As you are pulling together your receipts to qualify for every last deduction you can get...remember if you did anything to your home to make it more energy efficient during the past year, you may be eligible for a federal tax credit. For example, if you installed new Energy Star windows, you may be eligible for 30% of the total cost (not including installation), up to $1,500 cash back. Insulation, heating & AC systems, roofs, water heaters, and storm doors are other items that also qualify.
Go to the US Dept of Energy's site to find out if you qualify.
The process of moving into a new home is exciting and exhilarating, but can also be stressful and overwhelming. Among the stressors involved in moving is digging through piles of belongings, sometimes creating mountains of waste to be disposed of. While moving is an opportunity to finally get rid of you old, unused and unwanted clutter, you should be aware that there is an environmentally friendly way to go about it.
Supplementing your home's electricity usage with alternative energy sources is becoming easier and easier as the technology becomes more refined. While it has always been possible to "live off the grid" (power your home completely independent of the electric company), it's now more affordable than ever with a plethora of options. The simplest, of course, is harnessing the power of the sun. Once a far off futuristic dream, many people are not aware how easy it is to incorporate solar power into their homes today.
Check this out! Dan Phillips of Huntsville, TX was featured on the Today Show this morning. He is a builder of homes using almost exclusively recycled materials.
Not all paints are equal. Some are "greener" than others because they have a lower impact on the environment and your family's health. Just keep in mind that though there are commercial paints that claim a zero VOC content, it may not be possible. Read those labels and certifications carefully.
Making cement creates carbon dioxide, a lot of it. If you are planning to renovate your house or add on to it, consider using concrete mixes or pre-fabricated concrete modules that use less traditional cement or lower carbon cement. These products are also innovative in the way they add recycled paper and glass to create unusual and unique textures and coloring.
Check the label and the product description of your bamboo towel, upholstery, wall covering, even your baby's crib linen, it may use terms like "organic", "environmentally-safe", "biodegradable", "natural", or "antimicrobial". Items made out of bamboo fiber and fabric may not live up to those claims.
Even though they are considered dinosaurs in the modern lighting world, incandescent bulbs and the warm light they create still have a wide appeal. So how can we reconcile energy-gulping incandescents with a greener home?
The NCFI (North Carolina Foam Industries) is the manufacturer of a line of flexible foams - polyurethane foam chemicals for spray 'foam-in-place' insulation. For their innovative achievement in SPF (spray Polyurethane Foam), the NCFI has been awarded the EPA Stratospheric Ozine Protection Award.
Fortunately, Indoor plants have the ability to naturally detoxify the air in the home. Studies run by NASA have proven that plants in the home can reduce up to 85% of indoor air pollutants, and as follows, Indoor plants should be considered essential to any home.
Invisible and always present, indoor air quality (IAQ) can effect the health and quality of life of every home dweller. Considerable advancements have been made in understanding what creates high indoor air quality conditions and what creates poor indoor air quality conditions. Beyond odor, the air you breath quality is virtually undetectable.
Creating a healthy home atmosphere means more than using appealing colors, creative lighting and comfortable furniture. These do impact the perceived atmosphere, but what about the actual atmosphere? 'Atmosphaera' is Latin, created from the Greek words athos (vapor) and sphaera (sphere). It literally means the air around you. Indoor air pollutant concentrations can be 15 to 50 times higher than outside.
Inexpensive storage units, shelves, desks and other home furnishings are often made from particleboard or compressed wood. While economical and versatile, particleboard isn't very green. Enter Way Basics - A modular system that uses individual boards called zBoards to custom-build everything from a storage cubby to a bed frame.
PLAYA, a 4,300 square foot, "living laboratory of green design, materials and innovation" is an important project - a project which Go Green Construction is proud to show off. The Go Green Home is a remarkable representation of the future - and present - of green construction.
Through most of the 20th century, asbestos was the ideal form of insulation due to its resistance to heat, electricity and chemical damage, its sound absorption and tensile strength. Fortunately, there are now many green alternatives that make the use of asbestos and hazardous materials obsolete. Throughout the United States, construction practices are changing to suit the environment and the health of human beings.
Curious about the differences between oil based and water based hardwood floor stains? I consulted with an expert on the subject, Elektra Grant, an associate with Livingreen. The following, based on Elektra's expertise, is a tell-all product comparison reviewing the many differences, similarities, benefits and drawbacks the consumer should be aware of before making a final product purchasing decision.
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™ is the nationally recognized benchmark for the design, construction and operation of green buildings. There are LEED standards for new construction and existing building maintenance, commercial interiors and schools, retail spaces and healthcare facilities and - you guessed it - for your home.
As a typical American husband, I know a thing or two about hot water since I'm often in it. There are different home water-heating systems to choose from. However, when your conventional tank water heater fails, the easiest and more affordable option is usually to replace it with another tank water heater. But how do you choose one that fits your house, budget and eco-conscience?
