Pest control can be eco-friendly. There, I said it. No lightning struck me. That statement is not a contradiction in terms. In the old days Grandma would grab a can of liquid toxicity and chase pests around the house squirting with abandon. If we did that now, the EPA or Greenpeace or someone would come knocking.

Eco-friendly pest control is not like the old days. You actually have to think. You’re OK with that, right? Well here’s how it goes. Look all the way around the outside of your home. Walk slowly, paying attention to every detail. Look for any crack and crevice, even the tiny ones. A mouse can fit through a very small hole and termites can enter through a tiny crack.

Now that you’ve been around the house, you know where the problems are. Your mission is to caulk up every last opening. Yes, ever single one. Any opening you leave will be an invitation to one pest or another to set up housekeeping. Before you know it their kids, friends and relatives are visiting and you have a serious problem. You can prevent it, though. Caulk up every little opening.

For larger openings use the expanding foam stuff sold at the hardware and big box stores. Window screens need to be repaired or replaced. Look at the weather stripping around doors and replace it if needed. Install a door sweep if there’s a gap under the door. Check out the trees and shrubs near the house. Cut them back if they’re getting close. They could easily become a bug highway.

Grab your favorite cool refreshment and take a break. Then start on the inside of the house. Why? For the same reason the oil tankers have two hulls. In case one is breached the other will hold. Repeat as above. Caulk every little crack and crevice again in every room, from ceiling to floor. When you’re done you should feel pretty smug – “No bugs getting’ in this house, no sir.” Now walk over to your calendar and make a date with yourself to inspect the house and re-caulk as needed again in 6 months. Get in the habit. Every 6 months.

The initial caulking and inspection is the worst. The re-inspection and touch up are easy. This should be the foundation of your pest control efforts. If every homeowner followed suit, pest control problems would be cut in half. Most industry professionals know about this practice. The good companies either follow this practice or require you to do it. If pests can’t enter your home, you’ll simply have no pest problems.

What if pests were already in the house when it was sealed up? Good question. Now is the time to deal with those critters. It’s time to clean house thoroughly. You’ll want to remove anything that they could use for food, water and shelter. When they get nice and hungry we’ll offer some baits. Vacuum thoroughly everywhere you can think of. Like under the bed, in between the sofa cushions and inside all the cabinets. Remember those cobwebs? Get rid of them. If you have any leaks in the bathroom and kitchen, now is the time to fix them.

What was the last pest you saw or felt in your home? Roaches, fleas and ants are the most common. But it might have been a different pest. No matter what it was, look them up online or in a library. To eliminate them you’ll need to know their lifecycle and their habits. Eco- friendly pest control uses something more powerful than pesticides – knowledge.

If you have followed along and will follow the above steps, you’ll take an enormous step toward eliminating pests in your home without using any pesticides at all. But this is just a beginning, Eco-friendly pest control is a huge topic and one article can’t cover it. Future articles will include how ancient people dealt with pests before pesticides existed, pest ID, baits and much more.

Many people have wondered if there is any other option besides hybrid vehicles that they can drive that is cheaper than regular gas and that is better for the environment. Well the truth of the matter is that there are many different alternative fuel options available.

One great option is a CNG car. These vehicles are either dedicated to natural gas or are bi fuel and can also run off of regular gasoline. These vehicles are typically factory made or have a cng conversion kit installed. The big three automakers stopped making factory cng cars in 2004 when they came out with their flex fuel cars.

There is no need to fear if you cannot find a factory made car on the market. You can add a cng conversion kit to any type of car, even diesel engines! These kits are amazing as they maximize your engine power, miles per gallon, and your engine life. Many cng engines have gone 1 million miles before dying.

CNG cars are superior to hybrid vehicles. The reason why is because with a hybrid car you still pay the high gas price and support foreign oil. Natural gas on the other hand is all made right here in the USA and is much much cheaper than gasoline. Natural gas burns about 90% cleaner than regular gasoline as well so its much better for the environment.

Dual Fuel and Bi Fuel simply mean that a car can run off of two separate fuels. This is very advantageous because if you are ever in an area that does not offer natural gas you can still fill up your car with regular gasoline so you can still drive it. Some vehicles are considered to be tri fuel as they can run on cng, gasoline, and flex fuel E85.

