12-Year-Old Boy Builds Recycled Shelter for Homeless
12-year-old Max Wallack has created a "Home Dome" from plastic, wire, and packing peanuts. The Home Dome is designed as a homeless shelter and was created for the show Design Squad's Trash to Treasure contest. Max won $10,000 and a Dell laptop for his invention. Max explained his inspiration:
When I was six. I won an invention contest that included a trip to Chicago. While there, I saw homeless people living on streets, and beneath highways and underpasses. I felt very sorry for these people, and ever since then, felt that my goal and obligation was to find a way to help them. My invention improves the living conditions for homeless people, refugees, or disaster victims by giving them easy-to-assemble shelter.
LED Bulb Fits Standard Incandescent Sockets and Lasts 50,000 Hours!
It's amazing what technology has done for lighting. This LED bulb made by Chinavasion will last for 50,000 hours! That's 2,083 days if left on 24 hours a day!
The design and manufacture of these LED lights is beyond compare - from the all metal die cast cooling fins to the IC boards that drive the diodes, every part has been manufactured to exceed world performance standards. You simply cannot find a better built 7 watt screw in LED lamp than the G08!
Besides just looking cool, this LED uses only 7 watts of electricity.
Via: Gizmodo
Jump Start to Green: Save a Little. Save a Lot. Save the Planet.
Jump Start to Green is a kit that makes saving the planet easy and effective. The kit contains products and tools that save energy, paper, and water. It includes a "Guide to Green" that helps people track their use of resources. The kit comes with:
The Dry-Erase Tracker helps families see the small changes they make are having an impact. The Guide to Green tells you how much you will save with each action and the impact it will have on the planet, thus allowing families to prioritize which actions to take. For example, if you take shorter showers (reducing shower time from eight minutes to five minutes), you will save $223 annually. If this simple action was taken by 1 out of 10 Americans, it would be the equivalent of taking 90,000 cars off the road each year!
Living Moss Bath Mat Literally Greens Your Bathroom
This living moss bathroom mat looks luxurious to step on after a shower or bath. It reminds me of some of the beautiful places I have swam in the wilderness and the natural mossy carpeting that surrounded them. Inhabitat describes the living moss carpet:
This Moss Carpet by Nguyen La Chanh
brings the outside indoors in an unconventionally natural way by
placing it underfoot. The lush green lawn thrives in humid
environments, which makes your bathroom a perfect place to grow.
The living bath mat is planted with three different varieties of moss: ball, island, and forest. The mat requires very little maintenance beyond regular bathroom use of showering and bathing.
Grow Orchids to Improve Your Indoor Air Quality with Breathe Easy Aeroponic System
I would love to have this aeroponic growing system on my wall filled with beautiful orchids. Aeroponics is the process of growing plants in an air without using soil. Besides looking amazing on your wall, the moth orchid roots suck toxins from your home's air.
Breathe Easy is an aeroponic growing system designed to improve home air quality. It utilizes toxin absorbing plants that clean the air and add humidity. It also doesn't hurt to bring some of nature's green indoors too. The plants are held in place by magnetic seals in the top opening...As an added touch, a row of LED lights line the bottom for some nice ground effects.
LED lights illuminate the roots creating a nice visual effect.
Himalayan Salt Crystal Lamp Improves Indoor Air Quality
I love Himalayan salt, and I've always been curious about salt lamps. I think they are really beautiful and create a nice ambiance in a room, but I didn't know that they actually clean the air.
