Greener holiday car travel

So, this weekend is the first of the summer holidays, and so begin the weekend car trips to familiar and new getaways. Whether you're off for a beach weekend, a hiking and camping trip, a family reunion or gathering of friends, when you hit the highway, make sure you're taking care to be as green as possible on the roads! Below are some tips we hope you take to heart this weekend and anytime you're on the road...

• If renting a car for your trip, choose one that is small and energy efficient
  
• Whenever it's safe, set your car to cruise control - it's the most gas-efficient way to cruise
• Stick to the speed limits! We don't want to nag, but not only are speed limits designed for optimum safety, they also lead to optimum fuel economy
  
• Before you start your trip, fill your tires to the recommended inflation - it helps get better gas mileage
• At higher speeds (definitely when cruising the highway), it is more fuel efficient to roll your windows up and turn your AC on for cooling - at slower speeds it's a toss-up
  
• Use a GPS! Wasting gas turning around when you make wrong turns or idling while looking at maps puts unnecessary carbon in the atmosphere...if you can save up for one, make getting a GPS an environmentally-friendly priority!
• For your own sanity, and to save gas, travel at less popular times to avoid idling in stop-and-go traffic

Not only will following all of these tips help protect the planet and reduce carbon emissions, it will save you money on gas!


We at 'g' wish you safe travels and a happy holiday!

Plant Sale @ 'g'!

While supplies last, come get Grow Your Own plants at a great discount!

We just love these cute canisters, filled with everything you need (soil, organic seeds, biodegradable seed starting cells and instructions) to grow organic tomatoes, strawberries, or cucumbers! Be a part of the movement to grow and supply your own produce...These kits are especially great if you don't have any garden space - start the seeds in your window sill or in a sunny spot, and transplant them to a small patch of dirt!

Beside canisters of Grow Your Own Strawberries, Cucumbers and Tomatoes, we have kits to grow your own....

• Cat Grass and Dog Grass (Cats and dogs are attracted to each of their grass varieties, and both grown grasses are treats as well as digestive aids!)

• Organic Mint and Basil (Great for cooking and spicing up your summer food and drink!)

• Edible Flowers - These flowers are a delicious an dazzling addition to any of your salads and makes an impressive plate garnish to entertain your family and guests! Grow your own today!

...and each of the kits above come in a biodegradable rice hull pot - plant the seeds directly into the pot, reuse it from year to year, and after you're through with it you won't have to worry about it taking up space in a landfill!

Get one of these plant kits for yourself or give one as a gift. They're also perfect for children, to give them the excitement of starting something from seed and watching it go through the plant life cycle...Stop in today before supplies run out!

Green NoNo’s

We have been giving advice on how to make a home and your lifestyle more green and eco-friendly, such as make sure to recycle, turn off lights and switch to CFLs and LED lights. How about what you shouldn’t be doing if you want to live a green life? There are a bunch of no no’s to keep in mind from day-to-day activities to remodeling approaches.




We will work on this to grow over time – but here’ a start:

1. Don’t buy bottles water or other plastic bottles drinks – we want to limit the amount of plastic that is produced in general. If we all cut down on these purchase, think of what a powerful message we’ll be sending to the producers of these items – that they need to think of alternative methods of packaging and delivery, and that bottled water is not needed if we can keep our local water sources clean and available through conservation and preventative practices for runoff and other contaminants.

2. Don’t be fooled by green-washing – There are a lot of products coming into the market place that can easily fool you into thinking that you are selecting an eco-friendly choice. We recently came upon a product from Ziploc – called “Evolve”. This product at first glance makes you think that you are purchasing some kind of recycled product – but look closer – this is not really the case. Evolve does use 25% less plastic than the “normal” Ziploc baggies – but they are very much still virgin plastic. The box is made from some recycled cardboard, and this is a good step too but its not the whole picture. They do claim that wind power is used in the production of the product and we do want to support that idea, but how much of the power is wind power – 1%, 10%, 90%?

