The GreenTech Blog

Building a Green Home

Julia Nathan — Sun, 05 Sep 2010 16:04:32 +0000

There comes a time in every home owner’s life, when we must look into the face of change. Or more specifically, we have to remodel. Whatever the cause, a need to increase home value, an attempt to improve the functionality of a space, or an excess of money (lucky you!), this is a great opportunity to improve the environmental friendliness of one’s home.

The news often reports on amazing homes that have achieved the pinnacle of green. Homes that generate more energy than they use or generate zero carbon emissions can be inspiring but also intimidating. Doesn’t it seem that a lot of work must be involved to accomplish these things? But the truth is that making your home greener is easier when you know what your options are. Thanks to the internet, one of the greatest resources available is other home owners who’ve already done this. Here are some great examples to learn from:

Bozeman House – this is a beautiful website created by Ron Gompertz and Michelle Gantt who remodeled their 1904 house in Bozeman, Montana. In addition to “doing the right thing”, they also wanted to support local businesses and have a house that would stand up to potential rising energy costs in the future. What they created was a home that utilized a variety of alternative energies, recycled materials, and looks pretty darn good to boot. An entire section of their website is dedicated to the materials that they used for landscaping, insulation, counter tops, etc.. Its a fantastic resource, so please check out their ‘Green Products‘.
Our Cool House – Phil and Lisa Malone share the details of their earth-sheltered, geo-thermal exchanging, passive solar house. And don’t worry if you don’t understand what those terms mean, their website is full of explanations and a lot of enthusiasm.
Build It Solar: I Did It – If none of those links were to your liking, Build It Solar has an entire resource listing of people sharing their experiences in building or remodeling houses to be more energy efficient.

Hopefully you will be able to find inspiration (and some awesome looking recycled kitchen counter tops) in the links provided. Happy Surfing and good luck on your next green house project!

Staying Cool and Green

Julia Nathan — Thu, 29 Apr 2010 01:07:02 +0000

In the interest of full disclosure, I will tell you now that I love hot weather. Now that we are finally creeping out of winter into some warmer weather, my spirits are rising accordingly. Of course for some of us, this is not good news as the approaching summer heat also signals a rise in our energy bills. Central air conditioning can be one of the highest energy consuming systems in a house, beating out all other appliances. So here are some ideas to help keep your cool before resorting to cranking up the AC:

Close the blinds while you are out: This is a small habit that can really make a difference. Even if you haven’t invested in solar shades which are supposed to reduce the effect of UV rays, you can still keep your house cooler by closing the window coverings that you own. Anything that stops the sun’s rays from getting in and heating up your home will help.
Plant shade trees: If you have a yard and the space to support them, consider planting some shade trees. If you aren’t sure how to go about it, visit the Arbor Day Foundation web page. Not only do they provide information about different types of trees, they will also sell you a tree that is appropriate for your region. Spring planting time is now, so if this is something you are interested in, go check it out.
Change your AC filter: Dirty AC filters cause the unit to work harder to push air through, so make sure you are changing out your filters.
Set your programmable thermostat: Do not cool your home when you aren’t it in. A programmable thermostat will help automate this good habit.
Take a shower: Unless you are running a sauna in your bathroom, a shower can help cool down your body temperature and leave you feeling relaxed. Its a nice thing to do before bed.
Use ceiling fans: A ceiling fan will keep air circulating around a room which creates a cooling effect on your skin. Most fans have a separate setting for warm and cold weather, the difference being the direction of rotation, so make sure you are using the correct setting.
Get a cooling unit for your room: Unless you have a need to air condition your entire house, it is probably cheaper to invest in a cooling unit for the individual room you are in. This can be something as simple as a box fan, a portable air conditioner, or a window-mounted unit. I even found this bed-mounted unit called The Bedfan which claims to alleviate night sweats and hot sleeping in general! If you do decide to invest in a room air conditioner, please note that according to the Department of Energy, that using a unit that is too large for your room often results in fast cooling times but ineffective removal of humidity. The result can be a cold clammy room, so check their recommendations for correctly sizing your room AC here.

So those are my tips for dealing with summer heat without upping your cooling bill. Feel free to drop a comment if you think I missed one, but don’t you tell me to learn to love the heat, cause I already got that one down!

