How Your House Works:
A visual guide to understanding and maintaining your home, by Charlie Wing

Before my parents allowed me to drive, they suggested I learn how to change a tire and check the oil. And learn to read the dashboard widgets!

The same might apply to a house.  The head(s) of every apartment and house might need to know the basics.  How the plumbing can be shut off in case of a flooded room.  How the thermostat works.  How the bathroom stool works.

And in the throes of learning how to take care of these minor emergencies, it just might happen that you learn how to make minor repairs that will save you many "retail" level repair bills, and give you the satisfaction of truly being the king or queen of your domain.

This book is a good start in the right direction.  It gives clear  visual diagrams to help you see beyond the obvious skins of modern magic.

Dual flush toilets have become standards in Europe and other countries concerned about their water supply.  Unfortunately, water conservation is undervalued in the US.  But that is changing, especially where drought is forcing water outages and increasing rates.  Gerber provides high efficiency toilets, sinks and certified water efficient solutions. 

Gerber offers vitreous china pedestal and drop-in lavatories designed to complement their toilets, bringing together classic looks and powerful technology. The advanced HP2 and XP3 high-performance flushing systems will virtually eliminate the aggravation and cost of warranty callbacks from second-class toilets that clog or require a “double flush.”

Abigail™ faucets, and Viper™ toilets with Gerber's HP2 flushing system, which delivers performance that’s more than double the industry standard! Gerber provides you with the style and quality you need to give homebuyers who are stepping up from their first home the sense that they’ve truly arrived.

Gerber offers water-saving, sensor-operated electronic faucets designed to prevent waste by automatically shutting off water flow. Deckmount choices include gooseneck or crescent spouts, as well as, models
equipped with an in-deck mixer, which permits user control of water temperature.

Ultra Flush® 1.1 gpf toilet models are available to deliver the ultimate in high-efficiency water conservation.
They can flush 1,000 grams of bulk waste while using 30% less water than standard 1.6 gpf toilets. In addition to Ultra Flush 1.1 gpf units, Ultra Dual- Flush™ models are also available, with a dual-action lever that permits 1.6 gpf or high-efficiency 1.1 gpf operation.

Ultra Dual-Flush™ provides professional performance while conserving natural resources. It flushes up to 1,250 grams of bulk waste per 1.6 gallon flush or 1,000 grams per 1.1 gallon flush.  1.1 gallon flush uses 30% les water over conventional 1.6 gallon toilets.  The Pressure-Assist system uses pressure from the incoming supply line to foce 1.6 gallons of work out of 1.1 gallons of water. It installs like standard gravity toilest -- no special connections are required.

Gerber products are sold exclusively to the plumbing professional.

Gerber Plumbing Fixtures corporate offices are located in Woodridge, Illinois.  Gerber has manufacturing facilities in Kokomo, IN, Laredo, TX, Montreal, Canada. Shenzhen, China and Weifang, China.

Gerber

Honey bees have been disappearing worldwide, and in record numbers. It is a baffling mystery because the beeds aren't found dead or sick ... the hives are just empty.  Beekeepers and farmers are panicked by the disappearance that has been named "Colony Collapse Disorder" (CCD).

Potential culprits are debated, with causes asfar ranging as climate change and mutated viruses to pesticides and even cell phone signals.  But the answer is elusive. 

What most people don't know is that honey bees are not "native" bees in most parts of the world.  These hard working "domesticated" bees actually originated in Europe and have been transported around the world to help pollinate crops.  Native bees are also available around the world, and are usually solitary little critters.  They don't mass in hives -- so they haven't been good for honey production and not domesticated for pollination, either.  But pollinate, they do!  Most of nature relies on native bee pollination.

One of these native bees in the US is the Orchard Mason Bee.

Mason bee nesting blocks are available at Clean Air Gardening today for $19.99

Learn more about Orchard Mason Bees at the NCSU.edu website.

