The Gold Standard of Green
April 29th, 2008 categories: Around the House, Going Green
Here are a few of the “Greatest New Green Products” featured on This Old House:
Velux Skylight — You can now get hot water for free anywhere you can mount a skylight using the turn-key collector kit made by skylight manufacturer Velux. This kit comes with a electronically controlled pump, two collectors encased in the company’s weathertight frames, and a 60-gallon hot-water storage tank.
Fibertech Fencing — Fibertech’s composite fencing is made entirely from recycled materials—plastic and cardboard—destined for landfills. And when the time comes to replace it, it can be ground up and recycled again.
Earth To Air Geothermal — Al Gore Installed the Earth To Air geothermal heat pump in his house, boosting his energy efficiency beyond his greenest dreams. Compressed refrigerant pumps heat into his Tennessee home during the winter months and carries it out in the summer through a circuit of copper piping buried 300 feet in the ground.
Bosch 800-Series Dishwasher — Bosch’s top-of-the-line 800 series dishwashers, the most efficient on the market, use 190 kWh of energy per year. To put that in context, a dishwasher can use up to 330 kWh/year and still get Energy Star certification. Bosch says: “If every American purchased a Bosch dishwasher this year, the water saved would be enough to fill the U.S. Capitol Building 430 times.”
Kohler High-Efficiency Toilet — The old commode is the biggest water consumer in your home, sucking over one fourth of the average home’s H2O down the drain. Kohler’s High-Efficiency toilets, which use only 1.28 gallons per flush, reduce consumption by over 20 percent when compared to the average, 1.6-gpf standard.
