Are some rooms in your home hot and stuffy while others are freezing cold?  Inconsistent temperatures throughout your home can be frustrating and make your home uncomfortable for you and your family.  Most homeowners think these are problems that cannot be fixed or are symptoms of living in an older home, especially here in New England.  However, these may be signs of a larger problem within your home.

Dr. Energy Saver by Moonworks uses a whole house approach to scientifically diagnosis your home’s energy weaknesses and recommend exact improvements to make your home more comfortable and energy efficient.  Through our home energy audits, we can determine the exact areas of your home that need to be fixed in order to solve your home’s specific comfort problems.  Not only does this allow homeowners to systematically improve in their home as the budget permits, it also allows you to know exactly what needs to be done and how much it will cost for each action item.

The most common areas that need to be addressed are:

Air Sealing:  In many homes, there are tons of tiny cracks and gaps for air to escape out of your home.  Dr. Energy Sav

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It’s the most essential resource we have:  Water.  We all take it for granted.  We turn on the tap and expect clean water to flow out.  But is it really clean?  I recently watched a riveting film about the water infrastructure system here in the United States, and I was flabbergasted!

Because the 2 million miles of intricate water infrastructure is buried beneath our feet, we don’t think about it much.  Perhaps if it were visible, we’d realize the dire need to repair and replace our aging systems and be willing to pay a little more for this precious resource.

Many cities and towns have what is called a combined sewer system, where rainwater runoff, domestic sewage and industrial wastewater are collected in ONE pipe.  Water treatment facilities become overwhelmed during some rainstorms, which leads to sewage and other pollutants overflowing into our watersheds and water supplies.

If you’ve ever wondered why swimming is not allowed in your local water body, for example, our outdated water infrastructure is a major culprit.

What you can do:

• Watch “Liquid Assets: The Story of Our Water Infrastructure.”  Take a quick look at the trailer at http://liquidassets.psu.edu.  You can also check for local tv station listings here.

• Lessen your burden on the public water system by reducing your water consumption.
• Collect rainwater in rainbarrels and raingardens instead of letting it runoff into the street, which leads directly to streams, rivers, lakes and the ocean (An average suburban house sheds 700 gallons of water in an average 1/2″ rain event!).
• Reduce your lawn by replacing grass with native plants.  Lawns are practically impervious and rainwater just runs off, but native plants have deep roots, which aids in water infiltration that recharges the aquifers underground.  Plus, native plant gardens require little water!

• Reduce the amount of impervious surfaces on your property.  Our natural watersheds are so degraded because we’ve paved over them with surfaces that quickly transport all kinds of pollutants into our drinking water when it rains.
• Check out the Penn State Community Toolkit here if you’re interested in teaching others about this eye-opening issue.

Singapore looks to be a really vibrant and colourful city, full of fun things to do.  The population consists of 78% Chinese, 15% Malay and 6.5% Indian, providing the city with an interesting mix of ethnic groups who possess their own pride in cultures, traditions and beliefs.  To me, thats what travel is all about- experiencing different cultures.

The New Majestic Hotel located in Chinatown has 30 rooms designed individually by Singaporean artists- the perfect representation of true Singaporean style!  The decor is very modern and tasteful, designed with the comfort of the guest in mind

Corner Seats at GothamFrench FancyTexas Temptation

We here at Cascadian Farm are very excited for our first blog carnival and it’s right in time to celebrate Earth Day. We wanted to ask our favorite green bloggers what Earth Day means to them and how they will be celebrating it. I (Jennie Lyon) feel honored to have been asked to write the main post for this exciting project and I look forward to reading everyone’s contributions. To get you started, here is what Earth Day means to me and how I will be celebrating this year.

Earth Day to me is just another day that I can teach others to be aware of the decisions that they make in their every day lives. I like to use the day as a platform to educate others that when we consume more resources than our Earth can provide, we risk depleting her of all of them. I fe

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A home is supposed to be a comfortable abode for both you and your guests. To make your house comfortable, you can buy accessories that match your furniture, your budget, and of course, your sense of design.

One of the most popular accessories to buy for any home is Throws and pillows. These can be draped or placed on beds or cover sofas to add life and colour to any living space. Use a throw to cover the sofa so that it remains clean and lasts a longer time; they’re also ideal for hiding any stains or marks.

In the process, they can also add some additional colour to your living room or bedroom. Read more…

Winter is the perfect time to think about planning your garden.  It won’t be long before spring is in the air and flowers will be blooming.  Whether you’re looking to add beauty, curb appeal or a habitat for song birds and butterflies, using native plants is the way to go.

• They contribute to biodiversity and a balanced ecosystem.  By using native plants, you provide food and habitat that support populations of our beneficial insects (honey bees, butterflies and other bugs), as well as birds and other wildlife.  When invasive plants take over and push native plants out, there’s a lack of food for beneficial species.  This leads to a reduction in their populations which, in turn, leads to more pest problems.
• Native plants and biodiversity protect water resources and soil, absorb pollution and help the environment recover from natural and human disturbances.  Native plants are well-suited for your region and require less maintenance and water.  Plus, they typically don’t need any chemical additions like fertilizers.
• Native plants and grasses can replace non-native turf grass that consumes vast amounts of water, fertilizer, weed-killer and pesticides.  Plus, the shallow roots of grass lawns contribute to storm-water runoff where chemical applications run off lawns into our waterways and cause numerous problems.  Native plants and grasses have deep roots that allow rainwater to be absorbed into the ground where it can replenish our depleted aquifers.

• Rain Gardens
• Shady, Woodland Gardens
• Sunny Meadows
• Butterfly/Hummingbird Gardens
• Formal or Informal Gardens

A great resource is PlantNative.org where you’ll find a directory of native plant nurseries, regional plant lists and tutorials that teach how to create a native landscape.  You’ll also find a list of community service organizations and professionals to help you create the garden of your dreams.

A good place to shop is at your local nursery/garden center, and I’m not talking about the big box stores, as they have very limited selections of native plants.  You can also purchase small plants and seeds online.  The Arbor Day Foundation offers low prices on trees and shrubs, most of which are native.

For Pennsylvania residents, free landscape planting plans are available through iConservePA.  Their website displays helpful garden templates, showing types and arrangement of plants.

Another rewarding way to learn about native plants is to volunteer for your local arboretum, botanical garden, university, organization or company that specializes in native plants.

Plagued with a dark, enclosed layout, the master bathroom of a Fremont, Calif., couple clashed with the local sun and surf setting. A tiny shower, dated tiles and an insufficient closet added to the problems. Transforming the dim space, local designer Anna Jacoby of Anna Jacoby Interiors created a bathroom suited for the ocean-loving owners. “It was a disjointed space, and they wanted a large, open room,” said Jacoby. Per the owner’s request, the 11-by-2-ft. closet lengthened to a full walk-in with closet organizers. “The challenge was getting a closet big enough for her,” laughed Jacoby. “That one is all hers.” Formerly 60-by-34-in., the shower was enlarged to 72-by-45-in. and given an elongated window.  Incorporated by the shower window and an enlarged toilet room window, natural light opened up the bathroom. Polished chrom Read more…