Saving Plastic

These look really quite useful and cool. Think of all the plastic we waste simply to carry our veggies around in the store and home. Lame! So here is a solution - even better than my mesh bags (I swear I am paying a few oz extra on my tomatos, but it is better than using plastic). Check these Produce Bags out at www. EcoBags.com

A Greener Christmas

So, still looking for those Christmas/Holiday cards? Well, both Amazon and Target are carrying some more reasonably priced recycled paper cards and holiday papers! Yeah! They have been way up there the past few years. Paper source had some too - but they were a tad pricey!

http://www.target.com/Natural-Wreath-Holiday-Cards/dp/B002RLKSRU/sr=1-6/qid=1260244317/ref=sr_1_6/192-1456708-5865307?ie=UTF8&search-alias=tgt-index&frombrowse=0&index=target&rh=k%3Anatural%20christmas&page=1

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_0_12?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=recycled+christmas+cards&x=0&y=0&sprefix=recycled+chr

One ther tip - watch the labels - I gave up my clear plastic labels this year for handwriting on the addresses on my envelopes this year . . . . my hand still hurts!

Breaking Down

So our dishwasher finally stopped functioning well. It has never been great, but now it was functioning more like a food spreader than a dishwasher. One morning I woke up to a messy coating of chocolate pound cake on all the dishes. It took two more cycles to get it all clean. What a waste of water, gas and electricity! I had even scraped the bowl that I put in the dishwasher.

Anyway, after much searching I found a dishwasher that will use less water, less gas, less energy and even clean the dishes too!!! In my research I found a division of consumer reports that uses environmental criteria. It might be helpful next time something breaks at your home. - http://www.greenerchoices.org/ You can also go look at the energy star ratings at energystar.gov

Lastly a tip - the newer dishwashers handle scraped dishes - they do not need to be rinsed. This habit change saves an average of 20 gallons per dishwasher load. On average this is 6,500 gallons per year. I save more than 7,000 per year with not scraping. Scrape those veggies etc. into a composter - decrease your garbage and get free fertilizer for your garden. For more tips on dishwasher efficiency http://www.greenerchoices.org/products.cfm?product=dishwasher&page=GettingMostValue

I Have a New Idol

http://noimpactproject.org/

He went without toilet paper . . . now that is serious stuff.

Used

So this morning I went to sell back my kids clothing to a used clothing store. While I am waiting for my check, I peruse and get some great deals for my kids. If there are great gently used things I love it. Getting something used means I am not purchasing another new thing, which that uses natural resources, just so my kids can wear it for a limited amount of time. Anyway, back to my story. So I went on a Monday, and going through your clothing takes forever on Mondays. Since I wasn't able to find everything at the used store, went off to a sale at Gap to supplement. While I was in the store, another mom couldn't find something she wanted for her child. I suggested that she look at the used clothing store. Well this was a bad idea - she would have none of that. She looked at me like I had grown three horns. "Oh, . . . but they don't have the latest styles." Her sentiment was obvious that she had no intention of ever putting her one year old child in anything used. I think she felt very bad for my poor children who would be dressed in, "gasp," something someone else had previously worn. I was a bit steamed. I went back to the used store - challenged my current thinking of my own snootiness and bought 2 pairs of dress shoes for my daughter. They were not perfect, but I polished them up and now they look brand new.

This encounter made me ponder a bit. Beyond the tad bit of snootiness, this attitude is a prime example of some of the flawed thought processes that have caused the current mess we are in. A large portion of our population doesn't want to reuse things. The pervasive feeling is that reusing is only for students, people with lower-incomes or hippies. The moment you have a "real" income you should stop these lesser ways. Not so -this thinking is upside down and backwards. We should take pride in reusing things. We should be thrilled if we didn't add waste or use up resources every time we need something.

Willing to try? - Try ebay, swaps with friends, yard sales, second hand stores and the list could go on! Oh and the best part - when you are done with it - pass it around again!

What's the Trend?

Don't worry - no style advice. I did, however, find this new cool function in my utility company's website. Perhaps I don't have enough to do . . . . Anyway, you can graph the last 24 months of your electricity and gas usage in various ways. Obviously the graphs I made are above. The blue shows our over all usage - first in gas and then in electric. The darker overlays are the heating and cooling days.

I am pretty happy with our results. Our gas consumption is holding steady and did not completely spike last year with the bitter cold weather. The only things on our gas bill are the range (not oven), the water heater and furnace. We don't have tons of room to improve on beyond replacing these appliances or not cooking or heating our home. That said, we will still be looking though! The electricity appears to be trending downward even in the face of the bitter weather last winter! That is a great sign for the improvements/sealing we have done on our home. The trends are going the right way- Yeah!

Mom On Fire

So today I was listening in my car to WPR - to the dismay of my children. My dad used to torture us in the same way -I guess it wore off. Anyway, they were talking to one of the guru's in the organic lawn care business about the terrible effects of lawn care products on our children, grandchildren, dogs, and yes even adults. These effects have be known for quite some time, but the lawn care business is a powerful and well-funded lobby. I was so frustrated and fired up after listening, I considered streaking with my hair on fire just so I could talk about the dangers of pesticides etc. on the news. Alas, my friends and family are safe from humiliation - I didn't have the guts, the body or a babysitter. I could go on and on and on and on - but I won't.

There is a new documentary coming out on the dangers of pesticide. It is called "A Chemical Reaction." I am putting a link to the trailer. Take a minute and watch - it is far better than me streaking. And hey, did you know that Canada is outlawing weed killers/pesticides and Home Depot Canada pulled the bags off the shelves as being too dangerous . . . . hmmm

http://www.pfzmedia.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=44&Itemid=59

July Comparisons

Here are the July energy comparisons:

Electricity
888 kWh - July 2009
1309 kWh - July 2008

Gas
17 therms - July 2009
12 therms - July 2008

We were away for a week and and a weekend during last July. So, I am going to figure the 5 therm difference is that last year we weren't taking showers, washing dishes, laundry etc. and this year we did. Beyond that blip, the electricity is still trending downward. Hopefully, next month we will get that electricity back into the 700 kWh range.

Singing in the Rain!

