Super-Yachts Go Green With Wind and Solar Energy
For all those multi-millionaires out there that want to enjoy the seas comfortably while going green, there is a new boat that could fit the bill. The Solar Sailor company based out of Sydney, Australia is creating a series of super-yachts that will run off of solar and wind energy. The idea is to create a solar sail that can multi-task as a sail and it’s energy source. A huge problem with many of the current yachts sailing on the seas is that they guzzle tons of gas and emits tons of pounds of CO2. The reason they require so much energy is that they not only need to run these huge boats, but they also have fancy equipment like Jacuzzis and movie theaters that require tons of energy to operate. One thing that shocked me was to see that they huge yachts can consume as much 1 liter of fuel per second. That’s right not minute but second.
The technology works through a computer system that will control the solar sail. The sail can then be electronically mounted based off of the sun’s position or the direction of the wind. Not only would the vessels be getting 5% of its energy from the solar panels mounted on the sails, but they would also be getting approximately 20-40% of the total energy needs from wind. This could save the owners tons of money to operate their yachts as well as eliminate tons of emissions.
The thing that frustrates me the most about this is: why do you need such a large and elaborate boat? Is it really necessary to have a yacht of such size that requires so much fuel to run? Just because the ultra wealthy that own super-yachts have the money to buy these, why not allocate you money elsewhere. Even after adding these great renewable energy modifications to these boats, they still are going to be burning tons of fuel. They are just burning less that they previously were. This is how our environment has taken such a huge hit. The need to have massive machines and boats that require tons of energy to operate. Even if they were to convert these massive boats to run completely on renewable energy, it still doesn’t make them green or eco-friendly. Tons of materials are needed to build these devices just to make a few people more comfortable when they are sailing. I’m all for supporting renewable energy, but we as a society also need to start conserving more. What are you thoughts.
Updates to the kWh Energy Calculator
I made some major modifications to the energy calculator and just wanted to update you on some of those changes. The calculator can now be found in the right sidebar under the Tools heading.
Fixed Bugs
I fixed various bugs that were causing certain functionality of the calculator to not work. These are now fixed.
Common Appliance Energy Use
I added in a Tree of common energy uses for various appliances throughout your household. Just click on the appliances that are highlighted for the energy use of each item. I will be updated this tree with more values as I come across them.
State Energy Cost
I included a list of all States and their corresponding kWh cost. The calculator will automatically fill the appropriate cost when you select your state.
If you find any errors or bugs in the calculator, please contact me or just leave a comment. Hopefully you enjoy the calculator and I will continue to add more functionality and easier to use. I will also be adding additional calculators and tools to help you live a greener lifestyle as well as save money.
Chrysler Introducing New All Electric Peapod
Chrysler recently unveiled it’s new all electric Peapod vehicle out of it’s Green EcoMobility (GEM) division. It used to be called Global Electric Motorcars, but was updated with this new generation of cars. This vehicle will be a new generation of vehicles produced from the GEM subsidiary of Chrysler that hopes to hopes to makes a more user friendly car that is eco friendly.
Today’s GEM is the nation’s No. 1 zero-emission electric vehicle, with 38,000 produced and in use. GEM vehicles are used in settings such as city centers, planned communities, military bases, college campuses, corporate and commercial centers, and city, state and national parks.
Past GEM vehicles were fairly inefficient as they were not aerodynamic and usually were partially open. This made them extremely impractical for daily use. This new generation of electric vehicle is not only fully enclosed, but is much more technologically advanced.
Peapod Specs
- Dimensions: 12 ft. long X 5 ft. 10 inches high X 4 ft. 8 inches wide.
- Car Weight: 1,290 lb. total weight ( no people inside )
- Interior Capacity: 910 lbs
- Person Capacity: 2 person max.
- Range: 30 miles
- Max Speed: 25 miles/hour
- Low Speed: 15 miles/hour
- Battery: 72 volt battery system with on-board charger.
- Recharge Time: 6 to 8 hours
As you can tell from the specs and the earlier quote, this is not a vehicles for highway use. Since it can only go a maximum of 25 mph, it is not street legal in all states. This model can only fit up to 2 people back to back, but there are larger 4 or 6 seater vehicles.
It has a modern look with newer battery technology and even has a plug-in for iPhones or iPods. I actually like the look of the inside as it is extremely simple, but still looks very nice.
The big questions I had about this vehicle are: Where can I charge it at and how long will it take? The answer to the first question is it can be charged in any standard 110-volt outlet. The appropriate time to recharge completely six to eight hours. I still wanted to figure out how much it would cost per charging of this vehicle. Since the normal outlet is typically 15 amps. In order to use my energy calculator, we need to convert volts to watts. The wattage for this device is
72 volts * 15 amps = 1080 watts.
