Smart Saving Starts At Home

Top 10 Things You Can Do to Reduce Global Warming

Burning fossil fuels such as natural gas, coal, oil and gasoline raises the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, and carbon dioxide is a major contributor to the greenhouse effect and global warming.

You can help to reduce the demand for fossil fuels, which in turn reduces global warming, by using energy more wisely. Here are 10 simple actions you can take to help reduce global warming.

1. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Do your part to reduce waste by choosing reusable products instead of disposables. Buying products with minimal packaging (including the economy size when that makes sense for you) will help to reduce waste. And whenever you can, recycle paper, plastic, newspaper, glass and aluminum cans. If there isn't a recycling program at your workplace, school, or in your community, ask about starting one. By recycling half of your household waste, you can save 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide annually.

2. Use Less Heat and Air Conditioning

Adding insulation to your walls and attic, and installing weather stripping or caulking around doors and windows can lower your heating costs more than 25 percent, by reducing the amount of energy you need to heat and cool your home. Turn down the heat while you're sleeping at night or away during the day, and keep temperatures moderate at all times. Setting your thermostat just 2 degrees lower in winter and higher in summer could save about 2,000 pounds of carbon dioxide each year.

3. Change a Light Bulb

Wherever practical, replace regular light bulbs with compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs. Replacing just one 60-watt incandescent light bulb with a CFL will save you $30 over the life of the bulb. CFLs also last 10 times longer than incandescent bulbs, use two-thirds less energy, and give off 70 percent less heat.

If every U.S. family replaced one regular light bulb with a CFL, it would eliminate 90 billion pounds of greenhouse gases, the same as taking 7.5 million cars off the road.

4. Drive Less and Drive Smart

Less driving means fewer emissions. Besides saving gasoline, walking and biking are great forms of exercise. Explore your community mass transit system, and check out options for carpooling to work or school.

When you do drive, make sure your car is running efficiently. For example, keeping your tires properly inflated can improve your gas mileage by more than 3 percent. Every gallon of gas you save not only helps your budget, it also keeps 20 pounds of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.

5. Buy Energy-Efficient Products

When it's time to buy a new car, choose one that offers good gas mileage. Home appliances now come in a range of energy-efficient models, and compact florescent bulbs are designed to provide more natural-looking light while using far less.

6. Use Less Hot Water

Set your water heater at 120 degrees to save energy, and wrap it in an insulating blanket if it is more than 5 years old. Buy low-flow showerheads to save hot water and about 350 pounds of carbon dioxide yearly. Wash your clothes in warm or cold water to reduce your use of hot water and the energy required to produce it. That change alone can save at least 500 pounds of carbon dioxide annually in most households. Use the energy-saving settings on your dishwasher and let the dishes air-dry.

7. Use the "Off" Switch

Save electricity and reduce global warming by turning off lights when you leave a room, and using only as much light as you need. And remember to turn off your television, video player, stereo and computer when you're not using them.

It's also a good idea to turn off the water when you're not using it. While brushing your teeth, shampooing the dog or washing your car, turn off the water until you actually need it for rinsing. You'll reduce your water bill and help to conserve a vital resource.

8. Plant a Tree

If you have the means to plant a tree, start digging. During photosynthesis, trees and other plants absorb carbon dioxide and give off oxygen. They are an integral part of the natural atmospheric exchange cycle here on Earth, but there are too few of them to fully counter the increases in carbon dioxide caused by automobile traffic, manufacturing and other human activities. A single tree will absorb approximately one ton of carbon dioxide during its lifetime.

9. Get a Report Card from Your Utility Company

Many utility companies provide free home energy audits to help consumers identify areas in their homes that may not be energy efficient. In addition, many utility companies offer rebate programs to help pay for the cost of energy-efficient upgrades.

10. Encourage Others to Conserve

Share information about recycling and energy conservation with your friends, neighbors and co-workers, and take opportunities to encourage public officials to establish programs and policies that are good for the environment.

These 10 steps will take you a long way toward reducing your energy use and your monthly budget. And less energy use means less dependence on the fossil fuels that create greenhouse gases and contribute to global warming.

http://environment.about.com/od/globalwarming/tp/globalwarmtips.htm

Cut the Clutter in the Kitchen and Stop Wasting Money and Energy

I have a real problem with clutter in the kitchen. A kitchen should not be filled to the brim with tons of unnecessary gadgets. They fill up your counters and your drawers leaving you with no room to work. Gadgets and tools are a waste of money too and in the end just gather dust. A good majority of kitchen junk is made from nonrenewable plastic and comes with a ton of wasteful packaging. Today packaging represents roughly one-third of municipal waste in the United States.

Here's what you really need in the kitchen:

• Skip all the choppers, mini choppers, egg slicers, garlic peelers, and specialty knives and get a good chef's knife. One chef's knife is all you really need. Don't put it in the dishwasher and sharpen it when it gets dull and it will last you for years to come.
• Buy a good eco-friendly cutting board (not five, just one) and hand wash it. I like the bamboo cutting boards because bamboo is a certifiably perfect eco-material. It's an entirely renewable resource, which can be re-harvested in less than five years. And it never needs to be replanted. It doesn't require pesticides or any of the other nasty toxins currently taking their toll on our planet. Bamboo is a useful tool in the fight against global warming because it reintroduces oxygen into the atmosphere.
• If you're a baker, a mixer can be a must, but if baking is not part of your repertoire, use a simple whisk to mix your foods. The larger mixers can take up tons of room on your counter and you can pay hundreds of dollars for them. Instead, why not use some elbow grease?
• A good skillet and a large pot can go a long way. As with the chef's knife, wash skillets and pots by hand and never put them in the dishwasher. Don't waste your time with tons of varying sizes of cheap skillets.

(Source: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/home-garden/cut-kitchen-clutter.html)

Energy Efficient Homes Are The Stars Of The Future

Energy Star homes save homeowners hundreds of dollars annually on their energy bills and help to protect the environment.

Are you in the market for a new home? If you are, you are not alone. Millions of new homes are built every year. The National Association of Home Builders estimates, 1.8 million homes are constructed each year. How will all of the materials needed to build and sustain these new homes accommodate our dwindling and limited natural resources?

Why build energy efficient sustainable homes?
First, we have a moral obligation to make conscious ecological decisions about construction and consumption. Designing sustainable homes will protect the environment for future generations by changing to more energy efficient practices today. Along with securing a safe future, being more efficient and living lighter on the land helps reserve life-supporting systems - plant life and animals.

What is Energy Star?
Energy Star is a voluntary partnership between the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Energy and more than 9,000 organizations, including more than 2,500 of the nation's home builders. In essence, the Energy Star is the EPA government-backed symbol for energy efficiency. It identifies new homes, commercial buildings and more than 40 types of products that are energy efficient.

Products that can earn the Energy Star rating include appliances, lighting, home office equipment, consumer electronics, and heating and cooling equipment.

What are Energy Star qualified homes?
Homes that earn the Energy Star rating are significantly more efficient than standard homes. The Energy Star Homes that adhere to the new guidelines (below) make them at least 20% more efficient. An Energy Star home can save homeowners hundreds of dollars annually on their energy bills and help to protect the environment.

Key elements of the new guidelines for Energy Star qualified homes include:

• A Complete Thermal Enclosure System: Comprehensive air sealing, properly insulated assemblies and high-performance windows enhance comfort, improve durability and reduce utility bills.
• Quality Installed Complete Heating and Cooling Systems: High-efficiency heating and cooling systems engineered to deliver more comfort, moisture control and quiet operation, and equipped with fresh-air ventilation to improve air quality.
• A Complete Water Management System: Because Energy Star homes offer a tightly sealed and insulated building envelope, a comprehensive package of flashing, moisture barriers, and heavy-duty membrane details is critical to help keep water from roofs, walls, and foundations for improved durability and indoor air quality.
• Efficient Lighting and Appliances: Look for Energy Star qualified lighting, appliances and fans that can help to further reduce monthly utility bills and provide high-quality performance.
• Third-Party Verification: Energy Star qualified homes require verification by independent Home Energy Raters who conduct a comprehensive series of detailed inspections and use specialized diagnostic equipment to test system performance

http://planetgreen.discovery.com/home-garden/energy-efficient-homes-future.html

How to Organize a Garage

The major problem when it comes to organizing a garage is the accumulation of "stuff," some necessary and some not. These sundry acquisitions don't have to be tossed, donated, or sold at your next garage sale; they simply need a place to be stored. Once everything has its place, the garage can hold your cars and bicycles as well as all that "stuff," which is now visible, reachable, and usable.

Assigning and Arranging Space - The first question is where to put everything. A garage provides more wall space than floor space, so it's an easy task to systematically assign and arrange that space. The ceiling is also a valuable resource for storage space. With the insertion of a few well-placed hooks, the ceiling can hold bicycles, ladders, and luggage out of the way. A storage shelf installed from the ceiling is great for items that are used infrequently or seasonally, such as camping gear, outdoor Christmas decorations or lights, or window screens and storm doors.

Built-in shelves provide plenty of space for paint cans, spray bottles, mulch, buckets, automotive supplies, flower pots, and boxes and bags of all descriptions. Make sure you arrange them on the shelves by category, putting like items together. It's helpful to confine smaller items in a system of drawers attached to the shelves or in boxes and bins that sit on the shelves. Both drawers and bins or boxes should have attached identification labels.

Workshops and Hobby Areas - As you sort through everything in your garage, you'll quickly realize that many items need more specific and detailed handling. Or you may decide to designate a specific area as a workshop or as storage for your particular hobby or sport. Your sport may be tennis, skiing, golf, bicycling, or some other activity A neat and tidy look combined with a great deal of storage can be achieved with this equipment displayed on the walls rather than scattered on the floor. For the carpenter or home handyman, there are certainly a number of ways to control and regulate the tool situation. A workbench is a good way to gain some control over the equipment and the many nuts, bolts, and screws that are necessary for this hobby.

If you're simply looking for a place and a way to organize the tools, nails, and wrenches you use periodically a rack or portable tool box may do the trick. This can be kept in the garage or in the basement, depending on your needs and space.

Gardening - The garage often serves as the storage area for gardening equipment. You'll need a place for repotting, sprouting, fertilizing, and seeding blossoms and greenery as well as ample storage space for potting soil, pots, sprinkling cans, and the like. An inexpensive combination of crates and bins can be used to build a tidy area that demands little floor space. Of course, little gardening actually goes on in the garage. But the hoes, rakes, spades, shovels, and water hose can be stored there for convenience. A rack or tool strip on the garage wall can accommodate this equipment. Individual hooks in any configuration can also be used if you don't want to limit yourself to a straight-line arrangement.

