Latex All Natural Foam Bedding
Latex foam bedding is one of the best ways to get a great night’s sleep, while still being friendly on the environment and saving some cash along the way. So many bedding products on the market use dangerous chemicals and offer poor support during some of the most important hours of our lives.
What is Latex?
Latex is natural rubber material produced in a variety of plants, but most of the latex we use from the Hevea brasiliensis or Pará rubber tree, mainly found in South America. The barked is stripped from the tree and a milky substance drains from the trees. This substance can be used to make a variety of products including rubber. In the bedding world, the milky serum is processed to produce a foam that is used in mattresses, as a mattress topper or pillows.
There are so many great things about natural latex, let’s take a look at why latex is an excellent choice for bedding.
Durability
I have heard and read stories of so many people who have owned some form of latex product in their bedroom for years. Latex outlast almost any other bedding material, while still providing the same level of support over the years. Most latex will last for at least 10 years and sometimes as long as 20 or 30 years.
Excellent Support
Latex is one of the few bedding products that is both fairly soft, yet provides excellent support throughout the night. Many of the best quality mattresses are either fully constructed from latex or contain latex as padding because of the great support it provides.
Environmentally Friendly
Since latex is made from harvesting trees sustainably, it is considered one of the most eco-friendly for bedding. So many mattresses and memory foam products contain dangerous chemicals that they are not safe for you or the environment when disposed of. There are some memory foam makers that keep the environment in mind, but do not compare in terms of durability and support to latex. And don’t be fooled by “synthetic” latex products as they may have similar properties to its natural counterpart, its made using petroleum products.
Savings
One of the first things that could prevent most people from buying latex is the higher prices than products made from other materials. This is just another example of how if you spend a little more money, the more you can save in the long haul. Both the durability and support aspects alone make latex worth slightly higher price. Instead of having to purchase pillow after pillow and mattress after mattress,
The Processing
Usually advertised with latex bedding products is the process in which the latex foam was made, either Dunlop or Talalay.
Dunlop
The first of the two pr0cesses to make latex bedding is Dunlop. This process has been used since the early 1900’s and is the more traditional and simple method of producing latex bedding. It’s made by whipping the substance, pouring it into a mold and then baking it. This method produces is said to produces a slightly more uneven foam, but it requires much less processing than the Talalay method.
Talalay
This process is much more advanced process than the Dunlop. The latex starts out the same way as in the Dunlop method, but after it’s put into the mold, it is then flash frozen to help get a more even finished latex product. Heat is then added to help the foam set.
Both types of latex have their followers and which type you buy really depends on your preference. Dunlop are said to be a little more firm, while the Talalay are said to be more consistent. It also depends on the manufacturer that makes the actual latex.
The best way to really determine which type of latex to buy is to try them out. Laying on the product is the only true way to determine if the brand/type of latex is right for you.
Go Green: 6 Ways to Be a Greener Student
Going green doesn’t just have to be for the adult set, you can get involved as a student. If you learn early on some good habits towards green living, you will be more certain to live a life catered to giving back to the environment.
- Bike to Your Destination: While it’s easy to jump in a car, particularly to hit up your class on the other end of campus, biking can be an excellent way to go green. It’s quite common to see students bike and this is a great way to conserve energy. As you jump on your bike, you can burn some calories and feel good to your contribution to green and eco-friendly living.
- Buy Organic: So your options may be limited in the cafeteria, but whenever possible go for organic foods. Have mom and dad buy you some organic fruits and vegetables, as this is not only a healthier food choice but a more eco-friendly one as well. This ensures that pesticides weren’t used and allows you to do your part for being a greener student.
- Conserve Energy Wherever Possible: Let’s face it, most students tend to leave a light on here and there or let the water run more than they should. Do your part to conserve energy whenever possible. If you’re leaving a room, turn the light off. If you’re brushing your teeth, turn the water off. This is so easy and is really the essence of green living, all easy enough to do as a student.
- Recycle As Much As Possible: It’s easy to fall into a trap of throwing everything out because it’s a lot easier, but recycling is an excellent way to be a greener student. Recycle whatever you can—bottles, glass, newspaper are all easy ways to start and can go a long way in terms of green living.
- Get Involved: If your school doesn’t have a recycling program, then start one. If there is an energy conservation program, get involved in it. Sometimes being a greener student is just a matter of getting involved and being an activist for the right measures. It need not be anything elaborate, but any effort can go a long way.
- Reuse Old Products: You’d be amazed at what new uses you can come up with for an empty milk carton or cereal box. Before you throw out or even recycle, think of unique ways that you can reuse some of your favorite household containers. You just might surprise yourself!
- Use Energy Efficient Appliances and Products: There are a ton of energy efficient products out there from microwaves to cars. As you are working to get your dorm room set up, opt for any energy efficient choices you can find. This is an excellent way to become a greener student.
Living green isn’t as hard as it used to be. Do your part as a student and you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how good it makes you feel. Living green can be easy and quite effective if you plan your efforts carefully.
Mary Ward is a freelance writer who writes about how to get a BSN online.
Yummy Earth Organic Lollipop Sale
Yummy Earth is currently having a sale on lollipops through Amazon. The two different packs they are selling include:
- Yummy Earth 500 Pack for just $9.63 ( $14.81 – 35% off )
- Yummy Earth 150 pack for just $5.78 ( $8.81 – 35% off )
You can also get free shipping when buying 2 of the 500 packs or 3 of the 150 packs.