Yep, that has been me when it rains, because our new rain barrel is filling up! I can use the stored contents for future watering, window cleaning, auto cleaning and more! It also functions as an education diversion as our five-year-old runs out to check the level after it rains! He gets so excited when the level has increased. Me too!

Why do you care as your hose is right there? Well here are some reasons from Sustainable Neenah's rain barrel project. Rain barrels:

• Lower household water bills and who can't use that?
• Reduce the amount of potable (drinkable) water used on lawns and gardens.
• Save municipal resources by reducing volume of water treated on use for plants (chemicals, electricity, storage costs). We all want to save our towns $$$ in these times.
  
• Decrease the negative impact of storm water flowing to our rivers and lakes.
• Lower the percentage of roof top rainfall as a component of urban runoff. (This is a type of water pollution.)
  
• Provide a backup source of water during times of drought or between rain showers.
• Provide naturally softened water that is better for delicate houseplants, auto cleaning and window washing.
• Provide chlorine-free water for plants, which helps maintain a healthy biotic community in the soil.
• Provide an educational tool for teaching residents, and our kids about water conservation and other sustainable practices.

Interested? You can get rain barrels at many different garden stores, online, or you can do it yourself.

P.S. Check your state laws. If you live in a dry state a.k.a. UT you may have some regulations that prevent using rain barrels on large scale. Check laws and maybe even write your state rep.

Clean Up the Laundry

Why? Your clothes smell clean, right? I am sure they do, but regular laundry detergent is made out of oil, has harsh solvents, synthetic fragrances (with molecules very similar to hormones), and one of my biggest gripes - are not concentrated so you are paying more for the shipping and packaging of WATER. Here are a few more tidbits on laundry detergent from Ideal Bite:

• Oil (not mind) control. If every U.S. household replaces one box of 48-ounce, petroleum-based powder laundry detergent with a vegetable-based one, we'll save enough oil to heat and cool 5,300 homes for a year.


• Less irritation. Fragrances and harsh solvents such as ammonia in some conventional detergents can trigger allergies and asthma, and cause skin irritation.


• Joining a cult of fresh fragrances. You'll wanna take a nice, long whiff.


• Not losing concentration. All our fave liquid options are concentrated, so their production and transport uses less energy and packaging.

I use Seventh Generation - but there are lots of earth friendly and more people friendly options of laundry detergent out there!

Timing is Everything

So many of us have clocks, timers, routers, servers, ovens, TVs, cable boxes, DVRs, DVDs, CD players and many other appliances burn electricity even when we turn them "off". This wasted standby power drain is a.k.a as the phantom load, vampire load or leaking energy. LBNL estimated that this load was approximately 5-6% of the total residential energy cost - that costs the U.S. over 3 Billion (yep, that is with a B) a year. That is a lot of wasted cash in these times, and a lot of wasted energy. Here is how you start to get rid of the phantom load.

1. Unplug things that are not in use. Think - cell phone chargers, ipod, unnecessary radios, clocks etc. Leave your alarms and smoke detectors plugged in!


2. Beat standby mode - Turn off computers, servers,routers, monitors (at work too!), TVs, and all other electronics completely. The easiest way to do this is to have all of these items plugged into a power strip and turn it off when you are done or leaving. Honestly, I have a hard time remembering to turn all this off in the evening, so I have made two sites in our home automatic with a timed power strip. I have everything power down at 11:00 pm and turn back on at 6:00 am. The kind I got were a bit painful to program. They were $34 + shipping, but phantom loads run the average home anywhere from $40-120+ per year depending upon the size and quantity - so I think we should make back the $70 back within the year. Interested? http://www.gardeners.com/ or fish stores - I guess these are quite useful for larger aquariums. Who knew?


3. If buying new - buy low or no watt off mode appliances.


4. Consider wind up or solar instead of plug in.


5. Use voicemail - not answering machines.

Want more info?

http://www.ocf.berkeley.edu/~recycle/ssec/download/Phantom%20Load.pdf

http://www.uwsp.edu/cnr/wcee/keep/Mod1/Flow/leaking.htm

http://www.uwsp.edu/cnr/wcee/keep/Mod1/Flow/leaking.htm

Cooling Down Without the Hot $Tag!

Hey, it is getting hot! But that air conditioning can suck up precious dollars and resources. What else can you do?

1. Use ceiling fans and other fans around your home. Supposedly, even if you ran a power hungry fan 12 hrs/day for 30 days it should only cost you $10 - still less than running your air for the same.

2. Close your shades, blinds and curtains in the am - especially on the east side. The sun won't be able to heat up the air in your house - air or no air.

3. Don't put a lamp or other heat generating appliance next to your thermostat. Your air will run and your house will be an ice box.

4. Switch light bulbs. Incandescents give off a lot of inefficient energy in heat. Every little bit makes a difference.

5. Service your A/C. A clean A/C cost less to run than a dirty one.

6. Plant trees and /or shrubs around your air conditioner. An A/C in the shade costs less to run. Just don't block the airflow! While you are at it - plant trees strategically to shade your home. Less heat in - less energy to cool it down. Avoid the south - so as not to block your winter solar passive heating.

7. I am not big on this one - but hey it would work - you can change to a white roof, or paint yours white. Not sure what the neighbors would think, but if you have a barn etc. This might work.

8. Humidity makes a room feel hotter. Minimize humidity creating activities in the middle of the day.

9. Upgrade your attic insulation if it is not up to par. A switch from 3 inches to 12 inches of insulation can cut you cooling costs by 10%.

10. If you are buying a new A/C make sure it is sized to your square footage and is as efficient as possible.

11. Seal your ducts in your crawl, basement etc.

Drops in the bucket!

All add up!
So what changes have you made - big or small - they all count!
Post 'em here - they might help someone else.

I'm a what?

So, we went to the Midwest Renewable Energy Fair this weekend. http://www.the-mrea.org/energy_fair.php (check it out!). I was commenting to Jason that we would get to meet some real tree huggers there. Well come to find out, as my husband has informed me, I am a tree hugger. I knew I was green, but had not yet embraced the official status of "tree hugger." After pondering Jase's comment further I have decided he might be right. I mean we did go on a date to the MREA, and I was excited to learn about solatubes, flexible PV film, integrated PV building materials, net-zero homes, and the list goes on. Seriously, the coolest thing was that there were no plastic water bottles - just places to fill up the reusable one you brought. They also had composting pails, recycling bins, and garbage containers. Yep, I guess I really am a tree hugger. Here's hoping there are many more out there!

