Lifestyle

::Money:: Get your bank statement electronically Pay bills by credit card Make a cash gift to an environmental group Donate clothing and household goods Direct-deposit your pay Automatically put pay in savings account Have your bills e-delivered Pay your bills electronically Donate your old vehicle to an environmental cause Get your investment account statements electronically Budget electronically to control your spending Pay your taxes electronically Invest in 'green' funds share stuff with your neighbors, friends to avoid duplicate buying ::Technology:: Use recyclable cameras Cut back use of bottled water Unplug cell phone chargers Do away with cordless Donate old cellular phones Send e-cards unplug devices when not in use Use solar-powered chargers Go mobile for computing Seek 'take-back' computers Buy inkjet printers --refill the ink cartriges Recycle electronics Trade in electronics ::Driving:: Never drive if you can walk/bike (or take public transportation) "Would buying a hybrid car, or a smaller car, make more sense?" "Is This Trip Really Necessary?" ::Fashion:: Beran's creations, marketed under the label William Good— an anagram of the company's business partner, thrift store giant Goodwill Industries — are only sold online and in stores near San Francisco, also to reduce their carbon footprint. Last summer, New York's Rag & Bone hired supermodel Shalom Harlow as the face for its line of filmy "carbon free" T-shirts, which were manufactured domestically in a process that required no greenhouse gas emissions Last summer, New York's Rag & Bone hired supermodel Shalom Harlow as the face for its line of filmy "carbon free" T-shirts, which were manufactured domestically in a process that required no greenhouse gas emissions http://www.shopwilliamgood.com/ Farmers in the United States grow a small portion of the organic cotton used by the apparel industry, which still sources most of its fibers overseas in countries like Turkey where labor and production costs are cheaper. The market is clearly booming, however: The nonprofit Organic Exchange predicts that sales of organic cotton fiber will reach $226 million by 2009, up from about $19 million in 2004. The Sustainable Cotton Project, a non-profit based in Davis, has helped almost two dozen cotton farmers penetrate the fashion industry by promoting California-grown BASIC cotton, a crop that's not quite organic but is farmed using techniques that reduce pesticide usage by as much as 73%. Santa Barbara-based Simple Shoes is promoting that concept as well with its ecoSNEAKS, a line of shoes and boots featuring treads made from recycled car tires. http://www.simpleshoes.com/ ::Food:: Buy organic Buy foods produced locally Add vegan meals to your diet Plan meat purchases carefully Research fish choices before you buy Investigate community-supported agriculture Beware faux 'green' claims Support 'green' businesses Skip canned fruits and veggies. ::Holidays:: Consider re-gifting, or giving away things you no longer need Give home-made gifts Wrap gifts in fabric, old maps, nothing… Wish relatives well over the phone, internet vice in person Use fuel-efficient, reusable lightbulbs for decorations Recycle wrapping paper Give Your Time, Talent, Effort vice Gifts Wrap Gifts w/ Olde Maps, Newsprint, Posters &c Give Used Gifts Limit Number Of Gifts ::Leisure:: Drink tap water at restaurants Download music Rent, don't buy, movies Subscribe to online newspapers Turn off your entertainment center Seek 'green' lodging Use rechargeable batteries Buy soft drinks in a cup Use digital cameras Share your swim space Buy tickets online Reuse hotel linens and towels Pack lightly Research your trip online Rent hybrid cars Refill water bottles Give small gifts Go for glass, not aluminum Use efficient lightbulbs. Run your dishwasher only when it is full. Don’t open the oven while you’re cooking. Buy only in-season groceries. ::Misc Ideas:: Vacation Near Home Don’t Waste Blank Paper [use both sides] Compost Buy Local Avoid heavily packaged products [buy in bulk] Hang dry clothes instead of using the dryer Repair clothes CFL's instead of traditional lightbulbs Wash clothes on a low temperature cycle Rain bin to collect water Recycle your clothing --Give to friends, charity, pet use, rag use Remove yourself from junk mail lists here Buy unbleached paper. Carry your own cloth bags to the store to avoid using store bags run dishwasher, laundry machines only when full get rid of stuff you don't use, don't need Go paperless for bills Get off mailing lists Use the library for books, movies, cds, internet access ::Alcohol:: organic tequila, gin, vodka, brandy, beer and wine 4 Copas Tequila Purus, an organic vodka [Anheuser-Busch] Stonemill Pale Ale and Wild Hops Lager [Anheuser-Busch] Square One Vodka, based in Novato, Calif. ::Ideas:: Compacting Re-Gifting Buy Used Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Resist Buy In Bulk Use your creativity for gifts rather than your credit card. Do grocery shopping with reusable bags. Don't buy what you don't need Select products with less packaging Remove yourself from junk mail lists Shop at thrift stores & garage sales vice department stores. How To FreeCycle 1. Know how to begin. You can find a local group of freecyclers through the Freecycle Network. Once you join, you’ll start getting e-mail messages listing offered, wanted