Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Update on the Eco Life
Just to let you know how I’ve been doing changing my life style to an eco-friendly one I’ve created this update. The most important step for me was reducing the amount of trash and waste I through away. My compost has been a great success, besides the occasional absentmindedness when I forget to put materials in the paper bag in the freezer I’ve created a good amount of fertilizer I can’t wait to use when I start my garden in another month. I have also learned that it is safe to add egg shells to the compost but make sure you break them up first as they take a long time to dissolve and release their calcium. For a good web site on composting dos and don’ts have a look here. Delicious Organics . This last week by carrying my own water bottle to class, using my school bag when I went shopping, and reusing a tuber ware container everyday for lunch I only actually have one piece of plastic to recycle. That is from a mouthwash container that is a Number 1 type plastic so it will definitely be accepted at my local center. I also have a few milk gallon containers, which are Number 2 type plastics, but I am saving them for my garden. A cool trick is to cut the bottom off and place overtop of young sprouts to create a mini green house that allows plants to be planted outside a couple of weeks early.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
The know how on plastic recycling
Plastic is an essential part of modern life and it makes many of the things that we do on a daily basis much easier. Part of why we use plastic so much is the convenience it creates. For example, someone can take a plastic water bottle out and when they are done with the contents of the bottle, the bottle itself is so cheap that it’s easier to throw it away than carry it back home to reuse. The problem that is produced from this situation is multifaceted in that not only is it not environmentally sustainable to constantly be making new plastic items to throw away but that all of this thrown away plastic has to go somewhere. The somewhere that all this plastic is going also has to be a permanent resting place considering that it takes over a million years for a plastic bottle to be fully decomposed. OVER A MILLION YEARS!!! So a good way to start living the eco life concerning plastic would be to try to reuse or reduce the amount you use as much as possible. For ideas on how to cut back on plastic bags and bottles check out my classmate’s blog at http://livingecofriendlylifestyle.blogspot.com. No matter what though you are going to have to get ride of some plastic and the best way to do that is by recycling. Plastic is not like other big recycle materials such as aluminum cans and glass bottles in that there are many different types of plastic with different degrees of recycling ease and this can get kind of tricky.
39 U.S states now require that all plastic contains between the sizes of 8ounces and 5gallons be marked with an appropriate number for their specific type of plastic. This number, which can be a 1 through 7, is next to a recycling symbol of a triangle made of 3 arrows. This system of plastic classification was created by The Society of the Plastics Industry in 1988 to help in the recycling process.
The number 1 is for polyethylene terephthalate(PETE) which is the most used and easiest plastic to recycle. It is the general ingredient used to make water bottles and when recycled can be used for a number of other things such as fiberfill for life jackets, sailboat sails, and even remade into other plastic bottles.
The number 2 is high density polyethylene plastics, such as the containers that hold bleach and motor oil. This can also be recycled into a number of different things such as piping and plastic lumber.
Numbers 1 and 2 are widely accepted at recycling plants because of the commonness and the usefulness of their recycling by products. Numbers 3, 4, and 5 are usually not excepted so reducing the amount you use of these types of plastics would be very environmentally beneficial.
Number 3 is polyvinyl chloride which is mostly used for shower curtains, medical tubing, and plastic pipes.
Number 4 is low density polyethylene which is used to make grocery bags and food wrapping film.
Number 5 is polypropylene which is mostly used to make Tupperware.
Number 3 is something that it would be hard to reduce your use of but with number 4 and 5 a small effort could reduce the amount you use to near zero. For example using a cloth shopping bag and washing out your Tupperware for reuse would make the amount of these types that you throw away minimum.
Number 6 is polystyrene or Styrofoam and is surprising accepted at most recycling plants. This is because it can be recycled into many of other products. This how ever doesn’t mean that it is an environmentally friendly product. Bringing your own travel coffee mug to get filled and reusing packing peanuts would cut back on the amount of Styrofoam that is produced, but what you do use you should know can be easily recycled.
The hardest plastics to recycle are given a number 7 or sometimes not assigned a number at all. These products are so hard to recycle because they are made from a combination of many types of plastics and cannot be broken down. You should pay attention to the number on the plastic products you by and if you see a number 7 try to avoid that product or look for it in a different type of packaging. It is suggested that if you do find yourself stuck with number 7 containers to take them back to the product manufacturers and give them the responsibility of getting ride of it.
39 U.S states now require that all plastic contains between the sizes of 8ounces and 5gallons be marked with an appropriate number for their specific type of plastic. This number, which can be a 1 through 7, is next to a recycling symbol of a triangle made of 3 arrows. This system of plastic classification was created by The Society of the Plastics Industry in 1988 to help in the recycling process.
The number 1 is for polyethylene terephthalate(PETE) which is the most used and easiest plastic to recycle. It is the general ingredient used to make water bottles and when recycled can be used for a number of other things such as fiberfill for life jackets, sailboat sails, and even remade into other plastic bottles.
The number 2 is high density polyethylene plastics, such as the containers that hold bleach and motor oil. This can also be recycled into a number of different things such as piping and plastic lumber.
Numbers 1 and 2 are widely accepted at recycling plants because of the commonness and the usefulness of their recycling by products. Numbers 3, 4, and 5 are usually not excepted so reducing the amount you use of these types of plastics would be very environmentally beneficial.
Number 3 is polyvinyl chloride which is mostly used for shower curtains, medical tubing, and plastic pipes.
Number 4 is low density polyethylene which is used to make grocery bags and food wrapping film.
Number 5 is polypropylene which is mostly used to make Tupperware.
