Make an eco-friendly commitment throughout your community and schools!
Join us by making sure your kids have a “green school year.”
Use reusable lunch boxes and bags to pack your kids’ lunches.
Pack a reusable water container instead of plastic bottles.
Encourage the use of recyclable products in your kids’ classrooms.
Choose non-toxic supplies when available.
Friday, August 28, 2009
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Guerilla gardening: Eco-friendly landscaping on the cheap
Gardening and landscaping is a favorite pastime in 84 million U.S. households. If done right, it's good for the environment and increases the aesthetic and financial value of your home. But it can mean shoveling a ton of green from your wallet into a hole in the yard. Americans spend more than $40 billion annually on their lawns and gardens.
For an affordable and eco-friendly alternative, try "guerrilla gardening" -- recycling plants and landscape materials.
Some freescaping ideas:
Pitch in with a shovel, and landscaping crews are usually happy to give you what they uproot when tearing out existing landscapes and native plants.
Water less/save more by mulching. Ask the highway maintenance crew to dump their wood chips in your front yard or check with the local landfill; many shred wood products and giveaway the mulch for free.
Grow your own plants from those you already have; pick up a copy of American Horticultural Society Plant Propagation (DK, 1999).
Make your own compost, and contact local stables and the zoo to get on their "manure wish list." (Warning: you'll grow what the animals eat... including wild grasses!)
Check with demolition crews and salvage yards for bricks, cobblestone, broken concrete slab, and other materials for garden walls and walkways.
Get into swapping -- free plants, that is. Attend or host a plant swap meet.
Transform plastic pipe -- a common construction site throwaway -- into garden trellises that pass for wrought iron when spray painted black.
Sprinkle spent coffee grounds and crushed egg shells around your plants to enhance soil nutrition and protect against garden slugs.
And when it comes to garden art, anything recycled goes: from car tire planters to bicycle wheel sculptures.
For an affordable and eco-friendly alternative, try "guerrilla gardening" -- recycling plants and landscape materials.
Some freescaping ideas:
Pitch in with a shovel, and landscaping crews are usually happy to give you what they uproot when tearing out existing landscapes and native plants.
Water less/save more by mulching. Ask the highway maintenance crew to dump their wood chips in your front yard or check with the local landfill; many shred wood products and giveaway the mulch for free.
Grow your own plants from those you already have; pick up a copy of American Horticultural Society Plant Propagation (DK, 1999).
Make your own compost, and contact local stables and the zoo to get on their "manure wish list." (Warning: you'll grow what the animals eat... including wild grasses!)
Check with demolition crews and salvage yards for bricks, cobblestone, broken concrete slab, and other materials for garden walls and walkways.
Get into swapping -- free plants, that is. Attend or host a plant swap meet.
Transform plastic pipe -- a common construction site throwaway -- into garden trellises that pass for wrought iron when spray painted black.
Sprinkle spent coffee grounds and crushed egg shells around your plants to enhance soil nutrition and protect against garden slugs.
And when it comes to garden art, anything recycled goes: from car tire planters to bicycle wheel sculptures.
Monday, August 17, 2009
GREENWASHING
Here’s a list of some key green terms to know and understand.
Alternative Energy: Energy derived from nontraditional sources (e.g., compressed natural gas, solar, hydroelectric, or wind).
Carbon Footprint: Carbon footprint refers to the overall carbon emissions created by a building, including its construction and operation.
Carbon Neutral: A claim made by some companies and developers to describe a building or product whose net carbon emissions are zero. This is very difficult to achieve and truly possible only if something doesn’t emit any carbon at all or soaks up as much as it emits.
Carbon Offsets: Carbon offsets allow people to pay money to fund a forestry project, renewable energy project, or research into renewable energy technology in order to offset their carbon emissions.
Fossil Fuels: Fuels including coal, natural gas, and oil that are used to generate electricity.
Going Green: Going green can relate to numerous parts of a person’s everyday life. From transportation choices to a home’s design features, going green can mean different things to different people, but its core theme embraces the idea of taking steps to reduce one’s overall impact on the environment. This can occur through reducing energy usage, recycling, utilizing public transportation, buying products locally, or designing or remodeling a home so that it is more energy efficient.
Greenwashing: Greenwashing is the practice of making an unsubstantiated or misleading claim about the environmental benefits of a product, service, technology, or company practice. Essentially, selling something as green when it’s not, i.e., “Come check out our eco-friendly gas station!” Another example is a homeowner/REALTOR® referring to his or her home/listing with a few green features as a “green home.”
