all of your dorm essentials as sustainable options. Eco-friendly solutions for utensils, notebooks, cleaning supplies, and furniture are widely available online so that you can live a green-friendly four years at your university. 

Before you move in for orientation, here are eight planet-friendly dorm essentials to help you become a lean, green college machine.  

An organic mattress topper

An organic memory foam mattress topper can help with sleep because the organic materials in the design keep your body cool at night. Organic mattress toppers also don’t harbor bacteria or other allergens, making them easier to clean and less harsh on your lungs.

Because they’re organic, these mattress toppers are also less stressful on the environment. Organic mattresses and toppers are a no-brainer for a sleep solution that heals the planet in a way that you don’t need to buy a completely new mattress, and thereby it melts away that finals week stress.

Plants

Plants are a great way to add personality and color to your dorm room. Plus, they can act as natural air purifiers. Just make sure that you choose plants meant for indoors and that you can take care of within your schedule. A few excellent low-light options include pothos, peace lilies, and monsteras. 

Bamboo utensils

Bamboo utensils are a great way to reduce your day-to-day waste because they are reusable. These utensils are also made from eco-friendly bamboo rather than silver or metal, making them better for the environment. So, you can feel good about what you eat and how you eat. 

Reusable coffee mugs

For students who can’t go without their daily coffee but want to stay on top of environmental duties, you can’t forget about reusable coffee mugs when picking out your dorm essentials. Reusable coffee mugs, especially those made by a local potter are cute, support your local, and can help cut down on your daily waste. You can take your environmental efforts further and choose a reusable thermos for those last-minute mornings. We love these ones by Kedma.

Biodegradable notebooks

Notebooks might not cross your mind as the place to reduce your carbon footprint, but biodegradable notebooks can be an excellent way to cut back on emissions. These notebooks come in different fun patterns and designs and offer a more sustainable option to the alternative, which often ends up in landfills. 

All-natural cleaning supplies

Your dorm room is bound to accumulate dirt and what better way to clean it than with all-natural cleaning products. These products can whip your room into tip-top shape without the harmful chemicals that ordinary cleaning supplies use. Plus, all-natural cleaners often don’t have the same overpowering chemical smell, making for a relaxing afternoon in your freshly cleaned room. 

Reusable paper towels 

Reusable paper towels have begun gaining traction in more recent years. These towels act like a sponge but are made from thinner material to resemble a cloth napkin. Reusable towels can clean up spills and messes just as easily as a standard paper towel, minus the waste. If you are taking food from the cafeteria on the run, consider wrapping food in beeswax cloth that you can reuse time and time again.

Deodorant

Don’t wear this with your favorite eco-silk blouse because it stains from the coconut oil and it leaves a white residue, but for every day use, this Humble deodorant is a fine way to make it through the stress of exams and late night assignments. If you buy the product, all the ingredients inside it are listed. If you are entrepreneurial you can deconstruct it and make your own. 

The post Organic mattress topper and eco dorm essentials appeared first on Green Prophet.

Proper sanitation of labware is one of the most important aspects of running a pharmaceutical laboratory. Labware is used in a wide variety of sensitive analytical lab equipment and must be completely clean in order to ensure test results are free of error and contamination. Specialized laboratory dishwashers, however, can be extremely costly to purchase and maintain. Some pharmaceutical labs may be tempted to simply opt for a consumer-grade dishwasher to clean labware instead. After all, how different can a dishwasher really be, right?

As it turns out, there are some vital differences between laboratory-grade and consumer-grade dishwashers that cannot be ignored. Consumer-grade dishwashers are not designed for laboratory applications. Therefore, they lack the features, rigor, and quality standards that laboratory dishwashers have in order to make sure labware is cleaned properly for later analytical use. If you’re not already convinced, here are five reasons why you should never use consumer-grade dishwashers in a lab.

Greater Risk Of Cross-Contamination

A traditional consumer-grade dishwasher works by using a single pump to circulate water through the machine, essentially delivering clean water and removing dirty water through the same pump. While this is fine when the contaminant you’re removing is leftover gravy, labware is used to contain potentially dangerous materials that cannot be cross-contaminated between labware and research applications. By employing a single pump in a dishwasher, the risk of cross-contamination is significantly increased.

