February 2009 - The Green Home

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Do two good deeds at once by recycling used magazines where they will be read and enjoyed. Hospitals, clinics, and public and and private social service agencies don't have money in their budgets these days for subscriptions and will welcome general interest and children's publications for their waiting rooms. You might also find a neighbor or a friend who would enjoy regularly receiving magazines of special interest.

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Fly Ash is the Key to Green Cement

We mentioned in passing the other day that concrete, while a sustainable and renewable building material, does have some drawbacks that make is less than totally "green." Concrete is composed mainly of sand and aggregate and the mining of these

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Published Thu, Feb 26 2009 4:03 PM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: concrete, fly ash

Concrete Makes a Versatile but Pricey Kitchen Counter

Countertops are just one of many uses for concrete in a green home. In recent years it has come into its own when used as flooring, fireplace surrounds, furniture, and even whole house construction. We have to say up front that concrete's eco-friendliness

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Published Tue, Feb 24 2009 1:32 PM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: concrete countertops

Earn a Buck for Habitat

Kohler, the plumbing fixtures company, has a promotion going to publicize the importance of conserving water while raising funds for Habitat for Humanity. The promotion involves participants taking a very short quiz (probably 2 minutes tops) about their

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Published Mon, Feb 23 2009 1:05 PM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: habitat for humanity

EcoTop Takes Paper Counters to the Next Level

PaperStone, the green countertop material made of recycled paper, is produced by a company called Klip Tech Composites, Inc., founded by Joel Klippert. Klippert has now started a second company, Klip BioTechnologies that has invented a second generation

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Published Mon, Feb 23 2009 1:02 PM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: paper countertops, ecotop

Paper Countertops - About as Green as it Gets

In 2006 I had the opportunity to spend a morning at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC, dreaming my way through their green home exhibit. It was a remarkable and eye-opening experience. The exhibit was housed, literally, in a green home called

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Published Fri, Feb 20 2009 12:54 PM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: glide house, paperstone, paper countertops

Good Gardener or not, Plant a Little Indoor Green

Even if the Garden Club recently returned your dues along with a sympathy note, you really should take another stab at indoor gardening. Green plants are a wonderful decorating touch but more important, they make a considerable contribution to the air

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Published Thu, Feb 19 2009 3:02 PM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: indoor gardening

Soy-Based Foam Insulation

When we started talking about insulation a couple of weeks ago we did so with a brief introduction to soy building products , promising to go into more detail about soy insulation next. Well, a funny thing happened on the way to that. We found that the

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Published Tue, Feb 17 2009 3:28 PM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: soy based insulation

Resistance-Value is Primary Measure of Insulation Effectiveness

Insulation , as practically everyone knows, has an R-value or Resistance-value. This is a measure of a material's resistance to heat flow. The higher the R-value of a material, the more it will slow the transfer of heat into or out of the house. Thus

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Published Thu, Feb 12 2009 12:52 PM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: insulation

Stopping Heat in its Tracks

In a rare example of the government using words efficiently, the Department of Energy provides an excellent explanation of the role of insulation . Heat, DOE says, has a natural inclination to migrate to anywhere there is a cooler temperature. Therefore

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Published Tue, Feb 10 2009 4:04 PM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: insulation

It's not just for Tofu Anymore - Soybean Based Construction Products

It has been happening under the radar, but soybeans have been moving out of the kitchen and into a number of home and industrial applications . Action by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) October makes it almost official. SOYBEANS WILL SAVE THE

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Published Mon, Feb 09 2009 11:07 AM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: soybean products

Despite Drawbacks, Home Wind Power is Growing

We have pointed out many of the disadvantages of using home-based wind power given the current technology; cost, neighborhood opposition, site problems, length of time to amortize the expense, etc. Still, according to the American Wind Energy Association

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Published Fri, Feb 06 2009 3:23 PM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: wind farms, home wind power, wind energy

Interest in Homegrown Wind Generation Probably Greater than the Return

While Mr. Pickens is planning to carpet Texas with windmills and transmission lines , lots of inventors, entrepreneurs, and homeowners see a potential energy bonanza in wind power on a much smaller scale. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has suggested

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Published Wed, Feb 04 2009 3:58 PM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: wind power, wind farms

Old Boone Pickens Wants a Wind Farm

Thanks to T. Boone Pickens, wind power is getting a lot of attention. It is hardly a new concept. Farm country is dotted with small windmills that were - maybe still are - used to lift water to the surface for livestock quartered in remote fields. Wind

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Published Tue, Feb 03 2009 3:21 PM by Jann Swanson

Filed under: wind power, wind farms

Hey Starbucks - Listen Up!

Here is another must-buy for your green home office. GreenDaily is reporting that a Korean entrepreneur has developed a printer that not only operates with person power rather than electricity; it uses coffee instead of ink. Jeon Hwan Ju is responsible

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Published Mon, Feb 02 2009 3:30 PM by Jann Swanson

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