(with a few metal pipes, some rope, and 2 bags of concrete) All right, so maybe I’m not exactly “saving” the planet, but I just recently made the decision to invest a small chunk of change in a combination solar and wind-powered clothes dryer. That’s right, the Mondor household has put up a clothesline! And man, do I feel good about it!
Oh, we always had all sorts of excuses for not putting one up; “We’re really not supposed to have one in our neighborhood”, “Evan (my son) and his friends are always playing ball or something out there, and it would be in the way”, blah, blah, blah. Well let me tell you – I can see a few other clotheslines in the neighborhood, and Evan and his friends can find another spot in the yard to play. BECAUSE THE TIME HAS COME.
I mean, with 2 teenagers, I swear our electric clothes dryer runs about 25 hours a day. Between Evan’s baseball uniforms, and my daughter Lindsay’s 3 to 4 complete outfits per day, that laundry basket is ALWAYS full. Statistically, the average American household does 365 loads of laundry per year. My wife Cathy and I got a chuckle out of that one. Only 1 load per day?
So once I made the decision to get a clothesline – I had to figure out where to get one. Local hardware stores and home centers only carried wimpy, lightweight versions. I was looking for the good old-fashioned heavy pipe, T-type kind that I remembered as a kid. Frustrated with what I could find locally – I naturally turned to the internet. It didn’t take long for me to discover clotheslineshop.com. After only a few seconds, I found it: “Model Number 01000, Heavy-Duty T-Post Clothesline”. And let me tell you, it was a real looker. The descriptive copy even stated; “This sleek and handsome design will complement any backyard”. And better yet, it was made in South China, Maine – not “China” China. I ordered it.
The Model 01000 doing its thing in the Mondor backyard.
Well, during my clothesline related internet ramblings, I found more than just a place to get my heavy-duty clothesline – I discovered a whole community – heck – a whole movement dedicated to line drying clothes!
You have to check out right2dry.org. Their mission: “To promote line drying as a symbol of patriotism, intelligence, and environmental activism, rescuing it from the symbol of poverty and despair it seems to represent to many Americans today”. I mean, how can you not get behind that? There’s also laundrylist.com. Or perhaps you’d like to check out the gallery of clothesline photography on linedry.com. There’s actually some really nice stuff there. I also discovered that I just missed “National Hanging Out Day” this past April 19th. I’ll definitely be ready for it next year though. And finally, there’s even a movie in the works by director Steven Lake entitled: “Drying for Freedom”. You can check out some info about it at dryingforfreedom.com.
I’m telling you, this is all pretty exciting to be a part of!
So let me just leave you with some great reasons why YOU should be air-drying your clothes…
• You will conserve energy. Clothes dryers account for an incredible 6% of the electricity used by U.S. households.
• You will save money. The average household saves about $25 per month by line drying. (The Mondors will save more!)
• Your clothes will last longer. That lint WAS your clothing.
• Your clothes will smell fresher without adding smelly, possibly toxic chemicals to your clothes – and your body.
• Sunlight naturally bleaches and disinfects.
• Indoor rack drying can humidify the air during the dry winter months.
And finally… • Clothes dryer fires account for 1600 structure fires every year in this country, resulting in 15 deaths, 400 injuries, and fire-loss damages estimated at $99 million.
All this positive change from a few metal pipes, some rope, and 2 bags of concrete! It just doesn’t get any better – or simpler – than that.
So, I implore you…become one of us…BECOME A LINE DRYER! Because, (and let me quote Ben Franklin here) “We must all hang together, or most assuredly, we will all hang separately”.
Hmmm…Did I see washboards for sale at clotheslineshop.com?
What great ideas there are out there to make use of the energy you and I constantly generate. Some interesting concepts are becoming a reality. As humans, we create a lot of energy. The primary purpose, of course, is for our own bodies to use this energy, but there is a lot of energy we generate that is just being wasted. Did you know an average sized person stores as much energy in fat as a 1,000 kg battery? Some innovative companies have come up with some gadgets that really make sense to make use of this extra energy.
