When Multiple Chemical Sensitivity sufferer Amy Ludwigson set out to find a new home, she worked through what most of us would consider a mind-boggling checklist of criteria. She had to consider the construction and materials used in her home, environmental concerns in the area, the habits and lifestyles of her immediate neighbors and furnishings and habits of past residents.

People like Ludwigson react unfavorably when exposed to even the tiniest amounts of toxic chemicals commonly found throughout most American homes today: pesticides, cigarette smoke, paint fumes, wood preservatives, photocopier fumes, perfumes and fragrances, laundry products, dryer sheets, air fresheners, epoxy ... The effects may express themselves as fleeting, chronic or acute conditions, including rapid heart rate, shortness of breath, fatigue, flushing, dizziness, nausea, coughing, difficulty concentrating, problems with memory, migraines, and life-threatening seizures or respiratory distress.

So Ludwigson pulled together a comprehensive list worthy of handing over to her realtor, covering the entire range of factors that contribute to a healthy, non-toxic home:

• Proximity to highways, parking lots, electrical substations and power lines, and other environmental concerns
• The presence and age of materials that offgas 
• Moisture (windows, bathrooms, kitchens, air ducts)
• Indoor air quality and contaminants
• Neighbor habits

Admittedly, Ludwigson's list does not represent a complete reference of home toxins for the uninitiated. "I know this checklist can create a lot of questions and probably needs a book to explain," she confesses. We found it to be a great launching point, though, when considering ways to make sure your own nest is a healthy, non-toxic place to live. Check it out. Have you considered the impact on your home of some of the factors that made her list?

(Photo credit:ercwttmn, flickr)

Straw insulation is, for me, counter-intuitive. It may be a cultural thing. I was raised on a Disney diet that included a lot of the classic children stories and one I remember vividly is "The Three Little Pigs." Build from straw? I remember what happened to the Piggy who tried that! 

But what doesn't work for piggies may be great for humans! Straw bales provide sustainable building material and superb insulation.They save trees and are available wherever grain is grown. Bales are cheap to buy and easy to use. And they're not just for pioneer farmsteads anymore. The New York Times surveyed the national real estate market and found a lot of contemporary straw bale homes available, including the following:

WHERE—Pinal County, Ariz.
WHAT—3-bedroom house
HOW MUCH—$459,000
FEATURES—2000 sq. feet, passive solar design, built in 2005

WHERE—Livingston, Mont.
WHAT—4-bedroom house
HOW MUCH—$1.5 million
FEATURES—4000 sq, feet, concrete floors with radiant heat, on eight acres with stream fifty miles north of Yellowstone National Park

WHERE—Fredericksburg, Tex.
WHAT—3-bedroom house with guesthouse
HOW MUCH—$850,000
FEATURES—3,324 sq. feet, open floor plan, granite counter tops, built in 2005

But will straw really keep you warm? An eighteen-inch wide bale has an R value of about 50. This kind of "super-insulation" can save as much as 75% of heating and cooling costs compared to conventional insulation. Check the Open Directory project under "sustainable architecture" for everything you need to know about straw bale construction.

If you build with straw bales, then when the temperature in twenty below zero and the wolf is howling outside, huffing and puffing like a cruel north wind, you can be snug in your bed reading a good book. And you can tell Mr. Wolf that the Piggy doesn't live here anymore.

(Photo credit:colros, flickr)

If you are a science nut or any kind of geek, you have to check out physorg.com. I came for the solar water heater story. I stayed for the nanotech. The payback on the solar water heater is incredible. Here's how it worked for a North Carolina couple who were faced with replacing their 18 year old electric water heater:

• Cost before tax credits: about $6,200
• Cost after tax credits: roughly $3,300
• Break-even on investment due to reduced energy costs: about three years.

In India, a University hostel showed a similar break-even period on a 1000 liter installation. In Europe, about 500,000 solar water heaters are installed each year. Austria, with a climate similar to Chicago’s and just 8 million people, installed about 160,000 units last year. Solar water heater technology is a late arrival in the US, but people are embracing the concept now as never before. As energy costs go up the payback on solar gets better and better.