With the growing number of CNG conversion kits on the market it is very important to do your research. We have a lot of information on our website to help you learn as much as you can about the cng kits available that will work with your vehicle.

With all the buzz about going green and being eco-friendly, I decided to see how living green could be applied to the fashion industry. I quickly learned there is a lot more to the topic than I originally thought and that the post I was planning would be best split into multiple parts.

Going green or being eco-friendly are terms that relate to products and/ or lifestyles that are environmentally friendly. This can mean consuming less natural resources, using sustainable resources, using organic products, recycling, creating less waste, and much more. The more septs in the production process that are eco-friendly, the greener the end product.

In fashion, the most effective way to be eco-friendly is to simply buy less clothing, shoes, and accessories. The next most effective is to purchase used items from garage sales or thrift stores, reducing the amount of new products that need to be manufactured, keeping goods from ending up in landfills, and often making a charitable contribution at the same time. Another good option is to Freecycle which is a great way to get (and give!) free stuff locally. With the average American throwing out 68 pounds of clothing and textiles a year, it is easy to see how these options can make a huge difference.

Now, I am not denying these are great options, but in my fashionista heart of hearts, I love clothes, I love shoes, and I certainly love my handbags. Most of all I love shopping, the thrill of the hunt, and capturing that elusive great deal. For shoppers like me, there is still a glimmer of hope. Team Treehugger gives the following tips for building a green wardrobe on Planet Green.

You’ve heard it before, but shop with a plan! Pretend that a new item of clothing is like a new kitten, it needs a home where it will be loved and appreciated. Don’t just through it in the closet full of other clutter. It needs to be valued and most importantly, worn. Ask yourself: Will I wear this in two years? Can I wear something like this at work? How will it go with my other items and accessories? Will I still want to wear this rhinestone-studded bustier after I get it home? If not, then don’t make the impulse buy! I know, it sounds boring, because we love the impulse buy, but if it doesn’t fit into your long term fashion plan than skip it.

Love your duds! No matter what you’ve chosen to buy, treat them right. Have a comfortable leisure outfit you can change into when you get home from work. Don’t lounge around the couch, cook or check the tire pressure in your nice work clothes. You’ll be amazed at how long they will last if you take care of them. Learn how to sew a button on a jacket or how to coax a kind friend to do it for you. Have a local seamstress help out with major repairs or alterations.

Don’t go dry. Though the industry has improved much since 1992, there is still a high likelihood that your trusty corner cleaner uses perc (tetrachloroethylene), a known carcinogen. See if there is a local green cleaner employing wet cleaning or liquid CO2 techniques. Many articles whose tags ask for the dry clean treatment can actually be hand washed, especially silk, wool and linen.

Vintage and used clothing are great alternatives. Try a second hand shop and you’ll be suprised what good items you can find. They say ones trash is anothers treasure and it’s true! From Oscar-worthy vintage dresses to Freecycled denim, you can most likely find something that fits just right and for a lot less money. Often, you’re helping out charities at the same time. Everyone wins.

The more you wash your clothes, the worst it is for the environment. If you don’t have to wash it, don’t! Make a thin salt paste to soak fabrics in if they need a little extra TLC. Choose phosphate-free and biodegradable detergents if you can. If you’re looking for a new washing machine, of course, look for the Energy Star label. Every little bit helps.

Organic clothing can make a difference. Although cotton fabric is marketed as fresh, clean and natural- conventional varieties are not. A third of a pound of chemical fertilizers and pesticides are used to create the cotton for only one T-shirt. That’s a lot of direct, unhealthy exposure for wildlife and farmers- not to mention the pollution. Yuck! Thankfully, organic cotton is becoming eaasier to find all the time. Many large stores are getting involved, but we still need to be vigilant about what organic means- to make sure your organic t shirt may have started out that way, processing chemicals and metal-laden dyes may have changed it completely.

Canvas grocery bags have recently been making an appearance at the entrance to many grocery stores, selling for about $2 per bag. We know that plastic bags are bad for the environment, but are stores really trying to be more environmentally friendly, or are they just trying to get their customers to buy something else? Are canvas bags really more efficient than plastic bags?