Don't Light Up!

Lighting our homes takes 10-15% of our energy costs. This does depend, of course, on how many lights you have. We have been successful in cutting our electricity consumption (see May's #s below!) and I believe part of this has come from habits do do with lighting.

1. Of course, as our moms all told us - "Turn off your lights when you leave a room!" Leaving a light burning when you are not in the room or have left for the day is costly and wasteful. Turn off those lights.

2. Use CFB or other lower consumption bulb. I posted on 2/9/09 the pros and cons of CFBs if you have questions issues etc.

3. I think this made difference for us. It is the reverse thought- do I need to turn the light on? When you walk into a room stop yourself before turning on the lights. Is there a way to illuminate this room with out turning on the lights? Can you open the shades, blinds or curtains? Alternatively, can you turn on one lamp and not the switch that turns on 5?

3. What is lit up that simply doesn't need to be? Think of all the blinking lights you see in your home at night. How many of them are essential enough to be burning through electricity all night long? Is there a way to turn them off, put them on timers or other solution?

4. Last but not least, turn off the outside lights when you go to bed! These lights are burning up considerable light just to light up our houses while 80% of the population is sleeping. If there are some lights that are for safety purposes put in the least amount of wattage necessary and consider a motion sensor - they have some that run on mini-solar panel with a battery. No coal emissions there!

Coming up next cooling costs and consumption!

May Comparisons

Well, here are our May comparisons.

Electricity
676 kWh - May 2009
1242 kWh - May 2008

Gas
44 therms - May 2009
54 therms - May 2008

Yeah! Look at that electricy reduction. I have been working hard to continue to cut our electricity with some habit changes. See the next post. Last year it was 4 degrees colder last year, so we should have used a bit more last year. Hopefully we can keep up this downward trend!

Keep it Closed

So one of the bigger expenses we have in our kitchen and on our energy bill is keeping our food cold or frozen. Here are a few tips to save green on your fridge and freezer.

1. Don't turn your freezers and fridge colder than necessary. Keep them at safe temperatures, but they don't have to be the coldest of the range. Your fridge should be between 36 and 42 F. I keep mine at 39/40 as I don't want listeria problems. Freezers should be between -5 and +6F - if you are keeping things for long periods of time the colder range is necessary. Consider sticking in a separate thermometer just to make sure your temps are accurate.

2. Don't stand with your fridge doors open thinking about what you might want to eat. Same for putting away groceries. Open and close the doors efficiently. This will also keep extra humidity out of your fridge. Mine has an built in alarm if you leave it open too long. You can buy these too.

3. Keep your seals clean and working. If a dollar bill will slip out when you close the door - so will cold air.

4. Clean the condenser with a long brush or vacuum brush 2x a year. A clean unit runs more efficiently than a dirty one.

5. Don't put your stove next to the fridge or other heat source. Don't put a fridge in an unheated environment, it will have to work harder.

6. If you have a 10 year old or older fridge consider replacing it. You are likely using 2 x 3 times the energy of a new fridge.

Greening your Green

Spring and summer feel so good. Along with the rise in temperature, comes longer grass and lawn mowers. The EPA reports that lawn mowers in the US use 800 Million gallons of gas annually, making up for 5% of the annual air pollution. Refilling these motors we spill more gas into the environment each year than the Exxon Valdez did. The exacerbating fact is all this pollution is happening right around our homes. This pollution is dumped on our grass directly where our children and animals play, around the food we are growing to eat, and pollute our summer air contributing to many of those air action days. More things to think about:

• One hour of gas mowing is about the equivalent of driving 350 miles in terms of volatile organic compounds.
• One gas mower spews approximately 87 lbs. of the greenhouse gas CO2, and 54 lbs. of other pollutants into the air every year.

So what can you do?

1. You can plant your yard with moss plugs or strawberry clover. These type of plants don't require mowing and use minimal water water. Hmm, while this sounds good in theory, it might not really go over well with the neighbors.


2. Best Choice for mowing - Get a reel mower. Yep the old spinning ones. The new generation ones are pretty cool. They are lighter, durable and easier to use then their predecessors. You automatically mulch which helps your lawn with all mower types. This reduces the need for fertilizer of any sort. Watch with kids though, they do have about 10 very sharp blades.


3. Second best choice - Get an electric, battery run lawn mower. It still uses energy, but is less than a gas mower. It also is not dumping the pollution right onto our lawns where our kids and pets play and we grow our food (to save transportation energy). If you have solar or wind energy source, your mower has even less of an impact. You do need to dispose of the electric batteries properly. Your local dump will have a procedure for them.


4. Third best - use a lawn service. Their gas mowers larger and are required to have filters. You are using gas, but at least the pollution is cut by the filters.


5. Last choice - If you are set on keeping your gas mower, consider getting a new gas mower, especially, if you have one built before 1995. Small motor engine efficiency was not regulated before 1995 and you are likely wasting gas and leaving it on your lawn. Think about how you smell after using an older gas mower. Small engines are going to be required by law to improve efficiency to an even higher level in the next 3 years.

Additionally, consider looking into an organic lawn. They take some work up front, but become self sustainable and use less water, survive drought better, grow more slowly (less mowing, less pollution) and don't require the use harmful chemicals (made from foreign oil) where our kids and pets play. See http://www.safelawns.org/ for further info.

April Comparisons

This month there was good news and bad. On the bright side, there is a plausible explanation for our gas usage this month, so I am not too worried that it is a trend - at least, not until next month.

Electricity
809 kWh - April 2009
1222 kWh- April 2008

Gas
121 therms - April 2009 (32 days - 8 heating days)
101 therms - April 2008 (29 days - 2 heating days)

Electricity continues to go downward as we use less lighting and heat due to the longer and warmer days. Yeah!

