By Bill Sullivan
Green Right Now
Looking to upgrade from your old, often unreliable incandescent Christmas lights to those cool, environmentally-friendly LED (light emitting diode) numbers you’ve heard so much about? The Home Depot is offering an incentive to do just that.
Between Nov. 5 and Nov. 15, you can redeem old or non-working Christmas lights and [...]

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Green Right Now Reports

October, like many months, is stocked with special campaigns. As almost everyone knows, it is Breast Awareness and Diabetes Awareness Month (interesting duality there as we load up kids with Halloween sweets).

Lesser known commemorations: “Eat Country Ham Month” and “Vegetarian Month” — which weren’t well coordinated, eh?

Who knew that October also hosts National Weatherization Day, which is October 30. So as we prepare our haunted mansions, we might also consider those scary power bills to come after Hallows Eve.

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By Bill Sullivan
Green Right Now

The next time you take a stack of old newspapers to the recycling bin, you might be helping make your home a more comfortable — and efficient — place.

Cellulose Insulation. (Photo: National Association of Certified Home Inspectors)

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By Ashley Phillips
Green Right Now

Most cities have water restrictions, that not only limit the amount you can water your lawn, but even when you can water it. This can lead to one of two things, a brown, dry yard or a beautiful yard that results in community fines.

But there are irrigation systems that can give you the green landscape you desire, while actually saving water.

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By Ashley Phillips
Green Right Now

An opt-out program to stop the receipt of phone books on your doorstop has recently become an option, but perhaps opting-in is a better solution for the environment.

(Photo: banthephonebook.org)

According to Banthephonebook.org, every year five million trees are used in the production of the white pages phone book. Then, it costs $17 million each year to recycle the phone books. And many phone books end up in landfills because people simply throw them away instead of recycling. The website also says that 80 percent of people would support an opt-in program, according to a survey done by Whitepages.com.

Nowadays, the many people use their cell phones or online sites to search for phone numbers. So there is the question of whether physical copies are even necessary.

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By Bill Sullivan
Green Right Now

If you’ve ever thought about going solar to take a bite out of your utility bills, you may want to take another look: A perfect storm of events, policies and programs currently makes solar more affordable than ever.
The problem: He who hesitates may miss the best deals.
“People say, ‘It’s too [...]

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By Melissa Segrest
Green Right Now
They’ve been around for hundreds of years, but when you think of a metal roof, energy efficiency and attractive, colorful design may not be the first thing that comes to mind.
Forget about the tin roof on Grandpa’s farmhouse. In recent decades, the industry has evolved to the point that metal roofs [...]

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By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now

New green homes can awe-inspiring, both for their groundbreaking designs and their show of techno-muscle. Those tubular daylights, state-of-the-art solar panels, sleek recycled flooring, dehumidifying HVAC systems, complex gray water reclamation systems, louvered light “shelves” and heat-reflecting metal roofs can leave the common homeowner gaping — and wishing.

The truth is most of us won’t be building a brand new green castle, at least not anytime soon — and perhaps there’s something to be said for the alternative; let’s call it “greening in place”.

Almost any home can become more energy friendly, and this “in fill” project can occupy a very important spot in the urban landscape: your own lot!

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By Harriet Blake
Green Right Now

One or two of the seven dwarfs would enjoy these houses, but certainly not all of them, and forget about Snow White. In Peter Pan, the lost boys made such a house for Wendy. And when Alice landed in Wonderland, she too experienced the tiny house phenomenon.

So, now in 2009, what’s the appeal of a home that ranges 100 to 800 square feet? Is there a market for them? Are people really downsizing to this level?

The economy may be one factor, but most folks who are attracted to these miniature homes are seeking a simpler, scaled down lifestyle –one that is kinder to the environment. Such a home uses less energy and takes advantage of renewable resources.

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By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now

Feeling guilty about your bottled water? Or worried that it is not as pure as the pastoral scene on the label implies? Your worries are justified. Bottled water is unregulated in the US, and often as not, it is just filtered tap water – with a heavier carbon footprint thanks to the requisite plastic container and the shipping.

Luckily, just as you’re re-evaluating this resource-intensive habit, so is everyone else, from the cities that have passed bottled water taxes to the bottled water companies themselves to entrepreneurs trying to figure a better way.

Culligan, the big kahuna of bottled water service companies now makes a cooler that hooks up to your tap – an apparent concession that the days of carting around those big blue bottles may be numbered.

But one of the most unique solutions to filling your cup without filling the landfill may be generating your own purified water. You can do that by tapping into the humidity in the air with an Atmospheric Water Generator, which pulls water from “thin air” (as long as that air registers at least 35 percent humidity).

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By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now

When we got the Ecoloblue, it was a big package. It came in a crate, like furniture, our first hint that this appliance would worm its way into our daily routine.

Soon, our kids were demanding their filtered water like toddlers after cookies. They homed to it after exercise and filled their bottles on comings and goings. Returning from a vacation, they insisted the Ecoloblue (generically known as an Atmospheric Water Generator) be immediately re-engaged. They wanted that cool and clean-tasting H2O.

Guests were mesmerized, too. They remarked that this water condensed from air was greatly refreshing. Yup, we nodded, smugly: It were good. And there was enough for all of us to drink, with some leftover every day for the pets and for cooking.

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By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now

It sounds like an oxymoron – a car “wash” that uses no water.

But some of the best green ideas turn traditional practices upside down. Bayes High Performance Waterless Wash/Detailer reinvents the car wash by subtracting the water. It’s not a “wash” in the conventional sense and the only water used is that contained with the biodegradable cleaner itself.

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