In some countries, it makes sense to bring your own canvas bag into the store because some places charge their customers for the bags that their groceries get put into-even the cheap plastic ones. In countries like Ireland, who has put a customer tax on the plastic bags themselves, it’s cheaper to take your own bag than to rely on the ones at the store.

On the other hand, the United States is more dependent on their cars than some other countries. When customers walk, ride a bike, or take public transport to the grocery store, they tend to buy fewer items at once, although they might visit more often.

In the United States, with our abundance of large vehicles and long distances, shoppers tend to visit the grocery store just a couple of times per month and buy large quantities at once. For this kind of shopping, is it practical to use canvas bags when one shopping trip alone can garner more than a dozen of the plastic bags?

Yet, we still know that canvas is better for the environment. Some cities in the United States are now making laws to try to curb our plastic habit. San Francisco recently passed a law making it illegal for large grocery stores to use plastic bags. As an alternative, they offer biodegradable paper bags. Boston is also considering doing this, although some customers allege that doing this causes a new kind of problem with the environment-the cutting down of trees.

Still, most shoppers who have made the switch and use canvas bags say that they feel good that they are doing their part to be environmentally responsible.

Although less than 3% of plastic bags are recycled and many end up in landfills, flying through the air on windy days, and clogging city drains, some people have found creative ways to re-use the bags. Some shoppers report that they have used them to line kitty-litter boxes or to use in small garbage cans throughout the house.

There is also the argument that plastic bags are being made of a poorer quality than in the past and that the canvas bags actually do a better job of holding the groceries in. True, for most heavy purchases, the plastic bags have to be doubled, while the canvas bag can hold more weight. Also, plastic bags run the risk of tearing when the corner of a cereal box cuts into it at just the right angle.

Paper bags of the past were more environmentally friendly, but they weren’t always user-friendly. Most lacked handles and were hard to carry. Canvas bags have handles, making them easier to tote around.

If customers don’t want to purchase a canvas bag at the grocery store, they can always find them online or in other shops. There are many websites that sell canvas grocery bags and they can usually be personalized as well.

If shoppers want to go this route and find one elsewhere, they can usually find some that come with shoulder straps, which come in handy when walking long distances.

Although it does make more environmental sense to use the canvas bag instead of resorting to the plastic bags, it also takes a little more work on the customer. Instead of making large purchases at the store, it might be helpful to go a couple of times a week and purchase fewer groceries at one time. Or, to just buy quite a few canvas bags.

On the upside, although the canvas bags run around $2 per bag, they do generally last a while. If used correctly, they should last the average shopper around six months. Some are even made from recycled material for those who are environmentally conscious and can be washed several times.

At the moment, it’s up the customer as to whether or not they want to use the plastic bags or purchase canvas. However, if laws continue to be passed making it illegal to use plastic, it might not be a choice for much longer. In that case, it might be a good idea to go ahead and switch to the canvas bags now.

Last time in my “How To Go Green” post, we made an attempt to define what it means to “go green”. I said I was a “bright green”. Now, in going green we need to understand a carbon footprint. A simple equation would be the lifestyle we choose to live will affect how we directly or indirectly contribute to greenhouse gas production. Now if we can measure it, we may be able to reduce it.

So, what evidence do we have that global warming is occurring and is not a natural event? Does this repeat over long periods or is it a new phenomenon? Most of the articles I have found seem to link back to a few oceanographers’ studies and the study of the ice pack.

When reading the original studies I found that even they would admit that the current sampling is too small, and more research needs to be done. What they did find was very limited in the span of earth history. In the 4.54 billion years the earth is said to have existed, we have only about 680,000 years of CO2 history from the ice pack study. If you divide that study by the earth’s age you get about .01 percent. When we use the data from global recorded temperatures, it is even smaller at a sampling of .00004 percent.

That doesn’t seem like very compelling evidence, but evidence all the same. Does it mean I should ignore this evidence? No! On the contrary, we use very small samples every day to inform us about air quality, disease rates, cancer cells, and blood cell counts. Even samples as small as parts per billion of poison can kill us.

