Eco Friendly House And Garden

Finally, London has put some focus on a bicycle hire scheme in the City!

Rather than focusing on trying to stop heavy traffic – they have decided to focus on promoting and supporting a cycling scheme for commuters, locals and tourists alike!

Hopefully this is the first step towards changing the way we look at cities and transport for the future – and the more of us that support the scheme – the more likely further improvements are!

Tower Bridge - London

Why Bikes?
Well, the idea behind the current scheme is to allow people to cycle around London without having the initial worry and cost of buying a new bike – and then reducing the worry of securely storing these bikes in flats and on the street.

By offering the use of secure bicycles that you can hire for a small fee – these 2 worries are eliminated – and at the same time making the streets cleaner and safer and reducing the need for increasing other resources.

Over 12,000 people have already signed up for the scheme – so that’s 12,000 bikes that haven’t had to be made!  They will all be sharing the same bikes in the scheme making great environmental sense!

And of course, it is better for the environment to have 500 bikes trundling around the streets than 50 half-empty buses.  And it’s better for the 12,000 people to be cycling themselves from A to B than to have them just sitting on a bus or tube.

Added to this – bicycles are made for 1 – whereas car hire schemes will usually leave 3 empty seats!

How It Works:
At the moment you need to sign up online to join the scheme – then you receive your ‘key’ which allows you to ride any of the bikes around the city.

There are 2 separate charges for the scheme and they are explained below.  Once you understand the difference between these, it is so simple to use.

Charge 1) Access To A Bike:
You will pay a small fee to actually free a bike up from it’s docking station, which can be as little as 12p a day if you buy an annual pass, or up to £1 a day if you pay daily.  This Access lasts a full 24 hours from release of the bike from the docking point.

Charge 2) Time-Based Hire:
You will pay a set fee for the length of time you have a bike out of a docking station.  Fees range from £1 for an hour up to £50 for the whole day (a day = a 24 hour period).  If the bike is not returned to a docking station before the 24 hour period elapses there will be a steep fine to pay!

However, less than 30 minutes on a bike (ie – from leaving 1 docking station to being secured in another docking station) if totally free!  So you only pay the Access Fee – which could be as little as 12 pence!

Needless to say that the more you use it the more cost effective it is, and using it for short distances is the key to good value.

Using it for longer bike rides might not be as cost effective as using a standard bicycle hire store – but could be more convenient.

Either way – make sure that you support the scheme in any way you can, so that the Government can see that people want less traffic on the roads, we want better pedestrian and cycling facilities and associated safety improvements – and we want greener travel improvements across the country.

If you help make London a success – it could roll out to other large cities!  Imagine all that green energy being used up on pedal-power rather than petrol!

Watch this short video – and it will jolt you into reality!

Where do you think all your stuff comes from?  What happens when you get that new phone?  How can we get our stuff so cheap?  What is the real cost of our spending?

All these are answered in this lively, well animated and well written short video by a well traveled, very experienced environmental investigator specialising in health and justice issues across the globe.

It is filled with some scary facts about what we are doing to our planet – or in reality what we are not doing to help our planet.

It highlights – with a fact-packed dialogue – what we are allowing to happen or are being coerced into thinking is ‘OK’.

Annie quotes that the US represents just “5% of the world’s population but uses 30% of the resources and makes 30% of the waste”  Is that right?  Or is that just how it ended up because no-one has really ever thought it was wrong?

Think about it!
She certainly makes you think about everything you are going to buy – or anything you have recently brought.  And it should certainly make you think about anything you are planning to throw away!

The cost of something shouldn’t be the value that the store attributes to it.  For example the $4.99 radio she talks about in her video could not possibly have only cost $4.99 to make. 

Firstly, the store has to make a profit and it needs to be packaged up and shipped across the world from where ever it was made.  So none of that is what it actually cost to make either – so we are down to about maybe $3.00 or less to make?

And how long would you think 1 single radio takes to make from it’s basic parts? About 30 minutes?  No, that would be stupid, right?  But would you work for less than $6.00 an hour? I don’t think so.

So, how much money do the people that build these get paid?  And we haven’t even started on the people it took to mine the raw materials and the time it took to shape them into the component parts.  And what about driving and shipping costs?

And we haven’t even started on the cost to the environment…… 

Yet to some people, throwing out an un-needed $5 radio is not a worry to them – it’s only $5. They don’t even think about what was destroyed or who was exploited to make it in the first place.

And you can be sure that many people do not think about what happens to it after they throw it out!

Well, Annie explains all in her hard-hitting fact-filled docu-video - but keeps it fun and a bit funny even.

And you can help out by showing people, schools, social clubs or anyone else this video to help change that!  Check out the resources on the site for more information.

There is now a water-saving, carbon-reducing, fuel-efficient, cost-effective and longer-lasting way to keep your windows clean!

Using advanced IT software and a specially designed solution, an established window-cleaning firm in London can now offer you just that. Whether you are a home-owner, tenant, tower block owner - or looking for commercial window cleaning in London - you can make use of their services.

It was quoted that a well known local car firm is now saving over £3000 each year on window cleaning by using this new technology to clean up their showroom!

Who Are They?
They are called NCPM247 and have been trading in the city since 1985. They are aiming to become the most eco friendly and technologically advanced window cleaning company in London.

They have become very aware of the restrictions on water use, the congestion in London, rising fuel costs, environmental issues and carbon emissions and also the ‘working at height’ government regulations and sought to find a way to work within these guidelines and still offer an excellent service. And, with an eye to the future.