These lamps are made of natural crystal salt mined from underground salt mines in the foothills of the Himalayan Mountains
The beautiful orange-reddish Himalayan crystal salt is mounted on a wooden base
This crystal salt is hundreds of millions of years old and, as a result, has special properties and high mineral content
Heat from the bulb (in our lamps) or flame (in our candle holders) causes the salt to emit negative ions
These negative ions bond with the pollutants in the air (positive ions) and neutralize them
Also, the newly bonded ions become heavier and fall to the ground removing them from the air circulation
In addition, these negative ions combat electro-smog caused by electronic devices operating in the home
Symptoms from asthma, allergies, and other illnesses can also subside from the effects of these products
Concisely, these products cleanse the air naturally and are extremely beautiful
The salt lamp uses only a 15 watt light bulb, so it is energy efficient, or alternately you can use a candle. It is such a beautiful, natural light that creates a warm glow. I love my salt lamp!
Year in Review: Top 5 Really Natural Posts of 2008
Happy New Year! The following is a recap of the top ten posts that were written and received the most traffic on Really Natural in 2008.
Solar Hot Water Heaters Found on 90% of Israel's Rooftops: In the 1950s, Israel experienced a fuel shortage, and residents responded by installing solar hot water heaters on their rooftops. By 1983, 60% of homes had solar hot water heaters, and current law requires their installation. Jerusualem's skyline is beautifully cluttered with 90% of homes' rooftops adorned with solar hot water heaters.
Toyota Adding Solar Panels to Prius to Power Air Conditioning: The Toyota Prius has long been the golden child of the environmental movement for its fuel economy. When the EPA changed the standards for reporting fuel economy on new car stickers to include the use of air conditioning, the hybrid Prius lost a few miles per gallon. That may all change, now that Toyota plans to install solar panels on the roof of high end models to power the AC.
Build a Green Home - No More Power Bills Ever: A New Jersey engineer Mike Strizki has created a green home resulting in no more power bills ever, and not just electric bills. Strizki converts sunshine into electricity using photovoltaic panels - and then uses the electricity to wring hydrogen for fuel out of ordinary tap water.
Your Flat-Screen TV is Worse for the Environment than a Coal Burning Power Plant : Nitrogen trifluoride (NF3) has been deemed the "missing greenhouse gas", because it is not covered by the Kyoto Protocol, yet it is 17,000 times stronger than carbon dioxide! NF3 used to be produced in tiny amounts, but the boom in flat-screen TVs has changed that.
Solar Stik Portable Solar Array Cheaper than a Generator to Run: If you ever have the need for green, portable power, Solar Stik is the "new generator". For example, Solar Stiks were sent to assist in the aftermath of Hurricane Ike. What is a Solar Stik? It is portable solar system that weighs about 100 pounds and can be set up in about 10 minutes.
On Demand, Tankless, Instantaneous Hot Water Heaters
On demand, tankless hot water heaters have long been the norm in Japan and Europe, where apartments are usually too small for big tank hot water heaters that are commonplace in the United States. I've been using a tankless hot water heater for 12 years. We currently use a Bosch Aquastar Indoor Tankless Water Heater. This hot water heater is capable of heating 7.2 gallons per minute and provides enough hot water for up to 3 appliances or showers at a time, although I recommend using only one at a time for the best results.
A tankless hot water heater qualifies you for a $300 U.S. Federal Tax Credit and can save you up to 50-percent off your annual utility costs. It does take getting used to a tankless hot water heater once you make the switch. When first turning on the hot water tap, it takes a little while for the hot water to reach your faucet, since the water is being heated on demand and not stored hot like in a traditional tank heater. Also, you will want to consider how you use your hot water, as the pressure will drop if you try to use hot water in multiple faucets and/or appliances at a time. Furthermore, a tankless hot water heater works best with a solar hot water heater that can preheat the water. These lifestyle adjustments are minor considering the energy savings and conservation benefits of a tankless hot water heater.
Upcycled Food Barrel Becomes an Environmentally Friendly Rain Barrel
Every house should be equipped with rain barrels off of its gutters. It's free water that most likely would just run off into the sewer, so why not save it for irrigation? The Deluxe Rain Barrel with Screen Lid - 55-Gallon is made from a UV protected food-grade barrel that was previously used and has been upcycled into a rain collection barrel. You could probably do this yourself from any food-grade barrel. This one comes with two spigots for easy hook up and a screen to keep out debris.