I am not in any way upset by the talk and use of carbon offsets. That is just being responsible. I do have one concern though: what long term evidence do we have that we are not going to adversely affect the climate with the reforestation processes we have put in place? In the mean time, when I go to a store, I try to get all I need in one trip and not make unnecessary trips — which will reduce my fuel use.

For one, with technology, we have greatly reduced our demand for electricity. Computers, CAD software, and new packaging methods have helped us reduce the size and the electrical demand of appliances.

Integrated circuits are reduced to sizes unimaginable just a few years ago. Televisions, computer displays, and a host of other display devices have reduced our demand for energy to levels unheard of 20 years ago.

With this information about our carbon footprint we can reduce our current electrical, gas, and heating demands. This in turn will help future generations, and if nothing else, conserve our natural resources. So what is your personal carbon footprint? Check out the carbon footprint calculator I have linked to in my author resource box, and start reducing your carbon footprint.

As you pull up to the fuel station pump and fuel your car up with $10-$50 worth of gas, you may find yourself releasing a long drawn out sigh. How on Earth did petrol get to be so expensive? Should you check out one of those new hybrid cars you saw on the television? Everyone’s talking about hybrid cars anyway. Hybrid cars and other types of cars may seem like a good idea, but before you go out and do something rash, maybe you should ask yourself a few basic questions about how you can start saving money on gas.

There are many options out there that include everything from staying home to purchasing a hybrid car, but you have to find out what’s right for you. You can only do that by asking yourself the following questions.

Should you just drive less?

Of course, you could spend the rest of your life in the house watching television, but how would you eat then? I know what you’re thinking you will walk more and get more exercise. That may be true, but what happens when you get bored with walking and riding your bike? How are you going to be able to get to the gymnasium? And, have you forgotten about work? You know you love listening to your books on tape while you sit in traffic at the end of the workday. Should you drive less? Perhaps not then. But what should you do? Well, have you ever considered buying a hybrid car?

Should I buy a car that is more economical on gas?

Yes, of course you could do this, but what about when the vehicle starts to depreciate with age and it becomes less fuel-efficient than you thought it would be? Moreover, because you know you have a car that is getting more mileage out of fuel, you are going to start driving more miles than you travelled beforehand.

Should I get up earlier each morning to look for the cheapest gas prices in the area?

Really, who has the time for all that? If you really think about it, you could probably spend your time more profitably finding the right answer to the real question. Do you really want to spend extra time looking for a cheap petrol station? What would your boss think if you arrive late for work and tell him you were trying to save money on fuel? And anyway, how long do you think you’d keep that up?

Should I find a way to run my car on batteries?

Well, let’s see now, you definitely don’t want to have to charge your car’s batteries every day before you go to work because that might make you late too. However, with a hybrid car, you wouldn’t have to worry about that. Therefore, the next question should be quite obvious.

Should I purchase a hybrid car?

Maybe you should. It’s possible that buying a hybrid car would be a sensible way to avoid high gas prices. Does your car depreciate after you drive it off the forecourt? A hybrid won’t do that so readily. It brings the buyer in more and more money as they save on gas. A hybrid car just might be a good choice here. However, it’s still a good idea to conduct further research on a hybrid car.

If you want to donate clothes and don’t know how, the chances are you aren’t going to donate at all! However, there are so many great reasons to donate clothes and all it takes is a little effort! I’ve put together a few simple steps that you can easily follow to do something good with those clothes you no longer wear.

What do I need to donate clothes? You need the clothes themselves (as well as any shoes, accessories, jewellery and so on) and some bags or boxes to put them all in.

What to Do Before You Donate

1) Firstly you need to sort through your clothes. This is often the hardest part, as you need to be brutally honest about things that don’t fit you anymore, things that you haven’t worn in years, things you no longer like, or things that you are just never going to wear. Could anyone else benefit from these? The chances are that they can! And this is why you should be donating.

2) Now you need to get your clothes ready to be donated. You could just donate dirty, damaged items. But if you want to be eco chic and self-conscious then be nice! Clean any dirty shoes with a wipe, wash any clothes that really smell or look dirty, do whatever needs doing. It isn’t completely necessary, it just shows you’ve spared a thought for those volunteers who are going to sort through them.