and accepted items. You’ll see all sorts of items included in those postings, from furniture to lawn equipment to exercise gear to clothing to … you name it! 2. Brace yourself for a deluge of e-mail. You can create a separate folder where all Freecycle mail gets directed, or you can opt to receive daily digests once or twice a day. You also can simply check your group’s online message board. The daily digests and the message board likely won’t be as timely as the immediate e-mail messages, though, so you might miss out on items you want. 3. Check out other recycling groups as well. You also can connect with like-minded recyclers through Sharing Is Giving, FreeCycleAmerica.org, the ReUseIt Network and FreeSharing.org. On the Craigslist site for your part of the country, you’ll find a ―free‖ section under ―for sale.‖ 4. Mind your manners and attitude. Always have an eye toward giving, not just receiving. For your first posting, offer to give something away rather than announce what you want. Also, don’t try to trade or swap through freecycling sites; the idea is to give stuff away with no strings attached. 5. Show respect in your postings. Respect people’s time by keeping your postings brief. Also remember that this isn’t a place to make personal attacks, spam people, solicit for money or share political views or religious beliefs. 6. Keep it legal, honest and clean. Big posting no-no’s include: pornography, alcohol, tobacco, drugs of any kind (including medicines, vitamins and creams), firearms and other weapons. Postings should be appropriate for all ages. Be up front about the age, condition and size of items you’re giving away, and post photos if possible. 7. Stay safe. Avoid posting personal information, such as your phone number or address, for strangers to see. With pickups and drop-offs, avoid going to a stranger’s home by yourself or having a stranger come over if you’re home alone. Instead, make arrangements to meet in a public place or be sure to have someone with you. You also could leave items outside for a recipient and just keep your door locked. 8. Don’t leave people hanging. Be punctual and thoughtful when it comes to scheduling pickups and drop-offs. If you’re late or you fail to show up altogether, you’ll be wasting someone else’s time. Also, don’t dally about picking up an item you’ve accepted. Take it off the giver’s hands within three days max. 8. Don’t leave people hanging. Be punctual and thoughtful when it comes to scheduling pickups and drop-offs. If you’re late or you fail to show up altogether, you’ll be wasting someone else’s time. Also, don’t dally about picking up an item you’ve accepted. Take it off the giver’s hands within three days max. 9. Examine items carefully. Remember, a big benefit of freecycling is the ability to unclutter your home. Before you make someone else’s trash your treasure, make sure it functions the way it should. If it doesn’t, how realistic are your chances of fixing it? Don’t take it home if it will simply create more clutter. 10. Decide how to handle multiple responses. If you post a popular item, you may be inundated with dozens of e-mail messages within minutes. What to do? One option is to give priority to a struggling local charity if such a charity responds. Another is to randomly draw a name from a hat. No matter what, don’t just say, ―It’s on the porch for whoever gets here first‖ – that is, unless you want to cause some bad feelings. Cycle nd a local group of e Network. Once you ssages listing offered, ’ll see all sorts of items urniture to lawn othing to … you name it! e-mail. You can create ycle mail gets directed, gests once or twice a your group’s online s and the message the immediate e-mail miss out on items you ups as well. You also yclers through Sharing , the ReUseIt Network igslist site for your part section under ―for e. Always have an eye For your first posting, her than announce what or swap through ve stuff away with no . Respect people’s time lso remember that this acks, spam people, l views or religious n. Big posting no-no’s bacco, drugs of any ns and creams), stings should be ont about the age, e giving away, and post nal information, such s, for strangers to see. d going to a stranger’s anger come over if e arrangements to to have someone with outside for a recipient e punctual and duling pickups and to show up altogether, time. Also, don’t dally accepted. Take it off the max. e punctual and duling pickups and to show up altogether, time. Also, don’t dally accepted. Take it off the max. ember, a big benefit of er your home. Before your treasure, make d. If it doesn’t, how g it? Don’t take it home r. e responses. If you inundated with dozens es. What to do? One gling local charity if is to randomly draw a t, don’t just say, ―It’s on first‖ – that is, unless ings. ::Ideas:: Public Transportation, Carpool, Bike, Walk… Telecommute Keep Vehicle Tuned Up [tires, engine &c] Hybrid, Electric Vehicles Drive Slower Make less trips for errends, lump errends together "Do any of my neighbors need anything from where I'm going" "Could I walk, bike or take public transportation to get there?" The couple traded in their gasoline-fueled car for a used Volkswagen diesel wagon, bought a conversion kit (these start at about $1,000), installed it (take a weekend to do it at home or pay a master installer another $1,000) and they've been