kristinarrigo's blog

Many of us have been on the search for the cheapest way to get heat throughout the winter and if sales are the determining factor, corn has won. This winter demand for propane stoves and pellet stoves may have increased but corn burning stoves have sold out. Sales of corn burning stoves have gone from 65,000 to a drastic jump of 150.000 predicted for this year. Corn burning stoves retail for about $1600 to $3000, paying for themselves in savings in just one or two years. Typically, the stove only needs a little less than a bushel of corn a day. One dollar and sixty cents would get you a bushel of dried kernel corn that you pick up at a local feed store. This reduces a monthly bill down to about $60.00 per month. For some, the entire winter season costs about $200.00, an impressive savings from the average $400.00 a month bill as experienced with gas furnaces. Another bonus, is that compared to wood stoves, corn stoves don't lower the humidity in the room. Easy to install, corn stoves are vented and function without a chimney. Many of the stoves burn fuels other than corn, rye or wheat, such as wood pellets. Adapter kits are available to change a corn stove into a multi-burning stove, from Amaizablaze at www.cornstoves.com Other web-sites for corn stoves include www.harmanstoves.com and as well www.drcornstoves.com

The entrepreneur spirit is alive and compacting in the green world, with the Ecopod. The Ecopod is a recyclables compactor for your kitchen. How the ecopod works is by throwing your bottle or can into the slot, then, just simply step on a foot pedal, and the 'satisfying sound' erupts; a compacted version of your cans and bottles drops into a bin. The clump in the bin is your new and improved trash. This new contained version of your recyclables is a really a cool idea for people who are still buying excessive plastic bottles of water and cans of soda. There is a great convenience offered here, with the Ecopod; it might inspire some to go to redemption centers to reclaim their deposits! Will this put the guy who pushes the shopping cart from apartment dumpster to apartment dumpster out of business? I don't know. But chances are slim, since the ecopod is sold through the upscale Williams Sonoma Catalog, not your usual redemption center crowd. The Ecopod is just a part of a wave of investment products possibly designed for people who are searching for more ways to green up their wallets off of people who are trying to green up their homes. In so far, it seems the Ecopod is more modern kitsch than modern compact. The reward seems to be in 'the satisfying sound of compaction' which reads as the main selling point on www.springwise.com/eco_sustainability/household_recycling_plant/ , and the purpose is said to be 'to change the way consumers take out their trash'. The Ecopod seems to be no more that a trash compactor marketed for bottles and cans. Just a reminder, new products mean more stuff that ends up in landfills. I think it would be great if a product with sustainability in mind delivered in a reasonable way to warrant it's eventual resting ground.

Recently, my 92 year old Grandma was told by an electrician not to turn on the lights to her bathroom. Grandma has vanity style lighting around the mirror from 1952, when things were built to last! These days things quit on you usually before the 15 year mark, but even if your old fridge or washing machine is still operating, it can be difficult to tell when to up-grade your appliances for reasons other than aesthetics.

Old appliances such as old refrigerators waste a lot of energy, and can emit carbon dioxide. But if your old refrigerator still works, is it really better to replace it? As a general rule, buying any new product means an old product will end up in a land fill, and that is bad news. However, The EPA has stated that any appliance over 15 years old is good to get the heave-ho. If it is over 15 years old, it probably is an energy waster, and replacing it can save you 10% to 50% on a year's worth of energy costs.

But who is going to pick up the old fridge for recycling? Typically, the place you are buying the new one from will, or check out your state or local government recycling program. Reselling an old appliance yourself just means it will be active once again as an energy waster in our environment. So even if it ends up in a landfill, it's better off. In a landfill, where a large appliance take up space, the parts will get picked over and recycled. EnergyStar will show you ideal replacements for your old appliances.