Green Enhancements: Green enhancements are changes and improvements made to a home that make it more environmentally friendly.
Photovoltaic (PV) Panels: Panels that can be fitted to a roof or a post in the ground, which convert visible light into direct current (DC). Once connected to the power grid, they can provide no-cost solar energy for decades. While the up-front costs of PV systems are still high, federal, state, and local incentives and rebates, as well as drastically reduced energy prices, help the systems pay for themselves more quickly.
Sustainability: The World Commission on Environment and Development defines sustainability as “Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.” In reference to a building or business, it’s an approach that evaluates environmental, social, and financial factors equally.
Volatile Organic Compound (VOC): VOCs are organic chemical compounds that are emitted as gases from certain solids or liquids. They can have short- and long-term adverse health effects. In the home, VOCs are often found in paint, cleaning supplies, building materials, and furnishings.
Zero Energy Home: A zero energy home (ZEH) combines state-of-the-art, energy-efficient construction and appliances with commercially available renewable energy systems, such as solar water heating and solar electricity. The result is a home that produces its own energy—as much as or more than it needs. Alternate definition: Zero net energy homes use energy-efficient construction, equipment, lighting, and appliances with renewable energy systems to return or create as much energy as they take from local electric utilities on an annual basis, by using windmills, solar panels, or generators.
Looking for a more energy-efficient home? Contact us.
Alternative Energy: Energy derived from nontraditional sources (e.g., compressed natural gas, solar, hydroelectric, or wind).
Carbon Footprint: Carbon footprint refers to the overall carbon emissions created by a building, including its construction and operation.
Carbon Neutral: A claim made by some companies and developers to describe a building or product whose net carbon emissions are zero. This is very difficult to achieve and truly possible only if something doesn’t emit any carbon at all or soaks up as much as it emits.
Carbon Offsets: Carbon offsets allow people to pay money to fund a forestry project, renewable energy project, or research into renewable energy technology in order to offset their carbon emissions.
Fossil Fuels: Fuels including coal, natural gas, and oil that are used to generate electricity.
Going Green: Going green can relate to numerous parts of a person’s everyday life. From transportation choices to a home’s design features, going green can mean different things to different people, but its core theme embraces the idea of taking steps to reduce one’s overall impact on the environment. This can occur through reducing energy usage, recycling, utilizing public transportation, buying products locally, or designing or remodeling a home so that it is more energy efficient.
Greenwashing: Greenwashing is the practice of making an unsubstantiated or misleading claim about the environmental benefits of a product, service, technology, or company practice. Essentially, selling something as green when it’s not, i.e., “Come check out our eco-friendly gas station!” Another example is a homeowner/REALTOR® referring to his or her home/listing with a few green features as a “green home.”
Green Enhancements: Green enhancements are changes and improvements made to a home that make it more environmentally friendly.
Photovoltaic (PV) Panels: Panels that can be fitted to a roof or a post in the ground, which convert visible light into direct current (DC). Once connected to the power grid, they can provide no-cost solar energy for decades. While the up-front costs of PV systems are still high, federal, state, and local incentives and rebates, as well as drastically reduced energy prices, help the systems pay for themselves more quickly.
Sustainability: The World Commission on Environment and Development defines sustainability as “Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs.” In reference to a building or business, it’s an approach that evaluates environmental, social, and financial factors equally.
Volatile Organic Compound (VOC): VOCs are organic chemical compounds that are emitted as gases from certain solids or liquids. They can have short- and long-term adverse health effects. In the home, VOCs are often found in paint, cleaning supplies, building materials, and furnishings.
Zero Energy Home: A zero energy home (ZEH) combines state-of-the-art, energy-efficient construction and appliances with commercially available renewable energy systems, such as solar water heating and solar electricity. The result is a home that produces its own energy—as much as or more than it needs. Alternate definition: Zero net energy homes use energy-efficient construction, equipment, lighting, and appliances with renewable energy systems to return or create as much energy as they take from local electric utilities on an annual basis, by using windmills, solar panels, or generators.
Looking for a more energy-efficient home? Contact us.
TOP 5 MYTHS INVOLVING "GREEN" HOMES
Here are some of the most common misconceptions about green homes--as well as current information.
1) Green homes are more expensive.
Although some green remodels and buildings can be expensive, buying a new green home doesn’t have to be more expensive than a traditional home.
