Shut off your engine. Idling for even 10 seconds uses as much gasoline as stopping and restarting. That may not sound like a lot, but that’s gas money being spent just to pollute the atmosphere. Wouldn’t you rather use it to buy something for you or your family? More info here
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Geothermal heating uses renewable energy to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels while reducing home heating bill by 50 – 70%. Geothermal systems (a.k.a. ground source heat pumps, water source heat pumps, geo-exchange) uses the earth’s relatively stable temperature as a heat source for heating, and a heat sink for cooling. This allows geo heating and air conditioning systems to reach incredible efficiency ratings over conventional means.
The arguments for using a geothermal heating system have never been stronger. It is more important than ever that we all spend our money wisely. So the benefit of saving 50-70% on our heating bills is easy to see, as are the benefits of reducing our carbon footprints, and keeping our energy dollars in the U.S. economy. 80% of homes in the Northeast heat by burning #2 heating oil. This accounts for 80% of #2 oil usage in the United States! In 2008, nearly $1.6 billion was spent on home heating oil. Unfortunately 75% of that money ($1.2 billion) left the U.S. economy to foreign countries. By using geothermal heat pumps & equipment manufactured in the U.S, installed by U.S. companies, and operated on U.S. generated electricity, we can solve our energy needs, maximize our economy, and improve our national security. A 30% federal tax credit is now available to homeowners who install a geothermal system and a 10% tax credit is available to businesses. This makes now the perfect time to invest in your future by installing a heating system that will save you money for decades to come while increasing the resale value of your home. Are you a hard working employee that wants to save a few dollars per year? Charge your electronic devices at work. Mobile phone, laptop, camera batteries, Plug-in car or electric scooter, etc… they all add up over time. fyi: If you are not a hardworking employee, might not want to get too crazy here. I have an electric scooter like the one pictured below and used it to commute to work for the entire year! Leaving your home for more than a few days? Consider switching off all your circuit breakers except for your fridge and heating system if needed! You will be surprised at how many appliances/household devices slurp energy when they are not in use. Remember the electric blankets of the past - the cords, lumpy spots, shock hazards, and cold mattress sheets? Check out the new kid on the block, the electric mattress heating pad. It slips on under your regular mattress cover and you can barely tell that it’s there. Gone are the heating element kinks and failures caused by rustling the blanket. The cords are completely hidden and dual controls make it easy to adjust either side to a comfortable temp. Now you can crank down your heat to 62 at night and still be a cozy 75-80 in your bed. Below is a link for you on amazon to utilize. Think of all the oil, coal, wood, or natural gas you will save during the sleeping hours. The electricity to power the blanket costs a fraction of what it would be to heat the whole home. The only hard part is getting out of bed when that alarm clock goes off in the morning,..then again with a programmable thermostat, it’s a non-issue. We all know that texting while driving is dangerous and even illegal in many states. In fact, beginning in November, the police will begin enforcing the driver cell phone ban in Philly. But lets face some facts, people are still gonna send texts while they are driving despite the risks and the fines. So here is my handy guideline for those that insist on using their handheld When sending a text, surfing, or reading your phone, rest the phone on top of the steering wheel within your hand. This gives you a snowballs chance at stopping quickly if the car ahead stops short or moves on at a light. At least you will be able to use your peripheral vision to see that the car has stopped before you slam into the back bumper. When the phone is down on your lap or under the wheel, Stevie Wonder mine as well be driving – You have no chance of avoiding impending collisions. Just last week, I saw a girl rear end a truck because her head was down and her phone was too low. Getting low in the club cool, getting your phone low in the car...not cool !! When talking on the phone don’t drive in the left lane,…you will naturally go into a trance driving mode and follow the car in front - this aggravates other drivers and causes many of them to become frustrated and aggressive. Stay in the right lane, keep a safe following distance of 2-3 seconds, and do not speed. Your brain can’t react as quickly when your yapping, as driving seems to take a back seat to your conversation cognitively. When going thru intersections, look both ways even if you have a green light. Many a driver these days are distracted and they accidentally run right thru red lights. Remember accidents happen when two people are not paying attention and they hit each other. Got a conversation that is really important or going to get intense,…I will typically pull over for these types of calls, as they can use up 95% of my focus. 5% is simply not enough focus to drive effectively. Once a call eclipses the 90% focus mark,…start thinking about finding a spot to pull over. Better yet,…initiate the really important calls when you are pulled over. Use a Bluetooth or wired headset if possible, they are dirt cheap these days and enable safer driving. Evasive driving maneuvers are very difficult with one hand If your merging onto a highway such as Route 22 or 309,..or on driving an unfamiliar road…put the phone down for a few seconds. Countless accidents have been caused by distracted merging drivers on cell phones. I have been guilty of two cell phone merging accidents on 309, one my fault about 6 yrs ago, and one by another a few months ago…both were very slow and caused no damage. But they were a wake-up call to get off the darn phone at merges. So if your going to talk, surf, or text and drive,…do it as safely as possible…or don’t do it at all. *Update 1/22/11 using your phone in any capacity except with a hands free headset while driving is illegal in Allentown. Punishment is a heavy fine which you will want to avoid. So your thinking about moving - Please consider a “used” home rather than new construction. Although many homes are built these days with greener methods than years past, there is still a huge amount of energy expended to erect a new home. Think about the material transport costs, tree removal, erosion issues, service vehicle carbon emissions, urban sprawl, wildlife displacement, and other issues that a new construction home presents. There are plenty of “previously occupied” homes that are likely suitable for your living needs/wants. Please think twice before committing to the purchase of a new home rather than an existing one that not quite perfect. Often times, spending a little to spruce up an older home is way less expensive and more satisfying than going new. So you have read about solar photovoltaic power systems for residential and business applications, but have never really seriously considered putting one on the roof? Well I have some great news. The federal and state tax implications put in place in 2009 finally give solar an ROI (return on investment) that makes sense. Take a look at the federal rules http://tiny.cc/sfQng and the PA regulations http://tiny.cc/o1Kkh Why not take advantage of Solar Power to further your savings. Imagine the pleasure of getting your power bill each month and seeing a payment due of only a few dollars instead of hundreds. Aside from the savings, think of how many tons of CO2 you will eliminate by going solar. Contact us for a quote today
You manage or work at a small to medium sized business and your looking for a way to save some money and green it up a bit more. Since you have read some previous posts and already installed high velocity hand driers and sensor activated faucets – you’re now looking for the next step. Since I have been a road warrior for the past several years,..my reliance on printed paper has become less and less. No physical printer drivers are even loaded on my work computer! I do have a free easy to use program call dopdf which simply outputs files into pdf. |
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AuthorLehigh Valley Veteran - The Green Bargain Hunter BlogrollBe the Bee Social Media Coaching Archives
February 2018
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