I want to suck your Watts!
Standby power refers to the electrical power an appliance draws just by being plugged into the outlet. This is also referred to as "vampire" or "phantom" load because the appliance is just sucking power from your wall (and money from your wallet).
Just about all...
I'm a big fan of Energy Star, the joint program between the Department of Energy and the Environmental Protection Agency. The combination of a well put-together website, great information, their partners, and tools they provide make them extremely valuable in energy conservation. While doing...
The April edition of U.S. News & World Report was their Energy and Environment issue and had a wealth of great information on the "Green Economy". One of their articles was "The Trouble With the Numbers" and highlighted the Energy Information Agency (EIA), run by the Department of Energy (DOE...
You may have heard of the plan going through Congress affectionately labeled "Cash for Clunkers" that would allow you to turn in an old, poor mileage car in order to get a tax incentive for a new, higher mileage car. Debating whether that is a good use of taxpayers money is one thing, but let's...
Tankless Water Heater Diagram
Tankless water heaters, also known as instantaneous or on-demand water heaters, have become pretty popular lately. I mean, who can resist the allure of "never ending hot water"! But while they may be more efficient than a standard tank-style water heater, do some...
TED 5000
***Update 10/6/09 - Google has announced they are working with the TED 5000 as a device partner for their Google Power Meter software. Follow the link above to learn about it and to update your firmware. This is pretty big news and will no doubt send sales of the TED 5000 through the...
If you're interested in an excellent Solar PV overview Michael Bluejay has it covered pretty well here: http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/solar.html
My only recommendation (which I am going to email him) is to add PVWatts.org to his site!
Green Jobs Now
While it may not always be easy to be green, it doesn't necessarily mean that it is hard. Counter-intuitive much? What I mean by that statement is that being truly green is not something a "lazy environmentalist" can do. A "lazy environmentalist" can do the absolute minimal...
Below is a great video from TED of Interface Carpet's CEO Ray Anderson. Mr. Anderson's book, Mid-Course Correction was one of the first books I read on Sustainability and really got me thinking: If this guy can turn his company from a polluter to a sustainable operation, why can't all companies...
Yesterday I received an email from Damon Moglen, the Greenpeace Global Warming Campaign Director. While I applaud his efforts, I feel he is failing to look at the issue in a Sustainable manner, something that has plagued the environmental movement for years.
You can see his email and my response...
Rain Barrel
Rarely does Mother Nature provide your lawn or garden with just enough rain to keep if fat and happy throughout the Summer. Usually your little green friends suffer through days of hot weather only to be rewarded with torrential downpours which requires them to binge drink (do plants...
Check out my post chilling over at http://www.paystolivegreen.com/
So I just commented on this CCS article on Sci Am. When can we get a dialogue going on this topic???
Just added this mini-post tool so I can keep the blog more up-to-date. It will be like Twitter.
Why don't I just use Twitter? I do, and you can follow me on ckmapawatt, but I do post some personal stuff on Twitter, and I will keep the mini-posts relevant to Mapawatt or Sustainable thought.
How's this Window doing?
It's often hard to look through windows and see more than what's outside. You can see light coming in, but it's hard to see the ultra-violet radiation that is heating up your home or heat that is already in your home escaping through the glass. But just as...
I was going to finish up the blog on Window Glazing today, but I'm heading up to the mountains to do my bike race (century ride finishing on highest mountain in Georgia) and I'm running low on time.
I would like to say thanks to the readers. This has been a great week with an average number of...
Money down the Outlet
The bad news keeps rolling in: job loss, falling housing prices, falling stock market, growing national debt, etc., etc., etc. Not only do we have to worry about our wonderful declining economy, but we also get to look forward to rising temperatures and energy prices. ...
Green-e Logo
Have you asked yourself, "What is Green Energy?" Most big utilities are now offering the ability to purchase "green" energy, but what does that really mean? How do you know you aren't just buying "dirty" energy and it's getting called green? Today I signed up for a "block" of...
[caption id="attachment_685" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Solar Map"]
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The first thing to do when trying to decide if Solar PV or Thermal will work for you is to never listen to what politicians say. Do your own research! The map at left is a good start to gauge how well a...
Solatube
When I first saw the Solatube my first thought was, "Why have I never seen this before?" How much simpler could a product be? It is basically a tube that goes from your celing to your roof, catches sunlight, and pipes it down to brighten your home or office. Forget discussing...