Green Europe

Having more eco friendly homes is not just about the way in which people live inside them. It is also about what technology is used within the home itself, and encouraging the use of this technology wherever possible when building new homes, expanding old ones or simply adapting your home to a new eco friendly standard.

There are some great technological advances that really make a difference for eco friendly homes. Installing solar panels for instance can be a great way of reducing your electricity bill. More often than not the solar panels you encounter will be hot water panels. These heat the water directly around the system and then pump it into your hot water tank for use. These can however be costly and cost can go into the thousands.

For a more available alternative why not check your house insulation? There is a large range of housing insulation available that can dramatically reduce not only your heating bill but also your carbon footprint as well making an excellent first step towards eco friendly homes.

Switch your normal bulbs for energy saving ones! This technology got off to a rough start as the bulbs had problems with both price and the time it takes them to reach full brightness. This is no longer the case, they are still more expensive then regular bulbs but they last much longer and will save you money in the space of just one year. The bulbs available today react speedily and reach full capacity quicker then the original energy saving bulbs.

Make your self a compost heap at the back of the garden. Getting into a regular routine disposing of your kitchen waste to the compost heap will provide you with nutrient rich soil for growing your own home grown fruit and vegetables.

Don’t throw away those used plastic shopping bags! There are many household items we throw away every day we could easily re-use instead and help conserve the environment. Here are my top 5 ways to Re-Use Household Items and having a happier eco friendly household.

Shopping Bags
Store any used shopping bags you get while out and about shopping for a variety of uses such as small bin liners for waste paper baskets, or for when you just need to carry something over to the neighbour. You never know when an old plastic bag may come in handy.

Old Greeting Cards
Cut out pictures and shapes from cards to use for arts and crafts with your children. Make them into gift tags, bookmarks or paper chains. If you don’t have want to do this, or don’t have children you can give them to schools, play groups or art centres for children to make collages and other crafts. This is the most popular of our 5 ways to re-use household items.

Glass Jars
Reuse glass jars for storing dried food stuffs in rather than using open packets that have a tendency to spill out. Or store them for making homemade jams and marmalade. You can also use them for holding water when painting.

Old or Chipped Mugs
Mugs that no longer have a use for drinks can be reused as pen holders, paint brush holders or even as pots for small indoor plants on your windowsill.

Yoghurt Containers
Use yoghurt pots as plant pots by cutting a hole in the bottom, placing a large pebble in the bottom and then filling with soil ready for a plant. You can cut the bottom out and use them to protect small plants in the garden in harsher weather.

Old Salad Bowls
These are to be used to photograph an adorable baby. Do you need any more reason?

When it’s time to do some seasonal cleaning you can often find items that are no longer of any use to you but may be exactly what someone else is looking for.

You may come across all manner of things that you haven’t used in a long time. If this is the case, unwanted cutlery, dinnerware, saucepans can be put aside for charity outlets or, if you are up to it, you can list them for sale on eBay.

Now is the time to go through your furnishings. Make an inventory of furniture items that are outdated and need replacing. Maybe you feel the need for a change in decor - adding new colors and complimentary soft furnishings. You may have spotted an item of furniture that you feel would look great in your sitting room. Upgrade other tired items of furniture. If you plan to offload some pieces of furniture to make way for new furniture donít take it to the local tip if it is in reasonable condition and either ring a local charity outlet to come and pick it up or, if they are small furniture items that you can handle with ease, personally take it in to your local charity store outlet.

Go through your wardrobes and if you have not worn an article of clothing for 12 months, it is obvious you arenít going to wear it. Maybe you will find some items of clothing that just don’t appeal to you anymore, or you have lost or gained weight and they don’t fit you anymore. Gather them aside and bag them up. Go through every wardrobe in the house and get rid of tired clothing that is not used anymore. Even clean worn underwear can be bagged and handed to your nearest Opportunity Shop where they can be sold off as rags.

Go through your linen cupboard and put aside tired bathroom towels, bed linens, and even blankets, which the moths have got to minimally, can be sold off as Pet Bedding. Why would you take anything to the dump when a worthwhile charity could make some money on it?

Old magazines that you have neglected to throw out you may like to take to a nearby doctor’s surgery or nursing home where someone will benefit by reading them.