happy grease car drivers for the past few months. Homework required Here's how greasers do it: First, they line up a waste oil source in advance. You don't want to convert your car and then scramble for fuel. Contact local restaurants to reach an agreement. Some restaurants pay to have the oil carted away so they might be pleased for you to take it for no charge. Spector and Uviller live in Manhattan, so they get their waste oil from a French restaurant literally across the street. Next comes the vehicle. The purchase of a new diesel car has been tricky in some parts of the country, including the Northeast, because of air emissions rules, but new low-sulfur diesel is changing that, or you can buy a used diesel car. Choose a conversion kit by comparing the offerings from sites such as greasecar.com, goldenfuelsystems.com and votechusa.com, or reading the vegcar.net or vegtruck.com blogs. Finally, greasers set up a filtering system or station. Some food scraps tend to remain in waste oil, so you have to filter it out. You can buy filtration systems for $700 or make your own from parts for less. Vegetable oil is not an EPA-certified fuel, according to the National VegOil Board, so grease car drivers also have to research local oil collecting, oil hauling, storage and other related laws. The other green It takes months or a year or more to make back the grease-car conversion investment, depending on miles driven and whether converters spring for the master installer and prebuilt filtration kit. Spector and Uviller put about 12,000 to 15,000 miles on their car annually. The couple fills up with diesel just once every two months now (grease cars generally burn diesel for some minutes at the start and finish of each outing). Mileage is the same as diesel fuel for the VW — about 40 mpg, Spector said. Generally, diesel engines are 40 percent more fuel-efficient than gasoline engines, according to Greasecar. Emissions for grease cars are considered "carbon neutral" because the carbon dioxide absorbed by the plants grown to generate the vegetable oil exceeds the carbon dioxide released when the oil is burned. Grease cars still emit air pollutants in the form of nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide and particulates, but a quarter to a third less of the latter two than cars that burn only diesel, according to figures on Greasecar, and no carcinogenic sulfur as you'd get with a diesel car. And yes, grease cars do smell like french fries, but many would agree that beats the smell of diesel exhaust. ::Communications:: Read online media. Consider digital storage. Use electronic communications. Teleconference, don't travel. ::The Commute:: Telecommute Commute short Carpool Public Transportation ::Energy:: Turn off the lights. Power down your computer. Unplug electronic appliances. ::Consumption:: Don't use water bottle Download your software. Think before you print. Use Blu-ray discs. Save packing materials. Use recycled paper. Use refillable pens. ::Waste:: Donate old cellular phones. Pack a waste-free lunch. ::The Job:: Seek an eco-friendly company. ::Job Ideas:: Auto Retrofitting Energy Systems Management Environmental Engineering Sustainable Architecture Wind/Turbine Technology ::Job Ideas:: Auto Retrofitting Energy Systems Management Environmental Engineering Sustainable Architecture Wind/Turbine Technology Raising Children Green 1. Be artful. Stock your child's coloring table with used printer paper and empty cereal boxes. He can draw on the unprinted sides of the paper, and the insides of cereal boxes are great for finger painting. Bonus points for turning his artwork into wrapping paper. Seeing where the food comes from helps kids grasp why it's important to care for 2. Collect runoff. Have your preschooler place watering cans or buckets under the downspouts of your house. After a storm, she'll be thrilled to see that her cans are full, and she can use the rainwater to give house plants a 3. Jump on it. "I lay milk jugs, aluminum cans, and boxes on the floor and let my son stomp on them to make them flat for recycling," says Dalia Stein of Columbus, Ohio. "He fulfills his little-boy need to destroy things while doing something nice for the environment." 4. Put your kids in charge of reminding you to switch off the lights when you leave a room. They can even pretend to issue you a ticket for infractions -- and they'll be less likely to waste energy themselves. 5. Head outside. Gather apples or pumpkins at a pick-it-yourself farm. Seeing where the food comes from helps kids grasp why it's important to care for the earth. Plus, you'll be buying local produce -- saving the energy and packaging used to ship food long-distance. Go to pickyourown.org to find a farm near you. 6. Play with trash. Turn a neighborhood cleanup into a scavenger hunt. Create lists with pictures of plastic bottles, soda cans, and paper trash. Have your kids go hunting, and then recycle what they've found. (Just be sure everyone wears gloves!) Whoever finds the most items wins a prize -- say, any money you get back when you recycle the bottles and cans. 7. Build a toy lab instead of a bear. Throw your junk -- empty juice boxes, broken Barbie legs -- into a box along with glue, tape, and string so kids can create new toys and avant-garde art. Need ideas? Check out kinderart.com/recycle. The napkin rings made from toilet paper rolls are perfect for preschoolers. 