A proper laboratory dishwasher uses a separate pump to wash and drain loads, minimizing the chance for residual contaminants to remain on the washed labware. This ensures that the labware is properly cleaned and ready for use in different research or experiments in the future without the chance that other substances may affect the validity or safety of the procedure and results.

Lower Maximum Heating Temperature

Another reason why consumer-grade dishwashers aren’t suitable for laboratory applications is the lack of sanitization-level heating. A standard dishwasher intended for kitchens will generally heat up to between 55-75 degrees centigrade, which is sufficient for removing grease and food from kitchenware. Labware, however, must be properly sanitized to completely remove any microbes or other contaminants from containers. 

Standards for thermal sanitization generally require temperatures of up to 121 degrees Centigrade. At this temperature, labware can be properly sanitized after being exposed for a sufficient amount of time. The high heat removes all potential microbial contaminants, ensuring the safe use of the labware later on.

Lack of Direct Injection Washing

While dishes used as kitchenware tend to have fairly simple shapes to allow for ease of dining, labware is often made in more complex shapes, with narrow necks or intricate tubing. Consumer-grade dishwashers are not designed to clean dishes in abnormal shapes, leading to imperfect washing, with potential contaminants still remaining in small nooks and crannies afterward.

To compensate for the complicated shapes of labware, laboratory dishwashers employ direct injection spindles for washing and drying labware such as volumetric, Erlenmeyer, and distilling flasks. These injection spindles eliminate the hurdles of tight necks and tubing in labware, making sure that every part of the labware being washed is cleaned properly. Direct spindles for drying also make sure that abnormally shaped labware is ready to use the next day, since narrow necks and other tight shapes in labware can result in pockets of water leftover from the normal drying process.

Single Water Inlet 

Consumer-grade dishwashers almost always support only a single water source to draw water from to rinse dishes. This is to be expected, as most residential households only have a single water source to draw the water that feeds all the taps and pipes in the house. When washing labware, however, pure distilled water has to be fed through multiple inlets to ensure proper standards of safety and cleanliness. Regular dishwashers are simply not made to accommodate the needs of laboratory cleaning. Laboratory dishwashers are able to utilize multiple inlets of pure water to properly clean labware, without leaving behind any traces of contaminants present in undistilled water.

Inferior Quality

Finally, professional laboratory dishwashers are simply made to a much higher quality standard than consumer dishwashers, because laboratory dishwashers are exposed to significantly harsher substances than you would ever find in a kitchen. Ordinary dishwashers are made from lower-grade steel and molded plastic, which will degrade quickly under exposure to solvents and chemicals used in a pharmaceutical lab. Laboratory dishwashers are made using high-quality stainless steel to ensure they do not degrade or break down when exposed to dangerous chemical solvents and substances.

Additionally, laboratory dishwashers come with a wide range of specialized features intended for lab applications that consumer-grade dishwashers lack. From filtered air chambers to sensors and data collection, laboratory dishwashers are able to provide all sorts of relevant abilities to ensure standard procedures and protocols are followed when washing labware.

Maintaining Proper Sanitation

While consumer-grade dishwashers may be much more cost-competitive compared to their laboratory counterparts, the difference in price is clearly commensurate with a difference in ability, intended application, and features. Consumer-grade dishwashers simply cannot replace a laboratory dishwasher, and the price reflects that. Laboratory dishwashers offer vital advantages over consumer-grade dishwashers that cannot be ignored or replaced. By investing in a high-quality laboratory dishwasher, you can make sure your labware is always ready and safe to use.

The post 5 Reasons You Should Never Use Consumer Dishwashers To Clean Labware appeared first on Green Prophet.

Switching to an eco-friendly lifestyle doesn’t have to involve a complete overhaul. The way to do it is by making one small change at a time. If you’re struggling to figure out where to start, here are some simple alternatives you can do for a more eco-friendly home. 

1. Reusable water bottle

Ditch the plastic water bottle and opt to use a reusable one instead. Use it in your home and wherever you go. It takes some time to adjust to carrying a water bottle everywhere but you’ll find that it’s cheaper and more convenient. Most places offer free refills on water and you never have to struggle finding a store that sells bottled water if you’re thirsty. Or for your home, try the clay purifier above. It’s an ancient idea. 

