How Do Eco-Friendly Houses Outperform Conventional Houses?

The concept of "green living" is getting immensely popular all over the world. This has further led to the increasing demand for green homes. However, still not many know how exactly eco-friendly houses outperform conventional houses. If you are planning to make some green changes in your house, then first read on to know how green houses are better than traditional homes.

Home design - Solar home design techniques, like maximizing the southern exposure, installing south-facing windows etc help to keep the house warm in winters and increase the natural light. Besides, eco-friendly houses also have minimum carbon footprint, which helps in reducing the energy costs.

Site of the house - Landscaping in a green home focuses on having as many native plants as possible. This leads to many positive effects on the location by reducing the need for pesticides, fertilizers and irrigation. Selection and preservation of trees can also decrease energy costs by providing shade during summers and creating buffer from the winter winds.

Building materials - Low maintenance and durable recycled materials are used for building roofs, decks, porches, siding etc. This reduces installation and replacement costs by providing longer warranties. Besides, green building materials also reduce the on-site waste.

Interior - Eco-friendly houses include recycled interior products, like Marmoleum (made from flax, wood fiber and rosins), wool carpet, recycled rubber tiles, wooden flooring etc. Also, low or no VOC paints and eco-friendly finish, for stone and wood, help in creating a healthy environment inside the house. Besides, Energy Star labeled appliances also make a house greener and saves the homeowner hundreds of dollars in the utility bills.

Exterior shell - Foundations made with materials having high energy efficiency, such as ICF (Insulated-Concrete-Form) and SIP (Structural-Insulated-Panels) make green homes a better option than traditional homes. These foundations act as an excellent thermal barrier that reduces the effect of summer's heat and winter's cold. Energy efficient doors and windows having low-E coating reflect the infrared light and thus help in heating the home during winters and cooling in summers.

Heating and cooling systems - Eco friendly houses use lesser energy in comparison to conventional houses. Having cooling and heating equipment with correct size as per your house can save you a great deal of money. Besides, techniques for water conservation, such as setting up aerators on taps, installing a grey water system and reducing overall water consumption by having water fixtures with low flow, can help you reduce water usage and thereby, energy costs. Geothermal and solar systems is also one of the features of a green home that offer copious benefits, like providing hot water and heating the interiors. This eventually reduces your dependence on the fossil fuels, making you an eco-conscious homeowner.

Environment friendly houses are designed for combining materials, systems and features with the aim to reduce energy consumption and negative impact on the environment. Now that you know why green homes are better than conventional homes, go ahead and consult an experienced green architect and builder to design a lovely energy efficient house for you.

Harji Realtors is one of the leading real estate agents in the region of Chandigarh, Mohali and Kharar. For more information on great deals in Flat in Mohali and the best Plot in Mohali check out our website

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Shruti_S_Sharda

Natural Pesticides for Fruit Trees

Fruit trees need care. They're susceptible to fungal diseases and insects like them as much as we do. General cleanliness around the garden and orchard will definitely improve the chances of a good harvest but we can't stand guard at our blossoms all spring and fight off, one on one, every airborne fungus and red spider mite that trespasses on our property. That's why we spray our fruit trees. We spray them to keep disease at bay and kill off bugs that threaten our crop. We spray natural pesticides because we eat the crop. Here are three natural pesticides we can use.

Lime Sulfur and Horticultural oil Mixture is an organic fruit tree spray which can be bought mixed or unmixed. Dormant Fungus spores and bacteria are killed by the natural fungicide lime sulfur while the horticultural smothers all insects and their eggs.

The ideal time to spray would be a warm enough day before blossoming, with little to no wind or rain, to prevent the oil washing off. Too late and we may burn new leaf. Too cold or wet and the oil breaks down or washes off before it has smothered all insects and/or eggs. It is messy because the whole tree needs to be covered, dripping, from the top down, to be effective.