With so many candies made of artificial colors and flavors, this is the perfect product for the upcoming Halloween season. What makes these lollipops so great is that they are: Organic, allergen-free, gluten-free, GMO-free, egg-free, soy-free, nut-free, casein-free and dairy-free. All they contain are organic ingredients and natural fruit extracts with all natural colorings.
Check out this great video that details a little about the company and how their products are made.
Does Buying Green Make Us Less Altruistic?
In a recent study published in Psychological Science, it was found that buying green products can often lead to having “questionable behavior” in other aspects of our lives. The study even concluded htat it may lead to a person who may steal or lie more often.
On the surface, this study may seem like it is attacking the average green consumer. Just because we are buying green products doesn’t make us any better of a person. In the words of the author of the study Nina Mazar who is also a green consumer:
At the end of the day, if we do one moral thing, IT doesn’t necessarily mean we will be morally better in other things as well.
In fact, purchasing green products does not make us morally any better in other parts of our lives. It does not give us the right to brag to others or degrade others that do not do the same. Instead, we should strive to do more acts to help the betterment of mankind and the environment. We should also not talk down to others, but provide information to others as to how it will help make their lives better.
You know my view, now what you do think about this study?
Loading ...Energy Monitoring: TED 5000 and Google Power meter
I first wrote about the TED 5000 when I installed mine in July 2009. While there are many energy monitoring tools on the market, I am convinced the TED (The Energy Detective) made by Energy, Inc. is one of the best devices for residential consumers. Their new model, the TED 5000 was just picked by Google to be the first device partnership for the Google Power Meter software, so this is a huge vote in confidence in their product and I think validates my opinion.
So why do you need an energy monitor?
Well, you don’t, as long as you are happy just getting the bill from your utility each month. But if you actually want to take a proactive stance regarding reducing your energy consumption then you should consider getting an energy monitor. Studies have shown that an average reduction of 10% is realized just by monitoring energy.
There are two types of energy monitors: appliance level or whole home monitors. Appliance monitors, like the Kill-A-Watt, just measure individual outlets. You plug the appliance monitor into an outlet, then plug your appliance into the monitor. The advantage of these is that they are low-cost ($20-$30). The disadvantage is that they can only measure one appliance at a time (or multiple appliances if you use a Kill-A-Watt strip), but they can’t measure the big loads in your home (like your dryer or AC units) or your whole home’s energy consumption (like the meter that the utility installs on your house).
A whole home energy monitor does just that. It is like the meter your utility installed on your house, but unless your utility has already installed a smart meter, you still have to get your home’s energy usage the old fashioned way: by going outside and reading it yourself or waiting for your utility to bill you. A whole home energy monitor, like the TED 5000, can tell you your home’s instantaneous energy consumption either with computer software or a display unit, or both. The TED 5000 can come with a display unit, but since it will now come with the Google Power Meter software I’m sure more people will rely on that.
What is the advantage of having instantaneous data and computer software?
A whole home energy monitor that stores instantaneous data and comes with computer software (the TED 5000 does) enables you to keep a record of your home’s consumption habits and plot it on a graph. This enables you to see how your home uses energy in a very detailed manner. If you are just relying on your utility, you can probably only see month-to-month history, but this doesn’t help you see how much energy your home used while you were away over the weekend (should be very little, but was it?) or notice the fact that energy use keeps spiking in the middle of the night and you aren’t awake to check a display (was a faulty pool pump at 3 A.M. the guilty party?).
Only by drilling down into your energy consumption can you really begin to understand how your home uses electricity. Once you understand this, you can really begin to take the steps necessary to reduce it. While whole home energy monitors may be more expensive (around $200) than appliance monitors, the amount of data they provide on your home’s consumption habits make them a much better investment over the life of your home.
Chris Kaiser is founder of Mapawatt Blog which focuses on reducing energy and water consumption and sustainable ideas.
MIT Launches Concrete Sustainability Hub
MIT has started the Concrete Sustainability Hub in an effort to research efforts to make concrete more environmentally friendly. MIT is workign on collaboration with the Portaland Cement Associate(PCA) and the Ready Mixed Concrete Educational Foundation. Seeing that concrete is one of the world’s most heavily used building materials, it’s essential that change be made in how concrete and it’s ingredients are manufactured.
Concrete is currently much more environmentally friendly than other materials used in the building process. The only problem is that 5% of all carbon dioxide emitted yearly comes from producing concrete. The ultimate goal of this $10 million effort is to build a concrete that is much more durable and more sustainably produced. Not only would far less greenhouses gases be produced, but less concrete could be used.
This effort seems really promising because of the fact that they are bringing together university researchers in various fields together with building industry experts. Imagine if this fairly small effort could help drastically reduce greenhouse gases while possibly saving money for those in the building industry. Not too bad for only a $10 million investment.
Pizza Fusion Featured on Sundance Channel
I recently found an interesting video featuring Pizza Fusion, a pizza franchising company, that hopes to change the way businesses are run across America and throughout the world. Below is the feature that the company had on Sundance Channel’s feature “Big Ideas for a Small Planet”:
All aspects of each franchise strive to be as environmentally friendly as possible, even if it costs slightly more. There are so many socially conscious things that this company does, but just to list a few:
- Supporting local communities
- Use all organic and many locally grown foods.
- Reclaimed wood tables
- Recycle bottles for making green countertops
- Hybrid Delivery Vehicles
There are currently locations in over 10 states and expanding each year. My applauds go out to this franchising company and I will be looking forward to seeing one in my local area sometime in the near future.