2. Reusable coffee cup

If you’re an on-the-go type of person, you may prefer to pick up your daily cup-of-joe at the coffee shop. Consider switching to a reusable coffee cup. Yes, it’s an additional thing to carry in your bag but most reusable coffee cups are collapsible thus saving you space! You might even save money as some cafes offer discounts to customers who bring their own cups.

3. Reusable beauty products

Tampons and napkins add up to a lot of waste in landfills. You can make the eco-friendly switch by using a cup or reusable pad instead. They’re a one-time investment that will last you for many years. 

Another beauty item you can replace is the make-up remover. Instead of cotton buds of wipes, you can use reusable cotton pads instead. They’re inexpensive and are made with natural materials that don’t harm your skin.

Shampoo bars are also becoming a big hit in the zero-waste industry. After you’ve used up all the shampoo in your home, make the switch to shampoo bars. They don’t contain parabens or require those bulky plastic bottles and they last longer too!

4. Reusable bags

Always have one ready in your bag in case you need to make a quick trip to the grocery store.

You don’t have to buy those trendy canvas bags in order to make shopping greener. Simply dig up old bags that you don’t use anymore and carry those whenever you go out to shop.

Have some reusable produce bags ready as well. That way, you don’t need to use plastic to separate fruits and vegetables that you buy. For this, you can use old clothes that you don’t wear anymore and sew them to make produce bags.

5. Eco-friendly sleep

We spend a third of our lives in bed. It makes sense then to invest in mattresses, pillows, and beddings that are comfortable to sleep in. The problem is that these items need to be replaced every few years, after which they end up getting thrown in landfills, taking as long as 80 to 120 years to decompose. A way to make this part of your life more sustainable is by investing in sleep products that are made with natural materials. 

You can start with small ticket items such as eco-friendly pillows and beddings. Then once it’s time to replace your mattress, go ahead and invest in an eco-friendly mattress for better sleep. These items are mostly made with earth-friendly materials that don’t harm the environment. Best of all, they’re non-toxic.

6. Natural cleaners

You don’t need every type of harsh cleaner for specific items in your home. You only need baking soda, vinegar, dish soap or castile soap, hydrogen peroxide, and lemons to have a clean home. There are several combinations of these ingredients that make the perfect solution for cleaning every nook and cranny.

7. Use what you already have

Some sustainable options are not always necessary. For example, you can use some old items in your home instead of those new eco-friendly alternatives being marketed to you. Sure, bamboo brushes and metal straws are certainly more sustainable but if you still have a well-functioning one in your home, refrain from buying until you really need to replace it.

Which of these eco friendly swaps are you excited to try? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

The post Your Favorite Items at Home Swapped With Eco-Friendly Alternatives appeared first on Green Prophet.

If you want to increase product sales, one of the best ways you can do that is to create buzz around your product with Instagram. If you’re just getting started with the social media platform, then you can use a powerful Instagram bot to help fuel your account growth while you work on the content that generates buzz.

1. Call for (and Use) User-Generated Content

Leverage the following you already have on social. Cross-promote your Instagram account with your other social channels, and announce a call for user-generated content (UGC) to feature on your Instagram account. Create a branded hashtag (#nowaste #worldsoilday #upcycledceramics), and encourage people to use it when they post photos featuring your product on Instagram and other social media channels. Feature at least one a week – and tag the user in it so they get a little shoutout.

2. Offer Discounts

Everyone loves discounts – but what does everyone love more than a discount? An exclusive discount. Create a discount specifically for your Instagram followers that you do not publish elsewhere. You can do the same for people who connect with you on other social media channels, too – so long as you keep the codes unique.

Then, pay attention to which codes are used most often. That way you learn which channel is more engaged with you, and where the majority of your target audience is.

In addition to offering discounts to new customers, you may want to offer a discount to returning customers, too, especially if you have a product where refills and replacements are common because it’s a consumable. All too often businesses tend to focus on customer acquisition, when customer retention is where the profit is. Once someone becomes a customer, do everything you can to keep them one of your customers, while still working to bring in new ones.

3. Host Contests

Contests are a great way to get your products in the hands of people who will use it, get UGC to use in the future, and grow your Instagram following all the same time. There are several ways you can do a contest, depending on what your goals are.

Want to grow your following? Host a contest where people have to follow you to enter. As an extra entry, ask them to tag a friend who may also be interested in entering to win.