My electric hot water heater is about twenty years old and probably due for replacement. After reading the physorg article I visited the EnergyStar web site for a little more information. Since it gets pretty cold—like minus 30 degrees F—around here in the winter, I'm a candidate for a heat pump water heater. Heat pumps are often geothermal rather than solar. So, I'm faced with a planning challenge, and probably there's a home improvement loan in my future. You see, if I'm replacing the electric water heater with a heat pump, whether solar or geothermal, I might want to replace the gas furnace at the same time. Our gas bill is stratospheric!

I'll share more as this brainstorm becomes a solid intention and, hopefully, a money-saving, energy-saving upgrade to this old house.

(Photo credit:Ajay Tallam, flickr)

There’s a green light at the end of the dark, unrelenting tunnel also known as the dismal U.S. housing market—a new crop of eco-trained Realtors and brokers helping tree huggers buy, sell and build green homes.

But are environmental real estate licenses merely greenwashed facsimiles? How exactly does a Realtor score a "green card"? And who on earth can afford a new house, let alone a LEED-stamped one? 

Taking their cue from the explosion in green construction/architecture, as well as a spike in green housing demand, earth- and bottom line-conscious real estate agents are heading back to school online to bone up on more than green property jargonese.

Continue reading Green your Realtor ›

(Photo credit:woodleywonderworks, Flickr)

It's reusable day on Super Eco and we're uncovering new uses for old things.  So what about those of you in the midst of remodeling, who have old light fixtures kicking around?  In addition to the always-popular Ebay, there are other options for unloading your old fixtures.  Hang on to your brass chains, people.

If you have professional fixtures (such as those used for theater or other types of performances) you can sell your wares on My Gear Space.  If you're like the rest of us, just trying to unload old fixtures, flea markets are your best best.  Old fixtures don't garner much money at secondhand or consignment stores.  To find local listings of flea markets by state, try Bargain Supply Wholesale or Key's Flea Market.

If your fixtures are vintage or antique, you can also try local antique shops.  What they take will vary by location, but scope your local yellow pages for listings then e-mail photos before you make the trip. The National Antique Shop Directory and National Antique Classified Ads are a great place to start. Make sure, again, that you've taken your glamour shots to show off your fixture from several angles before listing your ad.

If you can't find anyone to buy your old fixtures, next examine them for parts. My father-in-law sells scrap metal pretty regularly. To sell brass, for example, try Scrap Metal Prices and Auctions.  Also check the yellow pages for local listings.  Many communities have the resident "scrap metal guy," such as the fellow who services my father-in-law.

After you've disposed of the metal, you'll probably have ceramic or glass or some charming combination of the two.  You'd be amazed what people will do with used light fixtures.  I'm half tempted to try some of these ideas.

You can make:

• Bird feeders
• Halloween decorations
• Table lamps
• Vases

After you've exhausted all the other possibilities to no avail, consider donating your old light fixtures instead of throwing them away.  Organizations such as Habitat for Humanity collect used fixtures in good condition to use in building new homes, and Goodwill sells the old fixtures in their stores.  Goodwill, unlike other thrift stores, uses 84 percent of profits for charitable work.  Here is local information for:

• Goodwill
• Habitat for Humanity Restore

Just make sure your fixture isn't broken or missing some really important part (other than maybe a lightbulb).

(Photo credit:durham skywriter, flickr)

Dimmers and auto-shut-off switches can result in big energy savings. For rooms that are mostly lit by outside light or not used very often, you can get an indoor photosensor light, such as The DaySwitch (trademark).  Such a switch can reduce your energy consumption by up to 30 percent, although this switch is recommended more for industrial use. 

The Lutron light control site has a calculator that will let you see how much you can save using its product. The fancy-schmancy Control4 (registered) Wireless Dimmer uses sensors to adjust the amount of light to what is needed based on available ambient light.

