Energy-producing chair

This unique chair produces its own light!  The Murakami chair’s attached lamp is powered by kinetic energy produced from the chair rocking back and forth—deliciously simple and elegant. Oh, and that lampshade? Not a lampshade. That’s the actual OLED light source, shaped like a lampshade.

 The OLED lamp even senses when it’s light or dark out, and if it is light, the energy produced by rocking is stored in a battery pack until nightfall. The chair, designed by Rochus Jacob, shared first prize at the DesignBoom Green Life Competition, which was held in September in Korea.

Budget Triming Freebies for your Electric Bill

Like many people, I am always trying to cut costs and stick to a budget. Since the electric bill can be quite high for families and small businesses, it’s a good idea to cut the energy consumption as much as possible. That can be more than just turning out the lights when you leave a room.

Start out with those funny-looking curly light bulbs.  They’re actually called CFL—Compact Flourescent Lightbulb—and they can save a bundle off of your energy bill. Replacing one regular light bulb with a compact fluorescent light bulb will save 150 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. If every home in America changed just one light bulb, the energy saved would be enough to power a city of 1.5 million people! Each CFL bulb uses up to 75% less energy and saves an average of $34.39 over the life of the bulb!

The trick to lowering the electric bill is making smart purchases and using good strategies. To start cutting your energy costs and saving our natural resources, download these free goodies from the EnergySTAR people. Want to teach your child about saving energy? Check out the kid-friendly downloads and kids page.

I have been slowly replacing my regular bulbs with the CFL ones…the stairway light is one of the first I replaced because often it was left on (not a good idea, but sometimes with an armload of  laundry, sometimes you just can’t reach it. I always intend to go back, but sometimes forget.).  They are in the kitchen, and in the living room.  They even make one that is specifically for your front porch (no bugs hanging around the light).   Some of my light fixtures won’t hold them due to size, but shop around–there are various sizes available now.  And, they are getting less expensive than they were even a year ago!  Less expensive is always good! 

 

Recycling Tips

 1.Precycling is the step before recycling. This is the process of making a conscious choice to purchase or use products and services which will have a less harmful effect on the Environment.

2.Know what is recycled in your community. Some items may have special collections and recycling locations (oil & antifreeze at gas stations; plastic bags at grocery stores; six-pack rings and house batteries at schools; grass and leaves at garden centers; etc….). If the product is packaged in material that is NOT recycled in your community, it becomes GARBAGE and is wasted!

3.Buy products that use less packaging. Product packaging accounts for about 33% of all household garbage. If we refuse to buy products that are over-packaged, the manufacturers will by force to change their packaging to be more environmentally responsive.

4.Close the loop ” Buy Recycled”. Choose to buy products that are made from recycled material. It’s only recycling if you buy recycled products.

5.Buy recyclable products. Choose products that are made of or packaged in recyclable material. Paper bags, cardboard boxes, glass bottles, aluminum and tin cans, and some plastics are easily recycled.

6.Avoid reliance on the word “degradable”. A degrade product must be exposed to the element to breakdown. In a land fill these items do not breakdown because they are protected by tons of debris and dirt.

7.Avoid disposable and one-time use products. These are a waste of resources and energy to produce. In most cases their are reusable alternatives.

8.Buy in bulk or concentrated forms when ever possible. This usually saves money and reduces the amount of waste that is thrown away.

9.Reuse items. Try to reuse items as many times as possible. If you do not have a use for items that are still good or operational, donate them to a local charity or environmental organization. Ask to see their wish list, you may have something they need. Many items can also be used for other things than what they were first purchase for. Be creative!

A plastic bottle can be made into:

• a funnel by cutting off the bottom.
• Liner for a planter or flower pot.
• Bird feeder.
• Container for storing nails, screws, washers and nuts. etc.

 10.If you are not happy about the packaging you see, speak up. Let manufactures and store managers know that you are not happy with the way a product is packaged.

Producing 1 ton of paper from recycled pulp saves 17 trees, 3 cubic yards of landfill space, and 7000 gallons of water. It also reduces air pollutants by 60 pounds, saves 390 gallons of oil, and conserves 4200 kilowatt hours of energy — enough to heat a home for half a year. Estimates show that 9 jobs are created for every 15,000 tons of solid waste recycled into new products.

Check my website for Reasons to Recycle.

NEW USES FOR COFFEE FILTERS

I am going to be teaching a class this coming Spring on Living Green—what you as an individual can do to eliminate waste, recycle and reuse what you already have, and of course save money at the same time. I’ve been researching on the Internet and found lots of great ideas.

Here’s a few about coffee filters. These are useful to me because dad recently changed coffee pots and I have a package of larger filters that we didn’t use.

An even better “green” suggestion is to buy a re-useable (washable) coffee filter (we have one!), so you don’t even have to buy the paper kind at all.

• Clean windows and mirrors. Coffee Filters are lint-free so they’ll leave your windows sparkling.
• Protect china. Separate your good dishes by putting a Coffee Filter between each dish.
• Cover bowls or dishes when cooking in the microwave. Coffee Filters make excellent covers.
• Protect a cast-iron skillet. Place a Coffee Filter in the skillet to absorb moisture and prevent rust.
• Apply shoe polish. Ball up a lint-free Coffee Filter.
• Recycle frying oil. After frying, strain oil through a sieve lined with a Coffee Filter.
• Weigh chopped foods. Place chopped ingredients in a Coffee Filter on a kitchen scale.
• Hold tacos. Coffee Filters make convenient wrappers for messy foods.
• Stop the soil from leaking out of a plant pot. Line a plant pot with a Coffee Filter to prevent the soil from leaking through the drainage holes.

I’ll be posting more fun and useful “Green” things you can do every day, so keep this spot bookmarked!

love, Mom

Are You Using Those New Light Bulbs?

Going Green is the latest big thing to do….but it’s not a bad thing.

When those funny curly light bulbs first came out I was a bit slow to start changing over. My first purchase was yellow-toned ones and I was not impressed—they were too big and not bright enough. I found some white ones that I put in the bathroom…those were better.

And they are still improving the basic design and size. A little research showed me that traditional incandescent light bulbs use about 70% more electricity than compact fluorescent bulbs (CFL’s), so it seems like a no-brainer to switch them over. And, not to worry, fluorescent bulbs have come a long way since their inception, and now produce a similar light to incandescent bulbs. (As a bonus – CFL’s last about 10 times longer, and they don’t generate heat either (unlike an incandescent bulb), so you aren’t wasting any of your air conditioning power trying to cool down your light bulbs.)

So, I think I’ll run out and get some more of those funny-looking bulbs!

love, Mom