Can You Spare a Square?

Seinfeld’s Elaine Benes may have posed the original question, but it’s something we should all consider since we in the U.S. average 50 pounds of toilet tissue, paper napkins and paper towels per year! That’s seven trees worth! Worldwide, about 270,000 trees are used and discarded each day. Here are a few ways to reduce your paper footprint:

· Buy single-ply, unscented and lotion-free tissue products whenever possible.

· Avoid colored tissue. Buy dye-free (i.e. white) or unbleached paper products. These dyes and bleaches also can irritate your skin.

· Switch to cloth napkins. They are much more civilized, not to mention more effective. Use different colors or unique napkin rings for different members of the family and wash them when they’re soiled.

· Cut paper towel use with Green Irene’s Twist Sponge Cloth (3-pack for $4.50). They easily wipe kitchen and bath surfaces like a paper towel and absorb like a sponge. Better yet, they replace 17 full rolls of paper towels! You may also like our Twist Scrubber Sponge (2-pack for $5) and the Twist Dish Dumpling Scrubber ($4; featured in the February 2010 issue of Bon Appétit).

Ellen Hall
Green Irene Eco-Consultant
ellen.cincydayton@greenirene.com
http://www.GreenIrene.com/CincyDaytonEllen
513-932-7304

Is Your Home Exhausting You?

While we are all trying to stay comfortable in the cold, the furnace runs frequently in the winter, especially during cold snaps like we’ve experienced over the last few weeks. But what do you know about how your furnace operates, other than how to turn it up or down, and maybe how to change the filter once in awhile?

Don’t be indifferent to this large combustion appliance, or any other fuel-burning equipment in your home. These appliances, which burn oil, natural gas, liquid petroleum gas (LPG), wood or biofuels, produce carbon monoxide exhaust. Because our houses generally are built pretty tightly (even though it may not feel like it sometimes), it’s important to take some precautionary steps to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning while the house is closed up for the winter.

Here are some basic safety measures to prevent carbon monoxide exhaust from entering your home:

• Install carbon monoxide alarms on all levels of the home (you conveniently can order one online through Green Irene).
• Replace any carbon monoxide detectors that are more than five years old. The sensors in the detectors are accurate for only about five years.
• Don’t warm up your car in an attached garage.
• Don’t use the top of your furnace or water heater as a shelf. Keep it clear all around.
• Keep flammable and corrosive materials far away from heat sources.
• Don’t run bathroom exhaust fans for more than 10 minutes after your shower, and try to avoid running multiple fans at the same time. Depending on the venting system on your furnace or hot water heaters, running the bathroom or kitchen exhaust fan can cause negative pressure (backdraft) in the home. It also can suck all the hot air out of your house, too (hot air naturally wants to travel to cold and seek every opportunity to do so).
• Watch for soot build-up on or around the furnace or water heater.
• Be sure the chimney and flue pipes are clean, tight and free of corrosion and obstructions.
• Never use an unvented gas or kerosene heater in a living or work space.
• Know where underground fuel and electric lines are buried.
• Have all fossil fuel appliances tested annually for proper operation by a qualified service person.

Green Irene Item #: 40150
Kidde Carbon Monoxide Detector and Alarm

Ellen Hall
Green Irene Eco-Consultant
Greening Our World One Home and Small Business at a Time
ellen.cincydayton@greenirene.com
http://www.GreenIrene.com/CincyDaytonEllen
513-932-7304

85% likely to reduce energy consumption in 2010

The website Environmental Leader recently highlighted a survey by Tiller LLC with really interesting findings: about 85 percent of those polled said they were at least “somewhat likely” to reduce household energy consumption next year, while 84 percent said they expected to recycle more. So make a New Year’s resolution to reduce your energy use!

3 easy ways to start reducing your energy use include:

1) Turn off lights and appliances when not in use. This is the easiest way to use less energy – just like mom always told us.

2) Switch to energy efficient Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) Bulbs. The technology has come a long way, and there are CFLs in just about every size and shape and brightness to meet all your household needs. These CFLs only use about 1/4 the energy and last up to 10 times as long, often paying for themselves in one year. Look for the Energy Star label. A Green Irene Eco-consultant can help you pick the right ones for the right applications.