The Orchard Mason Bee is the common name of a nonsocial native bee (Osmia lignaria ssp.) that pollinates our spring fruit trees, flowers and vegetables. This gentle, blue-black metallic bee does not live in hives. In nature it nests within hollow stems, woodpecker drillings and insect holes found in trees or wood. Sometimes there may be dense collections of individual nest holes, but these bees neither connect or share nests, nor help provision or protect each others' young. Also, they are active for only a short period of the year.

They are not aggressive and one may observe them at very close range without fear of being stung, which makes them excellent for enhancing our yards and gardens. They add beauty, activity and pollination to our plantings. However, they do not produce honey.

The female Orchard Mason Bee visits flowers to collect pollen for its young. She forms a small ball of pollen and nectar in the back of the nesting tube and lays an egg on the ball. She then collects mud to form a cell partition and repeats the pollen ball-egg laying process until she reaches the mouth of the tube where she caps the end with mud.

Nest Block Construction

The native eastern species of Orchard Mason Bee will nest in holes drilled in a wooden block. Untreated 4" x 6" lumber works great. Holes can be drilled in the wood on 3/4 inch centers. They should be 4-8" deep (depending upon the size lumber used), smooth, and a 5/16" diameter hole is important. A smaller hole encourages higher production of male bees which reduces the reproductive potential of the population. Blocks may be drilled from either face giving shallower or deeper holes. Shallower holes may produce more male bees. Do not drill completely through the lumber. Drill the hole to a depth about 1/2 inch from the back of the block. Attach a roof to provide protection from the midday sun and rain. Outside surfaces may be painted or stained, but do not use wood preservatives. One hole may be drilled in the back to provide a means of hanging the block. Face nesting blocks as close to the southeast direction as possible to catch morning sun and affix it firmly so that it does not sway in the wind. It should be located at least three feet above the ground.

These bees need mud to construct cell partitions, so adding a mud supply may be helpful if needed. This can be a trench or tub located nearby where muddy soil is maintained during the nesting period. The mud should not be highly organic or sandy. Clay soils work well.

Do not move the blocks during the weeks of active nesting. Once all nesting activity has stopped, the nesting block may be moved to a shelter such as a shed or unheated garage. Be gentle when moving occupied blocks at this time of year. This will give the bees added protection from predators and parasites, yet will allow them exposure to the cold temperatures that they need to break hibernation. If desired, bee emergence can be delayed for a short period by refrigerating the block in the spring until you are ready for the bees to emerge. Bees will need three days to warm up following refrigeration.

Orchard Bees are sometimes reared in cardboard tubes, hollow reeds, or straws. Cardboard tubes and straws need more protection from weather and parasites. Paper straws allow better inspection and manipulation. Plastic straws hold moisture and allow mold to develop and are not recommended. Bees may also be purchased commercially.

You can be creative with your nesting blocks. Blocks can be made from any shape wood. They may be cut to a fancy shape, be a small piece of dead tree limb, fence post or scrap of firewood. You can vary the diameter of the drilled holes to attract different species of tube-nesting bees or nonsocial, beneficial wasps.

Your Local, Native Bees

Bee species vary by ecosystem and location.  You can foster native bees that pollinate agricultural and wilderness plants by learning about your own local species and providing them with habitat.  Habitat includes plants for foraging (for both food and nesting) and even houses to encourage their prolific reproduction to keep pace with the need in local agriculture.

You can also help the native bee population by educating gardeners, lawn care professionals, farmers and homeowners about preventing unnecessary death of these bees with chemicals.  Pesticides, fertilizers and other chemicals kill beneficial insects as well as unwanted insects.  By choosing to use Integrated Pest Management practices, we can foster beneficial insect populations, reduce toxins in our water and soil systems...and maintain the balance of species required to foster a thriving ecosystem.

You can help remodel your lawn and garden for natural habitat!

Your work can be in spurts..but very important! 

