Weatherproof your Doors & Save Energy

Trying to heat the whole neighborhood?

Doors by their definition are meant to be opened... and closed. When
in use, it is the single largest hole in your home insulation. So make
sure when it's not in use, it is truly closed. Not only will it save
you money, it can keep the critters out too. Those cockroaches love to
come in from the cold when the mercury starts dropping.

Take a look at the weatherstripping or door sweep and make sure it is
not worn. If it's cracked or torn, or it's obvious there's a gap, you
should replace it.

An easy test to see if you have gaps in the seal of your door is a
light test. After dark, shine a flashlight around the edge of the door
and have someone on the other side watch for the light shining through.
If you see a gap, you'll want to address it.


For the bottom of the door you have a few options. Door sweeps attach
to the bottom of the door and have a rubber or plastic botom that seals
the gap between the bottom of the door and the threshold. It's pretty
easy to install... but it does require drilling into the door. For
instance, you could try the Macklanburg-Duncan Automatic Door Sweep
for doors that open into carpeted areas or over an area rug. If it's a
hardwood or tile floor, consider the Macklanburg-Duncan Standard 36
inch Door Sweep. If you live in an apartment or don't want to drill,
you can try solutions like the Hampton Direct Twin Draft Guard or Home
Décor Blue Draft-Dodger. These attach without modifying the door for
easier installation.

How to be green in Atlanta.

We are inundated with so much information about 'being green' by the media that sometimes you just don't know where to start. One Atlanta based company attempts to address this issue.

Green Girl Atlanta educates you on how to be green, providing you with ways to make eco-friendly choices in your daily life and reduce your negative impact on the Earth and our environment. Green Girl Atlanta works closely with you to establish your goals, manage your expectations, and make instant changes for your lifestyle and household. Services include, but are not limited to: recycling, energy bill assistance, water conservation, green pet care, green baby and child care and décor, paper waste reduction, organic food, organic cleaning supplies, energy star appliances, junk mail reduction, eco friendly paint, organic upholstering, and green gardening tips.

Green Girl Atlanta was started by Esther Ayers who is a Green Consultant currently living in Atlanta, Ga. Esther continually self-educates on modern best-practices on sustainability and energy efficiency and would love to share this knowledge.

How to Save Electricity with Holiday Lights.. Use LED Lights & Light Timers.

The holidays are just around the corner. Almost time to put up the holiday lights. But if you're like me, you want to be festive but habor some guilt around putting up holiday lights because they use up so much energy. Assuming you put up the lights end of November and take them down end of December for an average of 5 hours daily that's around 150 hours! According to a study done by the Washington State University Energy Program the average cost of lighting up 5 standard C-7 light string with 25 bulbs(that has incandescent bulbs) for 150 hours uses up 500W and costs around $26.8. That almost $27 for not a lot of lights. Most houses probably use up 2-3 times that. So what do you do to save energy?

The answer is LED Holiday Lights. They are safer, don't heat up as much use a fraction of the energy. Using the same example. an LED light string would use up 12W of energy and cost $6,2. Take for instance this C6 LED Light String. It contains 70 bulbs and consumes 4.8 Watts of energy.

You can go a step further and hook up the lights with a Outdoor Light timer . This timer has a built in photocell so you have the choice of selecting dusk-to-dawn operation or a progammable mode with a 1 to 9 hour countdown after dusk. e.g. you can set the lights to turn on at dusk and have it turn off automatically after 4 hours.

Cheap ways to weatherproof windows

Windows can be a major source of drafts and heat loss, especially older windows and those with some gaps. Of course, replacing the window with more energy efficient windows such as double pane windows is the most effective way to lower your energy bills. However, this can be an expensive option, especially if you have a lot of windows. Morever, this might not be feasible if you're living in a rented property e.g. apartment, condo or even house.

So what can you do short of replacing the windows? Actually you can take several cheap but quite effective steps, to weatherproof you windows.
1. Install a plastic storm window. This project is cheap and should only take 1-2 hours. Here's how it works: The plastic storm window kit consists of a plastic spline and channel system to create a seal in front of the window. The storm is installed by attaching the lengths of adhesive white plastic channels around the frame of the window. Simply cut the plastic to the correct size to cover the window. The plastic is held in place with a thin plastic strip (the "spline") that locks into the channel. The seal is achieved in a way similar to that of a sealing plastic bag. If well maintained, this solution is reusable, unlike the plastic film that is simply stuck on the window with an adhesive tape.

2. Use a rope caulk around the edges of windows to reduce drafts and air coming in. It is installed by simply pressing it into place with your fingers. It's easy to apply and easy to remove Rope caulk is a great solution for apartments.

3.Use a V Seal around windows. V-seal should be installed in the seams around the window frame so that create a firm seal when the window is closed.

Can you get CFL Three Way Bulbs?

The answer is yes! These were not available a few years ago but with the advancement of compact fluorescent bulb technology - pretty much all the the incandescent bulb functions are available in the Compact Fluorescent variety. There are lot of brands of three way CFLs available in the market such as GE, Philips , Feit Electric, Earthmate to name a few. Most of these are Energy Star qualified bulbs.

Three way CFL bulbs, offer three levels of light when used in conjunction with a 3-way lamp socket switch. Take for example the Earthmate T3 Three Way 33W ES3362AN.
This bulb at it's lowest level uses just 12 W which is the equivalent of a 50W incandescent. At the next level it uses 22W, a 75-100W equivalent. At the highest setting it uses 33W which is a 100-150w incandescent equivalent.

So if your lamp calls for a 3 way bulb, consider a CFL 3 way bulb. It is not advisable to use a regular CFL in a 3 way fixture.

Pay attention to Wattage when buying Pin Based Replacement Bulbs

Why? Because the size of the pins on pin base replacement bulbs depends on the wattage of the lamp. Therefore you have the same wattage bulb in order to replace it or it won't fit. My friend recently purchased a 38W 2D pin lamp to replace the bulb that had burned out in her fixture. The pins didn't fit. On closer inspection, she noticed that the old bulb said 55W. She went out and bought the 55W bulb and yes the pins fit in correctly! You don't have this problem with screw in bulbs - they are flexible and you can select from a variety of wattages and shapes to go into the same socket.

So if your pin base bulbs burns out and you have to replace the pin base circular lamp say, make sure you're replacing it with the same wattage. This is one of the disadvantages of pin based lamps.

There are other CFL bulbs in the market that don't have this problem. GU24 bulbs offer more flexiblity in that you can replace the bulbs with different watt bulbs. Moreover, they are compact.

What are Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Modules?

Photovoltaic (PV) is a solar power technology that uses an array of Solar PV modules to convert sunlight into electricity. The Southeast is considered is considered a good area for Solar PV installations. The most important requirement for choosing a site for Solar PV is to have un-shaded, due-south exposure to the Sun. Modules can be roof, ground or pole mounted. The typical angle for mounting Solar PV in Georgia is a 30 degree tilt, which is close to our degrees north latitude.

Most customers do not attempt to install a Solar PV array large enough to completely supply their electricity needs. You would typically work with a licensed Solar installer like SOENSO GA who is a dealer and installer of Schüco Solar of Germany. SOENSO GA works with architects, builders, consultants, contractors, developers, engineers, LEED APs, property managers and other professionals to assist them with incorporating sustainable building practices such as Solar PV systems. Under LEED NC multiple points can be earned by providing Solar PV that meets LEED-established percentages of buildings energy requirements.
Source: Soenso GA