Horticultural Oil and Water mix is another organic spray which is used both in spring and throughout the growing season. Spraying during the day however is not effective as the oil will burn the leaves. A better time is early in the morning before it gets hot. It of course smothers invaders and their eggs.
Homemade Fruit Tree Spray is a spray that is put together from easily found ingredients to deter, diminish and feed your fruit trees. This mixture can be sprayed from early spring to late summer and is made out of:

• · Liquid seaweed
• · Molasses
• · Apple cider vinegar
• · Murphy soap and
• · 1 Gallon of water

Mix the ingredients and spray early in the morning when the trees are cool and their pores open. The seaweed and molasses will feed the tree while the vinegar kills unwanted fungi. The Murphy soap is made of vegetable oil and helps the other ingredients to disperse evenly while leaving very little residue.
Spraying in early spring followed by summer sprays we make ourselves look and notice. When we look regularly the chances of us noticing a change is much greater.

To learn more about what you can do for your fruit trees please contact http://www.sanantoniotreesurgeons.com/.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jet_M_Perreault

Natural Pesticides

Waste Oil Disposal

Waste Oil Disposal:Disposing of oil is a regulated activity in the UK due to its toxicity. It is classed as a hazardous waste under The Hazardous Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2005 and it is an offence to just pour it away down the drain or dispose of it like you would normal landfill.
If you produce or store hazardous waste anywhere in England or Wales you must register your premises every year, unless the quantity produced is less than 500kg each year.

Before disposal, oil should first be stored according to the Oil Storage Regulations. This includes waste engine oil, petrol, diesel, cooking oil, synthetic oils - most waste oils. Mineral-based waste oil is exempt from these rules in England, but you should still consider meeting the requirements to prevent water pollution. In Wales the Oil Storage Regulations do not apply, but you should still consider following them for ethical reasons. If oil from your site enters the ground then you could be fined and also have to pay for the cleanup.

You must keep records of all the hazardous waste you produce, and complete consignment notes whenever the waste is moved (more on this later). This applies even if you are exempt from registering as a hazardous waste producer.

How to Store Oil

A suitable container can include a tank, drum or bowser. It should be stored above ground, away from where vehicles can bump into it. The surface it is on should be impermeable, and away from drains or any other places where the oil could seep into the ground.

Transporting the Oil

As oil is a hazardous substance, you must use a registered waste carrier to transport it, or you yourself must be exempt from registration. Exemption applies only to waste authorities, charities, voluntary organisations and those who solely manage agricultural or animal wastes or waste from mines or quarries. If these do not represent your company then you will either need to register yourself or use a registered carrier. Finally, you must make sure the destination for the oil has an environmental permit, or an exemption, to take waste oils.

Consignment Notes

When moving hazardous waste from your premises it must always be accompanied by a consignment note. The waste must be accompanied by this consignment note until it gets to its final destination. This note describes the waste and how it was produced, the amount of it, who produced it, and where it is going. You must keep a copy of every consignment note for a three year period.
Consignment notes categorize waste according to a standard set of guidelines, called the European Waste Catalogue (EWC). This helps you label your waste and makes sure everyone labels the same waste correctly. The EWC also helps for statistical purposes, so the government can see how much of what type of waste is being produced.
You can make your own consignment notes as long as they follow the standard pattern, or use the ones produced by your waste contractor. You can also buy standard consignment notes from the Environment Agency for a small fee.

Capstick Waste Management Ltd - waste oil collection in North Lancashire, North West Yorkshire & the South Lakes.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tom_Wilkinson

Waste Oil Disposal

The Mans Way - How to Declutter Your Home Fast

Alright guys, the wife and kids have been out of town for a week and they will be home in a couple hours, so here is how to declutter your home fast and get it cleaned. I know what you are thinking and that a couple shortcuts are going to get the job done the fastest. That is probably true, but it probably is not going to go very far for brownie points with the wife.

Sure you could take those old bags of chips and just shove them in the entertainment center. And yes, you could just flip the couch cushions over letting the crumbs fall to the abyss of the couch frame. And you might get away with putting the empty soda cans behind the love seat, but these options are only going to last so long before being discovered.

So here are a couple ideas to how to declutter your home fast.

The first step is getting prepared in the beginning. Right after you get finished loading up the SUV, giving goodbye kisses and standing on the porch waving goodby, head straight in and get ready for the coming week. By the way, try not to act to enthused as they are leaving, I know it is a nice man vacation, but keep your excitement to yourself. You can go nuts as soon as they hit the road.
Okay, back to being ready and how to declutter your home fast on the final day of their trip. Let me just warn you this might be a little gritty for the ladies reading, but hang in there you will appreciate what I have to say.