Recycling - One final matter in the garage deserves your attention since it contributes greatly to clutter. With today's concern over the environment, recycling is becoming more common. Recycling bins are most often kept on the floor, taking up valuable space. You can at least control and reduce the amount of space occupied by using stackable recycling bins. Adding a hand cart keeps you from having to make two or three trips to the curb on trash day. Just wheel the entire three-piece unit -- with its separate loads of glass, aluminum, and plastic -- out of the garage and to the street.

(Source: http://home.howstuffworks.com/home-cleaning/organization/how-to-organize-a-garage.htm)

The Best Sites to Calculate the Environmental Impact of Your Life

Ever want to calculate the environmental impact of you life? Or want to know where I get all those stats about carbon emissions, water footprint, ecological footprint? Now there are plenty of them out there, but here my personal favorite water footprint, ecological footprint and carbon footprint calculators:

Carbon Footprint: CarbonFund.org

Of all the carbon footprint calculators out there, I really like the one from CarbonFund. The real advantage of this one is that it allows you to calculate the carbon emissions from your home, your car (including specific make and model information), train and bus journeys between just about place in the world, as well as flights (with or without radiative forcing).

Ecological Footprint: MyFootprint.org

Water footprint is emerging as an important calculation to make. Many areas of the world are already water stressed, and as the world's climate changes many more will have even less water available that they do.

The premiere source for calculating the water footprint of your life is (appropriately enough) WaterFootprint.org. That link goes to their extended calculator, which really goes into some pretty specific detail -- you need to know how many kilos of grains and vegetables you eat, the average length of your showers, and more -- and gives you a more accurate picture. If you don't have that level of commitment, there's also a quick calculator, which uses more general figures.

For the Really Obsessive: WattzOn

Want to really delve into the environmental impact of everything you own? Want to really get obsessive about this stuff? Then WattzOn is for you.

Calculating the impact of your life in watts you get a figure of the impact of your flying, housing, food, commuting, and all the items you own. It does take some time to input it all, but the pie chart you end up shows you your impact in a really simple way.

In my case, I find that my life is a 1,825 watt life -- equal to a wind turbine with 16' blades running constantly, 31 60w incandescent bulbs burning 24 hours a day 7 days a week, or 2 gallons of oil consumed ever day.

Compared to the average WattzOn user's 2,983 watts, I'm doing pretty well, but the impact of my flying -- I've take one roundtrip international long-haul flight and two flights within the US in the past year -- is over three times theirs. So there is a level of healthy peer pressure going on here.

(Source: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/work-connect/sites-calculate-environmental-impact.html)

What one thing should I recycle?

by Jennifer Horton

If you're one of the several million people living in cities like Seattle or San Diego where recycling is mandatory, then you're no stranger to the sticky tubs of peanut butter that need rinsing before they go in the bin. Even if your town doesn't mandate recycling but you live in one of the 9,000 areas with a curbside pickup program, you've probably stomped your fair share of aluminum cans.

Whether you are a Captain Planet protégé or a casual wannabe who just recycles when it's convenient, odds are you have wondered if recycling is all it's cracked up to be. Sure, it's good to cut down on the use of natural resources and use less energy, but doesn't the recycling process require energy, too? Doesn't it produce its own share of waste?

The answer is yes. And yes. But not all recycling is created equal. Some materials are more "worth it" than others. Although organizations like the National Recycling Coalition, Keep America Beautiful and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency promote recycling and its benefits vigorously, many people still debate the wisdom behind it.

Some people claim that curbside pickup puts more gas-guzzling trucks on the streets, thus contributing to air pollution. Others cite the billions of tons of printer cartridges sent off for recycling that find their way into rivers or incinerators in China. Some of the arguments are valid. There is a gray area concerning the pluses and minuses of recycling for the simple reason that it is difficult to follow a product through its life cycle, from the factory to you to the recycling center.

But while it can be difficult to measure the real energy inputs and outputs of recycling versus the alternative of creating the same object out of new material, one familiar recyclable good emerges a clear winner. Even recycling skeptics can't argue the benefits of recycling this common household item.

So what is it?

The odds are good you've already gone through several of these today. You're probably finishing off another one right now. Drawing a blank? I'm talking about the ubiquitous aluminum can. Sometimes touted as a recycling success story, aluminum cans are not only the most frequently recycled product, but also the most profitable and the most energy-efficient.

The recycling of aluminum, which is made from bauxite ore, is a closed-loop process, meaning that no new materials are introduced along the way. Aluminum is infinitely recyclable: Cans can be recycled over and over again without degrading. Because of this efficiency, more than two-thirds of all the aluminum ever produced is still in use today. So the next time you're feeling lazy and the recycling bin seems so much farther away than the garbage can, you might want to think about the following:

• Recycling aluminum prevents the need to mine for ore to create new aluminum. It requires 4 tons of ore to create 1 ton of aluminum.
• Recycling aluminum cans takes 95 percent less energy than creating new ones.
• The energy it takes to produce one can could produce 20 recycled cans.
• The energy saved from recycling one aluminum can could power a 100-watt light bulb for four hours or a television for three hours.

(Source: http://science.howstuffworks.com/recycle-one-thing.htm)

Top Green Spring Cleaning Tips

1. Reduce - The first step to fighting messes and keeping your home spic-and-span is getting rid of all that stuff you never use. Go through all the places where it accumulates-try closets, junk drawers, out-of-reach shelves, attics and basements, and any other place where you're inclined to toss stuff as you say, "I'll deal with this later" and be diligent about- separating out what you really will use someday from what you never will. Be honest: you may say you like that sweater your aunt gave you for Christmas in 2004, but if it still has the tags on it, you aren't ever going to wear it. And be practical: do you really need that quesadilla maker? We're not suggesting that you trim down to an uber-minimalist lifestyle, but the quickest way to cut your cleaning time is to simply have less stuff to clean.

2. Reuse - Now you have a pile that you're ready to get rid of-but wait: don't just trash it. First, go through and see if any of those items could serve a purpose you haven't thought of before: Do you have enough books to stack up and use as a side table? Can you take the frames off those ugly paintings and use them elsewhere? We know of ways to reuse everything from single mittens and broken guitar strings to holiday greeting cards and ceramic tiles - so while we aren't suggesting you keep all this around just in case, see if any of what you have can save you from buying something else.

3. Donate - Once you've taken stock of what you can use, separate out items that someone else might need. This includes dishes, kitchen gadgets, clothes, books, magazines, toys, home decor-all of these items could find a second life with someone else. If you need instant gratification, just drop it all off at your local Goodwill or Salvation Army; if you're slightly more patient, try offering items for sale or barter on Craigslist, turning your goods over to an artist, donating through Freecycle, or seeing what you can get for that collection of comic books on eBay. Your house will be less cluttered; someone else can skip buying new; and the landfills will be that much emptier.

4. Recycle - Once you've exhausted all the other options, it's time to hit the recycling bucket. Of course you're already recycling newspapers, magazines, and any glass that isn't salvageable, but take a second look at the rest of your trash, too: did you clean out the fridge? Find a compost pile. Get rid of old electronics, from cell phones to VCRs to ancient computers, by passing them off to retailers with a recycling program or to a specialized electronics recycling company. Check anything plastic to make sure it's recyclable, and make sure to safely dispose of anything that's not recyclable or trash-friendly, like old paint or batteries.

5. Get the right home organization tools - Now that you've managed to weed out the useless from the useful, you need to find a system for organizing what you've got left-because if you can't find something when you need it, you'd might as well not have it at all. For this, you'll need storage containers, but that doesn't mean you need to stock up on (non biodegradable) plastic bins; instead, try cardboard boxes wrapped in pretty paper, bamboo baskets, or cloth bags made from old t-shirts. Raise your storage with eco-friendly shelving to free up floorspace and make your rooms look bigger. And note: if, while you're organizing, you find items that don't seem to fit with anything else, those are likely goods you could add to the "donate" pile.

6. Make your own household cleaning supplies - Buying eco-friendly cleaning supplies is a good start, but for a truly green clean, make your own cleaners. You'll bypass the resources that go into production, shipping, and purchasing-from making that plastic spray bottle to getting the product to your local supermarket-and you'll save a ton of money. Most of your home can be cleaned with recipes that are a combination of hot water, vinegar, and baking soda or washing soda; add a few drops of essential oil for scent if you prefer. Since you're only making what you need as you need it, you're cutting back on waste, and you won't have any worries about what kind of toxins you may be spraying around your kids and pets.

7. Aim for a no-waste clean - No matter how green your sprays and scrubs may be, if you use an entire roll of paper towels to scrub your bathroom-well, that is not exactly eco-friendly cleaning. And when you're looking at a project as big as this one, you'll want to leave little to no waste in your wake. Trade paper towels for reusable microfiber cloths or sponges, and ditch the Swiffer sweeper for a broom (preferably one you already have, of course) or the disposable mop for a reusable one.

8. Choose natural cleaning for big projects - Sure, you vacuum, dust, and wipe the counters on a daily or weekly basis, but spring is the perfect time to focus on the spaces you generally gloss over-by vacuuming out the refrigerator coils to make the appliance more efficient, deep-cleaning your carpet, and washing your drapes. For the carpet, mix borax and essential oil together, sprinkle over the rug, let it sit, and then vacuum; for curtains and drapes that are machine washable, use an eco-friendly detergent. If they're not up to going in the washer, find an eco-friendly dry cleaner in your area and drop them off there.

9. Go paperless - This is one we've mentioned before-it's a great way to green your home office-but your annual spring cleaning is a perfect reminder to make sure you aren't overwhelmed by junk mail. Using a service like GreenDimes or 41 pounds, stem the tide of incoming junk mail; then set up your bank account for online billing and payments to cut back on waste. You'll have fewer papers to file and keep track of, plus fewer forests will be decimated just for another J. Crew catalog. And as your magazine subscriptions expire, see if you can read online instead to keep your living space even more clutter-free.

