how to make your home greener (and more efficient) - home energy storage system
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This week: how to make your home greener and make takeout betterS.
MilitaryA's new way to recycle styrofoamHow to make your home greener (and efficient! )
We reviewed several issues and we looked at carbon emissions from buildings.
Many prescriptions that make the building greener naturally apply to the home as well.
The concept has a name: "passive house", which essentially refers to a building with the highest efficiency and the lowest price.
Reasonable price and comfortable environment protection.
This concept stems from research funded by the EU in the 1980 s and has affected building codes around the world.
Passive housing is based on five principles: Optimal insulation, which means that the structure has an uninterrupted layer of insulation from underneath the foundation to the top of the roof.
Non-breathable structural homes do not have air leaks that can lead to heat loss or moisture accumulation, which can lead to mold and mildew. High-
The quality of the windows and doors looks obvious, but it should be noted that the windows and doors are very good
Design they do not allow internal condensation.
The control ventilation structure has a ventilation system that can take fresh air and old air away from home, and can also capture and release the heat of the air to help adjust the indoor temperature.
No heat Bridge is any position in the structure that allows the outdoor heat or cold to enter the interior, forming a bridge between the comfortable indoor temperature and the outdoor temperature.
The hot bridge will not only lead to heat loss or an increase in cooling demand, but also cold spots, resulting in mold and mildew.
Few homeowners have the ability to integrate all of these principles together-which could mean building from scratch.
But Rob Bernhardt, CEO of Passive House Canada, said it was possible to make meaningful changes to existing homes.
"If there is no chance to do everything again, it is possible to do it step by step.
The key, says Bernhardt, is to start with a professionally prepared plan that recognizes that different components of your home will reach "the end of their useful life" at different times ".
For example, your windows may wear out faster than your stove.
But perhaps your position is the most urgent business.
He said that when components appear, solve them and then replace them with something really highperformance.
"So, if you need a new windows, maybe you can choose three times as many windows as you want.
Pane and gas (like argon)
This effectively isolated them.
If you need new wall panels, Bernhardt recommends that you use this opportunity to enhance the insulation of the exterior walls or to make them more airtight (
Using what Bernhardt says is "high
Performance Building packaging ").
Most of the materials used in buildings right now are suitable for passive homes, which means that even if you can't do a massive remodel at a time, says Bernhardt, making a plan will ensure that anything you do will bring your home closer to the ideal of a passive home. —
Andre Meyer, what are you thinking?
At the end of last year, we asked if you planned to pass any green resolution for 2019.
It's been three months since this year, so we want to know: how are these resolutions going?
Do they have a challenge?
Mostly successful? Let us know!
Email us atwhatonearth @ total blood count. ca.
In October, a competition called the next generation Cup challenge invited inventors from around the world to design a sustainable take-out paper cup solution that tends to pile up in landfill sites around the world
The winner was announced last month, with top competitors receiving up to $1 million in funding for their products.
Six winners have entered a commercial accelerator and their ideas will be explored with the help of big
Partners like Starbucks.
Starbucks announced this week that it will try to win at its location in Vancouver.
The concept of the challenge is divided into three categories: innovative cup mats, new materials and reusable cup service models.
In the category of innovative cup sleeves, inventors aim to replace the usual plastic lining.
The Earth Cup above, by C. E. E R.
Schislerin in France is an example.
The Earth Cup is made entirely of paper, not only recyclable, but also householdcompostable —
Not to mention, it, like a polyethylene cup, is certified for food contact.
Competition also shows that new materials can be developed.
Biodegradable cups and straws made in the United StatesK.
Science Blue brand Co. , Ltd.
It is recommended that the Cup can be a plant
Base and downgrade after use. (
Solublue, however, did not disclose what plant material it used. )
There was an idea that didn't work, but the Mushroom Cup was worth mentioning. Created by U. S. -
Based on concentric LLC, at least part of this cup is made of fungi
Specifically, silk, Branch
Like a structure that stretches out of a fungus.
The frame of the Cup is also made of basic organic materials such as corn shells or discarded grains, lined with cellulose acetate, a waterproof biodegradable plastic.