DIY Green Tech

Julia Nathan — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 02:18:36 +0000

Chances are that if you are reading this, then you’re into green gadgets.. If you’re not, then Welcome, and please feel free to browse around the store to see why you should be! For the rest of us, being into gadgets might also mean you’re a bit of do-it-yourself-er. If you are, then today’s post is for you, because its about instructables.com

Instructables.com is a self-described “documentation platform where passionate people share what they do and how they do it…”. The idea for the site was created by a group of MIT students who later went on to found Squid Labs. Supported by an incredible community, instructables.com has become a great place to share ideas and be inspired by others. The premise is simple but powerful. Each instructable is a set of linear steps, accompanied by images, that shows how to accomplish a project. Using this simple format, the website has developed a huge number offerings in categories such as art, food, games, music, science, and technology. And of course, the reason we are covering it today, is their Green category.

The green category consists of wide array of projects. There are guides available for composting bins, gardening projects, jewelry making, computer recycling, and energy saving. Since the last couple of posts have focused on saving water in the home, I thought this would be a good area in which to demonstrate types of instructables available.

At one end of the spectrum is an instructable titled “Conserving Water: 2 Stage Toilet Flush“. This project requires no money, no tools, and very little labor. Simply by understanding how your toilet works, and making a small change to its internals, you can convert your standard flush toilet into one that has the capability to perform a low-water flush, for minimal waste, or a full-flush for anything else. Once you read this, you may think that its too simple to bother sharing but often it is the simple actions that make a big difference.

Now, one step up in difficulty is an instructable titled “Simple Laundry Greywater System“. This project requires some basic plumbing supplies and skills, mainly the ability to connect a hose with a nut and washer, and some effort. Reading through this shows you how you could possibly start using greywater from your laundry washing machine in your garden. The best part about this instructable is that it really opens your mind to the possibilities. Its pretty easy to re-route your laundry machine’s waste water and if this solution isn’t exactly right for you, you might be able to change it until you have something that does work.

This last instructable actually won recognition from earthjustice.org, and its called “Save Water! Kitchen Faucet with Foot Pedal“. This project requires several parts (tubing, solenoids, wires), some skills, but mainly confidence. I say this because it involves electricity and water. So I hope we all understand that there are no guarantees when you do your own work (but isn’t that what is so great about it?). This idea is pretty cool though because the end product is a foot pedal that controls the water flow from a faucet. Not only is it green, but its a cost-effective solution that you could theoretically implement yourself.

So if you’ve got the time and notion, go over to instructables.com and take a look around. There are projects for every skill level in a variety of areas that you may never have considered.

Electric Bicycles: Helping You Help the Environment

Julia Nathan — Mon, 15 Mar 2010 01:37:49 +0000

Occasionally, in our quest to become more environmentally conscious, it seems that we have seen and considered it all. Recycling in the home, using compact fluorescent light bulbs, Energy Star appliances, checking our window insulation, and perhaps even buying a hybrid vehicle are pretty common options for a person these days. So here I am to present you with another option that you may not have considered: the electric bicycle.

“Aren’t some of us a little old for a scooter?”, you may be thinking. However, I am not talking about a scooter and I’m definitely not talking about a motorcycle. I am talking about your old childhood friend, the bicycle, and adding a few accessories: an electric motor, battery pack, and controller. The controller regulates the battery and motor, and together they provide assistance in pedaling the bicycle. The end result is an easier bicycling experience.

Now this isn’t for everyone, but it may work for more people than you think. There are many people who ride bicycles for recreational purposes, and some of whom use a bicycle to commute to work. I used to be one of those people. I lived about three miles from work and when the weather was decent, I would pack up my business clothes in a backpack and bike to work. After awhile, I stopped doing this, even though it was great exercise and definitely environmentally friendly. My main issue was that I had a hard time gauging my energy levels. Some days were tougher than others. I might have to bring a laptop home, and all the accessories with it. Add all that to the end of a tiring day at work, when all you want is dinner… well, you can see how a person’s motivation might lag. Couple that with the consistent need to shower at the work gym (and not all of us have this option) and then change into our business attire, let’s just say it takes real commitment to commute via bicycle.