3) Now it’s time to pack up all of the items. Fold them neatly so they’re all ready to be donated.

When It Comes to Donation Time

There are a number of different ways you can donate the clothes you’ve sorted:

Clothing Bins – These are such a convenient option, found anywhere from high streets to supermarkets! It’s so simple, just pop the bag of clothes into the bin through the appropriate hole!

Charity Shops – This is a common option. Great if you want to choose a specific cause that your donating clothing is going to help out. But don’t just leave your clothes out on their doorstep, vulnerable to damage of the elements and general public! Go into the shop and hand them over to the volunteers.

Online – Yes, the internet is now providing a solution to everything. Just do a quick search and you’ll find loads of places that can help you be more eco conscious.

Conclusion

Are you still not convinced that you should donate clothes? Then get yourself onto some eco friendly fashion blogs to read just why it will help so many people, including yourself. And all for just a few hours worth of effort!

Hydro-power has been used for a variety of functions over the years. It was used in flour mills, where water-wheels turn a shaft, that ground the flour, and even in irrigation system thousands of years ago. These days, it has a more prominent role as a renewable source of energy.

There are three methods to producing hydro-power: hydro-electric energy, tidal energy. and through ocean waves.

Hydroelectric dams:

This form of hydro power accounts for over 90% of all renewable energy generated. Power is generated in large dams, where water is forced through large turbines.

The advantage of this type of power is that not only does it produce electricity, but the dam helps collect water for our use, so it’s a power and water source in one. Furthermore, the force of the water is so strong that megawatts of electricity can be produced to help power entire cities.

However, many governments have come under scrutiny for using hydro-electric dams. These dams tend to flood a lot of land where thriving communities live. They can affect various plants and animals in the region, and cut-off the water supply for communities living downstream.

Tidal Power:

With tidal energy, hydro-power is generated as the tides comes in and goes out.

This has been achieved by France and Russia since 1966 in areas with a large tidal range, such as bays and estuaries. One of the systems of tidal power works by trapping water at high tide with a tidal barrage, then releasing that water in one quick burst at low tide. This gushing water drives turbines to produce power.

Although the tides are very predictable and consistent, the problem with this system is that the turbines only operate every 6 hours (once every tide).

The latest tidal power system operates where large windmill-type turbines are placed in shallow water, and spin slowly as the tide comes in and goes out.

The nice thing about this tidal system is that the technology is advanced and derived from our land-based wind turbines. And water is much denser than air, meaning it takes only a small current to get the turbine spinning.

The drawback is that the current systems can only be built in shallow water, where tidal activity is greatest. This is very limiting since many other economic activities – like oyster farming – occur in the shallows. Furthermore, these structures can damage marine life on the seafloor.

Power from the oceans waves:

This is the youngest of the three hydro-power solutions. The system harnesses the power from ocean surface wave motion, where air displaced by waves is driven through a generator than spins a turbine. The end result is electricity. These generators can either be coupled to floating devices outta sea, or fixed along the shore where seas are rough.

What makes this technology so appealing is it potential to harness over two thousand megawatts of power that the ocean’s waves contain.

However, wave power systems do have environmental concerns. Their hydraulic fluids could leak out into the ocean, causing water pollution. And the fixed structures on the coastline, can damage the natural plant and animal life on the seafloor.

Conclusion:

Man has developed innovative techniques to harness the power of water to produce electricity. But, like most renewable energy solutions there will always be social and environmental impacts.

With the burden on the earth’s natural resources becoming more onerous, alternative electric energy is becoming less of an option and more of a necessity. The toll on the environment also requires us to explore realistic solutions to preserve dwindling resources.

Demand for fossil fuels such as oil, gas and coal have led to the depletion of the earth’s natural resources. The world’s forestry reserves are in trouble too as they are being cut down to supplement energy requirements. Solutions are desperately being sought in order to avert global disaster.