3) A few degrees make a difference. In the summer, set your AC to 78 degrees when you are home and 85 degrees when you are away. In winter, set thermostats to 68 degrees when you are home and 55 degrees when you go to bed or leave the house. If you install a new “simpler to program” thermostat, you only have to think about these adjustments once.

Don’t forget to get your kids involved! An innovative and kid-friendly website, http://www.greenallowance.com, has launched, which provides practical ideas and customized assignments for kids — showing how they can save energy and, in turn, save money. Kids are encouraged to make a deal with their parents to share the savings on their electric bill – savings that are calculated and programmed to show up on their home computers every billing cycle.

There is so much more that you can do! Taking the little steps will add up to big steps which will make a difference for the environment and save your family money.

If you’re in the northern or central New Jersey region, contact me for more information on ways to conserve and save through Green Irene’s Green Home Makeover or Green Office Makeover services. For other areas, contact your local Eco-Consultant, and begin taking steps toward reducing your energy consumption today!

Barry Dambach
Green Irene Eco-Consultant
barry.flemington@greenirene.com
http://www.GreenIrene.com/BarryFlemington

Save Money This Holiday Season by Going Green

The December holidays may be the most wonderful time of the year, but they also can be very expensive and quite wasteful. In fact, between parties and gift giving and all the festivities, Americans spend hundreds of billions of dollars each year celebrating the holidays and generate 25 percent more trash than normal between Thanksgiving and New Year’s. So, it’s a wonderful time to go green to save some green! Here are six ways to keep a little something extra in your pocket:

1. Wrap Things Up – Use brown grocery bags for simple wrap, look for recycled gift wrap or “wrap” items in reusable tote bags. Reuse gift wrap, gift bags, boxes and ribbons whenever possible, or repurpose items from around the house to make gift wrap: fabric remnants, magazines spreads, old calendars, kids’ artwork or the Sunday comics.

2. Light Up – Put holiday lights on a timer so you don’t forget to unplug them. Also, check out new LED lights to save energy. Target has solar LED lights, and Home Depot is offering $3 off LED Christmas lights when you recycle your old or broken incandescent light strings.

3. Clean Your Plate – Really, just dish up what you will eat, then take a break from cooking and eat your leftovers! At least 28 billion pounds of edible food are discarded each year, or more than 100 pounds per person. Much of that is wasted during the holiday season.

4. Give Gifts of Time – The gift of time is often the most appreciated. Offer a gift certificate for leaf raking or snow shoveling for a neighbor. Offer free babysitting for a new mother. Match your talents with the other person’s needs and you have perfect gift.

5. Shop ’til you Drop – When ordering online, consolidate purchases to reduce packaging and shipping. Order early and choose ground delivery over air. Unless you intend to use the store’s shopping bags as gift bags, bring your own canvas bags to reduce waste. When shopping, walk or take public transit, or combine your car trip with other errands.

6. Be a Scrooge – If you close your office or leave your home for an extended period over the holidays, avoid “phantom” or “vampire” loads by unplugging electronics and turning off power strips. Also, adjust the thermostat to save energy and turn your water heater to “vacation” mode.

Ellen Hall
Eco-Consultant
Green Irene
Greening Our World One Home and Small Business at a Time
http://www.GreenIrene.com/CincyDaytonEllen
513-932-7304

Staying Warm in Minnesota

Anyone who lives in a cold climate knows that the only thing that can chill you more than Old Man Winter is that energy bill in February.  About eight years ago, the first winter in our home was quite a learning experience; the February gas bill was over $350!  We didn’t realize just how much it would cost to heat our home, and we didn’t sign up for a budget plan with our utility provider.  Even though it balanced out with lower gas bills in the summer, we still needed to do something to reduce that winter bill.

Two years ago, our monthly budget for natural gas averaged out to $103 ($1,236 per year). We then started on our green journey and made small improvements around our home; a little here and a little there. Last year our budget dropped to $64 monthly ($768 a year).

Last summer when I became a Green Irene Consultant, I decided to challenge my family to bring down our energy consumption even more without breaking the bank on home improvements.  So my first makeover was our own house, and just by doing the simple things and modifying our habits we were pleasantly surprised when our utility company sent us our budget amount for the 2009-2010 winter.  We now pay only $41 per month or $492 per year!