Gas consumption went up, however, the bill for 2009 had 3 more days than 2008. Our average daily therm usage runs about 3- 4. Three more days would add somewhere between 9-12 therms to this month. The remaining 10 therms of usage is likely a compilation of the following: It was colder this April, we had company to stay (which we like ,of course), and hosted Easter dinner. All of these would likely increase our hot water and straight gas usage (showers, laundry, dishwasher loads, and stove top cooking). Too bad we can't see breakdown of our daily therm usage. Also, I believe we were away for part of the month last year, so it probably isn't a completely accurate comparison in the first place. On to next month!

Save big $$, Health, & the Environment 2!

The problem with grocery store produce is that it has to get to the grocery store. About 20% of the oil consumption associated with produce gets it from seed to harvest. The remaining 80% is the transportation from farm to plate. We all like produce, so what do we do?

Garden!!! - It is getting warmer. Anyone who knows me, knows where I am the moment it is above 45 degrees - my yard. I cut my nails off and go gardening. We have been accused of having a farm. I took offense at first, but hey the food we are eating tastes better, costs less, and is so much better for the environment. An investment of $60 will save you about $200 in grocery bills. Right now around me, you can plant peas, snap peas, leaf lettuce, green/bunching onions, spinach, lettuce, rhubarb, carrots, turnips, parsnips, radishes, asparagus, kohlrabi, etc. And that is just the first round!

Buy Local - When the farmers markets are out buy from them. The produce there took less oil to get there - it didn't come from another continent. If there is an overwinter greenhouse producer - buy from them. If you stocked up from your garden last summer - eat that in the winter.

Where's the Beef?- Meat is expensive in more ways than one. It really takes its toll on the environment to get that slab o'animal onto your plate. No, fish does not get you off the hook either. What to do? Go meatless for one day or three meals during the week. Use lentils, beans, pastas, home-grown veggies and you will probably feel better and be healthier too!

Happy Earth Day!

I hope everyone has a great Earth Day.

May we all find ways to make every day an earth day.

P.S. If you need help finding ideas find the magazine Dwell -

they had awesome ideas in the May 2009 issue.

Perhaps your library has it!

Cooking Cuts

So let's face one of the energy hogs of our household. The kitchen (ahh - insert jaws music here). In a kitchen we keep things cool and cold, so we can then heat them up and turn liquids into solids. Compounding this energy drain, this is all within the temperature controlled environment of one's house. So since we are not all going to start eating all our food raw - here are some tips.

1. Fridge/Freezer- when it comes time to replace - get the most efficient one you can. This also means evaluating whether your family needs the biggest, baddest one on the block. When you think about it, it doesn't make sense to pay to cool space in the house you pay to heat - if you aren't going to use all of it. Perhaps the 18-22 cubic foot model will do instead of the 24.5 cubic model. Side note - a full freezer cools more efficiently. If you have empty space fill it with an water filled jug. This will keep your freezer costs down.

2. Stoves - they are energy drains - use them judiciously. Preheat as little as possible. Don't wait around with the oven on. Consider cooking bigger meals less often and eating leftovers certain nights. When purchasing an oven consider that some newer stoves have double ovens in conventional frames - one smaller single tray oven and one regular oven. The smaller one will preheat faster and operate with less energy. This concept applies to a counter top toaster oven etc.

3. Use lids - covering the water when heating saves $$ and time.

4. Use only the amount of necessary water in prep - Using less will mean, less time, less money for the water and the gas to heat it. If we did this with pasta alone we would save staggering amounts of energy just in the US.

5. Use crock pots - Crock pots use a whole lot less energy when compared to a range or stove, even though the cook time is longer. The last stat I heard was 2 cents per hour.

6. Self clean your oven after cooking to reduce energy consumption. That oven has got to get to 900 degrees or so to self clean- it might as well already be at 400.

7. Keep your microwave clean - Microwaves are more efficient when they are clean. Best way to clean a microwave without unnecessary cleaners. 2 cups of water and several slices of lemon. Nuke it for 2 minutes and the crusties wipe away oh so easily.

8. Match your pan size to the heating element or turn down the flame on a gas stove. Element space or flame outside of the bottom of your pan isn't doing you any good - especially if it is in the summer when your air is on.

9. Fill the dishwasher - fill it up to the max and then run it.

10. Although scraping and loading is best, if you must rinse your dishes prior to loading them in the dishwasher, use cold water and skip the dish soap. This will save energy in heating the water and you will use less soap, less impact etc.

Habits

So, I have been thinking about what to post. While I have come up with many ideas, I wanted to talk about the common themes running through them. We all have to change our habits. This is not an easy thing to do. Supposedly, it takes 28 times to make a new habit and break an old one. My goal it to continue to evaluate what I do each day, and rooting out those habits that harm our environment one-by-one. Earth day is April 22nd. What habits can you change to celebrate?

Mine that I am working on:
1. Get the most plastic out of my kitchen as possible. It is not great for the environment and it is not good for us either as many of these plastics leach. (i.e. Ziploc, Rubbermaids, Saran Wrap etc.) We are switching to glass and being creative.
2. Not using the fluff cycle on my dryer. Are they dry? Just fold them - don't waste the energy or money to "fluff." Hopefully, someday I will not need a dryer.
3. Using less. I heard a quotation yesterday - I hope I got it right- "Fix it up, wear it out, use it up, make due or do without."
Fix it up - We are far to quick to replace things without looking if it can be fixed or has another use.
Wear it out - and then make them into something else. Perhaps Nate's jeans will become rags or shorts.
Use it up- this is a big one in the US - we throw away many of our containers that still have product in them. About 10% of toothpaste stays in the tube if you don't work at it - what a waste of product and our money! Squeeze that toothpaste out to the bottom. Draw it across the edge of our counter and get that last bit out. Use up the shampoo - turn it upside down in the shower before your recycle the container. Add water and get it all out of the bottle. If you aren't going to use it give it away- so it can be used not thrown out.
Make due or do without - Do I really need this - not just want it?

Need some ideas on things to change? See www.idealbite.com

UNLESS

I have always loved the environment - trees, vegetables, roses, flowers of all sorts etc. I liked weeding as a kid. Toilets or weeding- that is such an easy choice for me. In that same spirit, my favorite of Dr. Seuss's books has always been The Lorax. Last night, Nate and I were reading it and I thought this passage was most appropriate. It is the Once-ler's epiphany near the end of the book.