10. Plan ahead - If you keep these tips in mind all year, then your 2010 spring cleaning will be that much easier. Don't let stuff accumulate in your home; don't buy things you don't need; and don't be shy about returning gifts you won't ever use. Take advantage of the seasons to edit your collections and donate or sell goods-you might get more at a consignment shop for a winter coat in the fall then in the spring, and your yard sale of extra housewares may do better in late summer if you can catch the back-to-college crowd. Thinking green throughout all areas of your life-from your office to your wardrobe to your home electronics - will put you ahead of the game come next spring.

(Source: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/go-green/spring-cleaning/spring-cleaning-tips.html)

Green Spring Cleaning: Disposing of Toxic Household Items Safely

With the weather warming up, many people are already beginning their annual spring cleaning. Spring cleaning often involves throwing away used and unwanted items, and eco-conscious individuals will try to recycle as many things as possible. To be really "green" with your spring cleaning though, you need to make sure you dispose of toxic items properly.

Many common household items like cleaners, batteries, electronics, and paint are actually hazardous waste and can damage the environment if they are just thrown away in the household trash. However, with a little bit of searching, you can find resources in your area to help you properly recycle or dispose of hazardous household waste.

Electronic items are among the most common pieces of toxic household waste that shouldn't be thrown away. Electronic items like computers, televisions, and cell phones can contain mercury and other heavy metals that can contaminate groundwater reservoirs. Luckily, most electronic items are easily recycled. Many computer manufacturers will accept your old PC or laptop for recycling whenever you buy a new one, and retail stores like Best Buy also accept computers and televisions for recycling. Envelopes that will allow you to mail in cell phones and printer cartridges for recycling can be found at most post offices and PetSmart stores as well (many charities also accept these items for recycling as a way of raising much needed funds).

Household cleaning chemicals are also considered toxic and must be disposed of properly. First, see if you can donate unwanted household cleaners to a local charity organization. Many times schools, churches, firehouses, and daycare facilities go through a lot of cleaning supplies and will happily accept the donation. If you can't donate it to a charity or to someone you know, contact your local city hall or waste management department to find out where you can dispose of household chemicals in your area.

Many times, waste management facilities that accept household cleaners for disposal will have a "swap room" that allows residents to leave unwanted cleaners and take other ones they might want for their own personal use. Many times, facilities that accept cleaners for disposal will also accept paint for disposal, but check with your local facility for their policies. In the future, consider switching over to all-natural, homemade cleaning products.

Finally, a great resource to check out is the recycling/disposal directory at Earth911.com. You can type your zip code into the search box, indicate what type of item you are trying to dispose of, and the Earth911 website will give you a list of facilities in your area that accept that type of item for recycling or disposal. Everyone needs to do some "spring cleaning" and get rid of old items sometimes, but by always trying to see if they can be reused, and making sure toxic items are disposed of safely and in accordance with local laws, we can protect the environment for ourselves and for future generations.

(Source: http://www.greendaily.com/2010/02/26/green-spring-cleaning-disposing-of-toxic-household-items-safely/)

It's Clean-Up Time!

White distilled vinegar is a popular household cleanser, effective for killing most mold, bacteria, and germs, due to its level of acidity. Cleaning with white distilled vinegar is a smart way to avoid using harsh chemicals. You'll also be glad to know that it is environmentally friendly and very economical.

Try these cleaning tips and share them with your friends!

To shine chrome sink fixtures that have a lime buildup, use a paste made of 2 tablespoons salt and 1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar.

Make your own scouring cleanser by combining 1/4 cup baking soda with 1 tablespoon liquid detergent. Add just enough white distilled vinegar to give it a thick but creamy texture.

Clean counter tops and make them smell sweet again with a cloth soaked in undiluted white distilled vinegar.

Clean and deodorize a drain by pouring in 1 cup baking soda, then one cup hot white distilled vinegar. Let this sit for 5 minutes or so then run hot water down the drain.

Deodorize the garbage disposal by pouring in 1/2 cup baking soda and 1/2 cup hot white distilled vinegar. Let sit for 5 minutes then run hot water down the disposal.

Deodorize and clean the garbage disposal with white distilled vinegar ice cubes. Make them by freezing full-strength white distilled vinegar in an ice cube tray. Run several cubes down the disposal while flushing with cold water.

Clean the microwave by mixing 1/2 cup white distilled vinegar and 1/2 cup water in a microwave-safe bowl. Bring it to a rolling boil inside the microwave. Baked-on food will be loosened, and odors will disappear. Wipe clean.

Clean the shelves and walls of the refrigerator with a half-and-half solution of water and white distilled vinegar.

(Source: http://www.greendaily.com/2008/02/23/clean-up-your-indoor-air-pollution/)

Heating and Cooling Efficiently

6 Ways to Improve the Efficiency of Your Cooling System

While the simplest way to reduce your cooling carbon footprint is to do without, sometimes that is much easier said than done. In some areas of the country, that might even spell a death sentence for both your indoor plants and wooden furniture. Cooling your indoor environment is far from being considered completely environmentally-friendly, but by using these six tips, you will be able to reduce your energy usage considerably, which will help curb some of those guilty feelings for wanting to stay cool this summer.

Humidity vs. Cooling
High relative humidity can wreck havoc on your central air system by forcing the condenser to work harder to removing the humidity. Humidity after all can make a room that is 72 degrees Fahrenheit, feel like 77 degrees. Central air conditioning works by removing moisture inside the home which would otherwise slow the cooling process of sweat evaporating from the skin. If your home is well sealed and insulated, once your central air pulls most of the moisture out, it should be able to maintain the dry air fairly efficiently, but there are a few things you can do to improve upon this. First, use a bathroom exhaust fan when taking a shower, second, cover your dirt crawl space with a plastic moisture barrier (and tape the seems), third, cover your pots when cooking with water, and fourth, make sure that your clothes dryer is properly ventilated to the outside.

Evaporative Cooling vs. Central Air
After just talking about how high humidly can make a room feel warmer, I am now going to tell you that by adding moisture to a room that is dry, will make it feel cooler. If you live in a dry climate, evaporative coolers (swamp coolers) can keep your home every bit as cool as a central air unit at a quarter of the cost and energy. Evaporative coolers work by simply blowing cool, moist air into the home, which by the simple process of evaporation, allows the air in the room to eventually cool. Technology has also brought us similar systems called indirect and two-stage evaporative coolers, which uses the same principle, yet does it in a way that minimizes the amount of humidity introduced into the home substantially. Keep in mind however, that in most dry climates a little moisture can be quite a relief to both the skin and your wood furniture.

Thermal Curtains and Shades
We use thermal curtains in the winter to hold the warm heat in and they can be used in the summer to hold the heat out. While it may be tempting to allow all the glorious sunshine in the room during those summer months, it is actually impeding the function of your cooling system by introducing quite a bit of unwelcome heat into your indoor environment. To minimize this, keep the suns rays out with thermal window treatments where the sunlight tends to be the most concentrated during the hottest part of the day. You can leave the drapes open in the shady areas of your home for natural light. Then in the evening (where appropriate) it is a good idea to go ahead and open all the curtains back up to allow for any of the built up heat from the day to escape.

Be Thermostat Smart
While many people think that by taking an active role in their thermostat settings they can improve its efficiency, they can actually end up doing more harm than good. A good setting to leave your thermostat at all the time is 78 degrees Fahrenheit. This is typically comfortable for most people and also fairly simple for a well insulated home to maintain with a minimum of electricity. Some people prefer to set it much higher during the day while away, and then drop it down to 72 degrees once they get home thinking it will help bring the temperature down quicker. The fact of the matter is, dropping the temperature below 78 will not cool the room any quicker and it also forces your central air unit to work overtime. In many cases, dropping the thermostat to 72 to overcompensate for a sweltering home is more wasteful than if the thermostat had been left at a reasonable 78 for the entire day.

Vacation Settings
Another time when home owners are often puzzled as to how to use their air-conditioning properly is when they are away on vacation. This becomes of particular concern when they have pets and plants that will be left behind. The typical advice, is that most newer, well-insulated homes will not reach too much above the mid-eighties in the summer if the drapes are closed, so turning off the central air completely might be a possibility. An older home may not have the same insulating properties can see temperatures sore into the 90's, which is why these homes should definitely have some sort of cooling unit left on, but set to an appropriately higher temperature. You might also want to shut down all heat producing appliances in your home, such as the water heater and entertainment system. If you can empty out your refrigerator and unplug it (leave the door open), you can save quite a substantial amount of electricity here too.

Placement of Central Air Unit
If you are planning to install an air-conditioning unit yourself, there is one very important component that you will need to take careful consideration of... placement. An air conditioner sitting out in the sun during the hottest part of the day is going to have to work much harder than if sitting in the shade. If your current set-up has your unit located in an unfavorable location or your options are very limited, you can always plant trees or shrubs around or provide some type of awning cover. The only time you'd want your air conditioning unit to actually be out in an area that gets plenty of sun, is if you happen to have one of the new solar powered units that have recently began to surface.

(Source: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/home-garden/cooling-system-efficiency.html)

Time to replace your air conditioner?

An extended period of hot, humid days can put a strain on your air conditioning unit. Even with regular maintenance, older units can cost a lot more in repairs and electric bills. But how do you decide if you’re better off struggling through one more summer or making the investment in a more energy-efficient model?

When is it time to replace your air conditioner?
Certain telltale signs indicate it's time to consider replacing heating and cooling equipment, or improving the performance of your overall system. It may be time to call a professional contractor to help you make a change if:

Your heat pump or air conditioner is more than 10 years old.
Consider replacing it with a unit that has earned the ENERGY STAR label. Installed correctly, these high-efficiency units can save up to 20 percent on heating and cooling costs.

Your furnace or boiler is more than 15 years old.
Consider replacing with an ENERGY STAR qualified furnace, which is 15% more efficient than a conventional furnace. If you have a boiler, consider replacing with an ENERGY STAR qualified boiler that is 5% more efficient than a new, standard model.

Your equipment needs frequent repairs and your energy bills are going up.
Your cooling or heating equipment may have become less efficient.

Some rooms in your home are too hot or too cold.
Improper equipment operation, duct problems or inadequate insulation could be the cause.

No one is home for long periods of the day and you do not have a programmable thermostat.
Install an ENERGY STAR qualified programmable thermostat or have a good contractor install one and instruct you on its use — to start saving energy and money while they're away or sleeping.

Your home has humidity problems.
Poor equipment operation, inadequate equipment, and leaky ductwork can cause the air to be too dry in the winter or too humid in the summer.

