Green Resolutions

Every New Year it is a tradition to make resolutions or goals that you intend to keep by this time the following year. Some times these work out a lot of times they don’t. I decided to share my today and I plan on laying out some for those that are new to going green. I’ve chosen to list ten because it is a good even number. Here they are:

1.     Replace my furnace with a energy efficient heat pump

2.     Replace a block (or more) of my kW usage with electricity from biogas

3.     Put foam board insulation up in my basement.

4.     Build and use a garden box

5.     Get foam insulation sprayed in my attic

6.     Chart and try out a bike path to and from work

7.     Get a quote on replacing the windows

8.     Go the whole year without eating any red meat, poultry, or pork

9.     Get a home inspection for energy.

10. Get rid of everything I don’t need and simplify

Those are my goals some are ambitious the others not so much. I’d like to have all of these done by the end of the year but would settle on at least half.

Here is a list for you to try:

1.     Replace all incandescent bulbs with CFLs or LEDs

2.     Cut down on electric use by 10% by being more aware of how it is used

3.     Eat meat free one day a week

4.     Start recycling

5.     Make at least 10% of your purchases at second hand stores

6.     Switch at least 10% of your groceries from conventional to organic

7.     Take walks and runs outside instead of in the gym

8.     Turn your heat down in the winter and turn your AC up in the summer

9.     Go to a farmer’s market

10. Soak up some knowledge on going green at the library

Give some of them a go and let me know how it is going. 

Links, Links, and Links weeks of 12.30.12 and 12.23.12

Sorry for missing last week but here are some links over the last few weeks:

New World Record Set for Solar Cells: 44% Efficiency

12 Eco-Stories to Restore Your Faith in Humanity

Javier Sanso, Yacht Racer, Is Using 100 Percent Renewable Energy In The Vendee Globe Sailing Race

Turbine installation complete at London Array wind farm

An Urban Tree Farm Grows In Detroit

Phantom fighter: MeterPlug reports electric use in dollars

Will Colleges Kick Coal out of Their Stockings?

Living large in small houses

New York County First to Ban BPA in Receipts

Tigers making comeback in Asia, group reports

China expands pollution monitoring to biggest cities

Ford Fusion Energi plug-in hybrid sedan EPA-rated at 108 MPGe city, 92 MPGe highway and 100 MPGe combined; Ford projects best hybrid sales quarter ever

The Only Time To Buy Plastic

Winter is finally upon us and it is cold. My house is old and I don’t have a ton of extra money piled around so a cheap thing for us to do in the winter is plastic up our windows. Luckily when I was cleaning out the basement I found a few packages I had bought at an earlier time.

The first thing I do is take rubbing alcohol and clean really good around the window. I give that a few minutes to dry.

After it is dry I very slowly apply the double-sided tape. This part can be a bit tricky and a pain in the rump. If the tape isn’t sticking try moving it a bit one way or the other. Give the tape a few minutes to set up but don’t peel the top layer away just yet.

Stretch the plastic out and cut it to the length of the window, if there is enough left over you may be able to do another smaller window. Peel the top layer off of the tape at the top of the window and the left side. Start fitting the plastic in leaving a little bit of overhang. When you get to the right side peel off the top layer and then work it from top to bottom. At the bottom do the same.

Once everything is in place take a hairdryer and start in one corner and sweep back and worth working your way across. It is super important that you don’t hold the hairdryer in one place too long or touch the plastic with the tip of it! Rub your hand across it to make sure it is smooth.

Give it a bit to set up and stretch. Do something else for a bit and come back. If the plastic has pulled away or if you accidently made a hole, take some of the extra plastic and cut a patch and go through the above steps again and patch it.

It isn’t perfect or pretty but it will keep you warmer and let you use a little less electricity. Take the money you save and put it toward new windows or a better furnace. 

Happy Holidays!

We've been real busy here (trying to stay warm for one thing) and I'm sure you all have been as well. I hope that your holidays are going well and you have implemented a few green changes this year. I'll be back on schedule here soon and we can get down to business wrapping put this year and starting they next.

New Green Store Next Door

I’ve have posted about Park + Vine multiple times before. They are a really cool store really helping to make a difference. The main problem with them is the fact that they aren’t even remotely close to me. If we go there we always have to plan it out in advance and couple it with a few other things as not to waste a trip. Luckily there is a similar store opening right up the road! They aren’t open yet and there is no website (I know that this is really like a non post but I’m still excited). I did stop by the other day and they let me in to have a look around. Hopefully they’ll have their grand opening in the next few weeks and I’ll post more about it. 

Great Green Shampoo

I have a confession…I have dandruff. Okay so that may not be a terrible crime. Roughly half the population has dandruff to some degree.

For the longest time I used Head & Shoulders (actual just a knock off brand containing Pyrithione zinc 1%, I’m cheap remember). We had quite a few bottle we acquired couponing. The last one ran out a little bit ago and I decided to move onto something a little greener. As with everything, we use up all that we have first before switching to something new and green.

At Whole Foods I found a bottle of JĀSÖN Dandruff Relief shampoo. Looking at the ingredient list I don’t think there is a terrible amount of natural things in there but it is a step in the right direction. Also it works wonderfully! I was quite surprised by how well it works. I highly recommend it if you so happen to suffer from dandruff.