Another Is it really that great electric

Fluorescent light bulbs save energy costS, but are they dangerous?
Fluorescent light bulbs contain at least 5 mg of highly toxic mercury. In Maine, homeowners had to evacuate their house after a flourescent light bulb broke next to an air vent. Thankfully this small amount of mercury cannot kill a human and these light bulb's rarely break.

Solar Power Paint?

By: Davis Deussen



Instead of having all of these big solar panels, you could just have the paint of your house and/or car as solar panels. They will attract sun which will go to a generator and power your house and/or car. Is this possible? They have tried a few tests, and it has had a few successful runs, so this would be a great energy saver. SOLAR POWER!

Energy Efficent Outlet

By: Rachel Skillicorn

The energy efficient outlet can reduce your utility bill immensely. It has a timer that can be set at 30 minutes, 3 hours, or 6 hours and after that time it will shut down the power so that you won't be paying any unnecessary energy bills, when you're not using anything. It is perfect for charging cellphones or shutting of heaters or toasters or any other small appliances off. This is a great energy saver.

http://www.metaefficient.com/gifts-2/energy-efficient-gadget-gifts.html

Universal Remote

By:Rachel Skillicorn

One of the greatest energy saving gadgets is the universal remote. Sometimes you need to buy 2-4 remotes for just one TV. When you buy a universal remote you don't have to worry about spending more money than you have to. When you get a universal remote, it will save you a lot of time and money. It also has an energy efficent rechargeable battery so you don't have to buy anymore batteries. Set up is easy and some of the brands of these remotes can give you things like touch screen and up to 15 controls. The only down side is the price. The average price for these remotes is $160.99.

http://www.metaefficient.com/gifts-2/energy-efficient-gadget-gifts.html

Does electric really save?

Many people are making the switch to electric cars to help the enviroment, but I wanted to look at how much it really saves. Most electricity used to power electric cars is made by burning coal thus making it still not an unlimited or reusable resource. Regardless of this fact the emissions per mile driven would be 3 to 1 electric with less CO2 released. Therefore, electrics truly are better for the ozone layer.

http://www.electroauto.com/

Energy Saving Heaters

By: Rachel Skillicorn

Energy Saving Fans will really help with your heating bills. When you want an easier way to save money, just get an energy efficient fan. Instead of having all these bills, these types of fans heat a bathroom in 5 minutes and a normal bedroom in 20 minutes. That way you don't have to pay for heat when you're no using it, with the fan you can turn it on when you're cold and turn it off when you don't need it. The only bad things about this is them is that they can sometimes be loud and they are not the easiest thing to use, but it does save you money.

http://www.google.com/products/catalog?hl=en&safe=active&q=energy+efficient+space+heaters&wrapid=tlif12925262247971&um=1&ie=UTF-8&cid=243255343787358595&ei=wmIKTcqTEYPSsAOOx7yhCg&sa=X&oi=product_catalog_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CKIBEPMCMAY#

Top Five Green Buildings in the World

By Kaila Thieman

There are a few buildings that are very green and here are the top 5 in the world.

1) Robert Redford Building: NRDC SoCal Headquaters - Santa Monica, CA

2) Bank of America Tower-New York City

3) Clinton Presidental Library Little Rock, Arkansas

4) Confederation of Indian Industry's Sohrabji Godrej Green Buisness Centre-Hyderabad India

5) Queens Botanical Garden Visitor and Administration Center- Flushing NY

For More info go to: http://www.easywaystogogreen.com/green-architecture/10-greenest-buildings-in-world/

The Empire State Building is becoming more Energy Efficient

By Allana Bochmann

In the 1930's the Empire State Building was considered energy efficient but now it costs about $11 MILLION for the annual energy bill. The building is now being renovated to be more green and reduce their 105,000 metric tons of green house gases over the next 5 years. The workers are doing things like changing the windows to let in less cold weather so that they can lower the energy for heat that they use. Changes like these could really help out energy reduction and also bring down gas emissions if every business or huge buildings did what the Empire State Building is doing to become energy efficient.