For example, there is a device called a Bionic Energy Harvester. It attaches to your knee and can actually be used to power such things as cell phones, mp3 players and laptops. It gets power from the movement of walking. It extracts about 7 watts from each leg, enough to operate 14 cells phones simultaneously.
In Rotterdam, Holland, there is a sustainable dance club called Club WATT, that uses “Piezo Electricity” on their dance floor to generate electricity. Watch the video below to see how this works.
Also in the Netherlands, at a train station, they have a revolving door that generates energy every time someone goes through it. There is a display on the outside of the station that shows how much energy is being generated.
In Portland, Oregon, there is a gym called the Green Microgym. When used by its patrons, some of its exercise equipment actually generates energy for the building. Added benefit: Gym members get rewarded for the energy they generate.
U.S. Scientists are working on microfibers in threads that are woven into clothing. They generate electricity from the wearer’s movement. These should be out in about 5 years. They do have one problem though - these fibers can’t get wet. The scientists are now working on a remedy to that issue.
In the future, we will see polymer film that will surround fibers and then will be implanted into our bodies. They will harvest kinetic energy from the steady dilation and contraction of our blood vessels, a source of electricity for pacemakers, insulin pumps and other medical devices.
Now, if only we can figure out how to harness the energy that Mark Litos himself creates, we would have a solution to all of our energy problems!
I knew it! I knew it! I just knew it! No one hates compact-fluorescent bulbs (CFLs) more than I do. Typically, the intensity of their illumination makes me want to scream, “Hey, somebody turn on the lights!!!” or ”Hey, make me look less like a cadaver!” I know, I know. Incandescent bulbs waste upwards of 90% of their energy as heat, as anyone who has ever seared off their fingerprints trying to remove a brightly burning bulb can appreciate. And it’s not as if I have much of a choice about eventually using them, either. The fed’s Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 phases out Thomas Edison's incandescent bulbs in favor of the newer CFLs beginning in 2012 and culminates in a total ban on the older technology by 2014. But now comes word that maybe, just maybe, there’s more to these little energy-savers than screwing in a light bulb. As a recent NYT article leads, “It sounds like such a simple thing to do: buy some new light bulbs, screw them in, save the planet.” It continues…”But a lot of people these days are finding the new compact fluorescent bulbs anything but simple. Consumers who are trying them say they sometimes fail to work, or wear out early. At best, people discover that using the bulbs requires learning a long list of dos and don’ts.” (Personally, when installing these twisty boogers, I’m always afraid I’ll exert too much pressure and mercury will flood whatever compartment I’m in and leave me flapping like a flounder. OK, maybe that’s just me.) Turns out screwing in a (new) lightbulb isn’t quite as easy as screwing in and (old) lightbulb. Turns out further that there’s some substandard education going in the form of poor package instructions. For example, screwing low-end bulbs into fixtures where heat is prone to build up can greatly shorten their lives. Needless to say, consumers – even those on board with CFLs – are getting ticked. The lesson here: When it comes to addressing new technologies, regardless of how well you think they’re known, you can’t get too basic. It’s much like the work we’re doing with DOE to explicate the Smart Grid – just nowhere near as complex. Education never stops. Wish us luck.
Post by Rick Rusack, Creative Director/Senior Writer/CFL Hater
Critical times. Momentous challenges. How will we ever get out of this mess? One thing is for sure. Everyone across America is feeling it. Many are getting hit hard. Most everyone agrees that turning things around won’t be easy and that it won’t happen overnight. It’s interesting to note how unusual it is when most everyone agrees.
It’s also worth noting that this great nation was built by entrepreneurial spirit and good ole American ingenuity. And this spirit and inventiveness is very much alive and well today. In small garages in Anytown, USA to the world’s leading corporations, clever folks and sharp minds are hard at work meeting our nation’s myriad problems head on.