"But now," says the Once-ler,

"Now that you're here,

the word of the Lorax seems perfectly clear.

UNLESS someone like you

cares a whole awful lot,

nothing is going to get better,

It's not.

My hope for this upcoming Earth Day is that we all start to "care a whole awful lot!" or this planet is not "going to get better. It's not."

March Comparisons

So we got our new numbers for March 2009! Still improving and reducing.

Electricity
1121 kWh - March 2008
834 kWh - March 2009

Gas
163 T - March 2008 (avg 26 F)
155 T - March 2009 (avg 30 F)

Plastic Problems

Plastic. I will agree it has some uses, but it is starting to really make a mess of our lands, dumps and the ocean (see above picture - look closely). "Moderation in everything" needs to apply here. There is a glut of information out there on plastic and its effect on people and the environment. I will be brief in my whys and more verbose in my how to change. Here is a link should you want further info on the whys. http://www.ecobags.com/Resources/Impact_of_Plastic_Bags

Plastic is made from crude oil or some petro-derivative. Yes, the foreign oil problem again. One quarter of plastic bags are made in Asia - another political problem. The big problem - plastic doesn't biodegrade. It doesn't go away. We use plastic bags for our own convenience for minutes and then we throw them out, without having a short-term end. Paper and cardboard will eventually go away, but not plastic. Bags take about 500 years to degrade and bottles thousands of years to degrade. Can you imagine the legacy we are leaving future generations? Think of all the wraps on all our food products, toys, etc that are not recyclable and are going to sit in our dumps, blow into the trees and water supplies for the next 500 to 1000 years. It is nearly impossible to get rid of plastic all together - I have tried, but we can decrease our plastic usage.

1. Shopping Bags.

Americans throw out 100 BILLION polyethylene bags per year. Less than one percent ever gets recycled. All of these will be sitting on our planet somewhere for the next 500 years.

So what to do? Get some canvas etc. reusable bags. USE them- don't leave them in the car. If you do, you can do what I do and embarrass yourself at the checkout line by going to get them, and you won't do it again. There are mesh bags for the produce department too - no need for the extras.

Reusable bags are not just for the grocery store! You can bring them to the mall, restraunts etc. too.

If you forget your bags- get paper not plastic, and skip the tissue paper. Combine as many things as you can, into the minimal amount of bags possible. Oh, and politely tell Subway no thanks next time they want to give you a plastic bag to carry your sandwich to your table.

Here is where you can buy all sorts of bags - on sale now :) http://www.ecobags.com/Our_Products

If you do happen to get a plastic bag - reuse it several times and when it is done for - recycle it.

2. Drink Bottles

Man was this person a marketing genius. Water in a bottle. What happened to cups and faucets? It was a total mind shift and a serious waste of money. I wonder how much we have all spent on water bottles . . . and could we get that back? We as Americans put 38 BILLION plastic bottles in the landfills (no not recycled - these are the ones in the dumps).

Anyway, the solution? Get a reusable water bottle - preferably not plastic. Refill it. Use it. If you forget to fill up - Starbucks, Barnes and Noble and many nice stores will fill up your water bottle. At the grocery store try to buy bigger containers of juice etc. and fill up your reusable drink bottle with juice too. Also, if the option exists buy your juice in glass. Make sure when you are done you recycle your glass bottles. And if you do get a plastic bottle remember to recycle it too.

http://www.mysigg.com/ - My favorite water bottle - they have some for kids too.

3. Packaging

As consumers we have power. Choose to buy items that are not packaged 3 or 4 times over. For example, choose a large glass jar of applesauce over the 6 -pack of plastic containers re-wrapped in plastic inside a cardboard box. It will be cheaper too! Or if you can't come up with another way for lunches, choose to buy the small containers for lunches only and use large jar for all other occasions. If you have the chance, tell companies that we don't like things constantly packaged in plastics we can only throw out. Ask them to mark their product packages with the recycling signs. The more people who change these habits will create changes in industry.

Other suggestions:

• Try to buy appliances/electronics where many of the parts are reusable, recyclable etc.
• Watch your kids toys - is there another option besides all plastic? Are they recyclable?
• And most importantly - start to be aware of how much plastic you use in your life.

Gas Mileage

Fair warning this is one of my soapboxes.

Gasoline. Such a charged word of late. So, have you ever complained about how much it costs to fill up at the tank? Well my friends, in hopes of helping you all out - may I say one thing? SLOW DOWN. We all would save on fuel budgets if we would just change our habits. We need to slowly accelerate, slowly decelerate, and drive the speed limits. Go ahead, roll your eyes, but changing these three things - depending upon how inefficiently you currently drive - can save you up to 55% of your current gas bill. Hmm - yes - start adding up those dollar signs over a year. If everyone did this, imagine the gas and air we could save - not to mention seriously cutting our reliance on OPEC and all the issues that go with it. http://www.pickensplan.com/oilimports/

Our two cars show us our current gas consumption. The averages plummet if we start up quickly and slam on the breaks. This also happens if we drive over 60 mpg. At current prices (1.93 per gallon), every 5 miles you drive over 60 you are paying another .24 cents/gallon at the pump. Yes, I know people don't like it on the highway. They act like anyone driving slowly is an idiot. Well, perhaps they just don't know and you can laugh back at them, knowing you are saving gas, money, and the planet all at the same time. :)

Other tips to save gas.

1. Turn off the radio instead of turning the volume down.
2. Take out extra out of your car if you are not using it. Hauling more costs more. Why pay more to use your car as a moveable storage or garbage facility?
3. Don't use the heat if you don't necessary.
4. Don't use the air unless you necessary.
5. Don't idle if you don't have to - turn it off it is going to be longer than 35-45 seconds.
6. If you see your mpg constantly creeping up - use your cruise control on highways. - You can get better mpg if you coast down hils and slowly go up hills, but it takes time to learn.
7. Use overdrive gears -(I still don't know how to do this.)
8. Keep your tires inflated.
9. Keep your car maintained
10. Combine your errands.
11. Ride a bike instead!