They have also taken on board modern IT technology to improve their existing company. By taking advantage of the current rise in the use of and accessibility to satellite imaging software including Google Street View, they are able to offer instant (and exact) customer quotes.

Rather than arranging to drive to the customers property to give an accurate quote, they can offer a full quote while on the ‘phone during the first call, therefore booking the first appointment straight away. No extra journey needed – and no time out of your day to show them around!

What Makes Their Cleaning Different?
Firstly, they offer the ‘quote on the phone’ service as above to save time and money from the very start.

Secondly, they drive through London in their fleet of environmentally friendly cars!

Thirdly, they use their unique hydrophobic cleaning materials to keep your windows cleaner for longer. This ‘secret ingredient’ coats your windows in a protective – and eco friendly – layer that actually repels water from it’s surface.

Therefore, when it rains, the rain itself is forced away from the glass and washes off any dust and dirt from the window! It creates virtually ‘self-cleaning’ glass.

As a result of this, your windows will stay cleaner for longer – usually about 3 months longer – but can be as long as a year! Thinks of the savings in money with only 4 visits a year – and those reduced visits saving on fuel, time and carbon emissions! Things you won’t find with other greater or central London window cleaners
Check out their website for more information and to get a quote yourself!

Fourthly, the way the windows are cleaned actually uses only a tiny fraction of the water that would normally be used for window cleaning. Treatment of all windows (inside and out) with NCPM247 takes only about 1 litre of pure water for an average 4-Bed house. With standard cleaning techniques this rises to about 25 litres! Virtually unacceptable these days.

Add to this that the same house only needs about 4 visits a year to stay clean – that is only 4 litres of water a year. The same house would need cleaning at least every month with an ordinary window-cleaner – that’s a staggering 300 litres of water!  Not to mention all that driving!

There are many more things that are not eco friendly based that make this company stand out, including fully insured cleaners, security-checked staff, use of protective footwear when cleaning interior windows, abseiling staff for taller buildings, 9 meter cleaning poles to save use of noisy machinery and so much more.

Whether you care about the environment, the cost, or just a great first impression of your business from the street – it’s all in one here. You can’t go wrong!

Window Cleaners, London

Small Scale Wind Turbines – Are They Worth It?

The simple answer is ‘yes’ of course they are – but the reason many people don’t buy and install large or small scale wind turbines is because too many reports base their decision on whether they are ‘cost-effective’ rather than whether or not they save ‘energy’.

This slightly detracts from the idea that we as a society are all supposed to be ‘saving energy’ and turns it into whether or not you personally are ‘saving money’.

If you genuinely want to live a more sustainable life then you should either buy or build your own wind turbine to reduce your dependence on fossil fuels – and help reduce the need (or excuse) for the government to build new coal-fired power stations.

I am well aware that there a financial constraints for all areas of our lives – including kids, holidays and mortgages – but if you have made a conscious effort to reduce your energy consumption then a wind turbine will of course take ages to ‘earn it’s cost back’ – as you are using less energy!

Wind turbines are more ‘cost effective’ if you use a lot of electricity on washing, drying, console games and heating and plan to continue to do so – as you will see the savings rack up a lot faster than those who are more energy-conscious.

So in my book, if you want to have an eco-friendly house – the cost shouldn’t be the main issue.

So, How Do Wind Turbines Work?
It all depends on something we have a lot of – and it’s free and carbon, nitrogen and methane free!

Wind turbines – as their name suggests – harness the power of the wind (which is free and ever coming) which in turn, rotate specially shaped wind turbine blades. This rotation transfers the energy from the blowing wind down into a turbine which changes it into another energy – electricity.

Depending on the size of the turbine and the strength and continued blowing of the wind you will produce more or less energy. I have seen small wind turbines on canal boats and residential wind turbines on garage roofs and sides of houses, larger ones in stables and in gardens, and of course ginormous wind turbines in large scale establishments or in wind farms.

Now, you can use that energy as it is created and store ‘spare’ energy to use later in special batteries or, you can let excess electricity be pumped back into the National Electricity Grid – and get paid for it!

Advantages And Disadvantages Of Wind Energy:
Depending on how fussy and detailed you want to be with your own argument, there are a few for either side.

Advantages:

• Cutting your Carbon Footprint – wind energy is green and renewable.
• Cutting your energy costs – wind energy is free.
• Cutting your reliance on large companies – no need to pay for their advertising!
• Becoming more self-sufficient – you can use as much or as little as you want.
• Saving the environment – you are no longer digging up the earth or the ocean floor.
• Living a sustainable lifestyle – you are only creating and using what you need.
• Being generous and sharing – you can offer/sell someone else any excess ‘free’ energy!
• Voting with your feet – you will be telling the government and larger energy companies that you no longer believe that their policies and actions are acceptable and that you would rather ‘step away’ than fund their activities.

Disadvantages:

• Not 100% energy cover – depending on your location, you may need top-ups from elsewhere.
• Costly initial expense – some wind turbines are expensive to buy or install.
• Planning permission needed – you may need to apply to your local council for permits.
• Ongoing maintenance – it won’t be expensive, but will need regular checking.
• Interested neighbors – you may find them staring at your wind turbine as they pass by, or keep asking you lots of questions about it all the time!

Join me in a few days time for my next article, which will have details on several small wind turbines that you could use in your garden or on your roof, and also some information on building your own wind turbines!

See you there.