That’s over a 60% savings, and we did NOT replace our furnace, windows, doors, or any other major gas appliances.  Our house is a toasty 69 degrees when we are home and we use NO space heaters!

Just goes to show that you don’t have to invest a ton of money to save money!

Chris Hughes
Green Irene Eco-Consultant
Minneapolis, MN
http://www.GreenIrene.com/MNGreenteam

America’s Best Idea

After watching the second installment of Ken Burns’ National Parks on PBS, my seven-year-old daughter sorrowfully said that she didn’t understand why anyone would want to “cut down those beautiful old trees in the national parks.”  As I looked around her room at the furniture and pile of papers on her desk, I replied that people then, as now, saw using those great natural resources as a way to meet the needs of others while providing for themselves and their families.  For many it was – and is – a way out of poverty.

The question for us all today – in all of our abundance – is how do we balance consumption and conservation, prosperity and preservation?  I believe that “National Parks” is a call to all of us to explore our own relationship with nature, to scrutinize our use of natural resources and to critically examine our needs versus our wants.   The documentary also presents a perfect opportunity to discuss these issues with our children and to teach them about sustainability.

My children have been fortunate to hike in two of nation’s greatest parks, Yosemite and Sequoia, both of which have been featured in the documentary.  Despite their young ages, they both have felt that connection with nature and appreciated the awe-inspiring beauty they have beheld.  But we must realize that we don’t have to be in a national park to appreciate nature.  In our daily lives, we have the opportunity to see the beauty in a storm, savor the richness of a sunset, or experience the buoyancy of heart and soul that results from a frolic in the autumn leaves.  In these moments, children learn and adults are reminded that abundance doesn’t just come from a store.

Some steps on the path of going green are easy, but others take dedication, discipline and perseverance.  In watching the documentary, we can be inspired by those individuals who, as Tim Goodman of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote, “in the midst of a land grab and increasing development and all kinds of political ambition, were able to step back, see the beauty in various spots across the country, and devise a plan to set those areas aside for future generations.”  We should all hear that call today.  As French philosopher Pierre Teilhard de Chardin said, “The future belongs to those who give the next generation reason for hope.”

Ellen Hall
Eco-Consultant
ellen.cincydayton@greenirene.com
http://www.greenirene.com/1106

Save Money & Go Green During Your Home Remodel

During our first major home remodeling project, our elderly neighbor Joe would come over to see how things were going. Joe came of age during the Great Depression so occasionally he would stoop down, pick up a nail, and hand it to my husband, silently imploring, “waste not, want not” and reminding us of a time when resources were conserved and every nail was considered valuable.

Today we see giant dumpsters parked outside houses with ongoing remodeling projects, full of waste destined for the landfill. Construction contractors tell us it takes too much time to deconstruct a house piece by piece, salvaging some materials for reuse. Time is money, and the labor required to salvage materials is too expensive to be worth it. But is it really too expensive?

Beginning Phase IV of our current house remodeling effort, I decided to run some numbers on our small scale recycling and reuse effort. In a half a day, all the demolition was done and the 2×4s laid in two unruly piles in the remodel space. I set to work with my gloves, safety glasses, hammer and crowbar and restored to usable condition about 28 pieces of stud length lumber and a few shorter pieces. It took about 2 hours, working fairly leisurely, and you can listen to music or talk during the work. Deeply imbedded nails may be removed using a cat’s paw tool or else marked with a red crayon so the framing carpenter will see them and avoid cutting into them and dulling their saw blade or causing a dangerous kick back. For hard-to-remove and headless nails, like the one picture to the right, put the shaft of the nail tight in the claw and bend it sideways, moving the claw up the shaft as the nail comes out.

So what did I save for my 2 hours of labor? The cost of the studs and the cost of disposal are the two biggest things. I also saved a trip to the store, a trip to the dump, and hauling materials out of the house and back in. I did the right thing for the environment, keeping reusable materials out of the landfill and keeping a 28-stud tree standing in the forest.

At my local home improvement store, standard and better 2×4 studs (96 inches that still need to be cut down to stud length) are roughly $2 each with tax. Tipping fees at the dump are $100 a ton. So my 28 studs would cost about $56 dollars to buy new. The 28 studs and nails weighed about 250 lbs. so besides the trip to the transfer station I save about $12.50 in tipping fees.