Plugging this value in to my calculator you get a cost of about $331.13 per year to operate this car. I also did an article the average gas cost of a car per year that showed a small economy car uses about $1,868 of gas per year. That means that an electric cars could cost you 1/5 of the amount to run.
At an approximate price of $20,000, do you think you would every buy this electric vehicle? What about other options like the Aptera or Tesla?
Control Your Energy Use with Smart Strip Power Strip
I have mentioned numerous times on my blog that electronic devices can still use energy even though they are not powered on. One easy way to really make it easy to eliminate electricity to devices is to plug them into a power strip and just switch it off when you are done using the devices plugged into it. It can be difficult to always remember to switch off power strips whenever you are done using the devices plugged into it.
The Smart Strip is a unique power strip that can help you solve this problem. It has a built-in autoswitching technology on many of the plugs that turns off any electrical devices plugged into it when not turned on. The key to how this works is the different color outlets on it:
- Blue Outlet - The control outlet that controls when the white outlets are turned on or off.
- White Outlets - The switch outlets that follow the control outlet as it goes on or off.
- Red Outlets - The hot outlets that do not follow the control switch and only turn off when the power strip is unplugged or switched off.
As an electronic device plugged in the blue outlet turns idle, electronics in the white outlets will stop drawing any additional current. Where this strip comes really handy is when using in a home office. Computers and peripherals often are big culprits of wasting electricity even when they are turned off. The smart strip can coordinate with your computer to ensure they are turned off in sleep mode. The computer can be plugged into the blue outlet. You only use your computer peripherals when you computer is on anyways so why not have them turned off automatically. You can plug just about anything into this power strip including other strips. Since it also has a powerful built in surge protector, additional strips will also be protected as well.
Overall, the smart strip is a good power strip regardless of whether it has the autoswitching technology on it especially for the price. If you find it hard to unplug all of your electronics when done using them or switching off your power strips, then this device is the way to go.
Top 5 Greenest Cars in 2009
Green Car Journal announced its list for the top 5 greenest cars for the upcoming 2009 year car models. These 5 cars were identified by the editors of the magazines as the top green autos to be available on the market. The cars are (in alphabetical order):
- BMW 335d
- Ford Fusion Hybrid
- Saturn Vue 2 Mode Hybrid
- smart fortwo
- Volkswagen Jetta TDI
Each of these cars gets great gas mileage, but are these really the greenest cars available on the market?
The Real Green Autos
The only car that I feel out of the 5 that is truly green is the smart fortwo. It gets great gas mileage and is not a hybrid. Europeans has been driving around these cars for years and for good reason. Even though it is only a two seater, it is more efficient and can fit into extremely tight spots making it especially useful in the city. It is also the most affordable car for the great gas mileage you get. They currently also have a hybrid out in Europe and it gets up to 20% more fuel efficiency than the original model and it soon could come to America.
I still think there are greener cars available that are not even mentioned on the list. The Aptera is a much more efficient hybrid that can get 120 miles to the gallon or even higher depending on how far you drive. That is more than 3 times the mpg as compared to the supposed top green autos and is in the same price range as well. There is also the Tesla that is a full electric car. As long as the electricity comes from renewable resources like wind or solar energy, electric cars leave little or no carbon imprint.
If you currently own one of the top 5 green cars, please share your experience. Also, how do you feel about the top 5 picks and what would your top 5 list be?
Save and Go Green: Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs
Compact Fluorescent Lamps, commonly referred to Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs or CFL bulbs, have become a popular alternative to traditional incandescent light bulbs. They not only provide you with a energy savings but they can provide a whiter light than incandescent lamps. This does not mean that they are perfect though as they cost more to buy and contains slight amounts of mercury.
Incandescent
Incandescent lamps are traditional bulbs that people have been using for years. It was what originally was perfected by Thomas Edison back in the late 1800’s. The details as how it works are pretty in depth, but the key to why so many people are switching from using these types of bulbs is that they produce more heat that light. Wikipedia sums it up nicely by saying:
Approximately 90% of the power consumed by an incandescent light bulb is emitted as heat, rather than as visible light.
This means that much of the electricity provided to a light bulb is to produce heat instead of the actual light, making them more inefficient. GE is currently in the process of developing an incandescent that they hope will be 4 times as efficient its traditional counterparts.
Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs
What are they and How Do They Work?
Compact fluorescent lamp or CFL have been around for nearly an entire century, but have only been perfected and widely distributed since the 1980’s. CFLs work through a process by which an electric component called a ballast causes a gas filled tube ( or a bulb in this situation ) or emit ultraviolet light. This then causes a coating inside of the tube to be excited and emit visible light.
This process allows for the light bulbs to last up to 15 times as long as incandescent light bulbs, but can show signs of degradation as they age. They also use as little as 1/5 of the energy causing for a dramatic savings in electricity and therefore reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emitted. You can use my Energy Calculator to determine how much it is currently costing you to have traditional light bulbs as compared to flourescent.