What happens if we all start purchasing this product because we believe it is superior to their previous offerings? Than the producer, Ziploc, gets the idea that the public is gullible, which we are, and that to sell more baggies, with 25% less plastic (while charging us more for the privilege of letting them use less) is completely acceptable and a winning concept for them. When what is really happening is that yes, they are thinking about the product materials, and using less of an oil-based material, and they have recognized the marketing benefits of selling a “green” product, but they are at the same time duping us and winning at that game, and so they have no incentive to do better – to actually produce a green product, such as corn-based plastic films, use packaging that is 100% recycled, and recyclable, and that their manufacturing plants be completely dedicated to using only renewable energy sources.

If the public does not demand these measures by voting with our pocketbooks, then the companies producing these items will never need to do a complete job.


Stay tuned for more!

Product Spotlight: Solar Attic Fan

So many of your design decisions are dictated by the weather. When it's warm enough to leave windows open, you do your indoor painting. As it warms up, you realize the time has come to explore new cooling and ventilation options. You're feeling the spring weather roll in with strong force. The heat is lingering, and you know that within a month or so the heat will be reaching levels pushing discomfort...Now is the time to plan ahead.

Beat the heat, cool your hot attic, and save on your energy bills with the solar-powered Fan-Attic! The Fan-Attic uses solar power to ventilate hot air from your attic before it has a chance to increase your home's temperature.


One of our most popular fixes for ventilation is installation of a solar attic fan! Available in both "Small" and "Large", the fan uses a small solar panel (a photovoltaic cell) to create electricity from the sun that runs the mechanism to spin the fan that sucks hot air from the top of your home. Without needing any electricity, the Solar Attic Fan has a sensor that knows when your attic space is warm, and kicks into "on" mode. During the day, the fan uses solar electricity to expel warm air from your attic or crawl space, and at night it operates to ventilate and remove moist air in the space. With a small investment of $350-$499 (depending on whether or not you purchase the large or small attic fan unit) your return on investment will be that and more - without using any electricity to operate, and by dropping your cooling costs considerably, these small fans pay for themselves quite quickly!

Besides the monetary savings, you'll notice a change in comfort in the upper levels of your home, and you'll better protect the integrity of your home's building structure. Stop into 'g' to learn more about these nifty gadgets and order yours today!

Creating a More Energy Efficient Home (or Business)

When it comes to energy efficiency, it’s hard to know where to begin. You may feel drafts in the colder months, be running extra fans in the summer months, and know that you are paying more than you feel is necessary, but without some type of evaluation, whether diagnostic or visual, you’ll be plugging leaks in one space only to be letting air in through another. With the talk in Congress about the HomeStar (Cash for Caulkers) program, which will provide tax incentives and rebates for energy efficient improvements, it’s a good time to think about the state of energy affairs in your own home.

Side Bar –

A quick assessment of the energy facts:

• Global warming is a scientific fact and our leading scientists around the world are urging immediate action.
• Our energy sources are drying up (or spilling over) but if we create new sources of renewable energy as well as reduce our energy dependence, we will be able to create a sustainable world with the creature comforts we have come to embrace.
• Its healthier. We spend so much of our time indoors that the physical environments of our homes, schools and businesses are having a major impact on our physical health. Living in a healthier environment contributes not only to our health but also to our productivity, happiness and longevity.

Building Energy Assessment – You may feel able to conduct your own assessment. If so, start with a visual examination of the building both inside and outside including attic and basement spaces. If you can see through in any place, that’s an opportunity for caulking and sealing – look for daylight, feel for draughts, notice loose insulation in particularly in the basement and attic. If you need some professional input, there are a lot of options from the free audits provided by MassSave programs, which provide a limited review, to a more extensive and diagnostic approach from a professional energy assessor with blower door and duct blaster testing and infrared thermal imaging to help highlight specific areas of concern.

An energy assessment should provide both qualitative and quantitative data so that recommendations with solutions that should be implemented to address problems can be proposed in a prioritized plan of action. The cost benefits of implementing the recommendations cannot be undersold. In fact, they sell themselves. With the existing, and soon to come additional incentives, there is little reason not to put these energy savings into place immediately. We do assessments and implementation with a thorough look both visually and diagnostically and can help calculate the expected savings using your utility bill information.

Again, there are DIY options as well as many well-qualified contractors to perform the agreed upon scope of work and implement the solutions. Finally, you’ll want to repeat the diagnostic tests to be certain the work was executed properly.