The old fashioned bathroom stool can use up to 3 gallons of water per flush. New toilets use considerably less and the new "dual flush toilet" lets you save the most. The flush button for "light flush" uses lss than a gallon of water, and the heavier flush (for solids) uses about 1.5 gallons. These amounts vary by product and by certification by trusted programs such as EPA's Watersense standard.

Designed in Australia, where water conservation is extremely important, the HET dual flush water-saving toilet uses, at most, 1.6 gallons per flush. “Dual flush” means that this toilet has two different types of flushing. One for liquids (or #1), which is only .8 gallon of water, and one for solids ( like #2, c’mon let’s be grownups about this!), which is only 1.6 gallons of water. At its biggest flush, this water still uses less than the standard new toilets, which use 1.8 gallons of water per flush. That’s up to 50-75% savings!

Remodeling doesn't always mean ripping out walls -- if you think green, you can rip out utility costs!

A story in the Los Angeles Times (April 8, 2008)  made the case that Las Vegas houses are very dated if they are just 4 to 8 years old.  Plastic chandeliers, granite tile vs. granite slab in the bath, 12 inch travertine tiles vs. 20 x 20" tiles... the list of outdated styles is really mind boggling.

Can we afford this kind of fashionista thinking in today's world that is facing landfill gluts, shortage of natural materials, greenhouse warming and a recession?

About 1,000 houses are listed for sale in Las Vegas for $1 million or higher, more than 600 of them built since 2004. But unless they've been constructed in the last year or two, the properties are considered out-of-date, making them all that more difficult to sell, real estate agents say.

In other parts of the country, age is prized.  think Beverly Hills or Greenwich, Connecticut.  But Las Vegas is about NEW.

And Las Vegas is surrounded by desert land that has been seen as wide open for development -- without much thought given to the natural systems in place.  Systems such as an underground aquafer that is being drained.  Or migrating pollinators that travel from Mexico and South America to the US breadbasket. 

The question is, how do we help people with more money than sense  understand their role in the world's climate change crisis?  It's time to grow up and face the responsibilities that come with abundance.

Responsible building can be just as rewarding as plunder -- and maybe more so when you consider the genuine respect and community being part of the solution brings with it.  And it saves money -- which can be spent in more visionary ways that can leave a legacy, a truly enduring legacy that benefits the family's children and grandchildren and their community.

Waste is so....dated!

SOURCE:  LATimes.com

    

"Recycled water is a new energy source," said Grant Davis, assistant general manager of the Sonoma County Water Agency. "Water and wastewater that you'd normally have to treat and dispose of will become the source for heating and cooling."

The project has gained steam in the past few months as Pacific Gas and Electric Co. and some of the biggest names in the wine business have signed on; in March, county supervisors approved $1 million for a feasibility study. The flurry of interest comes as more cities and businesses take a hard look at their contributions to greenhouse gas emissions and climate change, and national labs expand their research to include not just military security, but water, energy and economic security.

Sonoma officials will meet with lawmakers in Washington about allocating money for this project and establishing a fund, similar to the Community Development Block Grant Program, to pay for similar projects all over the United States. In addition to federal money, Sonoma is considering revenue bonds and creating a special assessment district.

They estimate savings of 90 percent on natural gas and about 50 percent on electricity for heating and cooling. The environmental benefits are hard to quantify - but the county is working on it. Under the wastewater recycling plan, 55- to 60-degree water would be pumped from the treatment plant to the business park through underground pipes into a pump inside each building. Once in the pump, a refrigeration device transfers heat to or from the wastewater. A compressor converts that heat energy into warm or cold air that can be pushed through about 3 million square feet of office space at the business park, replacing the traditional heating and air conditioning systems.

In this "open" system, the water could also be used to irrigate landscaping, or, with a secondary set of pipes, flush toilets. Otherwise, the chilly or hot water - between about 40 degrees and 150 degrees - would pass through underground pipes to two adjacent reservoirs.

The wastewater recovery system could work particularly well for small or midsize cities or suburbs where the energy needed to pump water to low-slung buildings is much less than for skyscrapers.