Your home has excessive dust.
Leaky ducts can pull particles and air from attics, crawl spaces and basements and distribute them throughout your house. Sealing your ducts may be a solution.

Your heating or cooling system is noisy.
You could have an undersized duct system or a problem with the indoor coil of your cooling equipment.

(Source: Department of Energy, http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=heat_cool.pr_checklist_consumers)

10 Tips for Hiring a Heating and Cooling Contractor

1. Study up — Find out about license and insurance requirements for contractors in your state. And before you call a contractor, know the model of your current system and its maintenance history. Also make note of any uncomfortable rooms. This will help potential contractors better understand your heating needs.

2. Ask for referrals — Ask friends, neighbors, and co-workers for contractor referrals. You can also contact local trade organizations for names of members in your area.

3. Call references — Ask contractors for customer references and call them. Ask about the contractor's installation or service performance, and if the job was completed on time and within budget.

4. Find special offers — A heating and cooling system is one of the largest purchases you'll make as a homeowner. Keep your costs down by checking around for available rebates on energy-efficient ENERGY STAR qualified heating and cooling equipment. Begin your search at energystar.gov. 

5. Look for ENERGY STAR — ENERGY STAR qualified products meet strict energy efficiency guidelines set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and offer significant long-term energy savings. Contractors should be able to show you calculations of savings for ENERGY STAR heating and cooling equipment.

6. Expect a home evaluation — The contractor should spend significant time inspecting your current system and home to assess your needs. A bigger system isn't always better; a contractor should size the heating and cooling system based on the size of your house, level of insulation, and windows. A good contractor will inspect your duct system (if applicable) for air leaks and insulation and measure airflow to make sure it meets manufacturers specifications.

7. Get written, itemized estimates — When comparing contractors' proposals (bids), be sure to compare cost, energy efficiency and warranties. A lowest price may not be the best deal if it's not the most efficient because your energy costs will be higher.

8. Get it in ink — Sign a written proposal with a contractor before work gets started. It'll protect you by specifying project costs, model numbers, job schedule and warranty information.

9. Pass it on — Tell friends and family about ENERGY STAR. Almost one-quarter of households knowingly purchased at least one qualified product last year, and 71% of those consumers say they would recommend ENERGY STAR to a friend. Spread the word, and we can all make a big difference.

10. Get the ENERGY STAR Guide — For complete information on keeping your home comfortable year-round, get the ENERGY STAR Guide to Energy Efficient Cooling and Heating at http://www.energystar.gov/ia/products/heat_cool/GUIDE_2COLOR.pdf.

(Source: Department of Energy, http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=heat_cool.pr_contractors_10tips)

Heating and Cooling Efficiently

Did you know that as much as half the energy used in your home goes to heating and cooling? That’s why making smart decisions about your home's heating, ventilating, and air conditioning (HVAC) system can have a big impact on your utility bills – and your comfort level.

“R” your heating bills too high?

According to the U.S. Department of Energy, heating and cooling account for about 56% of the energy used in a typical U.S. home. One way you can lower your heating costs this winter is to make sure you have adequate insulation.
 
Insulation is rated with an “R” value, which is the insulating material’s “Resistance” to the conduction of heat. The higher the R-value, the more your home will retain heat, which will in turn lower the cost of keeping your home warm. Attics, crawlspaces, as well as the space between inner and outer walls are the primary areas where insulating can save you the most money.

But how much insulation do you need? Several factors determine the answer, including where you live, the size of your home, whether it’s a new or old home, how much insulation you already have, and the materials used to construct your home. In short, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer.

The Department of Energy’s web site provides a wealth of information that can help you determine your insulation needs for a warm ¬-- and affordable -- winter.

(Source: U.S. Dept. of Energy,  http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/your_home/insulation_airsealing/index.cfm/mytopic=11350)

Tips to increase efficiency and decrease costs:

• Change your air filter regularly. At a minimum, change the filter every 3 months. A dirty filter will slow down airflow and make the system work harder to keep you warm or cool.
• Install a programmable thermostat. Through proper use of pre-programmed settings, a programmable thermostat can save you about $180 every year.
• Seal your heating and cooling ducts. This will improve the efficiency of your heating and cooling system by as much as 20% – sometimes more.
• Consider installing ENERGY STAR heating and cooling equipment. You could cut your annual energy bill by nearly $200.

Transform Wasted Space into Something Great

Turn those unused or under-utilized areas in your home into storage, a washroom, or an office. Living in a smaller space is better for the environment. You use less energy for climate control, and most people who live in small spaces tend to seriously think about every purchase ('Where will I put this?' is a constant question.)

If you live in a small space, you know all about making the most of every square inch. Storage is always at a premium, but have you really taken a look around your home to see if you're making the most of your space?

I recently stumbled across a photo from magazine Hus & Hem (found on Desire to Inspire) that had me thinking about creative ways to use all those wasted spaces in your home. In the image, a bookcase is built into a stairwell, and along the side of the bookcase is a feature wall that holds and displays magazines. It's a brilliant use of space.

So where are some of the areas where space is often wasted, the spaces that you can easily transform into something useful and maybe even spectacular?

Finding Space Under Stairs - Unless your stairs to the basement and to the upstairs are stacked (which admittedly is quite common), the space under stairs is the perfect size for a small two-piece washroom, a little reading nook, or a recessed shelving area for books.

Coping with Sloping Ceilings - If your top floor features sloped ceilings that come close to the floor, build some storage along the walls. One wall could feature a seating area, with storage below, while the opposite could serve as a deep platform or low headboard to highlight your bed--and it will situate your bed out from the wall enough that you won't end up with a bump on the head next time you wake up suddenly.

Transforming Alcoves - Many of us have an alcove or two in our homes, and their potential is rarely maximized. Build custom shelving, hang floating shelves, or create a flush storage unit to provide space for books, a collection, or other items that can clutter up the home. If your alcove is even a foot deep, you can create a built-in secretary desk with a fold-down workspace.

Giving an Extra Room Purpose - If you live in a larger home and have a spare or guest bedroom, give the space a purpose. Unless you have family visiting every weekend, your guest room will be best used if it has another purpose. Make it a den, a craft or sewing space, or an office if you work from home often enough. Whatever you do, make sure every room in your home has a purpose, otherwise it will become a dumping ground for things you never use (and, therefore, really don't need).

Maximizing all those unused spaces in your home will help you live more efficiently and, likely, more comfortably.

(Source: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/home-garden/transform-wasted-space-great.html)

Advice for all your green building materials.

When it comes to building or renovating a home, there are few simple choices. From styles and colors to location and design, there's an awful lot to consider. Thankfully, you don't have to settle for materials that have big-time negative impact on the planet. Here to help is our Green Materials Guide, which will help guide you through the process of finding green materials for every green project in your home.

Options for Green Windows
There are many different kinds of windows. Each operates in a different way, and each can serve a different function. All factors have an impact on how green your home is, and there are a lot of materials to consider to determine how green your windows are. From aluminum to vinyl to wood, casement to hopper to double hung (not to mention glazing and screening options), we've got all the window choices and materials covered. Read the Green Materials Guide for Windows to get started.

Green Flooring for your Home
Just because your flooring is underfoot doesn't mean you shouldn't pay attention to what materials are there, and which green material choices are best for any given flooring situation. Whether you need flooring for high traffic areas, a modular option that can be partially replaced, or something that'll wear beautifully for the life of your home, there's a green flooring option out there, from bamboo to hardwood, cork to linoleum, carpet tiles to rammed earth. Read our Green Materials Guide for Flooring for the full story.

Insulation for Green Building
Everyone knows the rolls of pink insulation, made popular by a certain big cat, but there's a wide variety of green options out there, too. Proper insulation is one of the big keys to a green home, so, even though you don't see it every day, it's important to carefully consider the material that keeps heat in, and the cold out (and the other way around). Sure, the pink stuff is an option, but green materials as diverse as recycled denim and bio-based spray foam will do the job, too; read the Green Materials Guide for Building Insulation to learn about all the green materials to choose from.

Green Kitchen Design Materials
Your kitchen is the heart of your home, so it follows that a lot of time, energy, and money gets spent on just that one room. A green kitchen goes from floor to ceiling -- and the countertops and cabinets in between -- and there's a lot to think about. You need it to be functional, durable, and aesthetically pleasing, so check out the Green Materials Guide for Kitchen Design to learn how to marry all your needs with the best in green materials.

Bathroom Designs with Green Materials
Though bathrooms are often one of the smallest rooms in the house, there is no shortage of design decisions to make to maximize function, beauty, and sustainability. From the best bets for water conservation to the materials designed to stand up to the daily moisture exposure, all the info you need is in the Green Materials Guide for Bathrooms.

Efficient Heating and Cooling
Efficient heating and cooling in your home has become all about throwing tons of energy at the problem of staying warm in the winter and cool in the summer, but efficient systems and smart designs can help cut back on energy while cranking up your comfort level. From old standbys like natural gas, to new favorites like pellet stoves, to cool green tech like solar (for heat and air conditioning), check out the Green Materials Guide for Heating and Cooling to help you heat and cool with green in mind.

Wall Coverings
Deciding what goes on your walls can seem like an easy decision -- solids vs. patterns, paint vs. wallpaper -- but it can have a lot to do with the environmental health in your home. Green is much more than a paint color when it comes to wall coverings, but you'll want to pick the right material for the right room, considering how long you want it to stay the same, and how it'll wear over time. There's a lot to think about; get started with our handy Green Materials Guide for Wall coverings.

Building Blocks
The building blocks for your home -- those materials that make up the structure for your home -- are often hidden beneath siding and drywall, but it can be one of the most important decisions you make when building or remodeling a home. Your decision will tempered by history, culture and climate, and it is not a simple choice. From highly engineered materials like structurally engineered panels, to materials used just as Mother Nature made them, like rammed earth, read all about the choices you have in the Green Materials Guide for Building Blocks.

(Source: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/feature/green-materials-guide/)

Simple changes can minimize children's exposure to best-to-avoid chemicals.

1. Start at the front door.
Whatever you bring into your home gets into the air you and yours breathe. Make sure what you're bringing in -- from dry cleaning, which can offgas a chemical the EPA says causes cancer in lab animals, to the pesticide and car exhaust residue on the bottom of your shoes -- is safe. Take off your shoes at the entryway so you don't track anything undesirable onto floors babes might be crawling on, or older kids playing on. Taking off shoes is the public health equivalent of washing hands. Wet or CO2 clean instead of dry cleaning.