In total, I saved over $68, paying me $34 per hour for my work cleaning up the studs. You could even afford to pay your teen or tween $10 an hour to do the work and still come out ahead. So next time you or your contractor think salvaging building materials isn’t worth it, think again.

Number of studs reclaimed: 28
Number of hours spent reclaiming studs: 2
Replacement cost of studs: $56
Tipping fees saved: $12.50
Total savings: $68.50
Hourly wage for reclamation work: $34+
Other savings: trip to store; trip to dump; trees left standing; landfill space; mill work
 

Judi Radloff, Kirkland, WA
Green Irene Eco-Consultant
www.GreenIrene.com/EastsideJudi
judi.eastside@greenirene.com 

Volunteer To Green Your Community

Two summers ago, Jack Johnson was performing in my city and asked the concert promoters and concert venue what they were doing to lessen the environmental footprint of the event.  To answer Jack’s question, the venue changed how they were pouring drinks and entered into an agreement with a local recycling facility to handle all recyclables from the venue.  They also created The Green Team. 

A couple of the suppliers at the venue agreed to sponsor The Green Team. The venue bought a bunch of safety vests (yes, the really visible and hideous yellow ones!) and grabbers.  They also bought a bunch of recycling cans and signs.  Then they went out looking for people to volunteer.

I’ve been a member of the Green Team for the past couple of years.  We get into the concerts free and we get a voucher for food at the concession stands. We go out with our grabbers and vests before the concert, during the breaks between bands and for a few minutes after the concert.  The idea is to educate attendees through our presence. We split up and make our way around the venue, being visible and friendly.  We also use our grabbers to rescue recyclables from the regular garbage bins.  Once the music starts, we take our seats and have fun watching the concert. 

I’ve gotten really good at the art of using the grabber.  I can scoop up a half-filled plastic cup, empty it and put it in the recycle bin in a second or two – all without touching anything. 

Now this may sound like a demeaning waste of time.  It’s not.  Every member of the team gets a number of high-fives or hugs during every concert.  We also have people asking us how they can be members of the Green Team.  One guy asked me if he could use the grabber just once – I had to take it back when all of his friends wanted to use it too.  Last summer, someone had to be escorted from the venue because he was a fake Green Team-er – complete with the vest and grabber. 

I’ve also noticed that we are finding fewer and fewer recyclables in the wrong bin. Other venues in the area are catching on – it’s a great public relations move. Once you consider the sponsorships, I’m pretty sure that the costs of our vests, grabbers, tickets and meals are more than covered.  It has made a number of the visiting artists very happy to be performing here.

Last night, I got to listen to Incubus (they were completely amazing), hang out with friends and took several hundred cups, bottles and cans out of landfills. 

This is an idea that can be taken to your community.  Ask local venues what they’re doing and share the story of the Green Team at Usana Amphitheater in Salt Lake City, Utah.   Maybe you can start your own Green Team, in partnership with the venue. 

Leslie Proctor, Salt Lake City, Utah
Green Consultant
http://www.greenirene.com/slcleslie
leslie.slc@greenirene.com 

Water Conservation: Little Steps = Big Rewards

Most people don’t think twice about their water bill until they start watering their lawn in the summer.  Compared to other utilities water is very inexpensive for the end consumer compared to their natural gas bill in the winter, or their electric bill in the summer due to running the air all the time.

When it comes to our fresh water from the tap have you ever thought of just how much time, money and energy it takes to deliver that water to you?  Just running your kitchen tap for five minutes can cause your local water treatment plant to use enough energy to light a bulb for 8 hours!

Last year we decided to take a look at our water usage in our home.  First stop, faucets.  We noticed our faucets were running 2 gpm (gallons per minute) or higher.  We swapped those out with 1½ gpm aerators.  Next, the toilet. It is an older model with that runs 4 gpf (gallons per flush), but we never thought about replacing the toilet. Quite honestly, when a toilet breaks it’s usually a trip to the local hardware store and $20 later it’s fixed.

Instead of replacing we decided to give some products a try.  We used the Green Irene Fill Cycle Diverter and the Toilet Tank Bank.  I also had an adjustable flapper that I had purchased previously but never installed.  After installing these toilet items, our toilet now flushes and refills faster than I ever thought possible.