Approximately 15% of each household's energy dollar goes to heat water. Using less hot water is one of the easiest ways to decrease your water heater's energy output and lower your bills.
Heating and cooling can account for more than 40% of a homeowner or business' annual energy bill. By installing a new energy efficient central air conditioner in your home or business, you can dramatically reduce your annual cooling costs, save electricity and reduce smog causing emissions.
When looking for an eco-friendly alternative to something as poisonous and environmentally harmful as termite extermination, the best defense is, as the saying goes, a good offense. However, there are now a number of options for environmentally safe termite extermination available.
When looking to refinish your hardwood floor, the main thing to consider is an environmentally friendly hardwood finish. Most commercial finishes are solvent- and lacquer-based, which are terrible pollutants of air quality.
Recycling antique furniture, and restoring it to reproduce its original luster not only keeps furniture out of the landfill, it also saves trees from being used to produce new furniture.
When possible look for all-wool carpeting with natural fiber backing made of jute or latex to avoid chemical off-gassing into your home....
There is no better insulating material that can fully seal your home, save on costly utility bills and protect your family's healthy than Spray-in-place foam insulation (SPF) which provides clean, green, and long-lasting insulation with exceptional value.
VOCs (volatile organic compounds) often found in carpeting and paint can have short- and long-term adverse health effects....
Energy Star qualified room air conditioners use at least 10 percent less energy than standard models....
Energy Star compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) use less energy and last up to 10 times longer than standard incandescent light bulbs....
Replacing your five most frequently used light bulbs with Energy Star qualified bulbs can save more than $65 a year in energy costs....
A solar power system on your home is a long term, low risk, high return investment.
The easiest place to save in the construction process is in the planning stage. The design-build delivery system is becoming more popular as the most efficient way to design a home, cutting out unnecessary steps and miscommunication in the process.
At Go Green Construction we believe that green is 80% planning and 20% materials. There is so much than can be done in the planning stages that will not only reduce the amount of energy necessary to build and maintain the house, but can also save you money.
Compact florescent light bulbs have garnered cries of disgust from consumers since they were introduced thirty years ago. These bulbs were too big for some lamps, expensive ($20 or more), flickered and buzzed, and had poor light quality (a cold dimness). But technology has caught up with customer demands for energy-efficient bulbs that shine warm, bright light similar to standard incandescent bulbs.
You've probably been complaining lately about the freezing rain, piles of snow, and cold, whipping wind. It's been hard to keep your home or business warm this winter, and the heating bills have been shockingly high with the record oil and natural gas prices.
Like gardening but don't have the space for it? Grow one on your roof! While this is unfortunately not possible for everyone, green roofs are wildly popular in places like the UK and Germany and are picking up speed in...
Climate zones basically summarize the magnitude of available sunshine and rain in your area. The better you understand your home's surroundings, the easier it will be to make decisions about design, comfort systems, and materials.
Environmentally friendly rugs come in a number of forms; they can be made from recycled materials and materials that are considered renewable resources--those that are quickly replenished without a lot of strain on the environment, which usually come from a plant or animal.
Synthetic carpets, those found in most homes, emit Voltatile Organic Compounds into the air, called off-gassing, polluting the air in homes and the enviornment. By replacing your old carpet with natural, organically derived carpets you can create a healthier living enviornment within your home as well as in the planet at large.
If your walls are starting to look a little shabby, or if you're just looking to give your home a little make-over, then a new paint job is probably on your agenda. And if you want your home to be a little more eco-friendly, or if you just don't like the pervasive smells that usually accompany a fresh coat of paint, then environmentally friendly paints are for you. Using these eco-friendly paints are not just good for the environment, but in the long run are beneficial to your health.
If you are buying raw lumber, wood flooring or simply a piece of furniture, you might stumble across these three important letters: FSC. The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is a non-profit international organization working towards the improvement of forestry practices worldwide. The FSC certification process rewards businesses for practicing environmentally friendly methods. Next time you buy wood or a product made of wood, make sure that the wood is FSC approved.
Today there are plenty of resources to help you transition to a greener way of living. This is why the U.S. Green Building Council established the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification program. While green building is still a growing field, these pioneers are going to set the pace for the future of responsible home construction and design.
Do you need to change a few light bulbs in your house? Perhaps you are exploring lighting options for a remodeling project? A great option to investigate when you next go shopping are LED (Light Emitting Diodes) light bulbs. LED boasts an extremely low power consumption, which can save you on your next energy bill. These lights are very durable and they have an impressive life span (50,000-100,000 hours, compared to incandescent light bulbs that last around 1000 hours). The best part is that LEDs are recyclable and contain no mercury or other toxins, which helps the earth out.1
Remember that heating and cooling accounts for the majority of our energy use, and while it is important to stay comfortable, better insulation can give you better peace of mind.