Want to increase your engagement? Host a contest where you have people like the post and leave a comment with a hashtag to enter. Then, use the hashtag to track the number of entries and overall engagement. Make the hashtag unique so you don’t count unofficial entries, but keep it related to your brand.

Try a contest where people submit photos of your product in use, and the best ones (by user vote or a panel of judges) are chosen to win a prize. Remember that because this kind of contest requires the most effort, the prize should be larger than if you were to use another type of contest where the entry is easy and takes only a few seconds.

These are the best option if you have a high-dollar product that people aren’t so willing to invest their money on right away. You can also use this approach with influencers by giving them your product for free in exchange for promotions with their audience.

You can run contests back-to-back so you always have something running. This way you are constantly working on improving your engagement and building your tribe. Just take time to look at the results of each contest and make adjustments so you can continue to get a good return on your investment.

4. Share How-To Content

Use Instagram videos, slideshows, and Stories to demonstrate how to use your product. Demonstrate how to make the most of your product, and you’ll be encouraging people to buy it while also meeting the needs of your current customers.

Show how to set up and use your product. Show how to fix common issues for easy troubleshooting. You can use an Instagram Slideshow to splice together up to 10 minutes of video, as long as you edit it for flow, since you can combine 10 images or 10 one minute videos.

5. Highlight How to Use Your Product in Various Ways

Continuing with the How-to content, use all of Instagram’s features to show the various ways you can use your product. Bonus points if there are unique ways you can use your product compared to the competition, or out of the box ways you can use it that aren’t obvious to the average user.

Take for instance the Foodsaver. It’s a line of products designed to help you cut food waste by vacuum sealing your food so it lasts longer in the freezer. What many people don’t realize is that you can also use the vacuum sealer to save other things – such as your child’s schoolwork and other items you want to preserve, almost like a laminator. You can create bags for storing just about anything.

Whether you need to generate buzz for a product launch or a seasonal product, Instagram is one of the best places to do it. The audience is generally more affluent than other social media networks, and it definitely has more engagement compared to Facebook or Twitter. What’s more is people come to Instagram looking for things to buy, so if you don’t have a presence for your brand there yet, you should get started right away.

The post How to Create Buzz Around Your Product with Instagram appeared first on Green Prophet.

Setting up a business is now more effortless, especially with the emergence of the internet paving the way for a digital world. Even traditional brick and mortar shops are also easier to put up these days because of the wide variety of information online that can guide those novice in the business world. If you are keen on setting up your own business, but don’t really have an idea on which venture will probably bring forth more revenue, here are some ideas that can get you started.

Be a green app developer

If you are considering setting up an organic business, but you are geared towards technological innovations such as web or mobile app development, then it is best to infuse these two sectors together. Try out being a green app developer and create a web or mobile app that will aid people on how to grow their own food. Make the app both educational and engaging for your target market. You have the option of charging a certain fee for the app you created or selling it to bigger companies. You can also make your app downloadable for free, and earn revenue through the ads of companies who want to be associated with your app.

Sell organic plants online

The online world truly revolutionized the retail industry, with more and more products now being available online. This goes true even for organic products such as dairy or poultry goods, as well as plant-based merchandise, including CBD merchandise at www.relaxation.co, along with other exclusive retail websites, offer organic products such as CBD oils and tinctures. With the popularity of several products nowadays from the likes of CBD, you will definitely be able to make a decent profit selling online, without the need to put up a physical brick and mortar shop. Apart from your own website, there are already several channels where you can sell products such as eCommerce or social media platforms.

Create an educational blog

Another profitable business is creating innovative and educational blogs that have a fair reach of audience. If you are like many others who refer to blogs in search for answers to various queries, then it may be a good idea to start your own educational blog about anything organic. If your blog appeals to more people, then you can gain revenue through advertisements and sponsorships from companies willing to explore a partnership with you, or looking into investing into your advocacy. Thereby, it will help if your blog gains a significant number of followers. Thus, it is important to create relevant content perhaps about organic farming, or a lifestyle transformation in going green.

Trying your luck in setting up a business venture may or may not prove to be successful. Nevertheless, with a failed business comes several learnings that can help you on your next business adventure. On the other hand, a successful one will definitely encourage you to grow your business more and serve a wider range of market. Consider one of the business ideas above, which are proven to rake in more profit and revenue, especially in the long run.