If you're using a dimmer or a timer, you should note if it works with compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs). Traditional lightbulbs are dimmed by reducing the electricity to the bulb, but CFLs work a little differently. In the beginning, they couldn't be dimmed at all, but strides have been made in CFL technology enabling some CFLs to work with dimmers or other energy-saving switches, making them the superior choice by far. 

The following companies produce dimmable CFLs, and here's a complete list. They cost anywhere from $9.50 to $22 per bulb and last up to 25,000 hours.

• GE
• Greenlite
• Maxlite
• MicroBrite
• Philips
• TCP
• Westinghouse

While you're at it, write your company's facilities department to see if they'll install automatic switches, as well, especially in the restrooms. 

Finally, after you've replaced your fixtures, don't forget to use CFLs. I was initially freaked out by the rumor that CFLs contained mercury, but according to EnergyStar, they contain an average of 4 milligrams (much less than the 500 milligrams present in old thermometers). In comparison to incandescent bulbs, a CFL used for 8,000 hours results in 1.8 mg of mercury, as opposed to the 5.8 mg produced by its old-school partner used for the same amount of time. Here is a fact sheet with even more information. 

Make sure to recycle your light bulbs, regardless. It's illegal to throw away fluorescent bulbs in California, Minnesota, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin.  However, to make recycling your CFLs easier, you can procure recycling kits. 

(Photo credit:Restoration Hardware)

Our old house didn’t have any wallpaper in it. Thank goodness in the 90 years the house existed, no one had been fool enough to apply wallpaper to plaster walls. Such was not the case with Chateau Travolta, our 1977 fixer-upper. The former owners, they loved their wallpaper. And I needed to get it off, safely and STAT.

Not only did the former owners love wallpaper, they loved borders. Borders graced all three bathrooms. Two bathrooms have since been freed of their sticky necklaces and one remains trimmed in sailboats. Although we hired a team to remove the full-scale country roses, I scraped off the borders myself, learning a lot about wallpaper removal in the process.

Wallpaper and Asbestos

Wallpaper applied before 1980 may actually contain asbestos, which, among other nasty things, can cause mesothelioma (a disease in which your tissues become inflamed and disrupts your internal organs).

Be environmental, but also be safe:

• If you can afford it, hire a professional who will take proper precautions to remove your wallpaper.
• If you can’t, invest in a respirator, which will protect you from particles in the air.
• Make sure the area in which you are stripping wallpaper has proper ventilation. Open a window (and a door).
• Immediately bag the stripped wallpaper and wallpaper backing instead of tracking it all over your house on your way to dispose of it.

Removal Strategies

About three months after moving in to Chateau Travolta, I couldn’t stand the lavender master bathroom for one more minute and decided to remove the borders, which were stuck on to the drywall solidly. Initially I bought a harsh chemical remover, but when I got it home and started reading the label, I saw a warning stating that the state of California said this product could cause cancer. I literally can’t believe this product is still on the shelves. If you want to check the chemicals in your wallpaper stripper (or any other household chemical) for hazards, check out the CDC’s Pocket Guide to Chemical Hazards.

I opted to use hot water in a 99-cent spray bottle and a paint scraper instead. I found that using the wallpaper scoring tool created more work, because then the border wouldn’t come off in strips. I sprayed off the area I wanted to strip and followed it up with hot water on a towel until the area was thoroughly saturated. Wallpaper has two elements – the shiny part with the pretties and a paper backing. If you can get the shiny part off, the paper will peel right off with hot water.

The paint scraper was really my best friend in this process. I recommend keeping two or three around, as the glue and paper start to coat the edge of the tool after a while, making it difficult to insert under the edges of a new strip. As the scrapers start to get gunked up, you can toss them in a sink of hot water to soak until you’re ready for the next one.

Some people recommend mixing vinegar in with water used to remove the wallpaper. I found I didn’t need the vinegar and hate the way it smells, but vinegar is an environmentally safe and effective cleaning agent. Here's a site dedicated to cleaning with vinegar.

If you have a more recently applied border and you can’t catch an edge with your scraper, you may have to use a steamer. Steamers can be rented at most equipment rental (such as Sun Belt Rentals, which is nearly nationwide) or big-box hardware stores by the hour or by the day.  Using a steamer is faster than a water bottle, because you don’t have to keep reheating your water. And did I mention? It's nontoxic.