8. Power down. Once in a while, have a No Electricity Day. Shelve the PlayStation, shut off the TV, and use only toys and games that don't have a plug or require batteries. You'll save energy, and your child may find he prefers Crazy Eights to another viewing of "Cars." 9. Organize a kids' clothing swap. Haul out outgrown jeans and sweaters and get together with a few mom friends to trade. You take home new-to-you clothes that fit your child now, which is healthier for the planet -- and your wallet -- than buying brand-new duds. Have a toy swap, too. 10. Spin an eco-tune. "We love the song on the Curious George soundtrack called 'The 3 R's,' for reduce, reuse, and recycle," says Kristi Walsh, a mom of three in Chelmsford, Massachusetts. "My kids sing it when we take the recyclables out or when they're washing their hands together to save water. It reminds them that even the simplest job can help the environment." Earth Day With Children 1. Be car-free. Walk or bike to school — not only is it good for the body, it's good for the environment too! 2. Make a bird feeder or house. Use a milk carton, a large water or soda bottle, or a pine cone. 3. Create recycling bins. Cut out pictures of plastic bottles, paper, and aluminum cans and glue them to the bins. Practice sorting together! 4. Make positive promises. Fill a journal with resolutions for how your family can help the earth. Decorate it with photographs, poems, and pictures. 5. Grow something. Plant a seed, sprout, flower, or tree in a pot, garden, or backyard. 6. Spread the love. Make and decorate Earth Day cards using recycled materials. Include an Earth Day celebration tip, and send them to friends and family. 7. Read all about it. Try these books that explain and celebrate the Earth and its inhabitants: Why Should I Recycle? by Jen Green and Mike Gordon: When Mr. Jones takes his students on a class trip to a recycling plant, they learn the value of recycling and the importance of protecting nature. Life in the Rainforest by Lucy Baker: This book introduces readers to the importance of rain forests, types of plant and animal life that live there, and how rain forests are threatened by deforestation. Long Live Earth by Meighan Morrison: Rhyming verses describe what people have done to pollute our planet and what we can do One Bear's Battle Against Global Winston of Churchill:to make things better for the future. Warming by Jean Davies Okimoto: This timely, funny story draws attention to the polar bears’ plight and helps children understand that in the face of global warming, everyone must help out. The Earth Is Painted Green: A Garden of Poems About Our Planet by Barbara Bernner Usborne and S.D.Schindler: Divided into nine sections, these poems focus on the changing seasons and the hope to keep the Earth "forever green." In General Do One Room At A Time. --Take everything out of Each room and then sort it in a separate location --two categories - items to keep and items to give away --Everyone gets a set number of bins - once they are full, move on --If you haven't used something in 12 months, it needs to go Ask yourself if you really need something. If you hesitate, you don't. Follow the "In-Out" Rule. --Every time you buy a new piece of clothing, you should get rid of an old piece. Use a hanger system to determine which clothes you wear most. --Hang your clothing facing one direction. When you use it, return it facing the opposite direction. --After 6 months, everything facing the original direction can go - you never wore it, so do you really need it? With Kids Make cleanup fun. --Each kid is given a type of thing - clothes, toys or books - to be responsible for. At the count of three, the kids scramble to fill bins with their items --put money under couch cushions, rugs, mattresses Teach your kids how to sort. --one trash bag and two boxes. fill the bag with garbage, and put anything you want to sell at a yard sale in one box and charitable donations in the other. Low Flow Showerheads Run your dishwasher when there’s a full load Use a broom instead of the garden hose to clean your driveway Put an aerator on all household faucets and cut your annual water consumption by 50% Fix Leaks [turn off water at source; read meter; wait 1h, no water usage; read meter; compare values: same = no leaks] Catch-all on Drains Fix Slow Drains [0.5 cup baking powder; 0.5 cup vinegar; 30 min; 2 qts boiling water] Turn off water during teeth-brushing ::Bathroom:: Toilet < 3.5gal Flush Hemp Shower curtain MoonBase//Submarine Showers ::Appliances:: Locate refrigerator away from sunlight, overn, dishwasher; basement, garege is better. Front-loader washing machines [60% less energy than top-load] Clean your furnace's air filter monthly during heavy usage Turn Off Oven ~15min Before End Of Cooking Wrap your water heater in an insulation blanket, Thermostat < 120F Consider a new furnace. Clean your dryer's lint finter Maintain your furnace and air conditioner. ::General Improvements:: •Start at the top• •Seal the windows• •Don't overlook the basement• That means sealing cracks around windows and making sure that doors to garages and storage areas are tight. •Hold off on the fireplace• •Maximize radiators• Install adjustable valves for radiators. They make it easier to control the heat being produced. ::Energy:: Energy Efficient Lighting [cfl