In celebration of Earth Day on April 22nd, the Home Depot is giving away 1 million 14watt EcoSmart CFL Lightbulbs beginning April 19th. No purchase necessary, 1 per customer and a great free energy saver for your home or office. According to EPA’s Energy Star Program, Click to continue »

I cannot recall who first imparted these false words of wisdom upon me, but I am sure you have all heard something to this affect at some point: ‘It takes more energy to power down and reboot your computer than if you just left it in sleep mode, so you might as well just leave it on.’  Well, ENERGY STAR, has thoroughly debunked this myth. Here are some power saving tips direct from ENERGY STAR:

• At the end of your work, homework, or Internet session, be sure to turn your computer and monitor off. Contrary to what most people believe, turning computers and monitors off saves a lot of energy and will not hurt the equipment or waste energy by having to boot up again.

• Be careful with screen savers. They actually might be screen wasters as they may keep your monitor from powering down. Just make sure that your screen saver is not programmed to overlap your computer’s sleep mode, since then it won’t go to sleep but will instead stay on to run the screen saver.

• Use the ENERGY STAR power management settings on your computer and monitor so they go into power save mode when not in use. Also use a power strip as a central “turn off” point when you are not using equipment to completely disconnect the power supply.

I have been in the market for a new laptop and ideally would like to find the greenest model out there. You know one that is Energy Star rated, made of recycled or sustainable materials, can be recycled, refurbished, easy to upgrade, long lasting materials and battery, etc. And that’s when I stumbled upon the Wood Shell prototype by Fujitsu Limited…..a laptop shrouded in wood instead of plastic!! So incredibly cool. The shell is made of a thinned cedar and bio-based plastics are used for the housing and parts. Alas doesn’t look like this will go into production anytime soon……….

On a side note, when shopping for a laptop or a PC, be sure to check out the EPEAT rating (Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool). EPEAT is very comprehensive and strict rating system implemented by the GEC (Green Electronics Council) that analyzes criteria across eight categories including Reduction/Elimination of Environmentally Sensitive Materials, Material Selection, Design for End of Life, Product Longevity/ Life Cycle Extension, Energy Conservation, End of Life Management, Corporate Performance and Packaging. To find out if your PC or laptop of choice has qualified for a bronze, silver or gold rating go to EPEAT.com, and if it hasn’t – keep looking!

The Liebherr CS 1350 Refrigerator is just a stunning stunning appliance with a supremely intelligent design. Pure perfection, my needle in a haystack in a sea of stocky oversized fridges. I first ‘met’ the Liebherr in 2006 and just had to have it, despite the $2500 sticker price. It is probably one of the most wise purchases I have ever made. I know, you may say that’s some praise for a fridge, but it is quite deserving. How do I love my Liebherr? Let me count the ways:

1. The slim size (78x 23 ½ x 24 ¾ ) compared with standard US models (69 ¾ x 35 ¾ x 32 ⅞), making the Liebherr the supermodel of refrigerators
2. It is Energy Star Rated
3. Freezer on the bottom allowing the more oft used fridge contents to be located at eye level
4. Individually labeled freezer drawers bringing much needed order to the freezer – no more ice cream containers falling out on your head (this also helps to conserve energy as less cold air escapes when you open the freezer door)
5. A huge vegetable crisper drawer to store all your farmer market finds
6. A gallon jug holder on the door thus utilizing space more efficiently
7. Ice cubes in perfect little cubes as opposed to those insolent half moons
8. An optional wine rack when just one bottle won’t do
9. The handles—very cool
10. Super super quiet
11. All sorts of settings including a vacation mode so you can save even more energy while you are away
12. Liebherr has made a commitment to manufacturing their products from start to finish in the greenest possible way from being the first company to remove harmful CFCs from their products to reusing the energy released during manufacturing to heat their facilities; they are an eco-responsible company.