You can put a mpg consumption computer in your car http://www.amazon.com/ScanGauge-Compact-Multifunction-Computer-Customizable/dp/B000AAMY86?ie=UTF8&s=automotive&qid=1204690333&sr=1-1

or get a gadget that yells at you when you do it wrong - http://www.fuelmiser.com/ or http://www.digitalfuelmizer.com/

As a disclaimer - please don't try the whole additives thing. They are doing bad things to cars etc.

February Comparisons

So, I just got our February numbers. Doing these posts on the blog, I am really excited to see the energy bill each month (via email! - save the trees). This month we did do better on both counts!


Electricty
874 kWh - February 2009
1,368 kWh - February 2008

Gas
189 Therms - February 2009 ( 20 F)
217 Therms - February 2008 ( 15 F)

It has been a bit warmer this February, so that padded our numbers a bit over all.

As far as changes, our focus for the month of February was decreasing our gas consumption. What did we do? We fixed our two gas leaks on Feb 10th. Supposedly, these small leaks have been around since the home was built. (We didn't know about them until then.) So we will probably see a larger difference in the gas numbers the rest of this year. We also changed out the shower head in the master bathroom. Additionally, I have been continuing sealing all those exterior outlets. Perhaps by the end of the month I will finally be done! Every change is one step closer to our goal. From the numbers, you can see this is working, and it can work for you too!

Fluffy Toilet Paper Worse than Hummers!

This morning I had this link from my father-in-law in my in-box. Thanks Rick!
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,502444,00.html (summary)
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/26/science/earth/26charmin.html?_r=1&hp (full story)


So, toilet paper, yes we are talking about toilet paper. Something we use for a few moments to dispose of excriment is seriously harming our forests.


We switched a couple of years ago. Yes, it takes a bit of getting used to, but I like trees better than toilet paper :) This is what we use.

http://www.gaiam.com/product/eco-home-outdoor/top+rated/bath+tissue+-+2+ply+-12+rolls-.do?search=basic&keyword=toilet+paper&sortby=bestSellers&page=1

Marcal - a paper company will be coming out with a recyled paper toilet paper around earthday with an even better price point.

Soft & Scrub Recipe

1 2/3 c baking soda
1/2 c liquid soap (colorless, natural fragrances I use seventh generation dish soap)
1/2 c water - filter lasts longer
2T vinegar
5-10 drops of tea tree oil (I use it for antimicrobial properties - smell first)

Stir with a fork until no lumps. May foam some in the process.

In Defense of the Lowly Rag

Ah, the paper towel. They are convenient, but they have become a bit of an addiction in U.S. kitchens. More than 90% of US households use paper towels, creating 3,000 tons of waste each day or 1,095,000 tons every year in our dumps. Paper towels are made from trees. Cutting down trees leads to deforestation. Deforestation not only decreases our CO2-consuming forests and animal habitats, but also lets off large amounts of CO2 when the land is burned and then is exposed soil.

What to do?
Next time your paper towels run out- don't replace them. Use your rag pile instead. Put those rags on the counter where your paper towels usually reside. Put your paper towels under your sink. This will help you change your habits associated with messes. If it is water or milk grab a rag. If it is cat vomit, maybe get out the smallest amount of paper towels necessary to clean up the gross stuff and use a rag for the second pass. Remember that rags are made to get dirty. You may need a few more crummy rags around your house. (old stained clothing) While washing rags does take some energy, if you incorporate them into your regular laundry loads it should not create a high energy burden.

Our choice: I still buy Bounty, but I buy the smart-size kind and I use rags whenever possible. This had considerably reduced our paper towel consumption. We barely used a Sam's package of 12 last year. I used to buy a pack every six weeks or so.

What do you do if you can't kick the paper towel habit? Here are some recycled paper towel options adapted from http://www.idealbite.com/ Fair warning- trying to use all recycled paper towels is pricey.

1. Look for towels that boast no less than a 40% post-consumer waste content and don’t use a whole lot of packaging.


2. Choose unbleached paper towels first, process chlorine-free (PCF) second, and elemental chlorine-free (ECF) third.


3. Seek items having the largest amount of product (higher square footage).
   Seventh Generation- 100% post-consumer recycled paper towels ($7.95/4 rolls).


4. Whole Foods 365 Everyday Value and Planet – 100% recycled (80% by consumers), PCF, and available at a store near you.

What are the benefits of using recycled paper towels instead of regular?

1. If every household in the US replaced one roll of non-recycled paper towels with a roll of 100% recycled paper towels, we would save 864,000 trees and 3.4 million cubic feet of landfill space.


2. For every ton of 100% recycled paper that is bought, about 4000kWh of energy and 7,000 gallons of water are saved. It also avoids releasing 60 lbs of pollutants into the air.


3. Roll towels combined with controlled-use dispensers save paper by 25 to 35%, and require less packaging than stand-alone rolls or folded towels.

Good luck and pull out those rags!

Dryer What???

So, appliances make our lives easier, but they do take up more energy than doing it the old fashioned way. What to do? Well, few tidbits - keep your appliances clean and also keep the filters clean. Example, if your dryer is trying to dry with 10 loads of lint on the filter you will be waiting longer for your clothing! Speaking of dryers - one of my favorite tips is a dryerball. A what you say? A dryerball.

Now before I start, here is my eco-disclaimer. Some in the enviornmental crowd don't appreciate dryerballs much. Dryerballs are made of PVC, and this is not the best for the environment. Indeed the production and disposal of these has an impact on the world, but in the environmental reduction there are choices, choices, choices. In these situations, you have to decide which way of reduction is going to work for your lifestyle. We all can't move off-grid in Alaska. While I might like to think I could, I am probably not going to make the most energy effiency choice - hang drying clothing for a family of four. So, I am going to reduce my electricity consumption of clothes drying by having an effienct dryer and using dryerballs.

