Every profession needs a watchdog that can push it to even greater achievements. For remodelers, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Partnership for Advancing Technology in Housing (PATH) has come up with an easy-to-follow, top 10 list for...
Energy Efficient Products & Technologies
Guidelines for Going Green
Confused about how to make your home "green?" Finally, there will be a code to work from when contracting to build an energy-efficient home or remodel an existing home. The U.S. Green Building Council has long had its LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental...
Snag those Energy Tax Credits
I'm not usually a fan of forms or IRS info., but I find the energy tax credit form to be fascinating reading. Any qualified energy-saving installation or improvement made by December 31, 2007 will earn you varying degrees of tax credit on this year's tax return....
Al Gore’s 5 Tips for Going Green
How cool is this? Al Gore's latest list of the easiest ways to go green is all about the home. His top five tips for going green include switching to compact fluorescent bulbs, installing programmable thermostats, using solar lighting for exterior landscaping and...
Energy Star Starts
Any guesses on which region in the U.S. can be called the most energy efficient? If you define it as the greatest percentage of newly constructed single family homes with Energy Star ratings, it's New England. Woohoo! As a native New Englander, I attribute it to our...
Real Energy Savings
So you think you are good at saving electricity? Well, as Deb reminded me in a previous post, chargers and other electrical equipment are using electricity whenever they are plugged in. In the back of my brain I knew this but I never really put it together that...
Unplug the Chargers
Have you ever noticed how resistant people are to changing their ways or even understanding new views on energy consumption? Our electric bill threw the entire house for a loop this week, so it was nice when one of the kids asked if leaving his charger plugged in...
Research for a better tomorrow
When it comes to doing research into sustainable living, Arizona State University is leading the charge. This past January, the university opened the nation's first School of Sustainability. Makes sense to me, ever been to Phoenix? I always wondered why every house...
What Would Edison Do?
The battle of the bulbs is on! Is it going to be fluorescence or incandescence? GE just announced its intentions to ready a high-efficiency incandescent (HEI) light bulb for the market in the next several years. The HEI looks to be a contender, allegedly eliminating...
Compact Fluorescents on the Move
I love a good horse race and I'll admit that the challenge thrown down by Wal-Mart to get consumers to switch lightbulbs is going to be a beauty. Wal-Mart has committed to a leading role in reducing energy consumption by vowing to sell 100 million compact fluorescent...