Posted by Caren – April 3, 2008 10:39 AM
Tags: eco-friendly, green
Thanks for posting lots of green advice and questions on my previous post about Why Green Matters. To help you in your quest to go green indoors, I've dug up some answers:
Carmen asks: When remodeling a kitchen or bathroom does the use of natural stone such as granite help you to go green? Can granite be considered since it does not give off gases inside the home environment?
Answer: Granite is a non-renewable resource, so using it in your home is actually an example of not going green. Green options include recycled quartz or glass countertops. It's true that granite doesn't off-gas, but these other counter materials won't either and you'll get an equally stunning look without all the maintenance of granite.
Kathaleen asks: Any ideas on a safe and green flooring alternative to carpet?
Answer: Absolutely! Bamboo flooring, cork flooring (very soft and safe for children), linoleum and reclaimed and sustainably harvested wood are all great alternatives. I especially love Shaw Floors. We used them in the HGTV Green Home because their products are absolutely gorgeous — and green!
sf asks: A friend informed me that the compact fluorescent light bulbs have mercury in them.
1. Is this true?
2. If so, how are we to dispose of the bulbs and the mercury if and when they ever stop working?
Answer: Lighting is one of the most important things to consider in a room design. Unfortunately, yes CFLs do contain mercury. The common argument about mercury in CFLs is that we're solving one problem (wasting energy) with another (introducing harmful chemical into the home). Carter Oosterhouse and I spoke about this on the podcast (coming soon!), and he pointed out that Sylvania, an Energy Star certified company, is working on creating CFL models with less mercury.To recycle CFLs, you can use Sylvania's RecyclePaks that ship through U.S. mail to the company's recycling center. Or, take them to your local hazardous waste recycling center. Don't put them in the trash, because they'll break before reaching the landfill, and expose workers and our groundwater to the neurotoxin.
Commenter mcgyver adds: "If you should break a CFL in your house... clean it up with rubber gloves and a dustpan. Do not vacuum as it can ruin your vacuum and spread fine particles of mercury into the air."
Terri asks: I do as much as I can but I as well would like more ideas that I can implement into my own home that would help me to go green. I do the CFL and have already saved $20 on my bill,etc.
Answer: Part of being green is having better air quality at home, so one easy solution is to always paint or stain with no- or low-VOC products.Other quick solutions include bamboo or organic cotton bedding, burning soy candles, buying decor locally and refurbishing or recycling furniture rather than buying new. These design tricks were all used by Linda Woodrum, interior designer of the HGTV Green Home.
Have anything to add? Help others keep going green by posting in the comments.
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Remember that the absolute best way to go green is to reuse or reappropriate items that are already in your home! Buying new products is almost never more green that fixing up old things (including garage sale items)!
Posted by Shasta – April 4, 2008 12:52 AM
I broke one of these bulbs and NOW I find out that I could have been POISONED!!!!!! What should I do besides totally freak out?
Posted by laura lockridge – April 4, 2008 10:51 AM
If all the mercury in a CFL (5 mg) would evaporate, and it escaped into a non-ventilated room of 50 cubic meters, the mercury level would be below what is allowable for work. With a 8 ft tall room, that is 200 sq ft or 20 sq meter.
Not all the mercury evaporates, and there is ventilation, so there is no cause for alarm. Certainly not a 'lifetime dose' - an medical mercury thermometer would contain 700 mg of mercury - the equivalent of 140 CFL bulbs.
That said, mercury is bad in any dose. If a thermometer was dropped the advice was to spread some flour of sulfur. That is probably not worth the effort for a CFL.
Posted by Thomas – April 4, 2008 11:17 AM
I would like to find out more information on solar panels in order to be able to convert my apartment to be off the grid. I live in Puerto Rico, would you know anyone down here or where I could get information on this.
Posted by Yaminna Morales – April 4, 2008 3:50 PM
I am so weary of the terms green, eco-friendly, organic. They denote a mindset that is is religously passionate that humans are destroying the environment and that if such humans sacrifice comfort, economically feasible fuel sources, ambition to succeed financially we can avoid mass destruction. Of course, the lack of scientifically verifiable data to support the coming calamity is of no concern. My goodness, the sky is falling!!!!
Posted by Carolyn Porter – April 5, 2008 3:51 PM
Thomas is right, mercury is nasty stuff but luckily you can handle it safely with certain basic precautions. If you would like to increase your preparedness and safety in the future, you can find basic mercury spill kits online for about $30 to $40 dollars. Granted, the thought of having a mercury spill kits doesn’t sound very “green” but having the kit is simply a safety procedure for working with these types of bulbs and as long as you recycle the bulbs, you are still being quite green.
As an alternative, you could choose to use LED bulbs, which do not contain mercury. They are more expensive initially and may not offer the type of light you want but are certainly worth a try.
Posted by Jared – April 6, 2008 9:51 AM
I saw an ad once to use cold newly-brewed coffee as furniture stain. To keep this stain you have to cover it with sealer with low or no VOC right?
I refinish a lot of furniture from thrift stores and want to make sure I'm staying green.
Posted by Dawn – April 7, 2008 2:55 PM
We are such a wasteful nation. I not only recycle but rarely buy anthing new. I waited over a year to furnish my living room. I knew exactly what I wanted but did not want to buy "new". I had friends looking out for what I wanted and got a call re an estate sale. I bought the entire living room; couch, love seat, two chairs, solid cherry end tables, coffee table, lamps, and wall decor for $1,000. Most people rarely use their formal livng rooms and after 4 years, mine still looks new and lovely.
Posted by beebee – April 20, 2008 12:08 AM
what kind of counter tops that are green do not give gas off.
Posted by jan – April 24, 2008 4:47 AM
Hi Caren,
We are textile artists,and our small home based
studio is located in Euless,Texas.
We specialize in Handwoven rugs,many of which
are one-of-a-kind,making them more of a unique
handcrafted item.
We are happy to now be able to share our work
through our website.
www.genestrausweavingstudio.com
Please feel free to look around.We will be adding
more items soon,as we have several projects in
the making.
Please drop us a note with any comments,or
questions that you might have.
Thank you very much for your time.We look forward
to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Kelly Stewart
Kenny Nix
PS:We use are recycled materials in our weavings,
such as discarded wool selvages,denim(recycled blue jeans)
clothing,scrap leather.
Posted by Kelly Stewart & Kenny Nix – April 25, 2008 10:25 AM
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