A recent Metaefficient post offered some ideas for reducing water consumption in your home – but why stop there? Read on to learn about some tips and products that will help you manage water use in outdoor spaces like lawns and gardens. Best of all, you’ll reduce both your environmental impact and utility bills in …
Reducing household water usage has big-time benefits for both homeowners and for the environment: reducing strain on local water resources, cutting demand on wastewater treatment facilities, and lowering both water and sewage utility bills, to name a few. Although this is by no means an exhaustive list, we’ve put together a collection of water-saving tips …
April showers might bring May flowers – but they also bring an explosion of lawn growth. Traditional lawn care can rely on some pretty nasty chemicals and smoke-belching machines, but luckily there are alternatives. Read on to learn about some innovative products to keep your lawn beautiful and healthy, while keeping the environment healthy too.
Green roofs have seen a surge in popularity recently as sustainable building designs become more mainstream. Soil and plantings on a building’s rooftop can help manage water runoff, improve air quality, and reduce energy use by moderating indoor temperatures. They can also prolong the life of a building’s roof by protecting it from the wear …
Green Roofs – Efficient Design Starts At The Top Read More »
Utilizing rainwater runoff is a double bonus for homeowners, both in environmental and financial terms. It reduces the amount of water consumed from the municipal system, and it lessens the strain on wastewater treatment facilities that must process water after it flows down the drain. A rain barrel is great for small-scale applications like a …
The Rainwater Pillow – Rain Barrel Meets Cistern Read More »
A while back, MetaEfficient profiled what could be the greenest skyscraper in America, the Bank of America Tower in New York City. Located in midtown Manhattan at One Bryant Park, the 945-foot tall, 55-story structure is scheduled to open later this year. Here’s a closer look at some of the groundbreaking features that should help …
Update: Bank Of America Tower, Greenest Skyscraper In The U.S. Read More »
Our buildings and homes could capture all water we need on a daily basis. A great example of rainwater harvesting can be found at the Langston Brown Community Center and High School in Arlington, Virginia. The community center has two 24-foot-tall 11,000-gallon cisterns that store rainwater.
The average roof sheds 160 gallons of rainwater per hour during a moderate rain fall. Rainwater is better for your garden than tap water: it is at ambient temperature rather than being cold, and it is not chlorinated or treated with chemicals. The Garden Water Saver, is a device that attaches to your home’s downspout, …
Unfortunately, most rainwater tanks and cisterns are unsightly blocks of concrete or plastic. The LUMI Rainwater Tank, however, was designed by Katrina Logan to be visually appealing. It’s made of sculptural satin acrylic and can be made in a range of colors and sizes (250 liters – 1100 liters). The tank glows in the sunlight, …
It is possible to produce pure drinking water from rain water using a combination of devices costing around $300 total. Here’s how to do it: Install a roof washer and a rain barrel ($200). A roof washes diverts the first ten gallons or so of rain water away from your barrel — it contains such …