The post Organic Business Ideas that will Help You Earn More appeared first on Green Prophet.

Like our popular guide on reusing air conditioner water, old tea bags ? … that’s easy. As an avid tea drinker, I was intrigued when I stumbled upon a variety of sources that promoted the eco-friendly use of tea bags, outside the teacup. Arthur W. Pinero, an Englishman, of course, said, “Where there’s tea, there’s hope.”  That’s definitely true.  Brewed tea bags can provide a pick-me-up in ways you’d least expect.  Here are 13 of them. You can use tea…

1. As a cold compress.

Got tired eyes, bruises, or sunburn? Bee stings or mosquito bites?  Did your child just get a shot at the doctor’s but the free lollipop wasn’t consolation enough?  Apply a cool, moist tea bag made from black tea to these kinds of affected areas on the skin to get soothing relief and quicker healing.

2. As a hot compress.

Trying to get rid of pinkeye, canker sores or fever blisters?  Or maybe a plantar wart smack dab in the middle of the sole of your right foot?  Warm, wet tea bags can draw out the infections.

3. To clean your carpets.

For more delicate, Persian or Oriental carpets, sprinkle almost-dry tea leaves on the carpet, and then sweep them away when dry.  Tea leaves on more heavy-duty carpets can be vacuumed.

4. To take a flavored bath.

Treat your skin as you would your taste buds, in the bathtub.  Give your bath salts a run for their money by running the bath water over several used tea bags.  You’ll have yourself an aromatic, skin-softening soak in no time.

5. To feed your garden.

Cultivate your healthy plants and bring your dying ones back to life by breaking open a soaked tea bag and disseminating the contents over the soil.  Roses and ferns do especially well with the acidic tannins found in black tea.

Don’t have a garden? Add the used tea leaves to your enrich your compost pile – and if you don’t have that, make one.  (Remember to take the staples out of the tea bag, if there are any.)

6. To eliminate odors around the house.

Put dried tea leaves in your garbage can and your kitten’s litter box.  They’ll also suck up food odors when stuck in a bowl in the fridge.  And combine them with your favorite essential oils to make all-natural air fresheners.

Odors might also be closer than you think: especially if you’ve been handling fish, your hands might smell…fishy.  Rinse your hands with old tea.  As for your mouth and all that bad-breath bacteria, skip the shocking Listerine and go for a gentle mint tea mouth rinse.

7. To give your locks some love.

Tea acts as a sort of leave-in conditioner: Make your dry hair shiny by rinsing your hair with unsweetened tea.  Leave your head alone to dry, then rinse out the tea. This works well in areas with hard water.

8. To polish your wooden floors.

You might need to amass quite a few tea bags for this one.  Mop your wooden floors with brewed tea, and while you’re at it, shine up some furniture, too.

9. To say goodbye to greasy dishes.

Whatever it may be that is caked onto your plates from dinner, do not fear.  Soak the dishes in hot water with a few brewed tea bags.  The more the grease, the more time will be needed to break it down; soaking the pile overnight is recommended.

10. To recreate potpourri.

Rarely do used tea bags lose their scent completely.  Dry out your favorite teas (any kinds will do) and add the leaves to potpourri; they’ll blend right in, aesthetically and also in form. After all, potpourri is made of dried fruit peels, herb leaves, flowers, and spices.

11. To replace Windex.

Maybe your kids had their hands all over the windows, or maybe the glass is just dusty.  Make them sparkle by rubbing a damp teabag over them or applying brewed tea from a spray bottle, then wiping it away with a cloth.

12. To discover your inner Michelangelo.

Artists have started to use strong black teas to paint backgrounds or accentuate black-and-white sketches.

and my favorite…

13. To make flavored rice.

When cooking rice, add your used herbal tea bags to the water to allow a new, mild flavor to permeate throughout. Jasmine tea, one of my personal favorites, is a great choice for rice-flavoring.

After steeping a tea bag two or more times (because once is never enough) to enjoy my favorite hot drink,  I always felt bad tossing it.  Knowing now of brewed tea bags’ reusability, I’ll be able to leave the leaves out of the trash for a little while longer.

Now read on for 10 surprising green ways to use olive oil. And surprising uses for kitchen salt.

The post 13 Surprising Green Ways to Reuse Tea Bags appeared first on Green Prophet.