Information from Popular Science

Refrigator Buying Tips

Before buying a refrigator consider this things:

1. Choose top-mounted freezer configuration over side-side: Side-side freezers use 30 percent more energy than top mounted freezers. Even with the Energy-Star sticker, it still uses more energy.


2. Size matters: Refrigators that are under 25 cubic feet use less energy than refrigators over 25 cubic feet.


3. Recycle your old fridge: Give your old refrigator to the city becuase they might give you money.


4. Avoid multiple refrigators: If you don't have enough space in your refrigator, buy one big one rather than two smaller ones.

www.acee.org/consumer/refrigerator

Solar powered Flashlight

by Ivy Long

As our usage of solar power continues to grow we continue to use it in everyday lives. One way we use solar power is in flashlights. Flashlights are a good alternitive to regular flashlights, especially if you use a flashlight often. it will charge in direct and indirect contact to the sun to charge. You will never have to buy battries either. When it is charged it will last up to 30 days and allows about 2 hours of use. They will certainly get the job done.

http://poweredbysolarpanels.com/solar-powered-flashlights/

Saving energy with plants

by Kaila Thieman



Here are some natural ways to save energy using things that help the earth in more than one way. When you use plants it makes your house look better but if you follow some guidlines it can also save you money. Studies have shown that using plants can save you up to 15% in the winter and 50% in the summer. There are three basic elements in this idea that include

1) Trees

2)Widbreaks

3)The use of Foundation plants



When you use these in the right way it can save you lots of money!



For more info go to: http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/hil/hil-631.html

Eco-Friendly Clothes

By: Rachel Skillicorn

If you want to help the planet, here's how. Instead of going dramatic you can help by buying eco- friendly clothes. Some stores now have all organic clothes that look like normal clothes but they are acutally made out of recycled products. They use products such as bamboo, soy, and hemp. Bamboo consumes 4x more CO2 than trees, which is great for the enivironment.

http://www.elementecowear.com/6-About_Products/Earth-Friendly_Organic_Clothing-Choose_Bamboo_Soy_Organic_Cotton.html

Crosswalk and Power-up

This may seem silly, but why can't we power homes by using the buttons for crosswalks? It would provide a little bit of energy at a time, but because there are a lot of people using them at a time could create more power to power one third of the homes!

Solar Powered Hats

There is a cap that came out about a year ago that has a solar powered light in the front. It has two ultra bright LED lights on the front and it turns on with one simple button. It has lighting modes and can run for up to four hours! It can last up to 35 hours when set on the "dim light" mode. It is also weather proof and washable. These hats are cool, but I'm not quite sure why someone would need a solar powered cap. They could be useful if you are lost in the woods at night and need a light. These hats may not have very many uses, but they are interesting and could be useful when your stuck in the dark! They are also very energy efficent because the are solar powered.



By Rhyan Montgomery



http://www.solarsnob.com/

Solar Powered Dancing Flower

by Tori Riggs

Need a good idea for a fun stocking stuffer? Get a solar powered dancing flower! Solar powered dancing flowers are very enjoyable and can add character to any place -- whether it is a bedroom at home, or an office at your workplace. It is completely plastic and does not need any water or food. Just put it on you windowsill and watch it dance away! These solar powered dancing flowers are great for kids and adults alike, and are a great, green Christmas gift for anyone you can think of.

For information about buying a solar powered dancing flower, please visit http://www.perpetualkid.com/solar-powered-dancing-flower.aspx

Save Paper

Homework. We all hate it. It's worse when it's off the internet. All of those trees are killed due to the internet and schoolboards. How do we stop the cutting down of trees? The World Wildlife Federation created a .wwf file that is immune to printing.



more at http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-12/world-wildlife-federation-creates-unprintable-wwf-format-save-trees

Zero Energy Homes

by: Morganne Williams

Several years ago no one would have thought that we would be able to produce energy efficient homes. Now that fantasy is a realization. We can now build energy efficient homes for about $165 per square foot. Although to achieve this you might have to saccrifice some of the less needed things like granite countertops for things like a solar powered hot water system. Many of the things that we have in our house do not effect the amount of energy used but by simple trade offs you can achieve energy saving greatness!

http://www.eebt.org/