An electric bicycle can help mitigate some of these issues because the job of the motor is to make your pedaling easier. Easier pedaling lets you extend the range that you are willing to commute, make it into work with less sweat (possibly eliminating the need for a shower), and assists you with any additional business equipment you might be hauling. Its still more environmentally friendly than taking your car into work because you can re-charge the battery pack. An electric bicycle also sidesteps one of the issues that potential scooter owners can face, which is licensing. In some states, scooters require a special license or even have to be registered as motorcycles. Generally, electric bicycles still fall into the same legal category as a standard bicycle.

So if you are interested in an electric bicycle, there are several manufacturers available or you can purchase an electric motor kit and convert the bicycle you own. Here are some links that you may find helpful:

NYCEWheels: A New York based store that specializes in electric bicycles and scooters, these people have put together a great web page with articles, reviews, and products to browse through.
Optibike: A Colorado based company that makes some of the sportiest (and pricey!) electric bicycles I’ve seen. (note* All their bicycles go faster than 20 mph which may negate their legal classification as standard bicycles.
Wikipedia – Electric Bike Laws: Just what it sounds like.

So if this a solution you are considering, don’t forget to check for any possible tax credits or commuter credits you may qualify for through the government or your workplace.

The Greener Gadgets Design Competition

Julia Nathan — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 23:37:37 +0000

This past February, the Greener Gadgets conference took place in New York City. The conference is produced by the Consumer Electronics Association and is meant to highlight the latest innovations and issues in green technology. I’ve never been to the conference but I do enjoy reading about one part which is the Greener Gadgets Design Competition. This year, there were eighteen finalists, whose entries ranged from kinetic chargers to smart grid-like home management devices. The winner of the competition was decided during the conference on February 25th by a panel of judges and a live audience.

This year’s winner was the AUG/Living Goods Program, a mobile application designed to encourage purchase of local goods by providing immediate information about the producer of the goods to the consumer. The application relies on the maintenance of a product database whose entries would be looked up by the bar code. Information that would be stored are items such as: distance that the product has traveled, whether the item is in season, and producer profiles. The designers’ goal is to reward local producers by empowering consumers with the information they need to make informed buying decisions.

There were several other entries which garnered attention:

Roller Gen: a kinetic charger which converts the energy generated by riding a bicycle to charge a battery, which can then be used to charge your cell phone.
Corky: a wireless mouse that charges up from the movement of the mouse itself!
Automan 500 subwoofer: a home A/V subwoofer made from recycled tires, designed to look like a stylish ottoman.
BioCharger180 & Fair Energy Clock: These are two device chargers that save energy by stopping the charging activity at a preset time.

There are several innovative entries that are fun to read about, so I encourage anyone to head over to the Greener Gadgets site to check them out.

Water Conservation in the Shower

Julia Nathan — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 02:42:42 +0000

After my previous post on waste-water heat reclamation, I’ve been a little more conscious of all the energy that I’m losing down the drain. So today, while taking a shower, I put the stopper in the drain. My reasoning was that I could heat my toes a little before letting the water go. Much to my surprise, the amount of water that I used in the shower was almost the same amount that I might have used while taking a bath. I could have sworn that taking a shower was more the more eco-friendly option, but it just goes to show that mindfulness is key when you are trying to save. So now seems like an appropriate time to review some tips and gadgets to help conserve water in the shower:

1. Install a low-flow shower head. This means the shower head will pass 2.5 gallons per minute (gpm) or less. Some models will go as low as 1 or 1.5 gpm.

Companies like Evolve make a line of low-flow shower heads, ranging from handheld to rain to standard styles. Their ShowerStart heads actually cut off water flow once the water temperature reaches 95 degrees, so that you don’t waste water while waiting outside for the water to heat up. Once you get in the shower, just flip a valve to restore water flow.

Install a cut-off valve. This will allow you to take a “navy shower” by controlling the flow of water without adjusting the temperature. Once wet, you reduce water and lather up, turning the flow back up to rinse off.

2. Reduce the amount of time spent showering. A complete shower can take place in 5 minutes (or less), but any reduction in time will save you water and money:

At $111, the Shower Manager seems pricey but it does have some features worth noting such as: limited access to timer controls, options for time limit settings, reduction of water flow once time limit expires, 5-minute delay after water shut-off before resuming normal flow. The goal is to train people to take shorter showers by removing incentives, such as water pressure.