Why?

"We all know California will have severe droughts in the next 20 to 40 years and that will affect water supply," said Gary Geernaert, director of the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics at Los Alamos National Lab. "This will help us make educated guesses about what the pressures will be on the public and private infrastructure and help build that into the design."

SOURCE: April 2008  SFGATE.com

Green Building and Green Products

The American Institute of Architects
Establishes business standards for and represents professional interests of licensed American architects and allied partners.

ASTM International
Develops technical standards for materials, products, systems, and services used around the world.

Build It Green
Fosters stakeholder collaboration to accelerate adoption of green building practices, policies, and programs throughout California.

Collaborative for High Performance Schools (CHPS)
Provides sustainability criteria and design resources for schools in support of a national green-building rating program for K-12 schools.

Design for the Environment (DfE)

Supports “green chemistry” in the design and manufacture of alternative products and promotes scientifically sound and cost-effective pollution reduction projects.

EPA Product Stewardship Program

Aims to reduce environmental impacts, calling for a shared responsibility among manufacturers, retailers, users and disposers of products.

Ecological Design Institute

Fosters research and education in environmental design that integrates architecture, human and natural ecology in a whole-systems approach.

GreenSpec® Database

Presents green design and construction news with GreenSpec® database of environmentally preferable products selected by BuildingGreen editors.

The Home Depot

Promotes Eco Options labeling to identify products offering a range of certified sustainability benefits to consumers.

The American Indoor Air Quality Council

Educates the public and develops certification programs for the management of indoor air quality.

NAHB (National Association of Home Builders) Research Center

Pushes new building technologies into the residential market by providing industry information to clients.

Sustainable Buildings Industry Council

Presents LEEDS system and promotes sustainable construction of healthy, cost-effective buildings.

UNEP / SETAC Life Cycle Initiative

Develops product life-cycle management framework and tools, including activities and databases of best available methods and information.

U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC, LEED)
Consensus-based group managing LEED building criteria.

Green Healthcare Standards and Compliance

Health Care Without Harm
Outlines sustainability goals developed by an international coalition to transform the health care sector and prevent harm to public health and the environment.

Healthcare Environmental Resource Center
Offers pollution prevention resources and compliance assistance information related to federal and state regulations of hospital wastes.

News and Research on Environmental Quality

California Green Solutions
Broad overview of business to business solutions from companies and organizations providing workplace and community sustainability

Environmental News Network

Selects environmental news reflecting current issues of social, economic and environmental sustainability.

Environmental Protection Agency Website

Posts information issued by the EPA, the governmental agency charged with protecting U.S. environmental resources.

Society for Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry

Pursues analysis and solution of environmental problems and promotes sustainable environmental quality and ecosystem integrity.

Recycling and Reuse of Building Materials

Building Materials Reuse Association

Provides information to facilitate the strategic deconstruction of buildings and the reuse or recycling of recovered building materials.

Construction Materials Trade Association (CMRA)

Promotes safe and economically feasible means of recycling construction and demolition materials used in U.S. buildings.

 

Life Cycle Assessment (LCIA)

Life cycle assessment (LCIA)  is an internationally standardized (ISO 14044) environmental accounting tool designed to accurately measure the benefits and tradeoffs of each choice.

Developed by leading scientists from 22 countries to provide a scientific bases for environmental claims and green design, Life Cycle Impact Assessment (LCIA) sets the new standard for environmental metrics.

Environmental Performance Declarations by SCS

Declarations are based on life cycle assessment (LCIA),  and the Scientific Certification Systems (SCS) "Decalaration" results are not boiled down to a summary score as in some systems. Each indicator is charted on the declaration so that areas for improvement stand out.

Results are not boiled down to a summary score as in some systems. Each indicator is charted on the declaration so that areas for improvement stand out.