The next generation challenge is "an incredible opportunity to identify or discover creatures at this moment
A benign, non-toxic alternative to plastic for food and beverage packaging, "said California CEO Dianna Cohen
The plastic pollution Alliance, which is not involved in the challenge.
You might think: Shouldn't the focus be on reusable cups?
This is taken into account in the last category of the next generation challenge.
A service from Germany called ReCupproposes proposes a system in which you pay a deposit for a cup in a participating restaurant, once you are done, you can return it like in the same place or another participating restaurant inside and outside the city. (
Get your deposit back. )
Cohen believes that challenges like this are very productive, but he stressed that as a consumer society, we need to "from a singleuse plastics.
"In the end, we need to look for reusable models, so we produce a container that will be used hundreds or thousands of times. "—
Farhnaz faazlithe big picture: floods on the United StatesS.
Evidence of climate change is becoming increasingly evident. While U. S.
President Donald Trump's dismissive remarks have inspired some skeptics who are not among the country's military planners.
The recent "bomb cyclone" in the United States"S.
The Midwest caused flooding, including the oft Air Force Base near Omaha.
Most of them were flooded by the rising waters of the Missouri River.
Offutt is home to the United States. S.
Strategic Command responsible for deterrence and global strike capability.
Earlier this year, the Pentagon issued a report warning of many US military installations. S.
Risk of flooding or drought.
Hot spots and troubles: While provocative ideas on the Web are not simple projects, this week's federal budget does contain some green incentives for consumers.
Buying electric or hydrogen fuel cell cars under $5,000 has a $45,000 federal rebate and plans to subsidize homeowners and businesses who want to make environmental changes to their buildings.
When playing a leading role in climate action, countries that receive most of their credit are usually in Europe.
But in brother
Population 5 million
Seems to have cleared one of the biggest obstacles to achieving zero
Fully renewable energy.
Due to its geographical location, natural resources and informed planning, the country has recently had 299 days entirely from green energy (
Mainly wind, water and geothermal).
In Denmark, a company is working on a pilot project designed to show that simple stones heated to 600 degrees Celsius may be a way to store green energy such as wind and solar.
It is technically called high.
Temperature Thermal energy storage, said Tommy Ahlers, Danish Minister of Education and Research, which "could be a missing link in our transformation of renewable energy ".
"Give foam a Second Life (
Not in the ocean)
A few weeks ago, Andrea Kay wrote about the issue of polystyrene foam, often referred to as foam plastic, which in fact is rarely recycled.
Some of Canada's abandoned plastic foam is finally buried in a landfill or a waterway, and most communities in Canada do not accept recycling. Why?
It is light in weight, large in size and expensive to collect and transport;
It is easy to break and pollute other recyclable items;
It is difficult for many cities to sell it, especially after China closed doors to many foreign recyclables in 2018.
But what if there is a way to make the discarded foam more valuable? Brantford, Ont. -
GreenMantra, the startup, is trying to do this, and CEO Judy Morgan sees this as key to improving recovery rates.
"We can create products that are more valuable than the original plastic," she said . ".
Most plastic packaging is very cheap and recycled to other lowvalue products.
For example, the packaging and tableware of foam plastic electronic products are often made into photo frames and molded.
GreenMantra's deputy, domenidi Mundo
The President of Technology said it is often difficult to combine a mixture of different kinds of "recycled" foam plastics to produce a single product, such as insulation.
GreenMantra's solution is a "chemical recovery" process that breaks down polystyrene molecules into small molecules that are completely different from polystyrene.
These can then be sold as additives for inks and coatings in the printing industry.
They can also be used to mix and homogenize different kinds of foam plastic in order to convert it into a new product.
Morgan compared it to a bottle of salad sauce that keeps oil and water separate.
GreenMantra has just built a new demonstration plant in brantsford and is expected to start operating in the next month or two.
The company has been buying foam plastic from community and industrial facilities.
Di Mondo said that our goal is to demonstrate the value of waste plastics, thus motivating more communities and companies to collect waste plastics.
GreenMantra is not the only Canadian clean technology startup that uses new technology to solve the problem of foam plastic recycling.
Some of the others have been marked by our readers.
We will have an article soon to do more detailed research on other solutions. —
Liu Huiqing keep in touch!
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