2. Switch all conventional cleaning products to green versions.
Now. This will drastically reduce your indoor air pollution and couldn't be easier. And/or make some of your own cleaners with various mixtures of eco-dish soap, water, vinegar, and baking soda. This switch should include laundry detergent. All of those hand-me-downs, second hand finds, cloth diapers, plus new organic cotton baby presents need to be washed in gentle-to-baby-and-the-earth suds. (Bonus if you can line dry....)

3. Serve the kids some combination of local/organic/sustainably grown food.
Shop farmers' markets or join a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm. If organic isn't an option, make sure whatever conventional items you're serving do not fall on The Environmental Working Group's Dirty Dozen list. Serve ecologically raised meat, and not very much of it. Be careful when it comes to fish and contaminants like PCBs and mercury. Program FishPhone into your cell so you can always make wise choices at the fish counter.

4. Drink tap water.
Test it and filter accordingly if you have reason to. Bottled water is an expensive and earth ruining farce. But you already knew that, right?

5. Cook, eat off of, and store your family's lovingly sourced food in and on safe, durable cookware, plates and containers that won't be toxic landfill fodder in a few years.
Look for cast iron, glass, stainless steel, enamel coated cast iron, and lead-free ceramic. The same materials are safe for drinking your tap water out of. Avoid non-stick surfaces and anything plastic. If you're using plastic, even something that claims to be BPA-free or microwave-safe, do not ever put it in a microwave. These are not regulated terms. Newsflash: there is no reason all children need to eat off of plastic, especially given its potential health issues. Teach them not to break things at an early age by giving them ceramic. If it breaks, oh well. Or if they're really into tossing dishware, put their meals in indestructible stainless steel prep bowls.

6. Children should not wear cosmetics.
They're loaded with synthetic hormone disruptors and potential carcinogens that pound for pound present more of a health concern for small people than for adults. (Not that they're great for adults, either.). Kiddie skin is perfect unless it isn't. Do not put cream on skin that is soft and gorgeous! It doesn't need anything. If it is dry, or if there is an issue, put some organic olive oil on it. If you prefer a cosmetic, only use ones that are made with very few organically or biodynamically grown ingredients. You should be able to read the ingredient list and generally understand what it means. If you can't, don't put it on your baby. Look for trustworthy third party certification labels. Avoid face painting and nail painting; they're not good ideas for growing hormone systems.

7. Use organic and/or natural pest control like integrated pest management for lawns and inside for things like ants and roaches.
Safer exterminators and products do exist.

8. A positive pregnancy test sends most parents rushing to Home Depot for paint, plywood, and caulk.
Resist the urge to renovate, and certainly do not do demolition when pregnant or when small children are around. If you must, do it as green as possible. Low VOC isn't as good as no VOC. And vacate the premises before, during, and after any renovations.

9. If in the market for new furniture -- couches, mattresses, toddler table-and-chairs sets -- shop green.
Upholstered furniture should contain minimal toxic flame retardants, formaldehyde and the like. Natural materials and fabrics are key -- bare wood floors, cotton or wool rugs without glued synethetic backings, hard woods over particleboards, and so on. This less is more approach tends to save cash in the long run, though the individual items might be pricier than your average version. Do not skimp on the crib, crib mattress, toddler or twin bed or twin mattress. Children spend half of their days in bed -- babies up to 18 hours a day -- breathing in what their beds are offgassing while their lungs are developing. Organic crib mattresses are a must -- you don't want your babe sleeping on plastic covered, flame retardant soaked mattresses. So are well ventilated rooms.

10. Eco-interested parents often spend so much time thinking about organic local apples and diaper creams that they forget about their medicine cabinet.
Teething, fevers, and stuffy noses will no doubt have you searching for remedies throughout childhood. Before you reach for over the counter meds or even holistic cures, don't forget about tried and true, simple non-toxic measures we all already have at home, like steam for congestion (especially if you have a water filter on that shower head), or even propping up a mattress to mitigate post-nasal issues. Honey (for babies over one) works well to calm coughs. Frozen celery can help with teething molars. Dried fruit or stewed prunes are good for constipation. DIY fruit juice popsicles combat dehydration. Ginger and peppermint tea work for tummy aches. And so on.

It's nearly impossible for me to limit myself to ten ways to detox your home for babies and kids, and I have so much more to say. But I'll stop myself there.

(Source: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/home-garden/detox-home-babies-kids.html)

How Safe is Tap Water?

Tap water is not without its problems. In 2005, the nonprofit Environmental Working Group (EWG) tested municipal water in 42 states and detected some 260 contaminants in public water supplies. Of those, 141 were unregulated chemicals for which public health officials have no safety standards, much less methods for removing them.

Environmentalists Fault EPA for Failing to Establish Tap Water Standards
EWG did find over 90 percent compliance by water utilities in applying and enforcing standards that exist, but faulted the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for failing to establish standards on so many of the contaminants—from industry, agriculture and urban runoff—that do end up in our water.

Tap Water vs. Bottled Water
Despite these seemingly alarming stats, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), which has also conducted extensive tests on municipal water supplies as well as bottled water, says: “In the short term, if you are an adult with no special health conditions, and you are not pregnant, then you can drink most cities’ tap water without having to worry.” This is because most of the contaminants in public water supplies exist at such small concentrations that most people would have to ingest very large quantities for health problems to occur.

What are the Health Risks of Tap Water?
NRDC does caution, however, that “pregnant women, young children, the elderly, people with chronic illnesses and those with weakened immune systems can be especially vulnerable to the risks posed by contaminated water.” The group suggests that anyone who may be at risk obtain a copy of their city’s annual water quality report (they are mandated by law) and review it with their physician.

What are the Health Risks of Bottled Water?
As for bottled water, it is first important to know that 25 to 30 percent of it comes straight from municipal tap water systems, despite the pretty nature scenes on the bottles that imply otherwise. Some of that water goes through additional filtering, but some does not. NRDC has researched bottled water extensively and has found that it is "subject to less rigorous testing and purity standards than those which apply to city tap water."

Bottled water is required to be tested less frequently than tap water for bacteria and chemical contaminants, and U.S. Food and Drug Administration bottled water rules allow for some contamination by E. coli or fecal coliform, contrary to EPA tap water rules that prohibit any such contamination. Similarly, NRDC found that there are no requirements for bottled water to be disinfected or tested for parasites such as cryptosporidium or giardia, unlike more stringent EPA rules regulating tap water. This leaves open the possibility, says NRDC, that some bottled water may present similar health threats to those with weakened immune systems, the elderly and others they caution about drinking tap water.

Goal: Make Tap Water Safe for Everyone
The bottom line is that we have invested considerably in highly efficient municipal water delivery systems that bring this precious liquid straight to our kitchen faucets any time we need it. Instead of taking that for granted and relying on bottled water instead, we need to make sure our tap water is clean and safe for all.

Save 36,000 Gallons of Water This Year

As news stories about droughts and water shortages become more frequent, many people are looking for easy ways to save water. In 2009 alone, there were water restrictions in parts of Florida, Georgia and Texas. California continues to be plagued by droughts and shortages across much of the state. Most of us have heard about carbon footprints, but do you know what your water footprint is? According to Planet Green, the average American uses about 400 gallons of water per day. That's a whopping 584,000 gallons per year for the average family of four! Here are five easy ways to save water that could cut your water footprint by 36,000 gallons or more this year.

• Check your toilet for leaks. Simply add a few drops of food coloring into your toilet tank and wait 30 minutes. If you see any color in the toilet bowl, you have a leak. Fix the leak, save water. Seals in your toilet tank can wear out and begin to leak without affecting the toilet's function, so it's a good idea to check for leaks a couple of times a year. Average monthly water savings: 1,000 gallons.
• Install water saving shower heads. Conventional shower heads can use up to 10 gallons per minute. Do you really need that much water to get clean? Installing a low-flow shower head that uses only 2-2.5 gallons per minute will keep you just as clean using only 20% of the water. Average monthly water savings: 750 gallons.
• Use eco-friendly landscaping. Save water by replacing old flowers and shrubs with varieties adapted to low-water environments. You can install rain barrels and drip irrigation systems to collect and distribute rain water through your garden for more ways to save water. Be sure to check the local laws in you area before installing any rainwater collection systems. Believe it or not, some states actually have laws against collecting rain water. Average monthly water savings: 100-300 gallons.
• Wash only when necessary. Do you faithfully turn on the dishwasher every night, even if it's only half full? Save more water by resisting the urge and only running your washing machine or dishwasher when they are full. Average monthly water savings: 1,000 gallons.
• Be aware of your water usage. Can you save money without tracking how much you spend? Maybe, but it's sure to be much harder without a budget. The same is true for water usage. You can save more water if you know how much water you use to begin with. Check out this handy Water Footprint Calculator from H2O Conserve, and find out how much water you're using.

The best part about these water saving tips is that they are easy, affordable solutions that anyone can use to reduce water consumption. You don't have to change your lifestyle or invest in costly equipment to save water; you just need to be aware of the places where water is most often wasted.

http://www.greendaily.com/2010/02/12/how-to-save-36000-gallons-of-water-this-year/

Saving Water/Energy this Summer

Water Heating
Water heating can account for 14%–25% of the energy consumed in your home. You can reduce your monthly water heating bills by selecting the appropriate water heater for your home or pool and by using some energy-efficient water heating strategies.

Selecting a New Water Heater
You have a lot to consider when selecting a new water heater for your home. You should choose a water heating system that will not only provide enough hot water but also that will do so energy efficiently, saving you money. This includes considering the different types of water heaters available and determining the right size and fuel source for your home.

Types of Water Heaters
It's a good idea to know the different types of water heaters available before you purchase one:

• Conventional storage water heaters
  Offer a ready reservoir (storage tank) of hot water
• Demand (tankless or instantaneous) water heaters
  Heat water directly without the use of a storage tank
• Heat pump water heaters
  Move heat from one place to another instead of generating heat directly for providing hot water
• Solar water heaters
  Use the sun's heat to provide hot water
• Tankless coil and indirect water heaters
  Use a home's space heating system to heat water

Water Usage

Americans use large quantities of water inside and outside of their homes. In fact, a family of four uses 400 gallons of water every day.

