Category Archives: Going Green

A Safe and Healthy Lawn!

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Summer is just around the corner, and this is the time of year when we really ramp up our lawn activities Watering, fertilizing and mowing can all have major environmental consequences. Did you know that over 50 million Americans mow their lawns each weekend, and contribute as much as 5% of the country’s air pollution? And it’s staggering to realize that the average American grassy lawn can use over 20,000 gallons of water each summer! So, a major part of any green home strategy should be to embrace eco-friendly lawn and garden care.

Collect rain water and use it for your plants.

Here are 12 ways you can make sure you have an eco-friendly lawn this Spring and Summer…
  • Make sure you’re not over-watering.
  • Don’t hose down your sidewalks and driveway.
  • Get a push mower for your lawn.
  • Say no to leaf-blowers!
  • When you’re done mowing, leave your clippings on your yard.
  • Be sure to compost your other yard waste.
  • Embrace native plants.
  • Are you addicted to the look of grass but live in a high-drought area? You may want to consider synthetic grass. It uses no water, lasts over ten years, and looks & feels surprisingly real.
  • Why not start your own organic food garden?
  • Use non-toxic fertilizers and pest-control agents for your garden and lawn.

Tips for a greener oven

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Clean your oven. Not only does this prevent unwanted household smells, it also saves the energy needed to keep your oven hot. Your oven does not have to heat up anything extra and it keeps the air circulating.

Don’t preheat unless you are baking. Most of the time when you are cooking, preheating is not necessary and it wastes energy.
Turn off the oven a few minutes early. Your oven takes a long time to cool down, therefore if you turn your oven off a few minutes before the food is done, it will continue to cook as normal and will decrease wasted energy while cooking.

Avoid opening the oven early. Every time you open your oven while your food item is cooking, you release a ton of heat, causing the oven temperature to go down around 25 degrees. The oven then has to use more energy to heat it up again.
Stagger pans and baking sheets. Air flow is very important in the oven to efficiently use energy, therefore if you have several items in the oven, try to stagger them so that the air can continue to circulate.

Only use the self clean feature right when the oven is still hot. This way the oven will not have to use as much energy to use this feature. The best way to clean the oven and use the least amount of energy is to wait until the oven is completely cool, then clean the oven by hand with a rag, soapy water, and some elbow grease.

Solar Panels

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Believe it or not… Portland is a great city for solar panels!

Solar Oregon is a non-profit organization promoting and supporting solar energy.  Solar Oregon offers free workshops to provide basic solar power knowledge and educate the public on the current financial incentives that are available.  These workshops are a great starting point for anyone interested in learning more about this progressive energy option.

Going Green – Imagine…

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If everyone in the U.S. said “no thanks” to ATM receipts, it would save a roll of paper so long it could circle the equator fifteen times.

Change light bulbs from traditional incandescent to compact fluorescent. If every American did, it would reduce greenhouse gases equivalent to the emissions of nearly 800,000 cars.

Turn off the car instead of idling when waiting to pick up the kids at school. When a car idles for more than 30 seconds it actually uses more gas and releases more greenhouse pollution into the air then if it were turned off.

If every household in the U.S. replaced just one roll of virgin fiber paper towels (70 sheets) with 100% recycled ones we would save 544,000 trees.

Clothes Dryer Efficiency

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Proper Loading~Ensure your dryer is not overloaded.  Air needs to circulate easily between the clothes in order for drying to be most effective.

Venting~Open a window when using the dryer.  A closed up laudry gets very humid and that humid air just gets sucked into the dryer; decreasing its effectiveness.  If your dtyer has an exhaust leading to the outside; ensure that it’s cleaned regularly.

Lint~A clogged lint filter can extend the drying time (and therefore boost energy use) by a massive 30%!  Additionally, a build up of lint is a fire hazard.

Going Green – Eco Tips

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Take a re-useable bag to the mall when you go shopping.

Eucalyptus oil is an all natural product with many uses. Eucalyptus oil can be used  to remove sticker residue from glass, remove paint, grease and ink from clothes, and act as a stainless steel cleaner!

Online shopping saves on fuel and emissions.

Environmentally Friendly Flooring

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Floors are the forgotten workhorses in a home. They take a lot of abuse, stand up to wear and tear and withstand a variety of products and cleaning. When it is time to replace or upgrade the floors, stylish and eco-friendly options exist for every room of the house.

The benefits of environmentally friendly flooring are seen throughout the lifetime of these products. Manufacturing processes have less harmful impact, the flooring releases fewer chemicals into your home and they’re durable and beautiful.

When it comes to greening your floors, consider how you use each room and make sure to use the appropriate materials. There are natural choices to match every style and application.

You can make an environmental difference when you’re replacing the floors in your home, your choice of flooring can positively impact the health of your home, your family and the planet.

Simple Energy- and Earth-Saving Tips

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1. Cash incentives available from Energy Trust of Oregon for high-efficiency gas furnaces, Energy Star appliances, efficient windows, solar systems, heat pumps, duct and air sealing,and insulation. For qualifications and and details visit  www.energytrust.org

2. Replace light bulbs with 19-watt fluorescent bulbs.

3. Plant a few trees in your yard.

4. Change to wind or solar power or water options.

5. Use low VOC paints.

6. Try chemical-free cleaning supplies and yard maintenance products.

7. Purchase an existing home and use recycled materials when remodeling.

8. Schedule a “Free Home Energy Review” with Energy Trust of Oregon.

9. Do an online “Home Energy Analyzer”.