For the Wallpaper Lover

Not all wallpaper is evil – some new designs look nothing like the repetitive patterns of yesteryear and are shockingly stylish.

Wallpaper design and construction has come a long way from the asbestos-loving past, as well. Wallpaper made from recycled materials is available from companies such as LSI Wallcovering and the very hip Earthwhile. If you want to be really eco-friendly, here’s a recipe for making nontoxic wallpaper paste out of cloves, water, flour and alum.

If you apply new wallpaper yourself, you’ll probably end up with leftover wallpaper paste. Most wallpaper paste is water-soluble and can be disposed of safely, but if you prefer to really reuse and recycle and aren’t into mixing up your own batch in the kitchen, sell what you have left over on Craig’s List or Ebay. It’s a good idea to buy any supplies you can in this fashion, as well, so what’s floating around already in America doesn’t get thrown away.

After your walls are looking spiffy, recycle the leftover scraps or donate them to a church or daycare for kids to use for craft projects. If you're crafty yourself, check out these cute gifts to make with leftover wallpaper scraps.

(Photo credit:baboon, flickr)

Earlier this week Rita Arens took at look at house paints, and was horrified by the toxic brew they concoct inside our homes. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, indoor house paint is one of the top five contributors to poor indoor health quality.

Lovely.

Fortunately there are alternatives, with natural paints and zero- or low-VOC paints. Rita does a great job explaining what each means, and gives us some examples of where we can find them. But say you already have your favorite brand, how can you find out whether you're poisoning yourself and your family every time you redecorate?

It's easy. Look for the seal of approval. In the United States there are three types of toxin-free (or low toxin) paint certifications on the market.

• Green Seal: a non-profit organization that rates all sorts of products from paints and coatings to tissue paper to food service packaging. Their paint standard requires a maximum of 50 grams of VOCs per liter and 150 grams per liter for non-flat tinted paints.
• GreenGuard: another non-profit organization that focuses on certifying products that ensure excellent indoor air quality. Their standard is much tighter limiting all paints (tinted or no) to meet the 50mg maximum for VOCs.
• GreenSure: an internal program set up by Sherwin-Williams to reduce the environmental impact of its products. It has the same limits as the Green Seal program.

Continue reading Putting the non-toxic seal on paint ›

(Photo credit:Zach_Klein, flickr)

I never gave much thought to paint safety prior to becoming a remodeling maven. I’ve painted many a wall in my home-ownership experience, but when I thought of paint, my mind wandered more to “edges first or last?” than “will breathing in the fumes hurt my family?" I assumed there was no alternative—paint is dangerous, just like too much junk food and high fructose corn syrup. 

It turns out that I was very very wrong. All paint is not created equal, and much of it is far worse than too many french fries.  There are many paint options for those interested in lovely colors and clear lungs. This is especially good news, given that we're many rooms away from completing the painting projects in our current home.

This is what I've learned so far:

What the Heck is VOC?

“VOC” stands for “volatile organic compounds,” which sound as scary as they are. Used in many household chemicals, including paint, VOC levels are higher inside most homes than out in the yard, since these household chemicals emit VOCs when they are used and when they are stored. VOCs can also linger a long time after application.

In addition to causing headaches and eye and throat irritation, VOCs contribute to more serious conditions, such as liver and kidney damage. Painting professionals are at much higher risk than your average do-it-yourselfer due to length of exposure, but any exposure is unnecessary these days with improved access to eco-friendly paints.

Less-Toxic Paint Options

There are three options for less-toxic paints: natural paints, low-VOC paints and zero-VOC paints. Here’s the rundown:

1. Natural paints—These paints are made from natural ingredients, natch. They’re probably the safest alternative, but can also be the hardest to find.
2. Low-VOC paints—These paints have fewer than 50 grams/liter of VOCs and use water instead of petroleum-based solvents.
3. Zero-VOC paints—Even though these sound toxin-free, they’re actually not, but they have 5 grams/liter or fewer of the bad stuff.