First, take the garbage out. I know this sounds ridiculous, the wife just left and I am telling you to take out the trash, but starting out with an empty can will help when it comes time for that quick declutter and clean up session that is coming in a few days time. Next throw a couple empty bags in the bottom of the can then put in new liner. Now place the trash can in the living room within throwing distance, but not to close to smell.

Now for the kitchen, and just like the trash, go ahead and start with a clean slate. Make sure the sink is empty and the dishwasher is emptied. One thing that is very important is to make sure you have plenty of aluminum foil to place on the pan that you are going to use to heat up your TV dinners.
These two preparations are going to make that end of the week cleaning spree much easier.
So on the morning the family is coming home here is how to declutter your home fast and get it cleaned up. By now the trash is probably overflowing so pull it out and grab one of the empty bags to toss the overflow in. With the spare bag make your way through the living room decluttering and cleaning away the trash on the coffee and end tables. With the third empty garbage bag you are ready to put a fresh one in and take the can back to its appropriate place.

No make a break for the kitchen and transfer all the dishes that have accumulated through the week into the dishwasher. Pick up all the clutter, empty boxes and crumpled up aluminum foil and toss into the spare bag that you used in the living room.
Now to finish you have basically got rid of the clutter so now you just need to do a quick sweep and maybe run the vacuum and the house is good to go.
Listen guys this is probably not the most efficient way to get the house cleaned, but if your wife is like mine, she is not expecting to come home to a perfectly clean home. She just doesn't want to wade through clutter to get though the front door. Theses are just a couple tips for the guys how to declutter your home fast.

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Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bobby_A._Simon

How to Declutter Your Home

Use Bamboo Sheets and Savor Nature-Given Comfort

As per the medical dictionary -
'Sleep is a natural periodic state of rest of both mind and body in which the consciousness is completely or partially lost. During sleep the brain undergoes a characteristic cycle of brain-wave activity that includes intervals of dreaming'.
This proves how imperative it is to sleep well at night in order to ensure proper functioning of your mind and body throughout the day.

In order to experience all the goodness of a sound sleep, you need to feel completely relaxed when you climb in between sheets and to a great extent it is your bedding, meaning the surface that you sleep on, which is responsible for providing this feeling. Who wouldn't like to enjoy the luxury of sleeping on a comfortable bed covered with the softest bed-sheet which amongst other things is also capable of regulating temperature? Therein emerges the option of bamboo sheets and surprising though it might appear, it is indeed the long forgotten bamboo that provides the softest bedding material.

Bamboo sheets have risen to fame during recent times not just owing to their fine soft quality but also their antibacterial, antifungal and temperature regulating properties that are inherent to this species. Since these attributes are retained even after the bamboo has been transformed into sheets, the quilt that is produced is all-season in nature, meaning it can be used to keep warm in summers and cool during winters.

Most importantly what has caught everyone's imagination is its built-in resistance to bacteria and fungi like mildew, mold and so on. Courtesy of this trait, it is one of the fastest growing renewable sources in the forest world. Therefore, after having been meticulously woven, the outcome is a high quality, soft and anti-allergic luxury sheet which is perfect for all age groups and is especially a good choice as kids' bedding.

As is universally known, children have the most delicate skin and it does not take much for a small rash to aggravate into a full-fledged infection. Their skin needs proper care and the softest materials, especially during the time that they spend in bed and one of the ways of ensuring this entails using bamboo sheets as part of kids' bedding. An added advantage is that bamboo does not require pesticides to grow and hence is more organic as compared to other materials. So you might as well rest assured that your child is sleeping on a surface which is completely free of chemicals.
Truly advantageous is the fact that even after several washes, bamboo sheets are able to retain their natural properties, namely softness, anti allergic and temperature regulation to the maximum. Thus, by using these, you need not worry about your child catching cold, getting sores or falling victim to contagions that thrive in humid conditions.
'
Natural' is the way to go in this new millennium and switching to bamboo sheets is a viable option that meets this objective without being overly expensive on the pocket and draining on health and comfort. So why not discard those artificial fabrics and switch over to this eco-friendly alternative where the kids' bedding is concerned to ensure a safe, comfortable and healthy environment for children?