Environmental Performance Declarations provide designers, architects, facility managers and product manufacturers with a new precise method of determining the environmental performance of building designs, office equipment and systems, building operations, and transportation including air travel and work commutes.

SCS Declarations are available for building design and construction, electric power systems, building materials, building products, and workforce and building operations.

Environmental Performance Building Declarations

Building Declarations provide designers and architects a new precise method of determining the environmental performance of building designs.

Declarations are based on life cycle assessment (LCIA), an internationally standardized (ISO 14044) environmental accounting tool which quantifies environmental performance based on measurable biophysical impacts.  According to SCS, "LEED-Rated buildings make improvements in some areas, but leave others unexamined. While the building on the right has a higher LEED rating, its total environmental impacts are much greater that those of the lower-rated building on the left. Only a life cycle perspective shows total impacts."

Examples of SCS Environmental Performance Declaration of LEED Rated buildings.

CONTACT:
Scientific Certification Systems
2200 Powell Street, Suite 725
Emeryville, California 94608
Phone: 510-452-8000
http://www.scscertified.com

Design and Implementation of Corporate Social Responsibility

Purchasing Programs

Corporate responsibility programs are spreading across public and private companies as investors, regulators and customers are requesting more transparency and accountability for responsible business practices that reduce climate change risks and health concerns.  Saving electricity is part of that picture -- but only a small part.  Green building is part of the strategy.  Recycling and reclamation of waste are additional functions that preserve natural resources.  And the purchase of products with recycled content, high performance and  low toxicity contributions are a big part of the  corporate  responsibility  potential.

Purchasing Programs

To complement its full suite of third-party certification programs, SCS assists corporate clients in the design and implementation of corporate social responsibility (CSR) purchasing programs.

Corporations increasingly understand that their purchasing decisions can either enhance or detract from their socio-environmental responsibility profile. For such clients, "off the shelf" certification programs may not be the best fit, due to product availability, supplier compliance, or program complexity. In such circumstances, the most effective corporate strategy may well be to custom-design a responsible procurement program (often known as a "preferred supplier program") that expressly incorporates the corporation's own definition of social and environmental responsibility.

As a leading designer and practitioner of independent, third-party certification programs in the food, natural resource, and manufacturing sectors, SCS has both the technical skill sets and real-world practical experience to design and implement responsible procurement programs.

Depending upon the client's tactical needs, SCS can design "turn-key" responsible procurement programs implemented by the company itself, or can design programs with third-party implementation components. To date, SCS has experience designing green coffee and cut flower purchasing programs. Regardless of the business sector, SCS is the clear choice for providing the technical support necessary to design an effective, credible and responsible procurement program.

CONTACT:
Scientific Certification Systems
2200 Powell Street, Suite 725
Emeryville, California 94608
Phone: 510-452-8000
http://www.scscertified.com/forestry/index.html

Forest Conservation Program

SCS developed its Forest Conservation Program in 1991 and has since emerged as a leading certifier of forest management operations and wood product manufacturers. In 1996, the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) accredited SCS as a certification body, enabling it to evaluate forests according to the FSC Principles and Criteria for Forest Stewardship. Through a well-developed network of regional representatives and contractors, SCS offers timely and cost-effective certification services around the world.

Over the past 12 years, SCS has certified more than 23.8 million acres of natural forests and plantations in North, Central, and South America, Europe, Asia, and New Zealand through its Forest Management Certification division. Certified operations have ranged from small 100-hectare parcels to 2.5-million hectare forests. SCS also offers a group certification format, such as certified resource managers, to lower certification costs for small landowners. For each certification audit, an interdisciplinary evaluation team of experts in forest science and management is assembled.

Since the mid-1990s, SCS has also offered FSC certification to wood product manufacturers. Our Chain-of-Custody Certification division has audited and certified over 500 manufacturers, distributors, and retailers who make or carry certified wood products. SCS has issued chain-of-custody certificates in over 29 countries spanning 5 continents.

