Goal For The Green

Modern life is filled with modern conveniences. Unfortunately, many of those conveniences come with a price we would rather not pay. They can provide a low quality experience when you use them and, very often, you also get to feel guilty about the environment afterwards.

Let’s say your boss has tasked you with throwing a soup party at the office, There is no means to wash a bunch of dishes afterwards. Besides, these are your co-workers, not your children. Cleaning up after them is not really part of your job duties, even if when you are asked to organize an event. There is a modern convenience to solve this problem: Disposable bowls.

The problem is that if you get Styrofoam bowls and put hot soup in them, you can actually see how the Styrofoam melts from the heat and you can taste how it has contaminated the food. Even if you do not believe that has negative health consequences, who on earth actually likes the taste of Styrofoam? It makes for a lousy dining experience to have your soup with a little bit of Styrofoam flavoring. Afterwards, you get to feel guilty about what you are doing to the environment.

Alternately, you could get plastic bowls. They are more heat tolerant in that they are less likely to melt or off-gas. They also have no insulation, so holding a disposable plastic bowl full of hot soup is a good way to get burned. They also do not solve the issue of guilt. Plastic is also something that will do bad things to the environment after it arrives at a landfill.

Another alternative is paper bowls. They are better insulated than plastic, will not leave behind a chemical taste, and there is some hope they will properly biodegrade when they go to the landfill. This sounds like a winner, until you actually throw your party and discover that paper has a bad habit of not holding up well when wet. This is a potential disaster of a party.

The superior answer here is compostable bowls made from sustainable materials like bamboo. They will hold up well when filled with hot soup. Like paper bowls, they have natural insulation to protect your fingers from the heat, and there will be no chemical taste added to your food. Furthermore, when they get to the landfill, they will properly and fully biodegrade. Problem solved.

When searching for carpet cleaners Brooklyn homeowners use, there are some questions that you need to keep in mind in order to find the best service possible. The first thing that you should find out about is whether the company offers a free estimate or if you have to pay a fee for someone to come to the home to examine the area that needs to be cleaned. If you have to pay a fee, then it should be deducted from the total price of the cleaning.

Most companies will stand by the quote that they give you. If the company does offer an estimate and you decide to use the services, then you need to make sure you have a document stating what will be done, the average of how long it could take and how much it will cost. You also need to ask about any warranties or if damages are covered by the company. Find out how long it takes to clean an area of the home and how many people will be doing the job. Another thing to keep in mind are the kind of materials used when cleaning. If you have any allergies or young children, then you need to make sure the products used are safe.

Some companies will have large pieces of equipment that are used to clean the carpets in the home. Find out if you will need to provide any of the cleaning products or if the company will supply everything. If there is a specific scent that you want used, then ask if you can provide the items. The company might take a small amount off the total price if all the workers have to do is clean instead of provide all of the supplies.

See if the technicians are certified in the work that is done. Ask to see any kind of references that will give you enough assurance to know that the company provides the best work possible. When you hire the company, you should probably be at the home for the first few times that the technicians clean if you plan on using the company on a regular schedule just so that you can see how they operate.

The cost of energy has been steadily increasing and showing no signs of relief any time soon. We asked the electricians at Ruby Electrical to share some ideas about ways to lower energy costs. Specializing in energy efficient lighting, Ruby Electrical offers these tips to lowering energy costs by making changes to lighting.

English: Energy efficient LED lights strung into a holiday decoration. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

1. Choose an energy efficient product. Sometimes choosing a more energy efficient light source is the easiest way to lower your costs. Whether you are light your home or your office space, changing your current lighting to LED lighting can save you more. Unlike incandescent or halogen lighting, LED lights shine bright without burning too hot. Additionally, the same amount of LED light can be produced using less energy than other inefficient types of lighting, which means lower costs for you.

2. Use timers to control when lights turn on or off. Another great way to save money on your energy bill is to use timed lights. Let your daily routine determine your lighting needs. With timed lighting, you don’t have to worry about whether you turned the lights off before leaving the house ever again. Simply set the timer to turn off the lights 5 minutes after you leave. You can also set up the timer to automatically turn on outdoor lighting at night and shut them off in the morning. Adding timers to your office lights allow you to control when the lights of your business are on and off. Set the timer to turn on lights 10 minutes before you open and shut off 10 minutes after closing. You have enough to worry about without having to think about your lighting. Automating your lighting needs will take a load off your mind and keep more money in your bank account.

3. Use motion sensor lighting. Consider how often lights are left on when no one is using the space. Avoid wasting energy unnecessarily and switch to motion sensor lighting. Motion sensor lights turn on only when movement is detecting, so as long as someone is not sitting perfectly still in a room, the lights will remain on. When someone leaves the room, the lights will automatically shut off if no movement is detected after a predetermined amount of time. Motion sensor lighting is especially useful in an office setting when you or your colleagues frequently leave an office light on because you are expecting to be back right away. With motion sensor lighting, if your short trip to break room ends up taking longer than you expected, the lights will shut off before you waste too much valuable energy.

If any of these solutions seem like something you would like to try in your home or office, contact an electrician for a consultation. Ruby Electrical serves the Gold Coast areas of Coolangatta, Robina, and Tweed Heads. Whether you need to shop fittings on the Gold Coast for your home or schedule an office fit out for your business, the professional electricians are available to help you find the right products and styles to fit your needs and lifestyle. Visit rubyelectrical.com.au for more information and to schedule your consultation.