If you are interested in bamboo sheets, do visit http://raxxi.ca/store/sheets/bamboo/tessy-bamboo-sheet-set-queen.html to check out the various options which they offer. For families with children, there is an exclusive category that can be explored at http://raxxi.ca/store/kids-bedding.html and choices made as per individual preferences.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Vinita_Basu

Tips To Avoid Wasting Food

It hurts a little bit inside every time I throw food out. Well, actually a lot. I paid good money for it, I carried it home from the shop - and then for some some silly reason it does not get eaten in time and ends up in the trash. People starve in big parts of the world, energy was used to grow and transport the food, energy is again used to take it to the landfill where the rotting food creates methane gasses. I doubt most people over analyze throwing food out like I do, but I really have a guilt trip every time food goes to waste.

$2,275 in the trash

So much food is wasted every day in North America. It is estimated that about 25% of all the food we drag home from the supermarket ends up in the garbage. This means that each person throws 1.5 lb of food away every single day. That is the same as throwing $2,275 away a year. Now, let's look at some ways to prevent all that waste.

Buy less

The first tip is pretty obvious: Buy less. Sometimes we get a little carried away when we go grocery shopping and buy 2 for 1 and haul the monster size-pack of cheese with us home that no normal family will ever be able to eat their way through. So just buy what you need for the next few days and don't shop as if you are a prepper or filling up a panic room.

Make sure you don't shop on an empty stomach. When I go shopping just before dinner, I always end up buying a lot more food than I need. So make sure to at least have a little snack before going grocery shopping to prevent throwing food out that you never eat later on.

Bring a grocery list

Bring a list when you go grocery shopping. I have a list in the kitchen that I add on to as I run low or run out of certain items. Some people prefer to have a list on their smartphone, which is great because you are less likely to forget your phone than your grocery list at home. With a list in hand at the store you are prepared and can spend the time in the store much more efficiently.

Besides shopping at the grocery store once a week or so, I shop at the fruit and vegetable market every few days. Yes, it does make for more shopping trips, but this way nothing gets wasted. We are lucky that we live just a few minutes away from the veggie market and the grocery store, so it is easy for me to drop by a couple of times a week.

Some tips to avoid throwing food out:

Use clear storage containers to store your leftovers, so you can easily see what is inside your fridge. I use glass containers instead of plastic, so I don't have to worry about putting hot leftovers in them or if I want to reheat the food in the container.

I label everything that I put in the freezer. This way I avoid a mystery dinner or eventually throwing frozen food out because it has been left in a corner of the freezer because I had no idea what is was.

Don't get rid of bananas with brown spots - just throw them in the freezer and use them in smoothies later on.

Make tasty stir fries with that chicken breast from last night. Just chop it up and add it to the pan with some chopped vegetables and soy sauce. Quick, easy and so good.

Freeze the fresh ginger and chilies. Fresh ginger and chilies dry pretty fast on a counter top and the ginger will turn into a hard piece of wood. Instead of letting them dry out, just freeze them and shred or chop what you need.

If celery stalks start to go soft, just trim the end and put them in water - it may look like an interesting bouquet of celery to some people, but they really do crisp up, so you can use them instead of throwing them out. I soak carrots that are starting to look a bit dull in water for a few hours as well and the result is amazing.

Use a juicer to juice your old produce and make a healthy drink full of vitamins. If you are not into juices, just make some delicious soups out of not-so-fresh vegetables and freeze them. They will make a great lunch when you don't feel like cooking.

Don't throw out your herbs. Either dry them or make a nice pesto and freeze it. Just bash the herbs with a pestle and mortar, add some olive oil, shredded parmasan, walnuts, pine nuts or almonds, salt to taste and then pour it in an ice cube tray and put it in the freeze.

Freeze your leftovers. When my husband is away with work, I am not very motivated to do much cooking and that's when a piece of leftover lasagna from the freezer is perfect. If you decide to go out for dinner instead of having leftovers, make sure to put it in the freezer, so it does not end up in the garbage bin the next day.

Reduce food waste by composting

We can't completely avoid food waste, but we can reduce the amount of food we send to the landfills. If you live in place where you have the space to compost, you will be able to turn organic material from your kitchen into nutritious soil for your garden. A worm factory takes up hardly any spaces and is a great way to get rid of food scraps that would otherwise have ended in the garbage.

Learn more eco-friendly tips at http://www.greenlifetips.com and be part of the movement to reduce the amount of waste we send to the landfills.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Anne_Greene