Unless you live in an area experiencing drought, you may not think about water conservation much, as traditionally water bills are not high. No matter where you live, we should all be conserving water. Niagara Conservation'sWater EcoKit is full of high-efficiency products to help you reduce your water consumption. This kit includes:
EARTH™ MASSAGE SHOWERHEAD
(1.5 GPM) Powerful two-setting massage spray showerhead that does not sacrifice performance for efficiency
Flow control technology: greater force at low pressure!
Rated #1 showerhead by leading industry organization
Conserves water and saves money while enhancing pressure, performance and appearance!
9-jet turbo massage is adjustable: gentle needle spray to forceful jet
Saves 40% more energy & water
Non-removable flow compensator
Non-aerating spray means less temperature loss with maximum energy savings
Pressure-enhancing Niagara Power
Consistent flow rate regardless of water pressure
Self-cleaning and maintenance-free
Installs easily by hand and without tools
Corrosion-resistant, high-impact ABS thermoplastic body
Meets or exceeds ANSI specifications
California Energy Commission-certified
10-year guarantee Continue reading:"Save Water with Niagara Conservation Home Eco Kit"
Simple Ideas to Reduce Energy Consumption: Thermal Curtains by Eclipse
A lot of heat or cool air is lost through the windows in a home. Once simple solution to this problem is to install thermal curtains. Eclipse makes curtains that block out 99% of light, which helps you sleep better, and the curtains reduce window-related energy loss by 75%. It is much cheaper to use a thermal curtain than to replace windows in a home, and they can help reduce the increase in home heating costs predicted for this winter.
The only drawback to Eclipse curtains is they are made from polyester fabric. I am not a fan of synthetic fibers, whether for the environment or my own personal aesthetic. As a final project in an alternative energy class I took in college, I made thermal curtains from felted wool. I would like to see commercially made thermal curtains made from natural fibers.
Green Laundry: Nellie's All-Natural Oxygen Booster
If you use eco-friendly laundry detergent, you may notice your whites aren't as bright as when you used to use laundry products that are bad for our environment and your health. Nellie has the solution for you! Available at Delight.com, Nellie's All-Natural Oxygen Brightener for your laundry needs will give you "Whites so bright...you'll need sunglasses!" Nellie's isn't just for whites either. It is color-safe, septic-safe, and environmentally safe. You can even use it for carpet and upholstery stain removal too, as well as cleaning your floors and counters.
Want to Save Toilet Paper? Install a Brondell Swash Ecoseat
We don't often think of the resources used our making toilet paper, but 100,000 rolls of toilet paper are used everyday worldwide. That translates to 55 million trees cut down each year just for U.S. toilet paper production. Also, 37 gallons of water is used to make just one roll of TP. There is a solution we can learn from old Europe: the bidet. The Brondell Swash 250-RW Ecoseat Bidet Toilet Seat reduces your toilet paper use by 75%! It is relatively easy to install, but it takes four AA batteries, which detracts from its eco-friendliness. It takes a little getting used to washing your derriere after a lifetime of toilet paper; however, I do believe it is more hygenic. If you would like to read an interesting post on Which is Greener: Toilet Paper or a Bidet, please visit Lighter Footstep.
SporiCLEAN Green Enzyme Cleaner Kills Mold, Bacteria, Viruses, and Germs
SporiCLEAN is a medical-grade enzyme cleaner that safely cleans all washable surfaces, including pets. It is highly effective at killing mold, mildew, viruses, germs, and bacteria. It is a non-chemical, all-natural plant-based cleaner that breaks down or destroys microorganisms. It is concentrated, so you can mix up the solution you need, between two to four ounces per gallon of water, depending on your needs. SporiCLEAN is much safer than bleach for your health and the environment.
12-Year-Old Boy Builds Recycled Shelter for Homeless
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