Cleaner Household Air with Plants
According to Susan McGinnis, in her article, Breathe Easier with Purifying Plants, featured in Kiwi Magazine, www.kiwimagonline.com/articles/articlepage.php?art_id=114&cat_id=3&full=1), choosing the right indoor plants can be an effective way to combat indoor toxins and chemicals that can interfere with our breathing. This can be especially important if you or your family members have allergies and or asthma. Instead of investing in an expensive air purifier, which also runs on electricity and must be kept on all of the time, the author suggests trying out one or more of the plants on her list, which include spider and other common plants. She also lists some of the common major offenders to our indoor air quality, such as paints, carpeting and adhesives.
Avoid Last Minute Parking
Riding around the city trying to find a parking spot can be one of the most frustrating tasks many of us deal with. Not only does it cause excessive anger, but it can be a major source of unnecessary gas waste. One of the easiest ways to avoid this mess is to avoid last minute parking by being prepared.
Online Research
Researching online before deciding to make a trip into a city may be the best plan of action. Almost every major city across America has a website dedicated to where to park and its potential cost. Also, just by doing a simple Google search, forums and message boards are filled with local residents who have suggestions on where to park depending on which part of the city you are traveling to.
Close Parking
Sometimes the closest parking location can often be the most expensive. This includes parking garages and lots and meters that are close by to a location. It may cost you a little money up front, but the time and gas wasted by driving around the city may end up costing more than simply choosing a close parking spot. Doing a little research as I point out above can help you determine whether it’s even possible to find free parking available.
Public Transportation
Not driving at all may be a better solution than having to worry about parking. I usually find it much less stressful and inexpensive to take a city’s public transportation than driving around trying to find parking. The DC metro cost a few bucks to ride to almost any part of the city from locations in Maryland and Virginia. Though all metro systems are not as extensive, you can still park in an area of the city that may have a metro location and take the train the remainder of the way.
Please share other methods you use to try to avoid the hassle of searching for a parking location in the city.
Is the Apple Tablet Eco-Friendly?
All the latest rave is on the just announced Apple Tablet. The device appears to be nothing more than a larger iPhone, but Apple is praising this as one of its most innovative devices.
Though the discussion of this new tablet may not seem relevant on this blog, there are some that feel it’s sustainably design could contribute to reducing the manufacture of many computer related products. TreeHugger does a great job in discussing both the positives and negatives of the tablet in terms of its sustainability.
Style, Grace, and Upcycling
Who needs a dumpster when you can upcycle?
Upcycling converts items previously considered ‘garbage’ into new creations. Today you can find wallets made out of bicycle tires and purses composed of post-consumer pop tabs. Upcycling was coined in the book “Cradle to Cradle” which flips the ‘cradle to grave’ idea of products into a closed loop ideal. For Cradle to Cradle, each component of a product is designed to continually be upcycled, creating no waste. The vision is to create a world in which waste does not exist, only items that can continually evolve into new things or biodegrade back into nature. The pages of the actual book are waterproof and it is printed with special ink so that it can be collected off the page and reused along with the book.
What if you only owned one book that could be transformed from an economics text book to a romantic fiction novel simply by cleaning and reprinting the pages? The idea is revolutionary, but the concept of upcycling is one we have embraced for quite some time.
You don’t have to be a chemist like Michael Braungart or an architect like William McDonough, the authors, to start upcycling things around the house. The magazine “ReadyMade” hosts stylish and long-lasting upcycling ideas including this vintage Traveling Trunk into a Bar on Wheels transformation. With a quick trip to the hardware store, we can easily makeover defunct or ‘lost’ items into something fun, useable, and unique. ReadyMade is a great source of inspiration because they have anything from small art projects to large-scale furniture and home designs.
It looks like Upcycling has hit the mainstream media as well, check out this article in Reuters about Australia’s efforts.
There are plenty of ‘Do It Yourself’ sites out there, so please feel free to share your favorites and let’s get a rolling list going!
Old Mattress Recycling
That old mattress of yours doesn’t have to end up in the landfill with the millions of others. There are a growing number of mattress recycling facilities across the country that will take you that old mattress and recycle it for you. Here is a great feature on Planet Green that goes through the process of how a mattress is recycled and what it gets recycled to:
The organization featured on the show is the DR3 Mattress Recycling Facility located in Lane County, Oregon which services over 100,000 mattresses a year. DR3 stands for diverting, reducing, reusing and recycling since it would like to prevent as many mattresses from ending up in as trash.
Make sure to utilize a facility like DR3 if one is available in your area. Also, check with your county or local municipalities to find out if your area recycles old mattresses. The Good Human has a great list of other facilities that do take recycled mattresses. If unsuccessful, try asking a family or friend to see if they could use an old mattress or even putting it on a classified site. Do try your best to prevent another mattress from overfilling our landfills.
