Saving Energy in your Home

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  5 Tips for Saving Energy in the Family Room

  
  

  Reduce your electricity bills by systematically purging your family room of wasteful energy practices. Read

  
  
  
  



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  12 Tips for Saving Energy in Your Home Office

  
  

  Cut your power consumption, lighting, and heating and cooling costs when you work from home. Read

  
  
  
  



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  7 Tips for Saving Energy with Home Lighting

  
  

  Lighting eats up as much as 20% of your annual electric bill, but using energy-efficient bulbs and making other simple changes can cut lighting costs dramatically. Read

  
  
  
  



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  10 Tips for Saving Energy in the Kitchen

  
  

  Maintain your large kitchen appliances is part of a smart home energy efficiency plan. Read

  
  
  
  



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  7 Tips for Saving Energy in the Laundry Room

  
  

  Understanding your laundry room appliances is part of a smart plan to help you save energy in your home. Read

  
  
  
  

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Copyright 2010 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Green Drinks

Here's an interesting and fun way to share your passion for - or curiosity - about the environment and find out what people in your part of the world are doing about it. Green Drinks International started in London in 1989 and now has 350 chapters around the world - including several in West Michigan. The Grand Rapids group meets from 5:00 to 7:00 in a different location on the third Thursday of every month.

This month, the group met at the Tavern on the Square at 100 Ionia Avenue, SW. It's always a lively crowd and this month was no exception. There was a variety of attendees representing different professions, industries, and organizations. We had the opportunity to talk to a representative of the Sierra Club and discuss alternative energy sources and to see a demonstration of a solar-powered lantern that is assembled here in Grand Rapids.

If you're interested in joining the group, it's very simple. If you're in Grand Rapids, go to www.greeendrinksgr.org and sign up for the e-mail list. You'll be notified of the location of the next get-together. If you're in another city, state, or county; go to www.greendrinks.org and search for a chapter in your area.

The Little Green Book of the Home

Last week I found a great little book. It's "The Little Green Book of the Home: 250 tips for an Eco Lifestyle" and it's just what the title says: 250 tips with no preaching or propaganda about the environment or global warming. Well, okay, there is a one-paragraph information introduction.

The first 10 tips concern saving energy through the thoughtful use of lighting - including natural light. The obvious tips include turning off lights that are not in use, switching to compact fluorescent bulbs, and using natural light throughout the day. The less obvious and harder to implement tips include recycling your used light bulbs.

Fluorescent bulbs, including compact fluorescent bulbs, contain a small amount of mercury to increase the efficiency of the bulb. In Kent County Michigan there a several recycling centers that accept hazardous household waste. Click on "Kent County Michigan" above and you will be directed to the county site that describes the options for recycling fluorescent bulbs.

If you're not in West Michigan, go to your local government's website or check with your local Home Depot stores to see if they participate in their company's recycling program. I've also included a link to the Kent County website in the left-hand margin of this blog.

For more information on "The Little Green Book of the Home," click on the image of the cover and you will be directed to the publisher's website.

Thoughts for the New Year

At the beginning of January, my wife and I rented - on a month-to-month basis - a 10x10 booth in an indoor flea market. We are now systematically going through our house from top to bottom, drawer by drawer, and shelf by shelf and getting rid of everything we don't need - which sometimes seems to be about half of what we own. It has become a very liberating experience and should help us in several ways: less to clean now and less to move at some time in the future. Things that don't sell will be put on a garage sale - everything is already priced - and things that don't sell there will be donated to a local charity. Nothing will come back into our house.

Last week I started cleaning out my technical life. I have a new iPhone and am starting over on my contacts and calendar as my previous smart phone stopped hot syncing with my laptop months ago. There are a few contacts that I miss, but I'm adding them as I go along. Last week I even de-friended a contact on Facebook. That was more traumatic, but I don't miss the posts. I'm now working on hiding posts from several applications - mostly games that are played on Facebook. They clutter my news feed on a daily basis.

Today, I read an article in REALTOR magazine titled "Living Big in a Small Home." There's a lot of good information that's should be helpful whether you're moving and need to stage your house or just want to simplify your life. I hope that you find a few ideas that you can implement yourself. Click on this sentence to be directed to the article.

No matter how you decide to simplify your life, have a good year.

Recycling in Grand Rapids

It's been a few months since I've posted anything, but yesterday I saw an article in Grand Rapids magazine that got my attention. It's an article on recycling and, while it provides a good overview, the best part is the list of resources for recycling a variety of household items. In particular, I like the resources that provide a benefit to society, in addition to reducing the quantity of stuff that goes into landfills.

For example, Comprenew Environmental recycles a variety of electronic products including televisions and computers. Some products are refurbished and sold in Comprenew's store while others are dismantled and recylcled. Comprenew is a non-profit organization that provides jobs and training. You get a tax deduction.

Other good resources are the Grand Rapids Lions Club for eyeglasses; Kent District Library for books, DVDs, CDs, and games; Ronald McDonald House for pop can tabs; and Kent District Library for batteries.

To read the article or view the full list of resources, go to www.grmag.com or click on the link to Grand Rapids on the left side of this blog.

Happy recycling.

Home Ownership in Michigan

There are always a lot of facts and figures that can be quoted to help prove any point of view. For example, I read several items in the December 2008 issue of the AARP Bulletin that show two different sides of the housing situation in Michigan. First, the bad news: Michigan "has the sixth-highest housing foreclosure rate in the country." That is why "AARP is pushing for sweeping legislation that would crack down on predatory lenders."

On the positive side; Michigan, along with 13 other states including Idaho, Minnesota, South Carolina, and Maine, had the highest percentage of owner-occupied households in 2007. The U. S Census Bureau reports that, in these states, 73.3-77.6% of homes were owner-occupied. At the other end of the spectrum, Only 47.2-58.3% of homes in California and New York were owner-occupied.

It's always good to see more than one side of any story and the housing situation is Michigan is no exception.

Local First

Buying and eating local is of special interest to me for several reasons. First, I grew up in a small town in Southern Indiana. Most of my family was, and still is, engaged in farming. While I didn't appreciate it at the time, most all of our food - including all of our meat - was grown in our family garden or on our families' farms. Today, I appreciate the flavor and quality of locally produced food. Second, before I became a real estate agent, I owned and operated a retail store that focused on sustainability before the concept was widely known. I designed and furnished the store before there was a LEED certification system. I'm sure that it would have earned a gold rating, if not platinum.

Today, the concept of sustainability is more widely known and there is a much better understanding of the benefits of buying locally produced products and services. With that in mind, I recommend that you check out Local First, an organization that provides a directory and other resources for those who wish to shop for local products and services. You can find them at www.localfirst.com or click on the link that I have provided at the left of this screen.

Thanks for thinking of Local First and good eating - and shopping.