Water conservation tips:

• Fix leaky toilets. Toilets are the single largest water user in a home. A leaky toilet can waste 200 gallons of water per day, and it is estimated that nearly 20% of all toilets leak. Check for toilet leaks by adding food coloring to the tank. If the toilet is leaking, color will appear in the bowl within 15 minutes.
• Use WaterSense labeled products. It could save 20% of the water that average products would use.
• Take short showers instead of baths. A full bathtub can require up to 70 gallons of water, while a 5-minute shower uses only 10 to 25 gallons.
• Repair dripping faucets and showerheads.A drip rate of one drip per second can waste more than 3,000 gallons of water per year>.

WaterSense

Launched in 2006, WaterSense is an EPA-sponsored partnership program that seeks to protect the future of our nation's water supply by promoting water efficiency and enhancing the market for water-efficient products, programs, and practices.

WaterSense brings together local water utilities and governments, product manufacturers, retailers, consumers, and other stakeholders to:

• Decrease indoor and outdoor non-agricultural water use through the adoption of more efficient products and practices.
• Help consumers make water-efficient choices, including differentiating between products and services in the marketplace and adopting simple daily activities that reduce water use.
• Encourage innovation in manufacturing
• Establish and standardize rigorous certification criteria that ensure product efficiency, performance, and quality.

WaterSense helps consumers identify water-efficient products and programs that meet WaterSense water efficiency and performance criteria. Products carrying the WaterSense label perform well, help save money, and encourage innovation in manufacturing.

WaterSense partners with manufacturers, retailers and distributors, and utilities to bring WaterSense labeled products to the marketplace and make it easy to purchase high-performing, water-efficient products.

WaterSense also partners with irrigation professionals and irrigation certification programs to promote water-efficient landscape irrigation practices.

http://www.epa.gov/watersense/about_us/index.html

Water Purification

Water that is safe to drink is called potable water, or drinking water, in contrast to safe water, which can be used for bathing or cleaning. In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency sets maximum levels for the 90 most commonly occurring contaminants. If something happens to your water supply, your supplier has to contact you to let you know what precautions you should take. Water treatment requires six basic steps:

• In coagulation, coagulants like lime and alum are added to the water, which causes particulates to clump together.
• Next, the water is shaken into larger clumps, called flocks.
• The sedimentation process requires that the water stand for 24 hours, which allows the clumps to settle to the bottom.
• The water is then filtered, disinfected (usually with chlorine) and aerated.
• Aeration helps to remove certain contaminants like radon.

Water Survival Techniques
If your water becomes contaminated and you don't have bottled water, you can purify it in a few different ways. If it is cloudy, first filter it through clean cloths or allow it to settle and then pour off the clear water. Then, you can boil the water for one minute to kill most disease-causing organisms.

You can also add one-eighth of a teaspoon of household chlorine bleach per gallon of water (or follow directions on the label). You should double the amount if the water is discolored or murky. Stir and let it stand for 30 minutes. Chlorine bleach tablets are sold at camping supply stores to purify water for drinking. You can also use five drops of iodine per gallon to disinfect water.

Store boiled or disinfected water in clean, covered containers. If the boiled water tastes too flat or the chlorine taste is too strong, pour it from one container into another.

http://science.howstuffworks.com/h2o4.htm

Cold Water Laundry, Give It a Try!

by Patricia Mayville-Cox

One of the most common tips to "green your laundry" is to use cold water in the washer, as ninety percent of the energy used for washing clothes is used for heating the water. However, let's be honest, sometimes a cold water wash and rinse is just not going to cut it.

Instead of trying to wash everything in cold water and becoming frustrated, shoot for a goal that is reasonable for you. Aim for making 80% of the loads you wash cold wash/cold rinse cycles. Just taking this simple step could cut 72 pounds of carbon emissions in one month alone.

Even if 80% is too high, try aiming for half! It doesn't have to be all-or-nothing.

(Source: http://www.greendaily.com/2009/02/27/tip-of-the-day-cold-water-laundry-give-it-a-try/)

Compost: How to Make It, Bins, Piles and More

How to make compost?

Given enough time, all biodegradable material will compost. The goal in a composting system is to provide a healthy environment and nutrition for the rapid decomposers, the bacteria. Not all biodegradable materials are appropriate for backyard or at-home composting, though. Most backyard systems will not reach temperatures high enough to kill pathogens and deter vermin, so pet droppings, non-vegetarian animal manure, meat scraps, and dairy products are best left in the trash.

The most rapid composting occurs with the ideal carbon to nitrogen ratio of between 25 and 30 to 1 by dry chemical weight. In other words, the ingredients placed in the pile should contain 25 to 30 times as much carbon as nitrogen. For example, grass clippings average about 19 to 1 and dry autumn leaves average about 55 to 1, so mixing equal parts by volume nets approximately the correct range.

How to compost: techniques

There are a couple of different common techniques for composting that use two primary methods. Active, or hot, composting, as the name suggests, occurs when the compost stays above about 90°F (32°C), allowing aerobic bacteria to thrive, killing most pathogens and seeds, and rapidly producing usable compost. Passive, or cold, composting occurs in many domestic garden compost bins in which temperatures never reach above 86°F or 30°C. If you put kitchen scraps in the garden compost bin and leaving them untended, you're cold composting. This "scrap bin," because it has a very high moisture content and doesn't get active aeration, is likely to turn anaerobic and will not smell very good, though it will produce compost, after a while. This process can be improved by adding some wood chips or small pieces of bark, leaves, twigs, or a combination of these materials, throughout the mixture, helping to improve drainage and airflow.

Using compost improves soil structure, texture, and aeration and increases the soil's water-holding capacity. Compost loosens clay soils and helps sandy soils retain water. Adding compost improves soil fertility and stimulates healthy root development in plants. The organic matter provided in compost provides food for microorganisms, which keeps the soil in a healthy, balanced condition. Nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus will be produced naturally by the feeding of microorganisms, so few, if any, other soil additives will be needed.

Using compost bins and piles will help you create compost more quickly and easily; read on for our tips for using compost bins and piles.

Using compost bins and piles

Anyone with a few extra square feet (even inside your kitchen or out on a deck or balcony) can produce compost; examples like these are a few options for those who don't have the space to start a big heap in the backyard. Though a common misconception, properly aerated compost does not smell like rotten food (though the "passive compost" described above certainly can), which makes it possible for apartment and other small home-dwellers to create their own without making a big mess or raising a stink.

Learn more about compost and composting

Check out How Stuff Works, the US EPA's composting site and the USDA's Natural Resource Conservation Service compost site for more information, and read more about composting, community composting, Swedish composting, a composting table and How to Green Your Gardening in TreeHugger.

(Source: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/07/green-basics-compost.php?page=3)

Recycle Your Cell Phone. It's an Easy Call

As cell phones, computers, and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) become more prominent in our everyday lives, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking steps to encourage consumers to recycle these products instead of adding them to our nation's landfills. As part of this initiative, EPA's Plug-In To eCycling program has teamed up with leading cell phone makers, service providers, and retailers to launch a national campaign encouraging Americans to recycle or donate their unwanted cell phones. The "Recycle Your Cell Phone. It's An Easy Call" campaign aims to increase the public's awareness of cell phone recycling and donation opportunities, with the ultimate goal of increasing the nation's cell phone recycling rate. Plug-In To eCycling partners supporting this campaign are: AT&T, Best Buy, LG Electronics, Motorola, Nokia, Office Depot, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, Sprint, Staples, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless.

To kick off the initiative, the Campaign has released a series of print public service announcements that highlight the convenience and environmental and social benefits of recycling a cell phone. EPA has also released a series of downloadable podcasts featuring experts in the electronics recycling field discussing the many ways that consumers can reuse and recycle their electronics and addressing many common questions and concerns. During 2008, look for the Campaign to host special cell phone collection events and increase publicity for our partners' recycling programs.

EPA has targeted cell phone recycling because, despite the large number of programs, most consumers still do not know where or how they can recycle their cell phones. Consequently, only 10 percent of unwanted cell phones are recycled each year. Recycling cell phones leads to significant environmental savings and can benefit communities.

Recycling: an Easy Call - Every day there are thousands of opportunities to recycle cell phones and accessories. Many cell phone retailers, manufacturers, and service providers have ongoing collection programs where phones can be dropped off or mailed in-regardless of the age or brand. Some charitable organizations and state or municipal solid waste programs also offer cell phone recycling. In most cases, cell phone recycling is free.

Recycling: a Green Call - Recycling cell phones helps the environment by saving energy and keeping useable and valuable materials out of landfills and incinerators. Cell phones are made from precious metals, copper, and plastics-all of which require energy to mine and manufacture. Recycling these materials not only conserves resources, but prevents air and water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. In fact, if all of the 100 million cell phones ready for end of life management in the U.S. are recycled, we could save enough energy to power more than 18,500 U.S. households with electricity for one year.

Recycling: a Social Call - Donating your cell phone also benefits your community. When cell phones and accessories are in good working condition, some programs donate them to a number of worthy charities or provide them for discounted sale to those who need them. In addition, many recycling programs use the proceeds to raise funds for charitable organizations, schools, churches and other social causes. In some cases, programs buy the phone back from the consumer.

(Source: http://www.epa.gov/osw/partnerships/plugin/cellphone/cell-fs.htm)

Household Hazardous Waste

Leftover household products that contain corrosive, toxic, ignitable, or reactive ingredients are considered to be "household hazardous waste" or "HHW." Products, such as paints, cleaners, oils, batteries, and pesticides, that contain potentially hazardous ingredients require special care when you dispose of them.

Improper disposal of household hazardous wastes can include pouring them down the drain, on the ground, into storm sewers, or in some cases putting them out with the trash. The dangers of such disposal methods might not be immediately obvious, but improper disposal of these wastes can pollute the environment and pose a threat to human health. Many communities in the United States offer a variety of options for conveniently and safely managing HHW.

HHW Reduction, Reuse, Recycling, and Disposal Options

The options of reduction, reuse, recycling, and disposal-listed in order of EPA's preferred waste management hierarchy-are all important tools to safely manage HHW. The following information can help you determine the best ways to reduce, reuse, or dispose of common household products that may contain hazardous ingredients. Each community is different, so check with your local environmental, health, or solid waste agency for more information on HHW management options in your area.

Benefits of Proper HHW Management

Reduction and recycling of HHW conserves resources and energy that would be expended in the production of more products.

Reuse of hazardous household products can save money and reduce the need for generating hazardous substances.

Proper disposal prevents pollution that could endanger human health and the environment.

