From Green Right Now Reports

eBay, that giant online garage sale, announced today that it will offer a new green shopping hub.

Mandala Record Clock made from an old vinyl album, and sold on eBay

The hub will help shoppers identify products that are green by virtue of being vintage or used; made of sustainable materials or designed to save energy.

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By Bill Sullivan
Green Right Now

Lately, it seems, just about everyone is taking an interest in helping you manage your home energy consumption.

Hohm is Microsoft's attempt to get into home energy management. (Image: microsoft.com)

Microsoft weighed in with its Hohm offering last summer. Google touts its PowerMeter service. Apple is patenting a system to optimize the powering of your network of iPods, laptops, and electronic gadgets. Intel has added an energy component to its Home Dashboard Concept.

Small wonder. According to a December, 2009, report from Pike Research, the market for home energy management systems and energy information displays (EIDs) will include 28.1 million users worldwide by 2015.

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By Tom Kessler
Green Right Now

Anyone who has gone to the trouble of installing dimmer switches because they can help cut your energy costs was probably chagrined to learn that they don’t work with the early generations of CFL bulbs. Even the newer CFLs that are said to be dimmable often don’t play nicely with slider controls — they hum, they buzz or they just don’t work at all.

So here’s a bit of good news: Leviton Manufacturing is introducing the first slide dimmer specifically designed for use with a wide variety of dimmable CFL bulbs. The company says its Leviton Decora CFL Slide Dimmer optimizes the performance of dimmable CFL bulbs and works with the widest range of dimmable CFL bulbs available.

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By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now

Everyone knows you can’t shop your way to green. A true greenie is always looking for ways to reduce and reuse. That line of thinking generally doesn’t propel you to the mall, at least not often.

BUT…you knew there was a but… eco-conscious consumers still have needs. Their motivations are just different. They look to buy lower impact, organic products from like-minded companies and retailers. They want fairly produced goods to create a less-toxic home environment, with healthful food, that supports sustainable practices.

Over the past two years, we’ve noticed that the market is bringing us more and more small, green stores that aim to be a nexus for this movement. Take it back. Some are large, like the home supply Green Depot in New York City. They sell lotsa stuff that can really help you dig in to cut your energy bills and remodel greenly.

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From Green Right Now Reports

An LG monitor will be the first to carry the new UL Environment Sustainable Product Certification mark, a green leaf encircling the familiar “UL” initials.

UL Environment, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Underwriters Laboratories, announced today that LG Electronics is the first company to earn UL Environment’s Sustainable Product Certification for high tech equipment. LG’s new 23-inch class E2350VLED LCD computer monitor, which will be introduced later this week at the 2010 International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, is the first product to complete UL Environment’s independent, third-party certification for meeting the IEEE 1680 environmental performance benchmark for consumer electronics.

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By Ashley Phillips
Green Right Now

More and more electronics seem to make Americans’ Christmas lists. Unfortunately, many electronics waste energy and run up electric bills, even while you are not using them. So here’s a list of environmentally friendly, yet still savvy, electronic gifts.

HYmini can charge using solar, wind and wall outlets

The HYmini is an all-in-one solar, wind, USB and wall charger that can be used to recharge almost any 5-volt gadget. It includes a 6 watt, rechargeable Powerbank that collects energy from a built-in wind generator, a .7 watt mini solar panel, wall outlet, or your computer’s USB. The handheld, lightweight charger even fastens safely so you can charge in motion. Even better, there’s no additional software needed. The HYmini features an LED night-light and charge-in green indicator. This all-in-one charger is affordable, retailing for $49.99.

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By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now

Got a greenie on your shopping list this year, someone who’s yearning for a composter or a bat house? Here are a few gift ideas for the newly minted or entrenched ecoist.

A Chlorine Filter for the Shower.

Rainfall Showerhead filters out the chlorine and other chemicals

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By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now

Let’s shop green without being obvious about it, OK? You can, you know. There are many ways to tweak the holiday list this year to skew it toward recycled, socially conscious, energy-conserving goods. Of course, we don’t like to advocate lots of consuming. We definitely don’t buy that theory that it’s our patriotic duty to purchase our way out of the recession.

On the other hand, we are going to exchange gifts this holiday season. With that in mind, here are a few humble suggestions for keeping it green (and affordable), subtly.

A TOASTER OVEN

Black and Decker CTO6301 Convection Toaster Oven

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By Bill Sullivan
Green Right Now

In Omaha, Neb., Travis Freeman is a bit of a local Christmas legend. Not only does he own and operate Brite Ideas Decorating – which specializes in both commercial and residential seasonal lighting – but he also is known for his efforts in putting together the Salvation Army’s Tree of Lights, a big part of the local holiday landscape.

Omaha's Tree of Lights uses LEDs (Photo: Brite Ideas Decorating)

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By Barbara Kessler
Green Right Now
You’ve gotten rid of your plastic water bottle. You turn down polystyrene to-go containers.  You ask for local fruit and you only drink Fair Trade coffee.
What’s left to help lower your dining-out carbon profile?
Reusable titanium chopsticks.
Alan Folts’ colorful and gracefully turned titanium “TiStix” chopsticks are made from surplus titanium; they’re [...]

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The EPA announced today it has revised the qualifications for televisions to achieve the Energy Star label, requiring TVs to be 40 percent more energy efficient than conventional models.

The new requirements raise the bar on how energy efficient a TV must be to earn the Energy Star label. They require TVs to use less energy when turned on, ensure a satisfactory level of brightness and curb power associated with downloading program guide data. The EPA says this will translate to greater savings for consumers and the environment. If all televisions sold in the United States met the new Energy Star requirements, Americans would save $2.5 billion annually in energy costs while reducing annual greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to the emissions of about 3 million cars, the agency says.

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By Tom Kessler
Green Right Now

When it comes to clogged drains, it’s been a struggle to find an effective alternative to the many harsh chemicals that most people rely on to break up trapped debris. But a Houston company has developed a product that is brilliant in its simplicity and has the added benefit of being as green as you can get where brownish goop is involved.

The PermaFLOW Self Cleaning Drain by PF WaterWorks has already won the Best of What’s New Award from Popular Science. It replaces an existing P-trap — that curved section of pipe just below your sink — with an improved version that has been engineered to eliminate the need for secondary maintenance products and procedures such as plunging, caustic drain cleaners and messy drain disassembly.

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