bulbs, sunlight] Heating//Cooling [frig outside, geo, mnts, green roof] Clean, Replace Air Filters [A/C, furnace] Use clotheslines to dry clothes Programmable Thermostat [68F <-> 78F] Energy Efficient Appliances [Energy Star] Insulate, Weatherize Your Home Off Peak Energy Usages [9p - 7a] Winter: curtain all non-North windows; block disused rooms. Use cold water for laundry Reduce “Standby” Power Use [unplug devices; turn off power strips] Get an energy audit. Enroll in your utility company's energy saving program ::Water:: Low Flow Showerheads Run your dishwasher when there’s a full load Use a broom instead of the garden hose to clean your driveway Put an aerator on all household faucets and cut your annual water consumption by 50% Fix Leaks [turn off water at source; read meter; wait 1h, no water usage; read meter; compare values: same = no leaks] Catch-all on Drains Fix Slow Drains [0.5 cup baking powder; 0.5 cup vinegar; 30 min; 2 qts boiling water] Turn off water during teeth-brushing ::Bathroom:: Toilet < 3.5gal Flush Hemp Shower curtain MoonBase//Submarine Showers ::Appliances:: Locate refrigerator away from sunlight, overn, dishwasher; basement, garege is better. Front-loader washing machines [60% less energy than top-load] Clean your furnace's air filter monthly during heavy usage Turn Off Oven ~15min Before End Of Cooking Wrap your water heater in an insulation blanket, Thermostat < 120F Consider a new furnace. Clean your dryer's lint finter Maintain your furnace and air conditioner. ::General Improvements:: •Start at the top• Thinking of the attic as a hat: Be sure it's thick enough and well-positioned to prevent heat from escaping. Because heat rises, keeping the attic airtight will make the whole house warmer. Four-fifths of homes built before 1980 don't have enough insulation, the Energy Department estimates. In the Magnus home, there was too little insulation in some spots, and in others, there was insulation where it wasn't Insulation is measured in something called an R value. The government recommends different R values based on location. Before climbing into the attic to check out your insulation, go to www1.eere.energy.gov/consumer/tips/insulation.html for help in choosing an R value. •Seal the windows• Replacing windows can be costly, and it could be years before you'd see a payoff. But you might see an improvement in your windows' efficiency if you do a little sealing. Caulk around the windows, both inside and outside the frame. He recommended acrylic latex caulk, which can be painted. Door areas can often use some caulking, too. Make sure your windows are locked. Not only is it safer, but locked windows form a tighter seal to prevent leaks. •Don't overlook the basement• Warm air escapes homes through the top of the house, while cold air enters at the lowest level, so it's important keep basement leaks at a minimum. That means sealing cracks around windows and making sure that doors to garages and storage areas are tight. While in the lowest level of the home, it's also a good idea to add insulation around hot water pipes, so the heat doesn't escape as the water travels. •Hold off on the fireplace• On a cold winter's day, it may seem comforting to put a few logs on the fire. But using the fireplace may actually increase your heating bill. Fireplaces bring in air from the surrounding room and heat that air, which then goes up the chimney. That means that you've paid to heat air that is going out the roof. For homeowners who like using their fireplaces, light them when it's merely cool outside, in the mid- to high-40s, when heating needs aren't as intense. When it's really cold, the draft in chimneys is especially strong. Homeowners should also keep fireplace doors and dampers closed when not in use. •Maximize radiators• If you have radiators in your home, put something reflective, such as foam board with a reflective backing, between the radiator and the wall, to push the warm air into the center of the room. Otherwise, you're partly just heating the walls. Install adjustable valves for radiators. They make it easier to control the heat being produced. ::Quick Fixes:: Eco-Friendly Laundry --Ecover, Sun & Earth, Seventh Generation and OxyPrime, OxyBoost, Ecover Start Composting :Short Term:: Make your own (house) cleaners Green Seal is a nonprofit organization that certifies products based on their environmental impact, biodegradability and other factors. ReUse Your Water Rain barrels cost $100 to $300 and collect from 50 to 100 gallons of water each. Recycling gray water can be as simple as reusing the water last night's pasta dinner boiled in to water your plants. More sophisticated systems, such as the Aqus from WaterSaver Technologies, disinfects, stores then and reuses the water from your bathroom sink to flush the toilet. It costs about $200 and reduces wastewater by up to 5,000 gallons per year in a typical household. Use Commercial Car Washes If every American who currently washes a vehicle at home chose instead to go to a professional care wash -- just once -- up to 8.7 billion gallons of water could be saved, and some 12 billion gallons of soapy polluted water could be diverted from the country's waters. ::Long Term:: Use natural fertilizers Use low or no-VOC paints Know when to replace your appliances Plant trees Freecycle Insulate Cover your pool Insulate the attic. ::Power