Reduction at Home

Consider reducing your purchase of products that contain hazardous ingredients. Learn about the use of alternative methods or products–without hazardous ingredients–for some common household needs.

To avoid the potential risks associated with household hazardous wastes, it is important that people always monitor the use, storage, and disposal of products with potentially hazardous substances in their homes. Below are some tips for individuals to follow in their own homes:

• Use and store products containing hazardous substances carefully to prevent any accidents at home. Never store hazardous products in food containers; keep them in their original containers and never remove labels. Corroding containers, however, require special handling. Call your local hazardous materials official or fire department for instructions.
• When leftovers remain, never mix HHW with other products. Incompatible products might react, ignite, or explode, and contaminated HHW might become unrecyclable.
• Remember to follow any instructions for use and disposal provided on product labels.
• Call your local environmental, health, or solid waste agency for instructions on proper use and disposal and to learn about local HHW drop off programs and upcoming collection days.

Collection Options – Municipalities and Local Governments Facilitating Reuse, Recycling, and Proper Disposal

Permanent collection or exchange. See if your community has a facility that collects HHW year-round. Some of these facilities have exchange areas for unused or leftover paints, solvents, pesticides, cleaning and automotive products, and other materials. By taking advantage of these facilities, materials can be used by someone else, rather than being thrown away.

Special collection days. If your community doesn't have a year-round collection system for HHW, see if there are any designated days in your area for collecting solid waste at a central location to ensure safe management and disposal.

Local business collection sites. If your community has neither a permanent collection site nor a special collection day, you might be able to drop off certain products at local businesses for recycling or proper disposal. Some local garages, for example, may accept used motor oil for recycling.

Disposal Options

Certain types of HHW have the potential to cause physical injury to sanitation workers, contaminate septic tanks or wastewater treatment systems if poured down drains or toilets, and present hazards to children and pets if left around the house. Federal law allows disposal of HHW in the trash. However, many communities have collection programs for HHW to reduce the potential harm posed by these chemicals. EPA encourages participation in these HHW collection programs rather than discarding the HHW in the trash. Call your local environmental, health, or solid waste agency for the time and location of your HHW collection program. Also, read product labels for disposal directions to reduce the risk of products exploding, igniting, leaking, mixing with other chemicals, or posing other hazards on the way to a disposal facility. Even empty containers of HHW can pose hazards because of the residual chemicals that might remain.

HHW Facts and Figures

• Americans generate 1.6 million tons of HHW per year.
• The average home can accumulate as much as 100 pounds of HHW in the basement and garage and in storage closets.
• During the 1980s, many communities started special collection days or permanent collection sites for handling HHW. In 1997, there were more than 3,000 HHW permanent programs and collection events throughout the United States.

(Source: http://epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/materials/hhw.htm)

Lawn and Garden

The Indoor Garden: Your Cure for the Winter Blues: Freshen the air and liven up your interior with plants.

As much as I love autumn, at some point I resign myself to the months-long loss of lush gardens and green spaces. The autumn and winter can be dreary months, but there is a way to keep a slice of summer in your home year-round: Create an indoor garden.

Indoor gardens can have several benefits in the autumn and winter: They bring some life into your space, several plants can help purify stale indoor air, and a few plants can make people more productive. And they don't have to be difficult to maintain.

Even people known for killing plants can maintain an indoor garden, so long as you choose hardy plants that work with your habits. Do you have a tendency to over-water plants? Parlor palms and tropical plants will love you for it. Perhaps you forget to water your plants for weeks? English ivy and cacti are your best friends. Or you could always pick un-killable plants that can survive drought, over-watering, and even cold.

Difficulty level: Easy

You'll need:
Plants
A variety of planters
Objects d'art
Optional: Salvaged wood and brackets for shelving

Start by deciding whether you want to use existing surfaces or if you want to hang shelves. When you're considering a space for your indoor garden, remember you'll want a warm, sunny spot that will help your plants thrive.

If you are a renter and aren't allowed to hang shelves (or if you just don't want to go to the bother), other surfaces that could hold your garden include a fireplace mantel, a console, or a trio of side tables. Less conventional but more creative options include hanging ivy in a vintage bird cage, loading plants into an old galvanized steel tub, or arranging a few compact plants on a pair of vintage chairs.

The next step is to find the right plants--and the right number of plants. There are lots of air-purifying house plants to choose from, including the peace lili, Warneckii, English ivy, and elephant ear. Gather as many of these purifying plants, and don't be afraid to add some of your favorite plants or flowers for a personal flair.

If you don't have many (or any) of these air cleaning plants, you don't need to shell out a lot of money. Most are inexpensive, but you can also ask friends for offshoots or portions of plants.

Once you've selected plants, take stock of your planters, and amass a collection of objects d'art--interesting objects that you can place in amongst the garden's plants. The objects and the number of plants will create a tone for your indoor garden space.

If you want a meditative space, you might include a Buddha, a small wire bowl filled with smooth stones, or a clear vase filled with fine, pale sand. A few choice plants, each in their own planter, will suggest order and peace. A jungle feel, on the other hand is all about lushness. Load up on plants, and add in a tribal mask from your travels or a brilliant red or yellow ceramic parrot.

If there's anything you need, head to your local re-store, thrift stores, and flea markets to look for second-hand items. If you're to look for wood for shelving, keep in mind you can always paint the shelves to fit your decor (using a low-VOC paint, of course).

When you have your plants, planters and objects assembled, take the time to layer the tableau, moving plants and objects around until you love the look. If you lack an artistic eye, invite over a creative friend who can help you arrange things while you catch up over a bottle of wine.

(Source: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/home-garden/indoor-garden-winter-blues.html)

Gardening Guide: Keeping your garden healthy

Preparing the garden soil before you begin planting is just the beginning of a healthy garden. With a little planning and prevention, there are steps you can take to prevent garden maladies and stressed out plants throughout the growing season.

Variety. Just as a diversified portfolio will protect your financial future much better than investing in one area, a garden with many different plants is a hardier garden less prone to pests and disease.

Compost, compost and then compost again. Continue to work compost into flower beds and garden soil. Keeping the soil healthy is the foundation of a healthy garden. If short on compost, even egg shells and coffee grounds will help.

Fertilize. To grow organic vegetables, chemical pesticides and treatments need to be avoided. Fish emulsion, bat guano, kelp meal, and worm castings are some of the more commonly known and popular organic fertilizers. Compost and organic fertilizers will provide your plants with all the nutrients they need and reduce plant stress that leads to disease.

Bugs. There are many bugs that benefit the garden. Get to know which bugs to welcome, and which ones to kick out of the garden. Good bugs will save you time in the garden task of policing the garden for bad bugs by eating the bad bugs before you find them.

Water. Know your plants. Read about plants before you plant the seeds. All plants need adequate water, but some need more water than others. Like compost and fertilizers, under-watered and over-watered plants can suffer stress that makes them susceptible to disease and pest infestation.

Birds, bees and butterflies. Plant flowers that attract birds, butterflies and bees. All three will work to keep the garden free of pests. With birds, remember to protect your vegetables with netting to keep them from lunching on your delicious, juicy, freshly-grown but not yet fully-matured garden vegetables before you can get them to the dinner table.

(Source: http://www.greendaily.com/2008/03/11/gardening-guide-keeping-your-garden-healthy/)

Don't bag it, mulch it: eco-friendly alternatives to raking and bagging leaves this fall*

About 18% of the total waste added to American landfills each year comes from our yards. Plus, an enormous amount of labor, money and pollution goes into removing plastic bags filled with leaves from our curbsides, streets and alleys each fall. And all in the quest for a beautiful green lawn. We can still maintain the picture-perfect lawns we love and keep those leaves from the landfills.

• Mow and mulch. If leaves are sufficiently shredded they can decompose right into your lawn where they'll add valuable nutrients to your soil. So just mow right over your fallen leaves.
• Start a compost pile. Adding leaves and other yard waste to discarded vegetable scraps will make a rich gardening resource for next spring's plantings.
• Rethink your yard. Consider creating a “natural” garden area where you can let the leaves stay on the ground. After all, this is what Mother Nature intended!

* Source material for articles in this newsletter:

http://hflp.sdstate.edu/recycle.htm
http://www.southorange.org/Environment/LeafSolutionsFrameSet.html
http://www.ci.zephyrhills.fl.us/Alter1227.asp

Wrap your gifts green this year

Consumers who want to help the environment can do so most effectively by reducing consumption. Wrapping paper alternatives not only reduce the need for various resources to be consumed, but also offer a creative and unique presentation for gifts. No matter what the gift is, there is a wrapping paper alternative to make the gift-giving experience even more special.

One extremely low-cost wrapping paper alternative is to use the Sunday comics. These are bright, colorful, and fun, and will probably be passed around and read as the recipient opens the gift. Children and adults alike will appreciate this attractive wrapping paper alternative. To spruce it up a bit more, clear cellophane can be used over the comics newspaper, creating a smooth, more polished look.

Similarly, old calendars can be used as a wrapping paper alternative. The pictures from these calendars, or from high-quality magazines with thick pages, can be cut out and used to wrap smaller gifts. The pictures are usually brilliantly colored and the paper is thick and glossy, creating a beautiful presentation. An old road map, topographical map, or marine chart also creates an intriguing wrapping paper alternative, especially if it has relevance to the gift recipient's life, interests, or the gift itself.

Re-used gift wrap, if not damaged, is another free wrapping paper alternative. Torn or ragged edges can be cut off and high-quality ribbon will last through many uses. Newsprint roll-ends are often given away by newspaper offices and can be decorated with markers, paints, rubber stamps, or stickers. Children often like to see their artwork displayed and, with their permission, their artwork can be used as a wrapping paper alternative.

For those who enjoy sewing, fabric gift bags can be created and used as a unique wrapping paper alternative. These gift bags can be sewn out of old sheets, pillowcases, fabric remnants, or just about any other fabric that might be lying around. When time and effort is put into creating a beautiful and reusable wrapping paper alternative, the bag will likely be reused by the recipient or passed on to wrap a gift for someone else!