When builders construct a new home to “green” certification standards, they often pass the cost along to the buyer, which can make the initial price of a new green home higher than that of a traditional one. However, as energy costs continue to rise, many buyers are finding the long-term savings they will accrue from an energy-efficient house outweigh the higher price tag. Also, as the practice of green construction increases, the cost of green building will continue to decrease.
2) Anything that claims to be green, is.
Many companies are jumping on the green bandwagon; however, there are many products that claim to be green, but in fact aren’t. Your green-credentialed REALTOR® or EcoBroker® should be able to help you discern what is truly “green” and what is not. Make sure you—and your REALTOR®—know the difference and can cut through the greenwashing.
3) A new home is always a green home.
Just because a home is newly built doesn’t necessarily make it environmentally friendly or energy efficient (a key component to having an eco-conscious home). In fact, most new homes are NOT environmentally friendly, as typical materials utilized include VOCs, etc.
Having a professional energy audit conducted is the best way to find out how energy efficient a new home is.
4) Green homes look unconventional.
Green homes can look the same as traditional homes; they just have different features that make them more environmentally friendly.
5) Green homes are uncomfortable.
Green homes can have the same features as a typical home; they just function in a different, more eco-conscious way.
Additionally, although some green products, like low-flow toilets, often get a bad rap for not working properly, typically, green products function at the same, if not higher, levels than your standard products.
Need help going green? Let us help.
1) Green homes are more expensive.
Although some green remodels and buildings can be expensive, buying a new green home doesn’t have to be more expensive than a traditional home.
When builders construct a new home to “green” certification standards, they often pass the cost along to the buyer, which can make the initial price of a new green home higher than that of a traditional one. However, as energy costs continue to rise, many buyers are finding the long-term savings they will accrue from an energy-efficient house outweigh the higher price tag. Also, as the practice of green construction increases, the cost of green building will continue to decrease.
2) Anything that claims to be green, is.
Many companies are jumping on the green bandwagon; however, there are many products that claim to be green, but in fact aren’t. Your green-credentialed REALTOR® or EcoBroker® should be able to help you discern what is truly “green” and what is not. Make sure you—and your REALTOR®—know the difference and can cut through the greenwashing.
3) A new home is always a green home.
Just because a home is newly built doesn’t necessarily make it environmentally friendly or energy efficient (a key component to having an eco-conscious home). In fact, most new homes are NOT environmentally friendly, as typical materials utilized include VOCs, etc.
Having a professional energy audit conducted is the best way to find out how energy efficient a new home is.
4) Green homes look unconventional.
Green homes can look the same as traditional homes; they just have different features that make them more environmentally friendly.
5) Green homes are uncomfortable.
Green homes can have the same features as a typical home; they just function in a different, more eco-conscious way.
Additionally, although some green products, like low-flow toilets, often get a bad rap for not working properly, typically, green products function at the same, if not higher, levels than your standard products.
Need help going green? Let us help.
Friday, August 14, 2009
What is a Green Home?
Although certifications are necessary to officially designate a home “green,” anyone can make their home and their lives greener.
A home’s individual green features are what make it environmentally friendly or “greener.” An environmentally friendly home is a home that—compared with a standard home—uses less energy, water, and natural resources; creates less waste; and is healthier for its inhabitants.
Homes can be built green-conscious, or they can undergo green enhancements (eco-conscious alterations or remodels) after they are created.
A home that is eco-friendly should encompass one or all of the five key green principles outlined below and should:
1.Conserve natural resources.
2. Use energy efficiently
3. Have improved indoor air quality relative to normal building standards.
4. Create less waste to build and live relative to normal building standards.
5. Be part of a livable community.
Green homes boast features that will result in a 75 percent water savings and a 30 percent savings on a typical electric or gas bill.
Additional features in a "green" home:
- ENERGY STAR appliances
- Efficient glass
- Extra insulation
- Paperless drywall
- Solar electricity
- Special high-efficiency HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning)
- A “fresh-air exchange” system that prevents stale air from being kept inside the house
- Drought-friendly landscaping and regionally native plants
- Tank-less water heaters in the house and casita
- Water-saving faucets and toilets.
If you are just starting your home search, consider buying a home that embodies the key green principles (efficient use of energy, water, and resources, high indoor-air quality, and is in a “livable” community). Green homes are not only more cost-effective in the long-run, they also are healthier and more durable than the standard home.
Ask your Realtor for more information on making your home eco-friendly!
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