So you may be wondering why anyone would use standard paint when lower-VOC options are available. Well, safer paints are more expensive, and they can be harder to find. Green Planet Paints offers natural paints, but they’re only available in stores in 14 states. You can order the paint online for $55.95 a gallon plus shipping. For other sources of non-toxic paints, go here.

Moving into low-VOC and zero-VOC options increases your selection quite a bit, but these paints haven’t exactly gone mainstream. I painted my foyer using paint from Divine Color, which is a boutique online shop offering eco-friendly products. The paint was smooth and thick and only required two coats for a vibrant cayenne color, but this paint also retails at $51.95/gallon for 99% VOC-free blends. Compare that to a gallon of standard color at Home Depot (around $27), and you’ll find yourself doubling your paint budget in order to breathe easy.

Is it worth the expense? I think so. Paint remains in your home for a long time, and even if you’re not around while it’s being applied, the fumes linger. Combine the health concerns with the environmental hazards of disposal and keeping opened toxic paint containers around in the garage or (WORSE!) the basement, safe paint is worth the extra expense.

Also, good painting technique can help you lower the amount you need to use, as will painting over light colors with new light colors and dark colors with new darks.

Safe Paint Disposal and Recycling

When we were preparing to move from our old house into Chateau Travolta, we finally had to address the 23 half-empty but sealed gallons of paint that lived in our basement like old bones. We’d used about eight of those gallons, and the rest were left over from the previous owners. I knew nothing about safe disposal, only that throwing away is very bad.  Earth 911 has a tool to help you find a safe disposal center near you. I live in Kansas City, and a quick search led me to the Household Hazardous Waste disposal drop-off, which was shockingly easy to use. We hauled in a full truckload of paint, stain, cleaning supplies, etc. that had been sitting in our basement for six years. When I discovered how easy it was to dispose of these chemicals safely, I felt like a moron for letting it go for so long.

Of course, the most important step is to try not to buy more paint than you need. There are many online paint calculators that are worthy of your time before beginning a painting project.

I always seal and store a certain amount of leftover paint for my current home, because you just never know when your husband will try to adjust a clock and send it scraping all the way down your wall, creating large black streaks (not that I would know anything about that). Regardless, when you go to touch up your walls, I guarantee you’ll have forgotten the exact shade of eggshell or brand you used. It’s nice to have even a partially empty gallon handy for reference if you need to redo the whole room. But too much left-over paint can be a hazard.

If you are moving or you have way too much left over, first try donating your extra paint. Schools, churches and other nonprofits can use your cast-offs, especially if they are full gallons and especially if the paint is white. Also call your city and inquire into a city-wide or regional paint-exchange program. Many larger cities have such programs. For more information on how to dispose of your paint safely, see Super Eco's how-to.

Paint is the easiest and least-expensive way to update your home. Do you have any favorite eco-paints you'd recommend?
 

(Photo credit:Sunfrog1, flickr)

Welcome to our first installment of 'Take My House' where we'll talk about all the things you love and hate about your house (or apartment or condo), as well as steps any of us can take to lessen the carbon load of our dwellings, improve indoor air quality, and green our decor without breaking the bank or reinventing the wheel.

But first, let me give you a little background.

I loved my first house. A 1927 Arts & Crafts bungalow in the Waldo neighborhood of Kansas City, it had a screened-in porch, a Mission staircase, original hardwoods and a window seat. It was beautiful, divine … and drafty. Despite our efforts to cover the enormous, single-paned windows with plastic and add insulation to the attic, the icy midwestern winter winds crept in through the large keyhole and under the doorjambs. In the summer, the ducts built only for heating couldn’t properly move air to the second level, forcing us to add window A/C units to the bedrooms or move outside to the sleeping porch, which is what I’m sure the original owners did. My home office, which had no accessible outside windows, would regularly soar to 87 degrees in the summer time as I wrote in sweat-soaked gym shorts. I loved that house, but I also came to hate it.

Continue reading Take My House: welcome home? ›

(Photo credit:cafemama, flickr)