Green Options

The summer of 2009 has been cooler than usual in the Midwest, but Mother Nature can still pack a punch.

August has seen some 90-degree days in places like Michigan.

When it get this hot, some people like to stay inside in front of the air conditioner (based on recent Twitter and Facebook updates). But it doesn’t have to be this way.

The air conditioner, I mean.

A “whole house fan” that uses the attic for venting can keep your home cool with less electricity (and for less money) than modern-day air conditioning.

Those folks at Nissan have been keeping us busy lately, but the latest development really is a first - an air-conditioning system specifically designed to mess with our brains!

Earlier this week the Japanese number three announced the development of a new “Forest AC” air conditioning system, “which systematically controls cabin temperature, ventilation, aroma and humidity to create an optimal interior environment.”

But there’s more, the system is based on the results of a research study on the effects of aroma on human mental activity meaning it can “influence the physiological state and senses of the driver and passengers.”

Officials in Ottawa are considering a cool plan to use the ‘cold energy’ stored in snow as a source of renewable energy in public buildings across the city.

Under the plan, snow collected on the Ottawa streets during the cold winter months would be used to keep the city’s hospitals, universities and government buildings cool during the hot summer. Snow collected during the winter normally melts by early June, but, if the plan gets the green light, it will be insulated with wood chips, making it last until September. The icy melt-water could then be fed through pipes to keep buildings cool without the need for expensive, and energy hungry, air conditioners.

Danish company AC Sun recently made news with the “invention” a new solar-powered air conditioning system.The new systems are pollution-free, low-noise, and use only 10% of the energy of conventional systems. The only problem is they’ve already been invented, several times over.

Lars Stigel, director of Østjysk Innovation, an investor in AC Sun, spoke with enthusiasm about AC Sun’s design. “It is a groundbreaking technology in relation to renewable energy and energy savings,” he says.

Solar air conditioning has so far been the holy grail of the solar energy world, but now SolCool seems ready to make the dream a reality. With air conditioning being the heaviest user of electricity in many parts of the world, the 600-watt maximum average usage level of SolCool units will significantly alleviate strains on the electric grid. And, SolCool units can run on wind, solar, generator, electric [...]

To wrap up my ode to John Henry (and a more sustainable lifestyle) I am going to cover a few more everyday household plug-ins by giving the current ON the grid offering, it’s OFF the grid alternative, and weigh in on whether a switch is warranted.

ON
The Fridge: We all know what it does and why we use it–so what are the OFF the grid alternatives?

OFF
The Fridge: William “The Refrigerator” Perry, former defensive lineman for my beloved 1985 Super Bowl Champion Chicago Bears. You could try contacting him to see if he’ll deliver fresh food to your door on a daily basis. I understand he’s not very busy these days.

OFF
Jarring and canning fruits and vegetables to preserve for the winter months may save some space in the fridge, but cannot replace the fridge altogether.

SWITCH?
Realistically, it’s not likely. However, the size of refrigerators in this country is insane. My parents have an enormous fridge and regularly come across 3 year old cheeses and meats that get lost under piles of their newer/fresher replacements. In lieu of a switch to William Perry (we can’t all use him–it’s simply unrealistic) we can buy a smaller, energy efficient fridge, fill it with less food (eat fresher food), and keep the door open for very short intervals (know what you’re getting before you open it). A few generations back, families typically had more members yet much smaller fridges, so it can be done–and you’ll benefit from fresher fare.

I don’t know how you spent your weekend, but we spent ours with hands outstretched, feeling for hot, attic air shooting out of electrical outlets, ventilation fans and air vents. After months of crazy-high electric bills, we decided to get to the bottom of why it was costing so darn much to cool our rather small home.

Enter the HERS Rater (Home Energy Rating System).

It turns out there are wonderful people who will come to your home, put up a strange looking contraption called a “blower door” on either your front door or entry to the attached garage. A fan is turned on, the pressure is measured (our house was brought to -50 Pascals) and the cubic feet per minute of air that is rushing out of the house is measured.

Author’s note: the following article on home heating is the third in an eight-part series. This article addresses climate conditions found in the San Francisco Bay Area, but may have applicability elsewhere.

Forced air systems are the most common heating systems in California and are used in most new construction elsewhere. They have two big advantages: they are cheap to install, and they provide heat at a moment’s notice. Having “instant-on” heat is vital for intermittent use spaces like ski cabins. Otherwise, forced air is the least energy efficient and least comfortable way of heating a typical home. Why?

Ventilation and Heat Loss

For the health and well-being of its occupants, a home must exhaust stale air and refresh it with new air drawn from outdoors. Forced air systems heat and blow this air, via ducts, throughout your house. Since new air is continually entering and leaving, you are heating the outdoors.

On April 4th, the architecture and planning firm of Weber + Thompson will move into its new headquarters, located at the intersection of Thomas Street and Terry Avenue in the South Lake Union neighborhood of downtown Seattle.

The firm sees its new headquarters as an emblem of its sustainable approach to architecture. The most innovative feature of the building is its passive cooling design; the building will not be air conditioned at all.