Children’s toy boxes can be gone through whilst they are at school, to avoid any dramas of toys being removed because, they are sure to kick up a fuss about any toy being taken away from them, even though it has parts missing or they have just outgrown them. Unwanted toys can be taken to your nearest Children’s Hospital where they will be sure of being appreciated.

Again, it is all about recycling. You would have heard that saying ‘One person’s trash is another person’s treasure’.

Maybe you could arrange with some friends to have a community garage sale.

The conservation of water both around and within the home has never been more important and there are many ways we can reduce our consumption of water.

Only use your washing machine when you have enough soiled clothes to make up a full load. When buying a washing machine look for the star rating energy efficiency sticker. Buy a washing machine that has a water saver i.e. a pump that allows you to recycle your washing water and apart from saving on water you will be saving on laundry detergent as well.

Recycle grey water to water your garden or lawn.

If you have a fish tank you will know how important it is to change 1/3rd of the water on a regular basis to keep the flora of your fish tank healthy. Be sure to use the discarded water to good use because it contains nutrients that are beneficial to both potted and garden tanks.

Install an energy efficient showerhead and faucet aerators. There are now available 4 minute shower timers.

When you brush your teeth don’t leave the tap running and fill a tumbler with enough water to rinse out your mouth.

Make sure your garden hose has an adjustable jet feature and preferably brass for longevity over the plastic ones. When washing your car use a bucket and a sponge. When rinsing your car make a point of using a hose with a fine jet and turn off the tap after rinsing your car. Donít just throw the running hose on the ground whilst you are washing your car. The environment would benefit if you could go to a car wash where water is recycled.

When planting trees or shrubs in your garden, install a length of black poly-pipe beside the roots, so that it extends marginally above ground level, to allow you easy access, before you fill in the hole. This will enable you to apply water to the roots of shrubs and plants, where it is needed and will prevent water run-off.

There are now available - crystal water beads that you can place within your pot plants to maximize water content and prevent pot plants from drying out.

Install a water tank to save precious rainwater from just running away.

The conservation of water has become a major issue with governments in relation to climate change. You too can do your bit in conserving water and if you have young children and practice active water conservation - they in turn will do the same. Children learn by example, so be a responsible water conservationist - because without sufficient water - our planet will cease to exist and, if our planet cannot sustain us, we too will cease to exist.

The burning of fossil fuels and vehicle emissions is a serious concern where global warming and climate change are concerned.

The commentaries about the Beijing Olympics highlights a very disturbing problem that is clearly visible to all of us with the naked eye - smog, air contaminants, and pollution.

Manufacturers of light and heavy industries are not only the culprit and have their unique fossil fuel emissions to deal with.

We, the majority of the population - classed as consumers, also contribute to this global problem - we drive cars driven by fossil fuels - petrol, diesel and a variety of oils from transmission fluid to engine oil.

Car pooling with fellow work associates is one way we can lessen the pollutants that are emitted into the atmosphere.

A lot of people are now converting their cars to being driven by LPG gas and the cost of an LPG conversion is paid for within months, should that car still be running on petroleum based gas, at the price it is today.

LPG is a cleaner fuel specifically:-

• LPG produces 33% less CO2 emissions than petrol and 45% less CO2 than diesel
• LPG vehicles produce up to 82% less Nitrogen Oxide pollutants than petrol and 99% better than diesel
• 63% less Carbon Monoxide
• 40% less Hydrocarbons than petrol and 70% less than diesel
• 50% less particulates than petrol and 98% less than diesel
• LPG reduces the cost of vehicle maintenance

At present, the energy that goes into production of other bio fuels such as bio diesel and soy based fuels is substantial and the full environmental impact has not been calculated by the experts.

Although there has been a lot of media attention on electric cars the carbon footprint is enormous. The raw materials are mined in remote parts of the world and then flown to specialist refining plants before being flown to the car plant.

Recharging of cars may also require the use of mains power. Electric power generation has its own ecological problems that are well known. Unfortunately, this will move the problem elsewhere rather than tackling the root cause.

Using public transport is even a better way to do your bit for the environment. Commuting to work on electric trains and natural or LPG fueled buses has to be a better alternative both for the environment and our hip pockets, with the price of fuel skyrocketing.

Although standing in crowded buses and trains at peak hour may not appeal to the masses, it is an effective way to reduce fossil fuel pollutants entering the atmosphere. Peak hour traffic is anywhere from 7am to 9am in the mornings and in the afternoon and evening from 4pm to 6pm.