IBM, as evidenced by its long list of centers of excellence, is pushing forward in many areas of need including the smart grid initiative – the modernization of our nation’s electric grid. Equally impressive is GE’s Ecomagination, a business initiative to help meet customer demands for more energy efficient products.
New technologies are sprouting up from coast to coast and around the world. Recognizing the critical need for a green and sustainable future, scores of clean and smart technologies are being introduced at an amazing rate. Whether driven solely by market opportunity or the will to make our world a better place, clean and green is taking shape - and holding great promise.
And how about those new solar fabrics and plastics designed to provide power for outdoor, anywhere use. Yup, portable power is here. Imagine never having to charge your cell phone or laptop again. Check out the educational video below:
And along with all the new, it appears that every existing product, package and process is being inspected, dissected and reinvented to be more earth friendly. Settling in to my hotel room during recent travel, I was surprised (and quite pleased) to see a bar of soap in a rather environmentally friendly looking package with a hole clear through the center of the package - soap bar included. From reading the copy on the package, this unique product was designed to eliminate waste, in this case that useless, impossible-to-hold sliver of soap that ends up in the trash at the end of every soap bar’s life.
Yeah, good stuff is happening everywhere. We call it progress. This great nation will pull it off. Everyone is rethinking everything and everywhere, from scientists to engineers to collars of all colors. It will take all of us – and I believe we’re ready to answer the future’s call. Jump on in.
Posted by Mark Litos, President / Creative Strategy
This blog entry is focused on some really strange and unexpected ways that we humans are being green. Dream clients for Litos Strategic Communication? Yeah probably, given the fact that LSC is right in the thick of it – helping energy and greentech clients achieve strategic marketing success – and hopefully making the world a better place in the bargain. Check these out . . .
Entry #1: Using termite guts to produce ethanol. Yes, termite guts . . . ZeaChem of Lakewood, Colorado recently raised $34 million to build it’s first bio-refinery that will use microbes found in the digestive tracts of termites to convert sugars (derived from cellulose) into acetic acid. The acetic acid will then be combined with hydrogen to make ethanol. Visit their website for the full story.
By the way, I don’t think they’ll have a supply problem with the termites. Here are some downright freakish termite facts: 1. There are 250 trillion termites on the earth. 2. Termites emit more carbon and methane (yes, they fart) than any other living species on earth – so much in fact, that they actually affect the weather in the African Savannah. 3. In the U.S., termites cause more damage to homes than fires and all weather related damage – combined. The damage affects 600,000 homes with losses totaling 2 billion dollars annually. Oh, and there’s no homeowner’s insurance that covers termite damage. 4. And finally . . . this is just unbelievable. If you took the biomass (total weight) of all the termites on earth – it would weigh 14 times the biomass of all the humans on earth!!! Yeah – there’s 4 billion tons of termites on earth. There’s 700 kg of termites for every human. The average weight of all humans (children and adults) is 50 kg. Do the math. Man, that’s a lot of termites . . .
Entry #2: Kite propulsion for ships. You know, when I was a kid my father always had Popular Mechanics books lying around. Always on the cover was some cool air-brush rendering of some way-in-the-future high tech airplane, or spaceship – like a shuttle that would fly up into space attached to a rocket and then be able to glide back to earth . . . right. Well, I think flying huge kites off ships to aid in propulsion seems like a good candidate for a Popular Mechanics cover. For all I know, it’s probably already been there. Now I know harnessing the wind to propel a ship is nothing new, but SkySails and KiteShip are 2 companies that are taking it to a higher – and greener level.
German company SkySails has been pursuing the development of the world’s first kite propulsion system for commercial shipping since 2001. Now after 7 years of successful development and pilot testing, SkySails is on track for full series production of the SkySails System this year. SkySails claims a ship’s annual fuel costs can be reduced by 10 to 15%. Under optimal prevailing wind conditions, fuel consumption can be temporarily cut up to 50%. Check out the video.