Back to the main topic - what are dryerballs? These are blue spiny critters that you throw in your dryer to reduce your dry time (up to 25%). You can find lots of them in the drug stores, but personally I like this one the best. http://www.nelliesallnatural.com/ The oval shape supposedly bounces around more fluffing and drying close more rapidly. Additionally, it is rated not to leach plastic yuckiness into my clothing when it gets hot. Nellie's dyerballs are $16 and are guaranteed to last for about 2 years. At 25% reduction of dry time, the dryerballs should save someone doing about 32 loads a month (and who with kids isn't doing more) $21/the year. Additionally, when using dryerballs you should use less softener, less dryer sheets, and have less lint in your machine (it will work better) -all saving you money and reducing consumption. The other best thing it saves time!

Crazy Crayons

Yesterday, I opened our art cabinet and was practically maimed by the things that dumped out. That was the last straw, and I went on a major de-junking spree. Of course, in my cleaning I found a ton of broken crayons in the crayon box. You know, the type of crayons that are too short to even color with any more and just make the box dirty. What do I do with these old crayon remnants? A while ago, I got a recycled earth crayon for Nate. Anyway, I googled "Crazy Crayons" and they take "donations." You aren't even required to peel the old ones. Crazy Crayons turns the old crayons into new earth shaped crayons and turns the old wrappers into fire starters! Anyway, don't toss your crayons, recycle them - maybe consider telling your school about this! http://www.crazycrayons.com/recycle_program.html

Leaky Gas!

When we were wrapping our water heater I kept smelling gas. I only smelled it right around the water heater, so I thought perhaps I had an inefficient pilot light. Long story short, I thought about it all weekend and dreamed of exploding houses, so I finally called our utility people on Monday (they come out for free). The result? They came and found two leaks. They suspect that they have been leaking since our house was built. No wonder we have been having a tough time getting our gas consumption reduced. Moral of the story - if it smells like gas have it checked out. A word of caution, be ready to spend a weekday afternoon at home for a repair person. If the utility finds a big leak they will shut off your gas and won't turn it back on until you have it fixed.

My Favorite Lightbulbs

So, let's chat about lighting. Lighting takes up to 11% of the average family's energy bill. The average American family spends $1,900/year on energy costs. Over a year, this is not chump change - it is $209. So want to cut out 75% of that 11% and only pay $52.50/year for lighting? How you say? Switch light bulbs! Incandescents (the old, rather inefficient, hot kind) are on their way out. Australia has banned them by 2009, Canada by 2012 and there is a bill proposed in CA to eliminate all incandescent bulbs by 2012. So folks we all might as well start switching now to Compact Florescent Bulbs and saving our money and energy now.

An incandescent takes usually some where between 60W and 100W to run. It lasts for somewhere between 750 and 1000 hours of burn time. CFB's on the other hand - depending upon the type use about 11W - 25W and last between 6,000 and 15,000 hours of burn time.

So what is the hold up? They cost too much up front? I have heard that one before. Well, yes indeed a $10 bulb may freak you out up front compared to the 60 cent one. However, the 60 cent one will cost you about $88 a year to run (24/7) and a CFB will cost you $22 over a year holding kWh cost equal. Even if you had to buy the light bulb, you would still see a $56.60 savings at $32.00 per year for the CFB and compared to 88.60 for the incandescent bulb. Now these numbers are assuming you ran your light bulbs all day every day. So the best way to think about it is, it will save approx two thirds or three quarters of my current lighting costs if I switch over to CFBs.

The second issue - they are ugly. Well, I agree some of those lovely spiral thingies did not really make it to the catwalk in France did they? I have found one bulb that I really like. Tad bit more pricey than the ones you find at Home Depot, but a bit more attractive on your exposed fixture. I think it has a better shape and light than a lot of CFBs. I use the 25W bulbs in the warm glow. This is what we are used to in our houses and we have decorated under the assumption of yellow lighting. Switch to natural daylight or full spectrum and you will be a little surprised at the colors you now see in your decor. I use the 20W in the smaller lamps around the home. You can get lesser wattage. My advise is to convert your lightbulbs and go one step up. http://www.realgoods.com/product/home-outdoor/lighting/bulbs/evolution+compact+fluorescent+light+bulbs.do?search=basic&keyword=11-0245&sortby=bestSellers&page=1

For recessed cans indoors I like http://www.energyfederation.org/consumer/default.php/cPath/25_44_2107_2108

and for smaller cans http://www.energyfederation.org/consumer/default.php/cPath/25_44_171_2388

For outdoors I like the Philips 20w PAR38 Reflector EL/A PAR38 20W - just not finding a link right now.

Now, I put the less expensive spiral CFB's in our garage, as I don't really care what they look like out there. :)

Realize that these are my suggestions and please measure your own lightbulbs you are replacing prior to ordering something that won't work.

Last issue is the mercury. Yes, CFB do have a small amount of mercury, and this has gotten media attention. Indeed, there are about 1.0 - 4.0 mg per bulb. Because of this you should handle these bulbs carefully and put them immediately in a sealed glass jar if it breaks as the mercury is in the vapor. Additionally, you will need to recycle them when they burn out. Usually, you can recycle CFBs at your local True Value or other hardware store. If not Energy Federation sells a box where you can ship the used CFBS. Now, don't get scared off - you aren't going to be changing CFBs that often. Additionally, even with the mercury in the bulbs using CFB saves on overall mercury pollution. About half of our electricity comes from coal powered plants, which release mercury when burning coal. Use less electricity, use less coal, and thus less mercury pollution overall. Check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compact_fluorescent_lamp for more information under mercury emissions.

A few notes - CFBs will expire faster if they are in areas with varing temps and are flipped on and off constantly- aka back hall. It is up to you whether you leave them on for 15 min then to reduce this impact or you just replace them if they have a shorter lifespan.

Additionally, I have seen an environmental house here that had LED lighting in various rooms. If you are doing a rehab/build it project this may be something to consider - it was great lighting and next to no wattage.

Got a lot of light bulbs? Do a few at a time :) Wait for coupons and smile at your savings :)

Tin Man

Jason has been off lots this week, so we have been getting done lots of our project. On the list for today was the hot-water jacket. A what? well it is a thermos/coffee sleeve for your water heater. There are lots of kinds out there, but the "solar guys" suggested a radiant barrier jacket for a tank type of water heater. I found the best price for a kit at http://www.energyefficientsolutions.com/rbhwhj.asp (If you order it, get an extra roll of radiant tape or be very judicious with the kit tape.) With this type of radiant barrier you have a very low emissivity value (.03) this means that properly applied only 3% of the trapped heat will radiate off. Also, the bubbles give you an added 9.5 R-value (insulation rating).