Motor coaches produce carbon emissions of only 56 grams per customer mile compared to 371 grams for a single passenger vehicle.

If you want to avoid peak hour traffic buses and trains are not the only modems of transport affected. Privately owned cars and trucks can be seen at bottlenecks where our very inadequate infrastructure is busting at the seams with over congested roads and highways. And the road works in progress to help alleviate traffic congestion, causes us even more congestion and hassles.

With this scenario and the cost of fuel, it makes you wonder why anybody would use private transport, transporting just one person, the individual from home to work and back again. Car pooling is not going to address the problem, but it will reduce fossil fuel car emissions marginally from being pumped into the atmosphere at the rate it is now.

If everybody looked outside the square they live in they would realize that they, as an individual, has to be responsible for the pollutants that contaminate every city, world wide.

We humans have to be sustained, clothed and transported. We as humans have caused this pollution problem and, only we can address it and only we can initiate change - a change that is going to effect and benefit every person on the planet. All it takes is for “you” to take the first step.

For those of us with ecological concerns at home, we want to able to take those ideals with us on holiday. Many hotels in our standard holiday packages do not adhere to any environmental standards and are extremely wasteful so how can we carry on our lifestyle and enjoy our holiday? There are many societies online that specialise in eco tourism as a package deal including travel and accommodation.

A valid eco tourism package adheres to the principles of ecotourism. These include minimizing impact, providing a mutually beneficial experience between tourist and host, ensuring direct benefits for conservation and sustaining the host’s political, environmental and social climate.

It is important not only to choose a good eco tourism package, but also to actively behave in an environmentally responsible way during your travels. Why not try cycle and walking holidays rather than driving or motor home vacations. Choosing train journeys instead of planes where ever possible and cycle over cars can help us to cut down holiday pollution. In the case of train travel, you can slow down and enjoy the journey itself. Take the time to enjoy the scenery as you travel to your destination. If you are after a family holiday, you can visit one of the many Green Festivals where events are sponsored by ecological companies and environmental concerns that actively reduce the festivals carbon footprints and promote eco tourism.

It’s always worth researching a particular destination you are interested in vacationing to. What is the real impact of tourism on this area? Has it helped the area economically or has it just destroyed its natural resources and environment? You could also choose to go on a Volunteer Holiday which is becoming increasingly popular for eco-conscious travellers who can enjoy an idealistic setting while helping the local community.

Most of us have probably been told to turn off the faucet while brushing our teeth or to take shorter showers to conserve water. But new technologies take water efficiency to unprecedented levels, allowing households to save both water and money.

John Koeller, technical adviser at the California Urban Water Conservation Council and the Alliance for Water Efficiency, gave Matthew Shulman of U.S. News some tips on how to conserve.
What new technologies are available to conserve water in the bathroom?

Toilet Fixtures
Toilets can yield significant water reduction through new high-efficiency toilets that flush with 1.3 gallons or less. The current standard in the U.S. is 1.6 gallons maximum. If you cannot afford to replace the toilet, at least try placing a household brick in the cistern to displace the water thus limiting the amount of water used to flush the toilet.

Bathroom Faucets
Bathroom faucets need aerators that [limit the flow to] a gallon per minute or less. It’s still sufficient to shave and wash your hands, but you really don’t need the kind of flows that existed maybe 15 or 20 years ago in older homes.

Shower Head
Install a low-flow shower head. Whereas the trend these days in the luxury homes seems to be high-flow shower systems with multiple heads, generally speaking, the trend on the efficient side is to come down to 2 to 2.5 gallons a minute on the shower head.

Let’s move to the kitchen
People are using their dishwashers less and less and less. Why is that? Because people are eating out more and more and more. Dishwashers that used to be used almost once a day are now cycling only 215 times a year. There are many machines out there that now function with less than 6 gallons. In the old days, it was perhaps as much as three times that much water.

How about the laundry room?

Now we have clothes washers that are so efficient that when it comes time to replace your old one, you ought to purchase an Energy Star washer. Energy use generally correlates with water use. So if you look for an Energy Star machine, you’re going to see both energy and water use reduction.
Faucets

There is nothing worse than a dripping tap both for us audibly and water conservation. At the first sign of a leaky faucet replace worn washers. This is especially important if your hot water tap is leaking. Hot water costs money that can be better spent elsewhere.