Sources:: Solar Panels & Windows; Geo-Thermal; Water-Wheels; Trash-, Wood-Burning Windows Siding Roofing No "elastomeric" coating. Flooring Another Framing Materials with “FCS” marker [“Forrest Stewardship Council”] Foundation Green builders substitute fly ash, an industrial byproduct, for some cement. Pre-insulated, precast concrete panels Are weather-tight sandwiches of concrete and insulation. You get great insulation for the money and you eliminate the concrete waste typically generated at a building site. These precast panels work for both slab-on-grade foundations, popular in the West, and basement foundations, common in the Midwest and East. Insulated concrete forms Are foam insulation pieces that are assembled at your building site. They're stacked like building blocks with a hollow core into which concrete is poured. The surrounding foam insulation is left in place and covered with siding or wall treatments on the home's exterior and interior. "You end up with a wellinsulated foundation," says Wilson, "and some people are building entire houses with these." Insulation Get the highest "R factor" (resistance to heat flow) possible, even at cost of using recycled materials. Windows Five different attributes: their level of insulation ("U-factor", 0.1 -> 1.2), air leakage, condensation resistance, UV blockage and solar heat gain (block heat from the sun). U-Factor < 0.3 = good; if R30+ insulation in house, U<0.2 = good. These so-called "super windows" use glazing, coatings, gas fill and air spaces to achieve a glass so tight it can outperform a well-insulated wall. You can also match a window's glazing to its exposure to the sun. For example, east- and west-facing windows can cause overheating, so get windows with low solar heat -- rated about 0.6. South-facing windows, on the other hand, can help with passive solar heating, so keep the number above 0.75. Siding The major green advance in siding, however, is not in materials but is a still-uncommon installation technique called rain screen detailing. It can significantly extend the life of both the siding and the paint or stain applied to it by adding air space behind the siding, which keeps it from retaining moisture. The technique can boost the cost of an inexpensive siding job by 10% to 20% and adds a smaller percentage to the cost of a high-end siding job. Roofing Metal roofing -- particularly galvanized steel or alloy -- is emerging as a terrific green choice. Metal's 50-year life span compares with 15 to 20 years for asphalt shingles. One exception is copper, which is durable but requires a lot of energy to manufacture and which can leach trace amounts of copper into lakes and streams, harming wildlife. If you live in a hot region, look into getting a “cool roof” (heat reflection). These feature reflective tile or coated metal, available in light or dark colors. No "elastomeric" coating. Flooring FCS or salvaged. Milling lumber uses less energy than creating highly processed materials like tile, brick and cemen For kitchens and baths, tile and stone because they're highly durable and emit no chemicals. Or real linoleum. Another $ shipping containers for building houses, buildings The roof tiles are rubber — recycled tires that should last forever. The ReStore - Habitat for Humanity has stores in a lot of major cities that get donations of used building materials and then resell them to help raise money for their houses. Check for a ReStore near you at http://www.habitat. org/cd/env/ restore.aspx . Demolition Contractors - If you see a big dumpster outside a job site, try talking to the foreman, to see what they're taking out and getting rid of. OSHA may not allow you to jump in the dumpster, but remember that their dumpster fees are based on weight, so the company would be saving money if they set aside lumber, bricks, toilets, etc. in a separate area for you. This works best if you bring donuts when you come to talk.... Salvage Companies - These companies save old barns and whatnot then resell the materials. Do a search for "salvage building materials" plus your city, state name and see what comes up. Check the Building Materials Reuse Association for qualified vendors in your area. The BMRA is a non-profit educational organization whose mission is to facilitate building deconstruction and the reuse/recycling of recovered building materials. http://www.building reuse.org/ directory They used studs from suppliers that employ sustainable timberharvesting practices; applied spray-foam insulation on the underside of the roof to keep the attic cool in summer; installed energy-efficient compact fluorescent lighting; and sprang for argon-gas double-paned windows (at $400 each) for better insulation. For subflooring they opted for oriented strand board, made of wood scraps, instead of plywood. They sold their old doors, metal pipes and radiators to salvage yards and installed find out how much they couldn't afford. But they were dismayed to water-efficient toilets and faucets. Seth had planned to install energy-efficient polyethylene tubing called PEX, ke tile, brick and cement. but the plumbers who could work with the material Or real linoleum. be too expensive. The couple had to settle for would nonbiodegradable plastic pipes instead. They also had to give up radiant floor heating - tubes of hot water under the floor that can lower energy costs - because the insulation required would be too expensive. Also scratched were a roof that would support a garden and keep the house cooler in summer, a $12,000 solar hot-water system and a solar electric system that would set them back at least $20,000 (costs only minimally off set by federal tax credits of $2,000 for each solarpowered system). Also scratched were a roof that would support a garden and keep the house cooler in summer, a $12,000 solar hot-water system and a solar electric system that would set them back at least $20,000 (costs only minimally off set by federal tax credits of $2,000 for each solarpowered system). With remodeling costs out of control, cherished green projects on hold plus an awful lot of mortgage debt, Seth and HyoJung sat down with a financial planner, an alternative-energy expert and a green remodeling consultant for advice about how they could become more green and more financially stable. a venting skylight ($2,000) over the second-floor landing, frequently a dark spot in older homes. That will create airflow to cool the house and will allow natural light into the second floor and staircase, reducing the need for electric lights during daytime. Another $6,000 should go for a new boiler with an Energy Star rating. They would still have enough left over for a solar hot-water system. "That can produce 70% to 80% of their house's hot water, saving substantially on energy bills," says Wittemann. Workshop 1. Unplug your power tools. Figure out which cordless tools (like drill/drivers) get the most use, then unplug the chargers on all the rest. Most cordless tools have nickel cadmium (NiCad) batteries, which will hold some charge for up to a year. They lose 15 to 20 percent of their juice each month, but only take a couple of hours to power up again. Newer tools with lithium ion batteries lose just 2 to 5 percent of their charge each month, so they'll be ready to go even if you haven't charged them in ages. 2. Spread sawdust on your floor. Take the superfine shavings captured by your dust collection system, wet them down, then push them around with a stiff broom to sweep your concrete garage or workshop floor. The mix is as good as a power-guzzling shop vac at picking up dust but doesn't swirl it into the air. 3. Up the wattage on lights. Where you still use incandescent bulbs (with dimmers or three-ways) on multiple fixtures in a room, try consolidating. One 100-watt incandescent emits more light than two 60-watt bulbs combined but requires 17 percent less power. The 100-watter also uses the same energy as four 25-watt bulbs, but pumps out twice as much light. Just be sure your bulbs don't exceed the maximum wattage recommendation for each fixture. This Old House: Energy-saving bulbs 4. Eat your leftover take-out. Then save the plastic containers it came in--which can't be recycled in most municipal waste systems--and use them to organize your nails, screws, and leftover paints. Not only does their tight seal help preserve solvents, but the see-through containers stack neatly and display contents clearly. For added strength, double up the thin ones. 5. Save used paint thinner. After cleaning oil-based finishes from brushes and tools, allow the dirty solvent to sit overnight. The sludge will settle to the bottom of the jar, leaving a layer of clear thinner on top. Carefully decant the clear thinner into a clean jar, and reseal it for future use. Be sure to dispose of the leftover sludge at a hazardous-waste-disposal site--never down a sink drain or into a street gutter. Don't Miss * This Old House: * This Old House: * This Old House: * This Old House: * This Old House: Salvaging the good stuff The scoop on solar power Earth-conscious kitchen and bath Uncle Sam wants to pay you Growing up green 6. Mix it up in the garage. Combine all those cans of leftover white paint that inevitably collect after you decorate the house and use them to paint the garage or workshop. (Make sure only to mix latex with latex and oils with oils.) You'll keep the stuff out of the trash, and by adding the semi-glosses to the flats and eggshells, you'll end up with a sheen that's easy to clean. 7. Turn things on their heads. Store paint cans upside down so the solvents--which separate and rise to the top-get trapped under the bottom of the can. Not only will paint last longer, but solvents won't be able to slowly seep out through the lid this way. 8. Take charge of your charges. Invest in an inexpensive battery tester, then set up a "battery center" where you can store new cells, check used ones for power, and set aside those that have burned out and have to be recycled. A designated collection spot will deter you from throwing bad batteries in the garbage. Once or twice a year, you just take the pile to your town's recycling center. Kitchen 1. Take your fridge's temperature. Stick an appliance thermometer in a glass of water in the center of your refrigerator, or between frozen goods in the freezer, overnight. Your fridge temp should be between 37 and 40 degrees F (no more, to keep bacteria at bay); your freezer between zero and 5 degrees. If either compartment is too cold, adjust the setting, since keeping them just 10 degrees colder than necessary can boost your energy 2. Freeze your assets. Slip a dollar bill between the rubber gasket on your freezer and fridge doors and the frame, then close the door and tug on the buck. Notice any resistance? If not, the seal's not tight enough and cold air is probably leaking out, making your fridge work harder to stay cool. Try this on all four sides of the door. If necessary, call the manufacturer's service department to find out how to replace the gasket. 