In addition to FSC certification, SCS offers an independent, non-aligned certification program for clients seeking an alternative to existing, potentially polarizing certification schemes. SCS also offers wood product manufacturers the option of pursuing single attribute claims (e.g., recycled, recovered, salvaged wood, etc.) certification.

As of February 4, 2008, SCS is a CCX-approved verifier for >forestry offset projects.

Chain-of-Custody Certification

Before a product may carry an FSC or SCS label, all stages of the production, distribution, and sale of the product must be independently evaluated. Wood must be tracked from the certified forest to the finished product.

Through our Chain-of-Custody Certification Division, SCS certifies wholesalers, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers, who handle wood coming from forests certified according to FSC standards. For FSC Chain-of-Custody certification SCS also provides group and multi-site certification. To become certified, these entities must meet six principles of chain-of-custody, such as maintaining adequate inventory control systems that allow for separation and identification of certified product.

SCS requires the tracking of certified products throughout the production process to ensure the validity of the certified claim. If a wood product carries the FSC or SCS logo, a customer can have confidence that it was made from wood harvested from an FSC-certified forest.

LINK to Forest Conservation Program CERTIFIED CLIENTS

For a searchable database of all forests and products certified according to the rules of the Forest Stewardship Council, visit the Forest Certification Resource Center.


CONTACT:
Scientific Certification Systems
2200 Powell Street, Suite 725
Emeryville, California 94608
Phone: 510-452-8000
http://www.scscertified.com/forestry/index.html

Green building and green workspace strategies include conscious design principles that reduce the load on the environment -- and people's health.  The use of non-polluting materials and manufacturing processes of basic building and manufacturing processes is the foundation of a green building.  How the building itself is constructed is the second step toward lowered lifetime impact through lower energy costs, better ventilation, lower offgassing, etc.  And the furnishings that make the building functional add the final step in the green building process by selecting furnishings that reduce virgin materials use, are high performance and long lasting, and provide ergonomic service to the people using them.

Whether you are building a new facility or retrofitting a building, finding good quality, green building materials is part of the upgrading process...and part of certification programs such as Energy Star, California standards, Federal Environmentally Preferable Purchasing or USGBC's LEED program.

Measuring Environmental Claims with Scientific Certification Systems (SCS)

Scientific Certification Systems (SCS) is one of the leading product and process certification audit providers.  They monitor, measure and certify a wide range of environmental products for industries including

• Food & Agriculture
• Eco Products (Building)
• Forestry
• Fisheries
• Floral

Online SCS Certified Products Database of Eco Building Products

The online product directory of green building products includes  broad categories, sub-categories and product types from more than  one hundred manufacturers  and classified by certification programs and conformance to the  leading  regulatory and  measurement programs. Currently certified products include office furniture systems, components, and seating, building materials, carpet and rug, hard surface flooring, paints, finishes, wood products, and cleaning products, among others.

Categories of eco products include:

• Adhesives/Sealants
• Building and Construction Products
• Flooring
• Furniture
• Home and Garden
• Paint Products
• Paints and Coatings
• Plastics
• Processes
• Reclamation Program
• Rock
• Textiles and Fiber
• Treatment

Certification Programs covered include:

• Biodegradable
• Environmentally Preferable Product
• FloorScore
• Indoor avantage
• indoor Advantage Gold
• No Added Formaldehyde
• No Added Urea Formaldehyde
• Pollution Prevention
• Reclamation Program
• Recycled or Reclaimed Content
• Salvaged Wood
• SCS Sustainable Choice

Conformance list includes:

• CA Section 01350
• CHPS EQ 2.2 (CA Section 01350)
• LEED EQ 4.2 + CHPS EQ 2.2
• LEED EQ 4.3 + CHPS EQ 2.2
• LEED EQ 4.5 (ANSI/BIFMA Furniture Emissions Standards)
• LEED EQ 4.5 +CHPS EQ 2.2 (ANSI/BIFMA Furniture Emissions Standards
• LEED MR 4.1 or 4.2