With gas prices higher than ever before and this being the busy season for summer travel, it may be a good time to offer tips to save at the pump.

The following tips provided by Ford, are geared towards driving behaviour and it can save you quite a bit. You can increase fuel-efficiency simply by changing your habits.

Ford calls it EcoDriving - because it is eco-nomical and eco-logical.

The tips are listed below:

• Maintain a steady speed; if you pump the accelerator often, more fuel is pumped into the engine. Use cruise control on the highways to maintain speed.
• Relax, because aggressive driving such as accelerating quickly or braking and also speeding can reduce gas mileage and wear out your tires and brakes.
• With newer vehicles there's no need to idle (warm-up the engine) - even in cold temperatures.
• Maintain good tire pressure, this alone can save you 3-4% in fuel.
• Service your vehicle at the recommended times - tune-up the engine, align the wheels, replace air filters
• Remove heavy and unncessary items from your car. This reduces the worl-load on the engine
• Use heating and air-conditioning wisely to reduce the load on the engine
• Have windows closed when travelling at high speeds
• Use the right oil  for your engine - there are good quality, energy conserving EC oils. They have a ECII symbol to indicate their fuel-efficiency.
• Plan your trips to reduce extra, unneeded trips
  

Source: Article titled "Tips to save gas costs"

"A green roof is a roof of a building that is partially or completely covered with vegetation and soil, or a growing medium, planted over a waterproofing membrane." 

The following are some of the environmental benefits of a green roof:

• A green roof releases oxygen and absorbs carbon dioxide which helps in reducing global warming.
• The soil and drainage mat in a green roof retain water when it rains.
  
• The collected water passes through the green roof more slowly so it avoids flooding during a storm.
• The water going through the green roof has been biofiltered which cleans the water.

Listed below are the cost benefits of a green roof:

• A green roof can absorb sound better so it reduces noise within the building.
• It cools the house and can reduce electricity costs when cooling down a building.
• Green roofs last 2X to 3X longer than standard asphalt roofs.

The design and construction of a green roof involves putting on many layers:

• A waterproof membrane is placed directly on the roof to prevent water leakage.
• Next, there's a drainage mat made of polystyrene sheets which has little cups which retains water for plants to absorb.
• Then, there's a soil filter fabric which allows water and air to flow through but holds on to the soil. And a mesh layer that will decompose to help control erosion.
• Edging is put on the perimeter to create a retaining wall for the soil and garden.
• Finally, good soil; preferably something mineral oriented that is lightweight and retains heat.
• You can also put on an erosion control blanket to keep soil in place until plants get established.
  

Other things to keep in mind when thinking about creating a green roof: 

• You may need to add additional bracing so the roof can support the weight of the soil and other materials that will go on it. For instance, a 4 inch deep green roof could way 25 pounds per square foot.
• Also, you'll need some sort of hoist to lift the bags of soil to the roof.

Source: Article by Debbie Cafazzo titled "From sloping garage roof to elevated landscape"

Pickup-Pal represents "an eco-friendly transportation revolution that connects drivers, passengers and packages with the places they need to go."

How it works.

Passengers tell the system where they want to go and Drivers tell the system where they are going. The system matches the Passengers with Drivers who are going the same way. For instance, Passengers can specify that they are going to Water Street Kelowna BC from Rutland Road every Tuesday night; based on Drivers who are also going the same way, matches are found and displayed to the Passengers.

Drivers are informed of potential pickups and they can make an offer to the passenger on how much they want to charge for a ride and the Passenger's feedback rating from other drivers. The Passenger reviews the offers and based on price and Driver rating, chooses the Driver with whom they want to ride.

When an offer is accepted, the Driver and Passenger both get a "ticket to ride" with all the necessary information.

At the end of the ride, the Passenger pays the Driver the amount agreed upon. Both the Passenger and the Driver are requested to provide feedback on their PickupPal experience and their profiles are updated accordingly.

Pickup-Pal has an Eco-Ridesharing program (ERP) that allows communities to move people smarter, cleaner and better. They have partnerships with John Mayer, Subaru Triathlon Series, Oberlin College, Home Depot etc.

EscapePollution.com is proud to partner with Pickup-Pal to reduce carbon emissions through ridesharing while providing people with a method to combat traffic congestion and high gas prices ($1.45/litre!) within the City of Kelowna. Please feel free to join the revolution. The more people there is on the system, the better the chances of escaping pollution.

Ford Motor Company's long-term goals are to focus on developing fuel cells and hydrogen technology.

Ford's HySeries Drive is a battery powered hydrogen fuel cell hybrid electric car that has plug-in capabilities. "The HySeries Drive technology is able to operate using a fuel cell, small gasoline or diesel engine connected to an electric generator to make electricity."

Aside from Ford's concept car, the Ford Airstream Concept, Ford has also unveiled the Ford Edge with Hyseries Drive, which is equiped with a hydrogen storage tank, 336 volt lithium-ion battery pack fuel cell and 2 electric motors. The Ford Edge with Hyseries Drive is the "world’s first drivable fuel cell hybrid electric plug-in that combines an onboard hydrogen fuel cell generator with lithium-ion batteries to deliver more than 41 mpg with zero emissions."

As stated, the new Edge delivers a highway/city rating of 5.7L/100 km (or 41 mpg) with no emissions. For distances less than 80 km (or 50 miles) fuel consumption can be reduced to 3.0L/100 km (or 80 mpg). It can travel at speeds upto 136 km/h (or 85 mph).

The first 40 km is run on stored electricity, then the hydrogen fuel cell allows it to run for another 320 km with no emissions. The HySeries vehicles can be plugged into a normal 110-volt outlet to recharge the battery. The technology is in Ford Motor's Company's long term plans of 2020 and beyond.