3. Throw a dinner party. And clear out that second fridge or freezer in the garage or basement. Then banish the appliance to the recycling center. Getting rid of either one can save you more than $200 a year, especially if it's an old, inefficient model. 4. Invite your biggest buddy over. Ask him to help you move your fridge out of direct sunlight or away from the range. The heat from either will force a refrigerator compressor to gobble up more energy than necessary. A fridge uses up to 2.5 percent more power for each degree the surrounding temperature is above 70 degrees. So moving it out of a 90-degree spot can save you as much as $70 a year. If you can't move it, at least block any sunny window with curtains and put as big a buffer as you can between it and the range. 5. Use the dishwasher. Doing a full load in your machine is far more efficient than washing the same number of dishes by hand. This is especially true if you have an Energy Star dishwasher, which requires an average of 4 gallons of water per load, compared with the 24 gallons it takes to do them in the sink. Using one will save you 5,000 gallons of water, $40 in utility costs, and 230 hours of your time each year. Bathroom 1. Turn your toilet tank blue. Or green or red. Pour food coloring into the water in the tank, wait two hours, then check to see if any color has seeped into the bowl. If it has, your tank's flapper is leaking, either from mineral buildup or worn parts. After you flush the dye away so it doesn't stain, head to the hardware store for a replacement flapper assembly (then go to thisoldhouse.com for instructions on how to install it). Toilet leaks waste up to a gallon of water per minute. That's more than 43,000 gallons a month. 2. Run the shower. Place a 1-gallon bucket under the running water, then see how long it takes for it to fill up. If it's less than 20 seconds, replace the showerhead with one that sprays 1.5 gallons per minute. That could save as much as 14,600 gallons of water a year--especially if you limit your showers to 10 minutes. It will also save you $22 on your annual water bill, and $150 per year on water heating. 3. Go from scalding to just hot. Turn your water heater's temperature setting down from the standard 140 degrees F to 120 degrees. Not only will this save you some bucks, it'll also slow down mineral buildup and corrosion, prolonging the life of your tank. Since a new water heater costs about $900 installed, each additional year of use 4. End the water torture. One drip per second from a leaky faucet or pipe can waste up to 5 gallons of water a day-and 1,800 gallons a year. While you won't notice much of an increase on your water bill (around $3 annually), if an overlooked leak soaks through your kitchen floor, you could wind up with a $1,000 repair job--money that could have been saved by simply replacing a 50-cent washer. Entries 1. Wipe your feet. Equip your exterior doors with a series of mats--or one long "walk-off" mat--so everyone enters with clean shoes. As long as there's room for five steps on the mats, you'll drastically reduce the amount of grime tracked in. That means fewer pathogens that cause disease and less chemical cleanup. It will also mean improved indoor air quality, since dirt embedded in a carpet can become airborne when it's tromped on or Basement & Laundry 1. Reach behind your clothes washer. Turn down the hot water tap for the washing machine so less goes into the warm-water cycle. Perspiration and most other dirt dislodge best at body temperature, so you don't need water that's warmer than 100 degrees. Since most washers simply open both the hot and cold taps to make "warm" water, it may take longer to fill the machine. But you'll save about $40 annually on your water-heating bill. 2. Spend more time in the basement. Make sure furnace filters in forced-air systems are clean. Dirty furnace filters restrict airflow and increase energy use. Cleaning them, or swapping them out each month during the winter, can save you up to 5 percent on your heating costs. Also schedule an annual checkup before the heat comes on to see that the furnace is properly calibrated. Living Areas 1. Listen to your mother and put on a sweater. That way you can turn down your thermostat this winter. Adjust it by just one degree for eight hours a day, and you could save 1 percent on your monthly heating bills. Do it for 24 hours and save 3 percent. Try setting the temp at 70 degrees during the day and 62 at night during winter (and 78 or higher come summer). Heating and air-conditioning account for nearly half the energy used in our homes, so every little bit less you use makes a dent. 2. Worship the sun. Or at least use it to your advantage. Open blinds or drapes to let in natural solar heat on cold days, then close them once the sun sets, and you can reduce your heating bills by 10 percent. You can also cut your cooling costs by up to 33 percent in the summer by blocking out sunlight with exterior blinds, shutters, or awnings. To keep rooms bright, paint or paper with light or reflective colors.