Several companies manufacture rubber roofs from recycled tires. These products are durable (many come with 50-year warranties), as well as fire and wind resistant. Metal Roofing With a long life, metal roofs keep composite material out of our landfills. Also 100% of the material used is recyclable. Solar-Powered Attic Fan Make your home more energy effcient and save money too. Attic fans operate by solar power from sunrise to sunset at no extra cost. It’s possible to reduce the workload on... more

What does it mean to re-build green? As with any other home improvement project, the answer comes down to the scope of work and budget. The material choice is where you get to decide how “green” is your garden, or in this case, the kitchen, bath, or other living spaces. Recycle Materials Any environmentally conscious change you make to an existing house can be considered “green.” The goal, as you proceed, is to deconstruct (not demolish) the existing space, reuse or recycle materials wherever... more

Beginning in the mid-1880s, the Arts and Crafts Movement in England developed a philosophy of design based on medieval concepts of handmade artisan-produced goods. The movement arose as a reaction to the over-abundance of machine-made, often shoddy products that were flooding the marketplace at the time. Thinkers such as William Morris and John Ruskin viewed the industrialized Victorian landscape with disdain. They saw a nation of workers toiling in never-ending drudgery by day, returning to sooty,... more

Thanks to the financial incentives offered by state- and government-sponsored plans, homeowners are being energized to “go green” and “save green” at the same time. Energy Trust www.energytrust.org The Energy Trust of Oregon, Inc., is a nonprofit organization dedicated to changing how Oregonians use energy. Customers of Pacific Power, Portland General Electric, and Northwest Natural Gas are eligible for services, cash incentives, and the expertise of qualified contractors to help make their... more

Home sellers for years thought that painting the interior of their home beige, gray, or white would help their homes sell faster. Some realtors even suggested painting all the rooms realtor’s beige so that potential buyers could imagine their furniture against the neutral background. But studies show that a room painted a warm color — something with yellow or red in it — actually feels warmer and more inviting than an interior painted cool colors — greens or blues or the neutral colors. And... more

Impact drivers have been a staple of the automotive repair world. If you’ve ever had a tire replaced, the lug nuts were spun off and on by these noisy, powerful air-driven tools. Now they have been redesigned for driving woodscrews and lag bolts. These tools are cordless, much more compact than drills, and have features that give them significant advantages over the standard drill for driving fasteners. Though many power tool manufacturers are now producing this class of tool, I’m going... more

“Being green” is not just a phrase being thrown around anymore, it is a fact of life. More and more manufacturers are getting on the green path and creating better and more cost-effective organic products, which brings me to the point of my column this month. I have been using two products over the last few months that I am so impressed with, I feel I should share them with you. I’ve used Preen in my garden for years. It is a pre-emergent: A pre-emergent prevents weed seeds from germinating.... more