Source: Article by Jim Robinson titled "Ford looks at new technologies as it drives to greener future"

Ford is working on its Eco-Boost technology which can provide 20-30% better fuel economy compared to current engines. It doesn't cost as much as hybrids and diesel engines but it enhances economy, reduces emissions and doesn't sacrifice performance.

The first car to incorporate this EcoBoost technology will be the 2009 Lincoln MKS which will then be followed by the Ford Flex. By 2013, Ford plans to have over 500,000 vehicles with the EcoBoost engines.

EcoBoost gets better fuel economy by turbo-charging it's engines and by using direct fuel injection. With direct fuel injection, precise amounts of fuels are injected into the combustion chamber rather than going upstream in to the induction port that happens in conventional engines. Since direct injection results in a cooler, denser charge, there is more power yet less fuel is consumed.

Turbocharging uses waste energy from the exhaust to spin the turbine wheel. The combined systems result in smaller engines with more power. For instance, a 3.5 litre V6 will have the same power as a conventional V8 with 340 horsepower.

When EcoBoost is applied to a 4.6 litre V8, it delivers more torque but reduces CO2 emissions by 15% while improving fuel economy by 2 mpg. When EcoBoost is applied to a 2.3 litre four-cylinder engine, it will get 20% better fuel economy and the same levels of power as a V6.

Source: Article by Jim Robinson titled "Ford looks at new technologies as it drives to greener futur"

I decided to retire my Toro Personal Pace self-propelled gas mower after learning about the emissions that gas mowers produce.

Here's an interesting fact:
"Testing found that operating a typical gasoline mower with a four-cycle engine produced as much [Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons] (PAH) as driving a modern car about 150 km or about 95 miles. This means that unless you drive more than 95 mph, your mower actually produces more pollution per hour than your car!" Not to mention, the concentrated dose of several types of pollutants experienced by the mower operator.

Needless to say I was on the lookout for a zero emissions mower that was battery powered; I didn't want to deal with long cords. I narrowed it down to either a Neuton Battery Powered Mower or a Black & Decker Cordless Mulching Mower. The Black & Decker cordless mower had the added benefit of being an energy star product. The other difference was the cutting path; the Neuton product was only 14 inches while the Black & Decker product cut 19 inches.

Home Depot was having a summer sale and they had recently marked down their Black & Decker cordless mower from $449. They also price matched Walmart and I got the mower for only $386 ! Home Depot also carried the HomeLite 22" cordless mower which was listed at a much lower price of $349 (compared to $449).

Over the weekend I assembled the Black & Decker mower and it was as easy as taking the mower out of the box and unfolding the handle. The mower weighs about 80 lbs which is about 20 lbs less than my other gas mower. It is small and compact and comes with a full 2 year warranty. It's also got a sleek, aerodynamic look.

I read through the instruction manual and noted that it takes approximately 9 hours to fully charge the battery. Black & Decker went as far as to include tips on mulching and maintaining the lawn. By keeping the grass 2.5 to 3 inches and mulching it every time, mowing the lawn becomes a breeze.

Yesterday, I took the mower out on the lawn. My biggest concern was the life of the battery. My back yard is about 1/3 of an acre and that's the maximum size that the mower recommends. I adjusted the height to about 3 inches using their one touch height adjustment system and mowed the lawn in less than an hour!

There are other benefits over the gas powered mower as well. For one, my ear drums didn't take a beating; it was so much quieter. It's also easy to start without the need to do multiple pulls. The cordless mowers are less powerful than the gas mowers but if you maintain your yard it shouldn't be a problem.

I'd recommend the Black & Decker Cordless Mulching Mower if you are thinking of reducing your emissions and going green.

I think I'll retire my edge trimmer next !

Our deck gets a lot of sun in the afternoon and the outsides of the house are pelted with the heat. We have cellular blinds on the way for inside insulation but we needed a solution for the deck itself that would also absorb some of the heat from reaching the inside of the house.

We decided to go with bamboo shades that we would mount on the outside of the deck to keep the sun from the side of the house that would also let us use the deck in the afternoon.

Bamboo shades of course are made from bamboo which is a rapidly renewable resource. In fact it can grow as much as 3 feet per day. It is a great alternative to using wood (which isn't as easily renewable); also it is easy to clean and insulates very well.

We went down to Rona and got a few of them. They had sizes ranging from 36 inches to 96 inches in length and 72 inches in height.

They were extremely easy to mount; we needed a wood surface, measured, drilled a pilot hole and screwed in the hook then mounted the bamboo shades on them.

I was surprised at the difference these blinds made. Not only was the deck bearable now, the inside of the house was much much cooler.

We finally got a chance to test out our front-load Frigidaire Affinity washing machine and dryer set that we bought from the Brick. While removing the shipping components and plugs I noticed that the drain hose was slim and compact; this of course makes sense because front-loaders use less water so there's less water to drain. There will be no more overflowing due to the force and amount of water.

My wife threw in the first load and we were both surprised at how quiet it was; also there were no vibrations and we could see that it wasn't using alot of water through the glass see-through door. We used Sunlight high-efficiency (HE) detergent which limits the excess suds and is made to clean in low water levels; the Sunlight product is 100% phosphate free and contains biodegradable surfactants. The Fridigaire models are also energy star products which will save on our utility bills.

Needless to say we were both very impressed.

Frigidaire also provides a service contract that can extend the 1 year factory warranty to 2 additional years for a total of 3 years with no worries about repair bills. They also have a replacement coverage where you get a brand new washer/dryer if they can't fix yours.