And right here in our own country, California-based KiteShip is making its own breakthroughs in harnessing wind power to reduce fuel consumption in shipping. With a three decades history of using the fundamental advantages of traction kites, KiteShip holds multiple world records and patents for their products and accomplishments.
Termite guts and kite power – unexpected – and promising technologies to ensure a greener future. Make sure you check them out.
Trying to bring up “green” children is no easy task. With my two sons, it has certainly been a struggle. There is a constant battle of turn-on-turn-off in my house. My idle threats of saying they are paying for the next electric bill don’t seem to work. I seem to spend a lot of time rummaging through the garbage retrieving plastic bottles and cans. Always followed by a “how many times do I have to tell you…”. Then there’s the continual nagging about the running water they waste. They just don’t get it…at least not yet. I am determined to keep trying.
There is a device out there called the Power Hog. It is designed like a piggy bank and teaches children about energy cost and conservation. The tail plugs into an outlet and any electronic device (video game console, TV, etc.) plugs into the snout. They deposit coins into the hog, which gives them 30 minutes of use. The dollar sign on the side turns green when there is electricity available. It flashes red when it starts to run out. The coins are kept inside so kids learn about the cost of electricity and about saving money. Hopefully this teaches them that electricity is not free and they should become more aware of its usage.
I try to make it a fun trip to Stop & Shop to recycle all the plastic bottles, cans and glass we have. At least my youngest finds the automatic vendor-type recycling machines very entertaining. The loud smashing of the glass and aluminum makes it sound very destructive, an attribute boys seem to love. That is perfectly fine with me. I hate the awful feeling of sticky hands when doing this task! My oldest can’t understand why I reuse my green shopping bags at the grocery store. He has a definite “disposable mentality.” As a responsible parent, I need to change that attitude (along with many other teenage viewpoints).
Kids need to learn that green living values are very important for their future. If living green is important to you, eventually kids will pick up on it. Kids should realize we need a lot more energy than ever before. They are a huge component of the demand for energy, with all of the gadgets and devices out there that they use. But they’re not the only ones. As adults, we also have the responsibility to adopt a new standard of living to ensure a future for generations to come.
Here at Litos, we try to do our part. We have several different recycling bins… cans, packages and a large bin for paper and cardboard that gets picked up and shredded every three weeks. We, at Litos, actively search for new clients who are involved in innovative new technologies that will help create a greener, more productive Earth.
Yet with the term “green” being played with fast and loose these days, what is it exactly that constitutes a green printing environment? Here are a few questions every environmentally conscious printer should be able to answer in the affirmative:
1. Do you use recyclable or recycled paper? Just about all paper is recyclable, but to be considered recycled, a paper stock must be made from at least 10% recycled material, also known as PCW (Post Consumer Waste). Recycled stocks available in today’s market, run the gamut of recycled content from 10% to 100%.
2. Do you use soy-based inks? These inks are manufactured using vegetable-based compounds, as opposed to petroleum based. Better for you, better for me, better for the environment.
3. Do you use FSC (Forest Stewardship Council)-certified paper vendors? This is a recent development in the paper arena and considers a paper company’s complete manufacturing process, right back to what types of trees are used for the pulp.
4. Do you recycle everything possible at your printing facility? A printing facility is a world full of recyclable by-products. Waste paper and packaging (cardboard, etc.) are, of course number one, but inks, metal plates, used chemical compounds such as press-fountain solutions and even wash rags all could, and should, be recycled.
If you’re not convinced that recycling works – or if you’ve had it up to here with the whole idea of recycling – consider the following:
100 million trees are cut each year to supply fiber for paper.
Manufacturing one ton of virgin uncoated paper (90% of US printing & writing paper) requires 3 tons of wood and 19,075 gallons of water and generates 2,278 lbs. of solid waste.
Where the industry stands…
Best practices of the printing industry advocate strongly for environmental stewardship:
Recommending that recycled paper composed of at least 30% PCW (Post Consumer Waste) be used to reduce forest denudation and save countless trees
The Model 01000 doing its thing in the Mondor backyard. 
