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Saving Energy Helps You Lose Weight
Please excuse the sensationalist title, but it was just too good to pass up, and oddly true at the same time. Research into the links between the increase in weight and the warming temperature of our homes has resulted in some startling news- Warmer homes contribute to weight gain.
Now before you turn your house into a meat locker, you ought to know that small changes can have an effect. Just turning down the thermostat a few degrees can not only boost your energy savings, but also help shed ‘brown fat’, which lingers around the necks of adults.
The research focused around 1500 adults and found that over a six year period, those who kept their home temperature warmer (in the top third of the group), were twice as likely to become obese. To think that for every degree (F) you lower your thermostat below 68, you will save 3-5% off your heating costs. › Continue reading
Green Holiday Preparation – More than Just the Tree!
Green Holiday Preparation – More than Just the Tree!
Besides the fact that green is basically one of only two colors we have to think about for an entire month and your home is probably about to get be-decked in greenery from pine trees and boughs and wreaths galore, not a lot of us (surely not enough of us) really think about how we can make our actual holiday preparations green. Yet, this month and season is one of the greatest for taking advantage of every opportunity to be greener, from our holiday baking to our gift wrapping. If you’re ready to be green this season, here are some easy ways to get started.
Holiday Cards
Rather than purchase holiday cards which bring down your green “score” so to speak, with the paper used, ink used, emissions transporting the cards to your store and then the emissions used to deliver cards to destinations across the US, consider making this your year to go with e-cards. If you’re a family and like to do pictures, this actually makes it even easier. Or, you can opt for my favorite idea and film a short clip of the family wishing everyone happy holidays, a silly skit or a Christmas carol or whatever else your creative mind can think up! Attach the clip to an e-card and you’ve got a Christmas card destined to › Continue reading
Intelligent Auto Learning Thermostat – NEST
Ever taken a good look at your heating or cooling bill and wanted to do something about it? Well, even if you have and bought a smart programmable thermostat, you may be spending more than without one.
A recent study by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory found that “as many as 50 percent of residential programmable thermostats are in permanent ‘hold’ status.” Even the the governments Energy Star program removed their endorsement from all programmable thermostats primary because people don’t have the time or patience to program them properly, and the thermostat controls half of the homes energy bill. That is a lot of power for a device that effectively works no better than your sprinkler system.
Enter the NEST Learning Thermostat, the brain child of Tony Fadell, the iPod hardware designer and former iPod and iPhone division VP for Apple, after trying to decide on a thermostat for his new green home in Tahoe. A complete departure from anything you find on the market today, it is an iPod in a world of cassette walk-mans. › Continue reading
Green Driveway Path Options
A while back, I wrote about Green Driveways and Paths, which ended up being a pretty popular article. I figured that it would be helpful to see your options when it comes to porous surfaces, permeable paths and eco-friendly driveways.
Green driveways not only are more pleasant to look at, they also can reduce urban heat retention, reduce CO2, reduce runoff, improve drainage and aquifer recharging, provide some water filtration and more! They can also be cheaper in the long run over asphault (resurfacing costs and crack repairs) and concrete (repairing cracks, staining) not to mention preventing washouts and pot holes.
Systems already embraced in Europe typically last over 20-30 years, with little to no repairs or maintenance. The main options for green driveways are using some sort of permeable surface along with turf, gravel or ground cover to enhance the beauty and green factor.
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Eco-Chic Expo Seattle
Now for a local, small business and community centric alternative to the Seattle 2010 Go Green Conference. Seattle’s Eco-Chic Expo is being held on Saturday, May 1st, at the Ravenna-Eckstein Community Center located in Northeast Seattle. A self described “interactive green lifestyle event”, the event is put together to provide the general public with an interactive day of tips, tricks and products to help people live greener, yet fashionable, lives. The Expo is free to the public and features a number of local companies dedicated to sustainable lifestyles. › Continue reading
Lazy Green Living
Image: Flickr user Ashley R. Good
1. Procrastinate: Save your laundry until the last minute. Don’t run the washing machine until you have a full load. And hey, it’s not the end of the world if you wear pants more than a couple times between washes. Think about it, you’re saving energy and water, and you’re saving time, so you can take more naps. Eco-friendly naps.
2. Don’t cook: Eat raw instead. A diet rich in raw fruit and veg is not only great for you, it is very eco-friendly. Raw diets have picked up quite a following over recent years. They are thought to help prevent health problems, strengthen the immune system, stabilize your BMI, clear your skin, and even increase your energy, which is important for us lazy folk. According to www.rawfoodlife.com, organic, raw food is as much as 200-300% more nutritionally dense than a traditional cooked diet. Of course you’re not going to want to eat raw meat. But that just gives you the chance to eat less anyway. For that matter, › Continue reading
Eco-Development and Sustainable Renovation
I’ve noticed an interesting trend lately. The renovation of old buildings. Gorgeous old buildings gutted and rebuilt from the inside-out, as green and sustainable new structures.
An exciting (and well-publicized) example of this is the Sanctuary development on Capital Hill in Seattle.
The original church was built in the early 1900s and has been a distinctive landmark of the neighborhood for years. Through the renovation of this historical icon, ecological- minded urban residences are being created.
The preservation of the beautiful building was a cornerstone of the project planning. Architectural details, bricks, wooden pews, flooring and windows were repurposed and used within the new residential development as stairs, detailing, in-fill and patching. New sustainable aspects of the housing itself include dual flush toilets and tankless water heaters. › Continue reading
USGBC’s Green Home Guide Beta
Margarido Home, LEED Platinum Certified.
Many of us are familiar with the LEED rating system from the United States Green Building Council (USGBC), which is a third party green building rating system for commercial and residential buildings. The LEED rating system has been adopted by the U.S. government and is used with all new construction and major renovation of federal buildings. LEED certifies buildings on a point based system in the areas of Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy & Atmosphere, Materials & Resources, Indoor Environmental Quality, Locations & Linkages, Awareness & Education, Innovation in Design, and Regional Priority. Points are then added up to achieve Silver, Gold, or preferably Platinum certification. While mainly regarded as a tool for commercial building, there is also a LEED for Homes section that allows you to certify your home or neighborhood.
Recently, USGBC has launched a Green Home Guide. The site is an awesome resource for those of you looking to remodel or build a home in the near future. The site contains a myriad of resources for the casual and the serious green homemaker alike. The “Know How” section guides you through green building advice and educational articles to help you make better-informed decisions. They cover a diverse range of topics, and the content is growing everyday. With the rapid growth in the green building world, it’s a great resource if you need to get an idea of what’s out there.
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