Vegthreads

There are plenty of cool things you can build with your trash. To build the three things below all you really need are some empty cans, some Styrofoam cups, and an old tire. This is stuff that would normally end up at the dump so you can use your new gear with pride knowing your doing your part to help the environment. So grab a beer, and get started!

1. Make Sandals With an Old Tire. Summer is right around the corner, and that means its time to slip on a pair of sandals. The last time I was at REI I noticed the extremely high price they were charging for a pair of sandals. Almost $80 a pair, why not save yourself some cash, and help the environment while your at by making a pair of sandals from an old tire.
2. Build a solar heater. New electrical heaters are expensive, and are reliant on electrical power. With some old beer cans you can build a solar powered heater that will last you life time!
3. Grow plants indoors. Hydroponics or the method of growing plant submerged in water is the best method for growing plants indoors. Instead of heading out to your local head shop to pick up a system why not use some old Styrofoam cups to build one.

Who’s got the herb

Hydroponics, besides being a popular 311 song is also an ideal method for growing plants indoors using minerals and nutrient rich solutions instead of soil. The use of hydroponics by the Babylonians actually dates as far back as the 12th century. The hydroponics system were going to create today will actually put all those plastic, paper, and styrofoam cups you you pick up on your midnight munchie runs to good use.

Why You Should Do This

Over 1 million styrofoam cups are used per day in the US alone, that almost as bad all those tires stock piled at your local junkyard. These cups can take up to 50 years to decompose, and worst of all as they decompose they release toxic methane gas termed biogas into the air that has 21 times the global warming potential as carbon dioxide.

Read the rest of this entry »