Number 3 is something that it would be hard to reduce your use of but with number 4 and 5 a small effort could reduce the amount you use to near zero. For example using a cloth shopping bag and washing out your Tupperware for reuse would make the amount of these types that you throw away minimum.
Number 6 is polystyrene or Styrofoam and is surprising accepted at most recycling plants. This is because it can be recycled into many of other products. This how ever doesn’t mean that it is an environmentally friendly product. Bringing your own travel coffee mug to get filled and reusing packing peanuts would cut back on the amount of Styrofoam that is produced, but what you do use you should know can be easily recycled.
The hardest plastics to recycle are given a number 7 or sometimes not assigned a number at all. These products are so hard to recycle because they are made from a combination of many types of plastics and cannot be broken down. You should pay attention to the number on the plastic products you by and if you see a number 7 try to avoid that product or look for it in a different type of packaging. It is suggested that if you do find yourself stuck with number 7 containers to take them back to the product manufacturers and give them the responsibility of getting ride of it.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Choosing The Best Light Bulb For You
For a long time I have been hearing different stories of what is the best light bulb to use based on initial cost and long term energy efficiency. So I have decided to do some research and get to the bottom of it. What I found is a bit confusing but here it goes.
There are basically 3 different kinds of household light bulbs to choose from. The traditional incandescent bulbs, Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFL), and Light Emitting Diode (LED). If you think it doesn’t matter which one you choose your wrong as it is estimated that up to 25% of the average household energy cost goes to lighting.
In terms of energy efficiency LED’s take the cake using less than 1/30th of the energy of incandescent bulbs. CFL’s are pretty efficient themselves using 50-80% less energy than an incandescent bulb.
In terms of life time of the bulb LED’s again take the cake lasting up to 10times as long as a CFL which lasts up to 10 times as long as an incandescent.
In terms of pricing LED’s take the cake here but in a bad way they have the highest initial cost, CFL’s are somewhere in the middle with incandescent bulbs being the cheapest by far. In the long run however both CFL’s and LED’s turned out to be a much better bargain than incandescent bulbs. LED’s only come out to be slightly cheaper than CFL’s and if you factor in that they require more money up front it really isn’t that big of a deal.
In terms of functionality, meaning does the light actually light up the room is another area where LED’s don’t work out. Many people say they are really only good for reading lights. New CFL’s are on par with the best incandescent bulbs.
What about pollution? LED’s contain no mercury at all. CFL’s contain trace amounts of it and per bulb more mercury than an incandescent. This is misleading stat though considering that when you factor in the mercury used to light the less efficient incandescent bulb CFL’s are actually more environmentally friendly. You can even dispose of burned out CLF bulbs at your local Home Depot or Ikea.
When all of this is considered I think the best option for me is CFL’s. I don’t have a lot of money to invest up front but can see the long term saving CFL’s will provide me. Also, I need a light that actually lights up the room for when I am doing home work so I don’t think LED’s would work for me. I am not going to go switch all of my light bulbs right away but as my incandescent bulbs burn out they will be replaced with a new CFL bulb!
Always remember to turn off the light when you leave a room to no matter how efficient your bulb is because as I’m sure you’ve heard lighting empty rooms is just a waste!!
I got a lot of these facts from these websites
http://www.productdose.com/article.php?article_id=1142
and
http://www.eartheasy.com/live_energyeff_lighting.htm
Check them out if you would like to learn more or hear what others are saying.
There are basically 3 different kinds of household light bulbs to choose from. The traditional incandescent bulbs, Compact Fluorescent Lights (CFL), and Light Emitting Diode (LED). If you think it doesn’t matter which one you choose your wrong as it is estimated that up to 25% of the average household energy cost goes to lighting.
In terms of energy efficiency LED’s take the cake using less than 1/30th of the energy of incandescent bulbs. CFL’s are pretty efficient themselves using 50-80% less energy than an incandescent bulb.
In terms of life time of the bulb LED’s again take the cake lasting up to 10times as long as a CFL which lasts up to 10 times as long as an incandescent.
In terms of pricing LED’s take the cake here but in a bad way they have the highest initial cost, CFL’s are somewhere in the middle with incandescent bulbs being the cheapest by far. In the long run however both CFL’s and LED’s turned out to be a much better bargain than incandescent bulbs. LED’s only come out to be slightly cheaper than CFL’s and if you factor in that they require more money up front it really isn’t that big of a deal.
In terms of functionality, meaning does the light actually light up the room is another area where LED’s don’t work out. Many people say they are really only good for reading lights. New CFL’s are on par with the best incandescent bulbs.
What about pollution? LED’s contain no mercury at all. CFL’s contain trace amounts of it and per bulb more mercury than an incandescent. This is misleading stat though considering that when you factor in the mercury used to light the less efficient incandescent bulb CFL’s are actually more environmentally friendly. You can even dispose of burned out CLF bulbs at your local Home Depot or Ikea.
When all of this is considered I think the best option for me is CFL’s. I don’t have a lot of money to invest up front but can see the long term saving CFL’s will provide me. Also, I need a light that actually lights up the room for when I am doing home work so I don’t think LED’s would work for me. I am not going to go switch all of my light bulbs right away but as my incandescent bulbs burn out they will be replaced with a new CFL bulb!
Always remember to turn off the light when you leave a room to no matter how efficient your bulb is because as I’m sure you’ve heard lighting empty rooms is just a waste!!
I got a lot of these facts from these websites
http://www.productdose.com/article.php?article_id=1142
and
http://www.eartheasy.com/live_energyeff_lighting.htm
Check them out if you would like to learn more or hear what others are saying.
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