Are CFL Bulbs Dangerous Since They Contain Mercury?
Compact Fluorescent bulbs do contain slight amounts of mercury averages around 4.0 mg. Regardless of how little this amount is, mercury is a dangerous substance and should be treated as such. Don’t get too worried and throw out all your fluorescent bulbs just because they contain mercury. Just be cautious when handling them just as you would with any other breakable item and there should be no problems. Accidents are inevitable and if one does happen, just be sure to properly dispose of the bulb as described by the EPA. As long as you are careful handling and disposing of them, they present no danger.
Which One Should You purchase?
There are many companies that currently manufacturer fluorescent bulbs and it can be hard to determine which is best to buy in terms of efficiency and cost. Popular Mechanics published a review of many of the popular fluorescent bulbs from brands including:
The report contains a comparison of how each CFL stacks up against each other as well as against traditional incandescent in both price and wattage use. One thing to look for when determining is that it is Energy Star certified. This will guarantee that it will meet the Energy Star’s strict standards thus ensuring that it will be long lasting and truly save you money on your energy bill. To see the full report by Popular Mechanics, see The Best Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs. There are also CFLs in an array of sizes and shapes for any room in your house.
Save and Go Green: Green Printing
A few months ago, I wrote an article about ways that you can save money and be eco-friendly when printing at home. When you want to more commercial quality printing or bulk printing, you can buy from environmentally friendly printing companies without sacrificing quality or price.
Green Printing History
Environmentally friendly printing techniques have been around for a number of years, but have only begun to really become mainstream in the last few years. Some of the main components of green printing include:
- Using recycled paper.
- Recycling any paper waste produced while printing.
- Switching to vegetable based inks that have low VOCs.
- Using new technologies such as digital printers.
Recycled Paper
Initially I thought that using recycled paper has only been used at most for 50 years in our country. After researching it a little, I realized that I was way off. There is a instance of a paper mill dating back to over 300 years ago that was using recycled linens to produce there paper. As time progressed, more and more recycled paper was being. Today, over half of our current paper use comes from recycled paper and that rate continues to grow.
Soy Based Inks
Just a decade ago, almost all of our ink used in America was produced using petroleum. In the mid to late 1980’s, the NAA or Newspaper Association of America researched many vegetable oil combinations to come up with soy oil to be used for ink. Since then, soy ink has taken off and really become popular over the past few years. What makes soy ink so great is that soybeans are much more environmentally friendly to grow that other vegetables and require little energy to actually produce the ink.
Even though soybean oil itself is edible, the ink that is made from it is not totally edible or biodegradable. This is caused by the fact that certain pigments used in traditional inks are still used in soy ink. Even though it is not 100% biodegradable, soy inks degrade much quicker than the petroleum counterparts and make it easier to remove from paper in the recycling process. Soy inks also have low levels of VOCs or volatile organic compounds that are dangerous toxic emissions. These low levels also make it much harder to use on coated types of paper like magazines and make it impossible to use in pens and personal printers.
Printing Technology
New printing technologies have also helped contribute to the green printing movement. Digital computers are much cleaner than traditional printing presses since they do not run on petroleum based products and there are no byproducts or emissions. They also do not emit harmful VOCs just like soy inks. Also, they require less space since there is less equipment needed.
Why go Green Printing?
At this point it should be pretty obvious for the reasons for printing companies to switch to new eco friendly printing technologies. New digital printing equipment combined with soy based oils and recycled paper can make a huge different for the environment. Petroleum products are eliminated from this process therefore helping eliminate any harmful emissions. This includes VOCs that can cause serious problems when inhaled by humans as well as significant damage to the ozone. Recycling is also a huge factor when it comes to eco friendly printing as it really help save trees from being cut down. A major concern with using recycled paper is the quality of the paper. As it turns out, there is no longer a quality difference in normal paper as compared to recycled.
There are many companies that have started to use these environmentally friendly printing techniques without sacrificing quality or raising there prices.
PSPrint is a printing company that is providing environmentally friendly printing along with affordable prices. Not only do they use recycled paper on many of their products, but they also recycle any paper waste that is made during the process of printing. They also use soy based inks as described above on all of their printing products. Even though they are using eco friendly printing methods, PSPrint still carries all the normal products a printing company carries. They also have printing locations on both the East coast and West coast. This eliminates shipping costs for the company to help them reduce costs and helps reduce carbon emissions. They have really good prices too and have a Low Price Guarantee. This guarantees that if you find a lower price at another company, they will match that price.
Another company that is going the green route is BizCard. They are a Green Seal certified company and only buy from certified paper mills. Most of their products use recycled paper and they recycled all of their paper waste. The company uses low VOC solvents such as soy ink. Much of their equipment is Energy Star certified. They also use digital presses, which eliminate the chemicals used in making plates.