Quick Fixes –

• Install Programmable Thermostats
• Use “Smart Strips” on electronic components to save on phantom energy
• Remember to turn off the lights when you leave the room, or install motion-sensors in any commercial space.

Product Spotlight: Massachusetts Woodlands Cooperative

A couple of weeks ago we introduced you to and defined FSC Certification. This week we thought we'd tell you a bit more about the FSC Certified wood that we offer at 'g'!

Massachusetts Woodlands Cooperative exclusively sells FSC certified wood flooring products, in their line of character grade flooring, Home Grown Wood.

This pup relaxes on a beautiful Ash floor

As a cooperative, Massachusetts Woodlands' wood flooring selection is grown and processed by a handful of family forests, all within a 50-mile radius of one another. All of the coop farmers comply with the FSC certification standards, therefore Mass Woodlands' entire hardwood collection is FSC certified. You can install beautiful hardwood floors by Mass Woodlands and keep the peace of mind that the wood was harvested and produced with minimal environmental impact.

These sustainably-harvested and locally (to Massachusetts) grown wood floors are offered in the following hardwoods:

• Black Cherry,
• Eastern White Pine,
• Red Oak, Red Maple,
• Red Oak,
• Sugar Maple,
• White Ash,
• Yellow & Black Birch
  

Some questions you may have...
What is character grade flooring? Character grade implies just that: the wood boards have some character. Instead of being completely uniform, your floor boards will come with some slight variations, in knottiness, you'll find both heartwood and sapwood color variations, with and without streaks, and more.

What are the specifications? These solid hardwoods come in tongue and groove plank flooring, 3/4" thickness, in mixed widths and lenghts, and are unfinished. Don't be intimidated by the fact that this flooring is unfinished - it gives you the control and opportunity to choose an environmentally-friendly, low- or VOC-free finish for your floor. Some of the finishing products we offer and recommend at 'g' include Tung Oil or an AFM Safecoat very low-VOC Polyureseal BP.

If you're wondering if it is affordable, the answer is yes (especially for an environmentally responsible hardwood)! Most of the varieties are $6-$11, depending on quantity ordered, grade, and type.

Some other companies that offer FSC Certified Wood flooring are Model, Eco Timber, and Plyboo. At 'g', we also sell FSC certified wood cabinets for your next project. We would love to show you all of your options - stop in to your local 'g' showroom or call and make an appointment to speak with one of our associates.

Product Spotlight: Loll Designs

Many of us have seen several sunny days at this point in the season, and if you're anything like us here at 'g', it makes you want to get outside! We wanted to take some time to highlight Loll Designs, a green company that will help make relaxing, or shall we say "lollygagging", outdoors just a little bit easier this spring and summer.

Loll makes unique, modern furniture out of 100% recycled plastic (post-consumer high density polyethylene, reclaimed primarily from milk jugs, to be exact). The great thing about the outdoor furniture from Loll is that it is durable, fade-resistant, and will not degrade in the elements like its traditional wood or metal counterparts!

The style is unique, and the variations endless. You get to choose from an assortment of benches, rockers, love seats, Adirondack chairs, ottomans, dining sets, and more! Loll even makes child-sized furniture so no one gets left out. Most designs come in at least a handful of colors, including bright blue, green, or red, and some more neutral whites, browns, blacks and tans.

The furniture has a reputation for being very comfortable, and extremely easy to assemble!

And, while the designs are intended for lawn and patio use, some customers choose to use them indoors as a funky alternative to your ordinary furniture (they offer dining sets that you could use in a kitchen, and other comfortable chairs and tables that do not have to be quarantined to the outdoors!).

Like many of the companies who we are proud to associate with at 'g', Loll Designs doesn't stop their environmental efforts at using recycled materials. Loll shows their company's commitment to the planet in many other realms: Read more here.

In addition, a few other fun facts touting their responsibility:

• They plant a tree for every order they ship! AND,
• For every pound of weight in a Loll chair, there was an estimated 8 recycled milk jugs being used, saving natural resources and reducing land-fill waste.

The furniture speaks for itself, and we invite you to our 'g' Mashpee showroom to have a seat in a Go Club Chair - it's so comfortable you'll want one for yourself!

And come on - don't you think Mom deserves a beautiful new eco-friendly throne to sit on and bask in the sun for Mother's Day? We thought so, too.