(Source: wisegeek.com)

Organic Cotton: For Clothing, Baby, Bedding and More

What is organic cotton?
Organic cotton is the version of its conventional counterpart grown without pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, chemical fertilizers or any other chemicals, and that makes it hugely different, especially considering that cotton (organic or otherwise) provides about half of all the world's fiber needs. Conventional cotton is one of the most chemically-dependent crops, sucking up 10 percent of all agricultural chemicals and 25 percent of insecticides on 3 percent of our arable land; that's more than any other crop per unit. That adds up to 1/3 of a pound of chemicals to produce enough cotton for a t-shirt, and 3/4 of a pound for a pair of jeans. And that's just not bad for the planet; 20,000 deaths occur each year from pesticide poisoning in developing countries, many of these from cotton farming, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

Organic cotton on the other hand, uses agricultural methods designed to help sustain the land it grows on, the people who grow and harvest it, and the planet in general. Organic farming really starts with the soil. Compost, frequent crop rotations and cover crop strategies replace synthetic fertilizers to keep the soil healthy and productive. Weeds are controlled by innovative farm machinery, hand labor or flame devices rather than herbicide applications. Rather than attempting to eradicate all insects with chemicals, organic farmers cultivate a diversity of natural enemies which prey on insect pests, and lure pests away from cotton by planting trap crops. Insect pests can be effectively kept in balance with well-timed introduction of beneficial insects to fields. In warmer growing regions, where the cotton plants must be killed or defoliated to pick a quality crop before the onset of winter rains, organic growers shut off water early, and apply certified materials to promote cotton boll opening and leaf dropping, readying the fibers for harvest. In the US, both conventional and organic cotton are mostly machine-picked; in some developing countries, cotton is still harvested by hand.

When it comes time to harvest by hand, it follows then that organic cotton is also much safer for those who pick it. Workers aren't exposed to breathing or otherwise ingesting toxic chemicals while active in the field, and don't have to worry about the same nasty chemicals getting into their water supply if they live nearby. They can raise healthier children and livestock, and everyone is happier (okay, we made that last part up, but it seems to fit, right?).

Organic cotton certification
Like other organic products (food is the most prominent example), organic cotton must be certified as such by a third party, based upon pre-determined rules and regulations for what is and isn't allowed in the cultivation process. Here in the United States, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) regulates the organic certification process, based on the standards set in the Organic Food Production Act of 1990 (OFPA); because organic cotton is grown around the world, and the US supply is not large enough to keep up with demand, other certification groups are often cited for products we see and use. The Dutch organization SKAL (one we've seen around a lot), for example, works in Europe, South America, Africa and Asia to certify different agricultural products as organic. Among the rules for certification, in addition to the ongoing ban of pesticides and other chemicals, is that the soil cannot have been sprayed with any of the banned substances for three years, so proper organic certification takes significant time, effort and bureaucratic rule-following (some might call it hoop-jumping or cutting red tape, but we won't) but the results are something to be proud of: a truly sustainable product.

But what about the actual clothes? Keep reading for some great examples of our favorite organic cotton clothing, including where you can find it.

Organic cotton clothing
When it comes time to put it on, many believe that organic cotton is softer and easier on your skin (though we don't have any scientific data, this TreeHugger is happy to corroborate this), and, of course, there aren't any latent pesticides or other chemicals that might disagree with your skin. This extra comfort is an added bonus when considering all of the benefits for the planet and its people, and the result is that organic cotton has been growing at an incredible rate.

Finding organic cotton clothing
Market retail leaders like Patagonia and Nike, who both blend and use organic cotton exclusively in their outdoor apparel, are being joined by high-end designers like Loomstate and Katherine Hamnett (whose work is directly above). This has been modulated by more mainstream designers like H&M, The Gap, Levi's and L.L. Bean, meaning that it's easier (and cheaper!) to get than ever before. Doesn't that make you feel all warm & fuzzy inside?

Learn more about organic cotton
More information can be found via the USDA, the Sustainable Cotton Project, the Organic Trade Association and PAN Germany's Directory for Organic Cotton.

(Source: http://treehugger.com/files/2007/08/green-basics-organic-cotton.php)

Top Home Electronics Tips

Go rechargeable
Of the 15 billion batteries produced and sold each year, most of them are disposable alkaline batteries, and only a fraction of those are recycled. Look for electronics that are rechargeable. For removable batteries, lithium-ion (Li-Ion) and nickel metal hydride (NiMH) are cost-effective, green alternatives. The fastest battery chargers can juice up AAs in as little as 15 minutes, and will pay for themselves quite quickly.

Kill Vampire Power
Just because your cell phone is unplugged from the charger or your TV is off, doesn't mean these devices aren't drawing a current and running up your electricity bill. Many AC adapters (or "wall warts") if left plugged in will continue to pull a current from the wall socket (you may notice they are warm to the touch). Many devices that have a standby mode do the same thing. To make sure you aren't wasting energy, pull the plug on devices when not in use or put all of your electronics and chargers on a power strip. This way you can simply flip the power strip off when your electronics are not in use. There are also a number of "smart" power strips on the market that sense when electronics are turned off, or that turn off the strip when one main unit (like your PC) is powered down. (Note that some electronics need to be turned off via the on/off switch before cutting the power. Inkjet printers, for example, need to seal the cartridge heads to avoid clogging.)

Buy with energy in mind
Some types of electronics suck more than others, at least in energy terms. Doing research on different technologies and their respective energy consumption can save you a lot in the long run. For example, if you want a flat panel television, look into LCD models, which use much less energy than plasmas. The Energy Star site will help you identify energy-saving electronic devices like cordless phones, stereo systems, TVs, DVD players, battery chargers, and a whole bunch more.

Treat those batteries right
While battery recycling programs are increasingly common and easy to use, the process of recycling anything still takes energy and resources and should not be overused (one of the most polluted sites on the planet is a battery recycling plant in the Dominican Republic). Knowing how to best use and maintain rechargeable batteries will boost their longevity and performance. See Getting Techie below for more on the specifics.

Make it a short circuit
So, you just bought the newest, sleekest cell phone. It takes video, filters out calls from exes, and charts barometric pressure. What should you do with the old one? Whatever you do, don't just throw it in the trash--this risks releasing chemicals into the ecosystem. There are plenty of organizations and charities that recycle and reuse old electronics. If you want a return on your old gadgets, sell them on an online auction site--people will often buy them even if they are broken. Bonus! A growing number of computer manufacturers are adopting take-back programs as well, under which they will accept and recycle their units when you're done with them.

Buy used
Don't want to spend a fortune on technology? You can find top quality, totally functional used electronics at sites like Ebay and Craigslist, and even at yard sales and flea markets. This not only cuts down on the amount of new resources being used for the production of more stuff, it also creates a market for sellers to safely recirculate electronics they're no longer using. Ebay's Easytradein.com is a good resource for the electronics you are ready to part with. You might even be surprised what comes up on Freecycle.

Bright idea: The solar charger
There are an increasing number of options for on-the-go solar power. From handheld to backpack power, solar chargers now come in a spectrum of types for juicing up phones, PDAs, Bluetooth headsets, iPods, and laptops. Many have an onboard battery pack that can charge while the solar cells are in the sun, and then transfer the power to your device when you need it. See the "Home Electronics: From the Archives" section for a list of solar chargers on the market.

Extend use
There's definitely a cult around replacing our electronic toys and tools every 15 minutes or so when a new model comes out. In some cases, the newest technologies are cleaner and more efficient, but often, the older ones will faithfully do their assigned task for a lot longer than the marketplace would have us believe. In some cases, the older models are even superior. Step back a few paces from the whole technophelia thing and take stock of what your real needs are. It couldn't hurt to practice some of this in the rest of our lives, as well.

Look for EPEAT
EPEAT (electronic product environmental assessment tool) is an attempt at environmental certification for computers (CPUs, monitors, and notebooks). Released in early 2006, a growing number of products have been registered with EPEAT, and this certification is continuing to pick up steam; learn more at the EPEAT homepage.

Buy a less toxic system
Europe is making huge inroads on reducing the presence of toxic chemicals in electronics such as lead, cadmium, and mercury with a directive called RoHS (Restriction on Hazardous Substances). Even if you don't live in Europe this has a big impact, as any company looking to sell there has to follow the directive. Look for companies that are adhering to--and even going beyond--the RoHS compliance in Europe and around the globe. Learn more from the RoHS UK Homepage and Wikipedia's RoHS page.

(Source: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/go-green/home-electronics/home-electronics-tips.html)

7 Great Weekend Solar Power Projects

Do something cool this weekend with solar!

Looking for a fun project to take on this weekend? Looking to improve your skills with solar? We have some suggestions to accomplish both of these to-do items, ranging from quick, cheap and easy to rather involved but still pretty cheap and easy.

1. Solar powered cell phone charger

You don't have to buy a special solar charger in order to take advantage of the suns rays to keep your cell phone running. You can make your own with just a few simple components. This is the perfect project to start out tinkering with solar power.

2. Solar powered radio

If you have $5 and a desire to dip into solar power tinkering, this is a great place to start. You can learn how to hook up a small solar cell to a portable radio for use in emergencies.

3. Solar powered boom box

If you're looking for a slightly bigger project (and have a little more to spend), try making a solar powered boom box. You can put it together on Saturday and show it off to your friends at Sunday's picnic or beach gathering.

4. Solar powered stove

What's summer without a BBQ, or at least something hot off a grill? With a few basic components like an umbrella, some tin foil and a manual drill (those materials piqued your interest, didn't they!), you can have a backyard BBQ going in no time-or at least making some hot food. As long as the sun is out anyway.

5. Solar box cooker

If you want to put together a solar cooker but want to look slightly less crazy when using it, try making a solar box cooker. It's perfect for making homemade pizzas and other delicious treats. You very likely have all the materials stashed away in the garage or closet, so your solar box cooker could end up being a completely free, completely cool weekend project.

. Solar power generator

Are you beyond tinkering with smaller solar projects and want to really generate some electricity with it? Then we have a project for you! You can build a solar power generator for about $300. How much you can generate depends on the efficiency rating of the solar panel you use, but it'll be enough to charge up a few batteries on a sunny day, at the least.

7. Solar roof panels

Beyond even building a solar power generator, and ready to hit the roof? No problem-you can install some this weekend using materials from eBay. You can find and buy damaged solar cells on eBay, refurbish them, and turn them into rooftop panels that generate supplemental electricity for your home. You can build a panel for as little as $100. It'll take a few of them to be able to generate enough electricity worth using in your home, but you could turn it into a great multi-weekend project.

We also have instructions for how to mount solar panels on your roof for after you've finished up your homemade panels.

(Source: http://planetgreen.discovery.com/tech-transport/solar-projects-weekend.html)