Green Options » energy saving

Berkeley Architect Constructs Self-Heating Home

Becky Striepe — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 07:00:39 +0000

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.

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%.

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Harvard Offers Students Sustainable LEED Certified Dorms

Jerry James Stone — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 19:13:51 +0000

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 packed with renewable bamboo flooring, considered wall paneling, low VOC finishes, and regionally sourced siding with recycled content. It was also designed and engineered to minimize energy usage.

The housing was designed by architect Kyu Sung Woo, who recently won Korea’s version of the Nobel Prize - the Ho-Am Prize.

Source: worldarchitecturenews.com

Image source: © Coleong | Dreamstime.com

10 Tips for Conserving Energy This Winter

Becky Striepe — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 12:00:42 +0000

[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!

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Eco Button, Ideas From PPAI Tradeshow

John Simonetta — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 17:50:31 +0000

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.

This post contains additional media. Click here to view the full post.

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?

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Environmental Defense Fund: Easy Recycling of Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs

edfblog — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 22:20:56 +0000

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 in plastic bags before placing them in the trash can slow the release of mercury if the bulb breaks. But recycling is ideal.

The problem, until now, has been that recycling CFLs was inconvenient for post people. That’s about to change, thanks to Home Depot. The New York Times reported this week that Home Depot will offer CFL recycling at all of its nearly 2000 U.S. stores. That puts 75 percent of Americans within 10 miles of a CFL recycling location.

If you’re not part of that 75 percent, you still have options. Ikea stores provide CFL recycling bins, as well. Or visit Earth 911 or Lamp Recycle to look for a recycling location near you.

Need help choosing the right CFL? Visit our online guide, “How to Pick a Better Bulb“.

An Energy Saving of 65% and a Cup of Tea in Three Seconds

Pem Charnley — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 12:57:48 +0000

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.

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