Cutting down on your electricty and water consumption? How about going 'old school' with non-electric mini washers and dryers? The mini machines sit on your countertop, are portable (the US army uses them in Iraq and Afghanistan), use 90% less water than a conventional machine and in the case of the spin dryer, cuts a household energy usage by 5-10%.

Have you got one? Let us know in the comments!

Product page: The Laundry Alternative

Related: More green gadgets I More water saving

If you're sick of flushing all those valuable nutrients down the loo and want to reclaim them as your own, then you could spend a lot of money on a composting toilet by one of the increasing specialist companies, or you could follow the likes of Dick Strawbridge and make your own.

Low Luckens Organic Resource Centre are hosting a six day residential course, starting on 28th May. It will provide you with the history of composting your waste, plus some 'hands on' experience of building your own composting toilet. The course (including accommodation) is totally free and all you have to pay for is your organic food, which will cost £50.

Related: Sitting Pretty: the international green bathroom hunt | Green Building Company's one stop shop for water saving

When it comes to being green, I have to admit that baths are my downfall. So I decided to look into just how much water I was using, whether it really was such a sin (are power showers any better?), and how I could green up my daily wash. Pay attention, bath people!

Fronting a campaign to stop us wasting water in the bathroom is globetrotter Ben Fogle (now there's someone I wouldn't kick out of the shower), who has experienced first-hand the reality of living without abundant water. Along with DIY bods B&Q he's come up with a list of water-saving tips - and they don't all involve foregoing the bathtub. Follow the jump to see how you could save water around the house. It's all about the small things: fixing that dripping tap could save up to 20 litres of water per day...

Related Stories: Council tries to phase out the bath | One-stop-shop for water saving

Barnet council is consulting its residents about planning rules it's proposing that will encourage builders only to install showers and not to provide baths.

The rules would apply to house extensions and developments of less than 10 homes. Planning committees will look at whether water flows to power showers have been restricted, water meters have been fitted and a water butt installed, but ultimately the council could refuse planning permission to developments that unnecessarily include a bath.

Presumably the subjective term of 'unnecessarily' allows them to wave through things like housing developments for people of restricted mobility. As a new father, however, I might even argue that I need the bath to wash my daughter, since I doubt she would appreciate a shower at her tender age.  (Not that she enjoys baths either.)

Sukle Advertising + Design has come up with an innovative campaign to promote water consumption awareness in Denver, Colorado. They're running billboards that are shrunk to 1/4 normal size (just enough space to say "“Use only what you need” - Denver Water", and similar messages on park benches (that are missing 3/4 of the bench, which is carrying the motif a bit far considering benches are about renewable sharing!). But the basic idea is to get positive attention, and they've done a great job on that. [GT]

Sukle Advertising + Design [via GUSH]

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