Why do we care? Well, water heaters can account for up to 20% of the average family's yearly utility cost. Tank water heaters keep water heated to the set temperature all the time, even when we are sleeping. This leads to standing losses each year. The average cost for running a regular water heater per year is $350. The average cost for standing losses is $100 per year. This wrap can save you up to 40% on these losses - so $40/year and you are buring less gas too.

Speaking of saving $$ and therms, if you want to decrease your gas bill, turn down that water heater setting! For every 10 degress you turn down that heater, you save between 3 and 5% on your gas bill. 120 degress should be fine for most families. Usually, this is midway between the low and medium settings. Another tip to save, is turn down or turn off your water heater when you are away for more than a day. There is no point in heating it if you aren't going to use it. Just remember to turn it back on or up right when you get back. If you do turn it all the way off, remember to relight your pilot when you get back. Please follow your instructions for your specific water heater for turning off the tank so you get the gas off too. No explosions please!

The New Shower Head

Did you know that a family of four people each showering five minutes a day can use about 700 gallons per week? Put in terms of every day living, that is close to a three-year drinking water supply for one person! With water supply being an issue in some parts of the country, this is really some thing to think about. If we use water-conserving shower heads and faucet aerators instead, the family of 4 can typically cut their water consumption in half - saving approx. 14,000 gallons of H2O.

So to reduce our water consumption, Jason installed the new "eco" shower head in our master bathroom today. No, it is not made out of old pop cans and a bag hooked to a tree -it's a lower-flow shower head. Now don't turn off, just because it is a lower flow does not mean it is a drizzly trickle - it feels just the same. Here's the scoop, regular shower heads flow at 2.5 gallons per minute (gpm) at regular pressure standards. Our new head flows at 2.0 gpm (they go as low 1.75 gpm). So in our home this change results in a 20% reduction in water usage for the adult showers. Jason and I each take a 5 minute morning shower. The .5 gpm reduction doesn't seem like much - but over 2 showers that is 5 gallons/day, 150+/30 days, and 1,825 gallons/year. It adds up quickly. Not only are we saving water, we are also are saving the gas it would take to heat 1,825 gallons of hot water to 120 degrees. One more way to consume and pay less!

Sealing Outlets to Reduce Air Infiltration

So one of my daily chores right now is to seal a few light switch and electric outlets on the exterior of my home. We had a blower door test last fall http://www.simplysolarwi.com/Home_Performance.html and one of the places where there are leaks were our exterior wall outlets and light switches.

Don't believe me? I wasn't so sure about it either, but then I saw the leaky cold air on the thermal cam, and felt the cold air it when I put my hand on an outlet. The phone jack ones are the worst!

How do you do this?
Well, this is what I did -- Open up the switch plate and look at your outlet. If they are anything like mine you are going to see a gap between the electrical box and drywall. This is where cold or hot air can infiltrate and make our heating and cooling costs go up. Check out the left side of this outlet box. Can you see the hole down the side? It was blowing cold northern air right on through. This is where I used the silicone caulk to fill in and seal these gaps. I go all the way around and go over the screws with 100% silicone caulk. Next I hold my hand up and go around to see if I can feel any more leaks.


After that you put on outlet switch sealer. This is a thin fire resistant electrical box cover. They come in outlet or switch formation. I haven't found them in multiples yet, so sometimes you have to jimmy them to do doubles or triples. There are some examples down below. i got these at True Value. So take out your cover and shimmy it backward towards the electrical box. Get it on good and tight or you will have a hard time getting the face plate back on. Watch that you don't squish the silicone onto your hands.

Now make sure the foam holes line up with the electrical box screw holes and put the face plate back on and screw it in. Besides an odor for a little while, it really isn't so bad. Please make sure you aren't in a totally enclosed area and check that all your caulking is fire rated so you don't burn down your house. Silicone doesn't fire up until 1000 degrees F so if my house gets that hot I think I will have bigger problems. As always, keep all your receipts for these projects. You might be able to get back some money from your state or federal government.

January's Comparison of Therms and KWhs

So, on the road to any solar system you have to reduce consumption. We have been making changes, but now we have the data from two years to see if our changes have reduced our energy consumption.

This past year made some pretty big changes.

• We insulated the garage with a eco-friendly spray foam and drywalled over this. This should reduce gas and heat with less heating and cooling needed. Not to mention we don't have to put our coats on to go out to put recycling. We still need to tape and mud for a better seal, but we are waiting for warmer weather to do that.
• We programmed our thermostat. It is now set at 66 degress from 6am -8pm, 64 degress for two hours on either side of that, and 62 degress from 10pm until 4am. It really isn't too bad until after 10pm. Jason may disagree, but he likes the lower gas bill. This saves both gas and electric consumption with decreasing the heating load. (The gas heats the air, but the electricity blows it).
• I have also been washing many of our clothes on cold and turned down our water heater. This should decrease our gas consumption for heating water.
• We replaced all of our lights in and out with CFBs and we have have been turning out our lights as much as possible. We know about the mercury and promise we are recycling any that burn out. This decreases electric consumption.
• Another one is turning off electronics at night. Those computers and blinking lights are sucking electricity while we are all snoozing.
• Also, I am in the process of sealing all our exterior wall light switches and outlets. (More details to come on this one.) This should also help with heat and cooling losses and reduce heating and cooling. If we reduce our air leakage by 20% we can get money back from our state program. This might be a tough one to do, but we are trying!

Electricity
January 2008 - 1607 kWh

January 2009 - 1075 kWh

Gas
January 2008 - 248 Therms (average temp 21 degrees)

January 2009 - 264 Therms (average temp 13 degrees)

So, electricity decreased consumption quite a bit! Gas was up a bit, but the weather didn't help us much on that count. Stay tuned this month we are wrapping the water heater, the hot water pipes, taping the forced air pipes, and getting a low-flow shower head. Hopefully, we will reduce that gas consumption for next month! So onward and forward.