Green Options

A California architect has constructed a home that heats itself from the warmth of its appliances. Homes like this have been popular in Germany, where a local architect built the first of its kind in 1991, but they are only just starting to catch on here in the States.

[Creative Commons photo by KeWynn Lee]

Nabih Tahan’s “Passive House” on Grant Street in Berkeley is the first one in California. It uses a ventilator to recycle the heat that radiates from the appliances, reducing the use of heat from fossil fuels by 80%-90%.

In keeping with Harvard’s university-wide commitment to sustainable building practices and campus operations, the university has just completed graduate housing that is set to achieve a high level of LEED certification. The 115,000 sq ft project houses 215 beds in over 30 different suite types, and includes a faculty director’s suite, a fitness room, study lounge spaces, a multipurpose room, and a garage that extends under the building.

The swanky housing is [...]

[Image credit: Pirate Alice at Flickr, Creative Commons license]

According to the US Department of Energy, over 1/3 of Americans’ energy bills goes towards heating their homes. By taking steps to reduce the energy devoted to home heating, you can lower your CO2 emissions by hundreds to thousands of pounds. As temperatures drop this winter, there are a few things you can do before reaching for that thermostat. The average American spends $1900 annually on energy bills, so on top of conserving fossil fuels, these tips should save you some cash, too!

This is a guest post by John Simonetta, owner of ProformaGreen, an eco-friendly promotional items consultancy. John’s blogs are designed to keep us up to date on the “greening” of his industry.

This is a short video we took of Robert De Veau with Hirsch Gift showing the Eco Button at the Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) event in Fort Worth last weekend.

Initially I stopped at the Hirsch Gift booth to discuss their new line of bamboo and PET flash drives - yes another vendor is entering the green flash drive market - but then Robert showed me the Eco Button.

The idea is basic. How many hundreds of computers are in your average office block? How many hours are those computers on during the day when people are not using them?

Compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) use 75 percent less electricity than incandescent light bulbs for the same amount of light. (For why, see Bill’s post “Why Switch to Compact Fluorescents“.) But some people fear CFLs because of the tiny amount of mercury they contain. The risk from a broken CFL is extremely small, but CFLs should be disposed of properly so landfills aren’t polluted. Sealing used bulbs [...]

Only yesterday, I was talking to a member of the Green Options editorial team about the delights of tea – and we agreed, that Early Grey must rank as one of nature’s finest hot beverages for an afternoon’s pick-me-up.

The British Empire

Oh yes, think 4pm, the duchess summoning Jeeves to bring the best china, hallowed guests gather on the front lawn, croquet temporarily suspended as we congregate to imbibe.

So imagine my delight when I came across the following:

A kettle that boils the water in just three seconds.