For those of us with more self-control (or cooperative families), a simple kitchen timer would suffice. Timers made specifically for the shower range from products like the Niagara Shower Coach, a basic 5-minute sand timer which you can attach with a suction cup, to the Efergy Shower Time, a digital timer that also calculates water usage.

3. And of course, you can always turn down the temperature of your water heater.

Please note, I don’t work for any of the companies or manufacturers of any of these products. I have posted the links to give you a better idea of what options are available. So good luck and happy hunting!

Reclaiming Waste Heat (or What I Learned from the 2010 Olympics)

Julia Nathan — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 02:35:29 +0000

The 2010 Vancouver Olympics will be starting soon on February 12th, and though the Olympic Cauldron hasn’t yet been lit, there are still a lot of interesting things going on! This year’s Olympic organizers appear to have put a great deal of thought into improving the sustainability of the event. From partnering with indigenous peoples to attempting to neutralize the Olympic carbon footprint, organizers have made numerous efforts to green up which you can read about on their Sustainability web page.

One aspect of the operations that I find fascinating, has been the work done to reuse otherwise wasted heat energy. Several of the sporting arenas and the Olympic village are setup with heat reclamation systems. For example, at Riley-Hillcrest-Nat Bailey Stadium Parks the waste heat generated by the curling rink refrigeration plant will be used to heat pool water and space at the nearby aquatics center.

Now several of you may be wondering what good this information does the average person. Not many of us have the budget of a Host Olympic City to spend on sustainability projects. It turns out that it is quite possible to reclaim wasted water heat in the home. Here are a few facts from the U.S. Department of Energy’s website on Drain Water Heat Recovery:

Between 80-90% of the energy used to heat water in the home, goes down the drain with the water.
Drain water heat recovery systems can capture that energy and use it to pre-heat cold water before it goes to your water heater or other appliance.
Heat recovery systems cost between $300 – $500, not including installation but will pay off between 2.5 – 7 years pending use.

So how do these heat recovery systems work? The core concept is simple and relies on heat exchange. Using a shower as an example, a heat recovery system could work as such:

Heated water from the hot water tank gets sent up a pipe to the shower.
As the person showers, the still hot waste water goes down the drain pipe.
Normally cold water would be piped into the water heater to replenish the hot water supply. However, in a heat recovery system, the inbound cold water is sent through a pipe that makes multiple curls around the drainage pipe along the way.
The heat of the outbound shower water is transferred to the incoming cold water. Usually these sections of the system are made with copper pipe to assist in the heat transfer.
After going through the heat transfer, the inbound water has been pre-warmed before entering the water heater. This action reduces the amount of energy it will take the water heater to perform its job.

The system I’ve just described is basic and is only useful when doing something that uses hot and cold water at the same time. However, more advanced systems allow the capability to store the recovered heat for later use. It is an exciting idea for improving energy efficiency that has yet to become popular in the United States, though it appears to be doing quite well in Canada. So if you are considering some home renovations to improve efficiency or making changes to your plumbing, ask your contractor if they can perform this kind of work.

And next month, as you are happily watching the Olympics, just keep in mind that there’s a lot of green going on behind the scenes.

CES Green Roundup

Julia Nathan — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 02:04:05 +0000

I’d like to apologize for the lack of updates as I’m afraid I took the holiday vacation to heart and it took reading some of the latest gadgetry news from CES to get me back in the game. As you may have noticed from the previous posting, the 2010 International Consumer Electronics Show took place from January 7th to the 10th.

There appears to have been some interesting stuff at CES this year, including the Pocket Radar (which is a lot like it sounds) and the Eye-Fi, a wireless SD card for use with digital cameras. On the environmentally conscious front were two prominent products: the Picowatt and the Airnergy.