We didn’t replace the showerhead at that time; we couldn’t decide what model to go with.  The next month our water bill came and I couldn’t believe it.  With just $20 and a commitment to ourselves to use our water smarter in our home, we reduced our consumption and waste water by an entire unit!  That’s 800 gallons!  This was during non-watering months so it was probably the best data we could ask for in our test. 

This is just an example of how all the little things add up around your home. On average, over the past year our utility bills are a combined 20% lower just by implementing some Green Irene tactics on top of what we considered already “Green.”

Chris Hughes, Minneapolis, MN
Green Consultant
http://www.greenirene.com/MNgreenteam
MN.greenteam@greenirene.com

Taking a Greener Path for Realtors

“Going Green” has become somewhat of a catch phrase lately, but have you wondered what this means exactly, and how it relates to realtors and their clients? One myth to dispel, right off the bat, is that “Going Green” is expensive; it is NOT expensive; you need not make a gigantic life-changing leap, you can take baby steps that will carry you as far as you would like to go, and lead you on your way to a greener path.

I’ll start by explaining the basic intent of “Going Green.” It relates to your mark on this planet, we can sum it up by calling it your carbon footprint. This is the sum of how your life relates to the earth, your impact, by the choices you make on the way you live, consume, discard, travel, and maintain your lifestyle. The larger your carbon footprint, the harsher your overall impact is.

Everything you do has a direct effect on the earth. Being aware of your choices, and how they effect your contribution to the planet, will help you look at your current lifestyle and decide if there are alternatives that you can choose that will lesson your overall impact on this planet, ultimately improving your carbon footprint.

These choices not only lessen your impact on the environment, but can save you money-not only in the long run and the short term as well. Once I changed out all my light bulbs to CFLs, and started using smart power strips for my plug-in appliances, I immediately saw a reduction of $100 monthly on my electric bill. My total expense in this modification was less than $200, so I will make my money back in 2 short months. I like that.

There is so much information out there on different ways to “Go Green”; where does one start?

Hiring a Green Irene Eco-Consultant is a good first step on your way down a greener path; you will receive a thorough evaluation of your home or your business, along with a report that includes information and suggestions to implement at your discretion, and a 3-month membership to our online database of “green information.”

How can hiring an Eco-Consultant help a Realtor’s business?

As with any business, realtors can green their personal business, their office space, and can suggest a green home make-over to clients, both buyers and sellers.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) is actively working toward the greening of property disclosures; there are already seven different MLX regions across the country that have included green features as part of their disclosures; NAR has already created a standardized list for nationwide implementation. Texas is working toward a minimum energy audit standard to be included as part of the property sale process.

Being a part of the leading edge of this green movement will add to any business and increase marketing power.

As a Realtor myself, I feel it is important to assist sellers in finding value-added features for their properties in this declining market. This will help stabilize value for our sellers. Make them aware of value-added features that won’t break the bank, and information for the potential buyer that can help them increase the value and equity in their home for years to come.

The green suggestions, information and products at Green Irene are exactly that. We offer an affordable green makeover, with suggestions and products to be implemented at the home owner’s own pace, one step at a time. We can also offer an outline for future improvements that can be implemented later, when larger repairs and improvements become part of the plan.

Arming sellers with this valuable knowledge will help promote the sale of their property, while adding value without a large investment. Additionally, they will be able to reap the benefits of their green improvements while they still own the property, by lowering their utility bills and lessoning their overall impact on the environment. They will also be able to take their green knowledge with them to their next property. Some green improvements will even benefit from state and federal tax incentives. Pretty cool.

A good starting point for real estate professionals is in the greening of their office and practice, with a Green Office Makeover. You’ll be able to promote your green practice at your office and business, a nice addition to your marketing plan. Offering a green home makeover is a great closing gift as well. Suggesting a green home makeover during the listing process as a part of preparing their property is a great investment for your sellers, not to mention how important it is to our planet to make these types of commitments.

For more information, contact your local Green Irene Eco-Consultant.

Katherine Hansen, Authorized Eco-Consultant
http://greenirene.com/MaineStreamGreen
katherine.midcoastmaine@greenirene.com
207-751-2598

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