Cube-tastic

A tour of the Cube from Mike Page on Vimeo.

Imagine if they stacked these in NY. I have at least one friend who would benefit from this efficient use of space.

thanks Sasha =)

Dishwashing: Man vs. Machine

I always held the general impression that using machines and being green were inherently incompatible. When it comes to the battle between dishwasher and man, my friends tend to agree: some said hand washing was definitely greener and some, one of which referenced the "heated dry" function, were torn. However, contrary to popular belief, manual labor, conveniently, may not be the answer.

Collin Dunn did a detailed comparison of EnergyStar dishwashers and hand washing. I've adapted some of his analysis in order to compare hand washing to conventional dishwashers. Water and energy use for hand washing was determined assuming [warm] water use equivalent to that in a dishwasher cycle. For example, 54 dishes (the typical capacity of a dishwasher) washed in 6 gallons of water (the typical amount of water consumed in a dishwasher) means that only 1.75 cups of water from the faucet can be used per dish. If fewer dishes need to be washed, say 27 dishes, then the equivalent water use would be 3.7 cups per dish.

These numbers may seem confusing. Reference Dunn's article for more detailed calculations.

Moral of the story? When you have a large number of dishes piled up, go for the dishwasher. It's usually more efficient in terms of water use. Because energy use is heavily dependent on your type of dishwasher and water heater, comparing the two is a crapshoot. If you turn off heated dry, the odds will probably strongly favor dishwashers. If you only have a few dishes and can't wait to fill up the dishwasher, hand wash them. Below are some ways you can make each method more efficient.

For dishwasher tips, go here. To learn more handwashing tips, try this site. Also, learn why pre-rinsing is bad.

There are also a bunch of studies that back up these findings (and may favor dishwashers even more). Here are a few:

Rodale.

R. Stamminger (2006) at UBonn. 

Masdar: "Source" of Hope in the Middle of the Desert?

Street Design in Masdar

Masdar, loosely meaning "source" in Arabic, is a city in Abu Dhabi that was formed in hopes of creating "the world's first zero-carbon city". While Masdar will probably never reach that status, the city's designers have some solid plans on how to make the city more sustainable. In order to decrease automotive traffic and increase walkability, the architects have employed traditional Arab design. Narrow streets surrounded by permeable walls limit direct sunlight while also allowing cool winds to circulate. A new twist on the traditional Arabic wind tower also helps distribute ambient air through the streets. The combination of these things is supposedly capable of reducing street temperature to 70F. Windows have angled shades so that buildings can be naturally lit with minimal heat gain. In order to reduce Masdar's energy footprint, they've enlisted an incredible amount of solar panels.

However, in order for Masdar to become energy efficient, residents will have to do the same things as the rest of us: change their behavior. A 50% reduction in energy use means everyone in Masdar needs to up their thermostat to 77F.

Innovative Spray Bottles by Replenish

Consumer product companies have always had the knowledge, resources, and consumer base to make their products more sustainable. Over the past few years, they've found the will power to complete the equation. Think about the products you've been seeing on the shelves: 3x concentrated detergent, water bottles made with 30% less plastic, and the unfortunate SunChips bags.

Here's another one, and it's called Replenish (thanks Kutgun). Watch the short video to see how it works:

It proves that the a simple design can have a great impact.