The Picowatt won its manufacturer, Tenrehte Technologies, an award for “Best of CES” this year. Tenrehte was founded in 2009 and specializes in Wi-Fi enabled platforms. The Picowatt is a Wi-Fi enabled Smart Plug that allows home owners to monitor and manage the electricity use of devices connected to the plug. The device information is accessible via webpage or a Facebook app which will display current and historical electrical usage, as well as allow the user to control power to the device. The Picowatt is stated to be available to consumers in April for $79. Your can read our previous post on SmartGrids for more information about Smart energy management.
The Airnergy is the latest effort in the arena of “free energy” battery rechargers, such as kinetic chargers and solar powered chargers. In this case, the Airnergy draws its power from Wi-Fi signals and charges devices through a USB port. This product raises some interesting questions in terms of how much and how quickly the Airnergy can build up charge from Wi-Fi signals since the amount will vary based on proximity to the wireless source, and how is this going to impact the free Wi-Fi offered by eateries and tea houses? The product is made by RCA and is expected to be available this year for $40.

That’s just a little news from the 2010 CES. Coming up next month is the Greener Gadgets Conference on February 25th!

Upcoming Green Events: CES, Greener Gadets

Julia Nathan — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 00:17:17 +0000

Happy Holidays everyone. Hopefully you’ve gotten your shopping out of the way, and if not then you have my condolences. Now, on to some news. It looks like there are going to be two green events coming up in the next few months.

The first is the 2010 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) being held in Las Vegas from January 7th to the 10th. There are two aspects of the CES that make it of interest here:

Organizers have been attempting to make the show more environmentally friendly through use of recycled materials such as carpeting and paper products. They’re offering food containers and utensils made of bio-degradable materials, and they’re recycling a large percentage of the trash generated by the event. It is a pretty impressive list of actions that you can read about here at CES Greening.
Sustainable Planet Spotlight: This will be a feature of more than thirty exhibitors in the area of green technology. Organizers say it will be the largest showing of this type that they have ever had at CES. There will be displays, presentations, and product demos which you can read more about here. Sadly, I’m not going, so I’ll have to wait until after the event to see what innovations get revealed.

The other event of interest is the Greener Gadgets Conference being held in New York City on February 25th. While being smaller than CES, it still promises to be interesting with panels on Green Living and guest speakers such as Jeff Omelchuck from the Green Electronics Council. One of the highlights of the event will be the Green Gadgets Design competition which will be accepting entries until December 31st, 2009. Last year’s winners can be seen here. I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve made fun of some of these items before, such as the Standby Monster, but its still interesting to see people attempt to tackle the issues of how to make greener living easier.

One interesting fact is that both events are being produced by the Consumer Electronics Association who, in an attempt to encourage re-use, have offered a discount shipping rate for any booths that happen to be exhibiting at both events.

So let’s keep our eyes out for some green innovation in 2010!

Green Thoughts for the Holidays

Julia Nathan — Fri, 27 Nov 2009 23:20:07 +0000

Happy Holidays dear readers!

With the on-coming holidays and seasonal weather, its a good time to investigate some green options that we may not normally get to think about:

Shrink-wrap your windows for added insulation! You can purchase indoor window insulator kits at most hardware stores for less than $20. These kits come with double-sided tape that allows you to apply a plastic film over your windows. Apply your hair dryer and the plastic shrinks to fit. Low cosmetic impact for a dramatic improvement in insulation. Not sure what I mean? Try google.
Try manual garden tools! Eliminate a snow blower by using a wheeled snow shovel. See the Sno Wovel for one example
Solar powered christmas lights! Now I’ll admit, I haven’t had the chance to use my Kill-a-watt on christmas lights before, so I have no idea what the actual energy savings are. However, if you are looking to free yourself from the restrictions of an electrical cord in the great outdoors, this is one way to do it!
Give a green gift! If you aren’t sure what to get for the person who has everything, how about an environmental donation instead? Sierra Club has a selection of Gift Sponserships starting at $20. At the $25 level, all come with a cute stuffed animal, but there is also a virtual gift option for those of you who don’t need the extra fluff.

Note* For all you shoppers looking to buy environmentally friendly fabrics, please beware of products claiming to be made from bamboo. This past October, the FTC finalized a settlement with clothing manufacturer Bamboosa who had falsly claimed their products were made from bamboo. Other companies with similar violations are Sami Designs/Jonano, CSE/Mad Mod, and Pure Bamboo. Read the FTC press release here.

Just a reminder, being conscious of your actions is a great start to living a greener lifestyle.