Top Fuel Efficient SUVs
Back when I signed a lease deal on my Honda Pilot in 2007, I did not give gas mileage a whole lot of thought. I knew better than to buy a gigantic SUV that blatantly guzzled gas, but at the time, I thought that getting approximately 20 miles to the gallon, while also having all-wheel drive and seating space for seven, was a good deal all around. So, I went with the Pilot. A great car, I might add, I’ve enjoyed driving it, but unless big changes are in store for the Pilot in 2011, I think I can do a whole lot better on the green scale when I trade in my car this August (Honda, are you listening?). So, my search begins for a more fuel-efficient SUV with an all-wheel-drive option (I live in Maine) and room for two kids, a friend, and a dog. If car companies took orders like restaurants do, mine would look something like this:
- AWD
- Seven-seater
- Fuel efficient
- High safety rating
After doing a lot of research on fuel-efficient SUVs, it is clear that there are big differences between SUVs that have front-wheel-drive and those equipped with all-wheel drive. The good news is, if you don’t need the 4×4 option, there are some exciting new vehicles on the market for 2010. The bad news for people like me is, if all-wheel-drive is essential to maintaining your mental health during long winters, then it seems I may have to compromise considerably on fuel-efficiency. Based on my research so far and msn autos’ list of 2010’s Most Fuel-Efficient SUVs, the following cars are now on my short list:
1) Jeep Patriot/Compass
The Jeep Patriot/Compass is one of a few cross-over SUVs that offer mile-per-gallon numbers for 4×4 models that are comparable to FWD models. The Patriot/Compass gets 23 mpg in the city and 28 on the highway. Not bad. I can also squeeze three booster seats side-by-side in the back seat, although it’s tight. Cargo space is also an issue and fitting our luggage, plus one dog in the back might be tough.
2) Chevy Equinox/GMC Terrain
The newly designed Equinox and its sister model, the Terrain, both available with AWD, get 20 mpg in the city and 29 mpg on the highway. The fuel-efficiency of the FWD option is even better, so if you are not looking for an AWD vehicle, this cross-over would definitely be worth a second look. I also like the flexible rear seats, which make it possible to fit more cargo in the back when you need to. I am not sure if I can fit three booster seats in the back, but I will give it a try on the test-drive.
3) Lexus RX 450h Hybrid
Gorgeous looks? Check. Excellent safety record? Check. Fuel efficient? Check. The Lexus RX 450h Hybrid has it all. Getting an impressive 30 mpg in the city and 28 mpg on the highway, what’s not to like? To make it even more appealing, the Lexus has one of the largest cargo areas in its class. But unless I win the lottery in the next six months, this cross-over SUV will be too cost-prohibitive, with a sticker price between $41,000 and $43,000. But it still makes my list… because, well, I can dream, can’t I?
4) Ford Escape/Mazda Tribute/Mercury Mariner Hybrids
Come to find out, this trio of small cross-overs offer 30 mpg city/27 mpg highway. Seating five, these models reportedly also have lots of cargo space. They also cost around $10,000 less than the Lexus, which is hard to argue with.
5) Subaru Outback Wagon
The Subaru Outback Wagon, which got a new look for 2010, is Motor Trend’s Sport/Utility of the year.
With an excellent safety record, the Subaru comes with AWD as a standard feature with all models. So far so good, so let’s look at fuel efficiency …with several models to choose from, the most popular 2.5i is able to achieve an average of 19 city/27 highway, which is, unfortunately, not that great. But with great cargo space, full-time AWD, and a sticker price around $23,000, the Outback is still a contender, although its fuel-efficiency rating is only marginally better than the Pilot I am driving right now.
6) Toyota Highlander AWD Hybrid
The Toyota Highlander Hybrid is the only SUV I have found so far that seats seven, while still being able to compete with the smaller SUV cross-overs for overall fuel-efficiency. With 27 mpg city/25 highway, the Highlander is starting to look pretty good. Starting at just under $26,000, the Highlander Hybrid is less expensive than the Pilot and certainly would leave less of a carbon footprint. We may have a winner!
As I still have six months to make a decision, I am going to wait and see if any car companies will market a yet-unnamed SUV that is both roomy and has a fuel rating that can blow away the competition. If not, then I will have to weigh all of the options that are available at the time and decide which criteria are the most important….stay tuned!
msn.com autos’ entire top ten list of Most Fuel-Efficient SUVs can be found at:
http://editorial.autos.msn.com/slideshow.aspx?cp-documentid=1091150
Take the Guilt out of Hot Showers
So we have learned about the significant water and energy savings by taking shorter showers, calculating our water use, and learning why our water takes so long to heat up. All of which can lead to significant savings for your pocketbook. Now here is one more tip that can help you and your family save hot water immediately.
Growing up in a house full of girls, hot water was a precious commodity (as it should be). So when you won rights to the bathroom, you had to capitalize by undertaking all of your bathroom routines while waiting for the water to heat up. As some readers have mentioned, there are ways to capture and reuse the cold water, but what about the hot water?
A little invention called the ShowerStart™ slows the water to a trickle once it’s warmed up. Then when you are ready to hop in, you just pull the lever. You just install it right in between the showerhead and the pipe. They run from $40 to $50 dollars and depending on your water usage and utility costs, it can have a quick payback time (they estimate 4 months). The company estimates $75 in utility savings and 2,700 gallons of water savings per year.
As someone who has used this product, I highly recommend it. This quick addition can help you save water, electricity, and money. But it can also increase awareness and doesn’t require any additional effort beyond initial installation. Since you can install and remove it easily, it works for apartment dwellers as well as families. The company also offers several other products to improve water quality and additional energy and water saving devices.
Learn more about water conservation (did you know that cold water is suggested to make your hair shinier?).
Calculate your shower’s impact.