Many people think of alternative electric energy as advanced scientific concepts that are too complicated for the ordinary lay man. While many alternative energy systems are indeed high technology, the principle behind most of them is actually quite straight forward. The basic idea is to harness energy sources that are infinitely available or renewable to produce electricity instead of depleting finite sources any further.

There is nothing new about using renewable sources for energy. Many alternative electric energy systems are simply an updated version of old fashioned technology. Sources of energy can be generated using the power of the wind, sun or water.

The old windmills that were used by farmers to grind wheat can still be seen as historic artifacts gracing many European landscapes. Modern alternative electric energy windmills now turn to produce electricity instead of mill grain. The basic principles behind the old and the new windmills is essentially the same. Both trap the wind’s energy in great vanes which turn a shaft. Old mill shafts were connected to millstones while their modern counterparts spin turbines that produce electricity.

The cleanest and cheapest alternative electricity energy system for providing electricity to a national grid is hydro power. Hydro electric power is again a modern adaptation of old water wheels that were used for milling in the past. The historical varieties were commonly placed in a river where rushing water could rotate the wheel. Today, modern hydro power plants are placed on the edge of a dam. As water falls from the higher level to the lower level, it forces its way past turbine blades causing them to spin. Turbines feed generators that produce electricity. Many countries use hydro electric power because of its cost effectiveness. These systems are also encouraged because of their non polluting characteristics.

Solar power is an increasingly popular alternative electric energy system that uses the rays of the sun to produce electricity. Solar panels are a very modern creation and perhaps a little more complex in how they work. The sun’s energy is caught up in special photo voltaic cells which converts it into usable energy that can be stored in batteries. Solar power is the alternative electric energy system that is most adaptable for domestic use.

If you are considering purchasing a hybrid car, you may be listening to quite a bit of “gossip”. Some people think the hybrid car is the best thing on the market. Other people say it’ll just pass. Yet other people again say they think they can save a lot of money, but you’re not certain it’s really worth it. What is the truth, and how do you separate fact from fiction with all of the stuff that is being said to you? Below, you can read and consider the common hybrid car myths.

Hybrid cars are the same as electric cars: This is not true because hybrid cars are fuel-powered for the most part. They have what are called ‘battery assists’. The assist is powered by a nickel-metal hydride battery pack that is rechargeable.

You are guaranteed to save money with a hybrid car: If you are doing town driving, you may economize on gas and you may not. The same goes for highway driving. There are so just many different factors involved. It has been said that if everyone bought a hybrid car, the fuel consumption would decrease by only 10%. That’s not a very big decline, now is it?

A hybrid vehicle’s battery can run flat: A hybrid car battery should not run flat while you are actually driving it. The engine of a hybrid vehicle does not idle when stopped (at a red traffic light for instance). What does it do then? Well, it recharges its battery. So there is no need to worry about a hybrid car stopping on that score.

A hybrid vehicle’s rechargeable battery only lasts for two years: A hybrid car certainly would not be worth purchasing if this was true. A hybrid car’s rechargeable batteries usually come with an 8-year guaranty.

If I run out of fuel, I can keep driving on the hybrid car battery: Keep in mind, a hybrid car’s battery is an assist. That means that hybrid car’s still run on fuel. After you run out of gas, the battery may keep the car running for a little while. However, the car will stop running very soon.

Hybrid cars will soon put conventional car dealers out of business: This probably won’t happen very soon. The reason for the delay has to do with the how much hybrids cost. Most people simply can’t afford one. Also, people just aren’t sure whether they will actually save money by buying a hybrid car. Therefore, they are loathe to join the rush of people who want to own a hybrid vehicle.

Hybrid cars will only save you about 88 dollars per annum: I did hear something on the news once, but it may be untrue. If there’s something you really want and there’s a lot of gossip surrounding it, you simply have got to do of your own research. There are many different types of hybrid car, and many different manufacturers make them. This means that there may be much more involved than we have time to discuss here. A hybrid car may be of use to you, and it may not, but at the end of the day, is up to you.

So, don’t worry too much about what people say. Do your own research and make up your own mind. Use the Internet to get information. The manufacturer’s advertising is also useful, if you stick to reading the facts and gloss over the hype. Check that what the literature claims is also in the guarantee.