2010 April | Easy Home Recycling

Apr 30

Duration : 3 min 47 sec

Apr 30

Your Necklace Can Speak Something About yourself

Maybe you know already that jewelries can be a statement but do you know that not only gold and expensive jewelries like a necklace is now the “in” thing? Today, a lot of people from both sides of the fence, that is, the elite and the common people, are getting fascinated by fine necklaces and mostly are made with cheap beads and other inexpensive materials.

Why, there are some who can make necklaces made of leather or cloth and can still be fashionable and can still be a fashion statement. There was even this one designer who designed clothes made up of nothing but newspapers, wow, talking about recycling.

Recycling…one word that inspired these fine jewelries and both the elite and the common people are united in the world of fashion and jewelry.

The skilled craftsmen like the Italian designers are storming their brains to come up with innovative and unparalleled designs of necklaces that can suit anybody’s taste. Needless to say that in order to beautify the necks of both men and women there can be no better option than the funky necklaces.

Necklaces today can be of various types and they also signify culture, as they were a significant part of the Latin culture. This jewelry is excellent as a gift item. Finely beaded, traditionally curved and decorated in a modern way, this can be an excellent gift for a friend or a special someone. Necklaces can be of various types like sports necklaces,

Tennis stars, for example, are getting head over heels over a cheap but uniquely-designed fine necklace. Ceramic, Wood and plastic necklaces decorated in different innovative ways is a craze with workingwomen. The elite has also jumped into the bandwagon for recycled necklaces or other kinds of jewelries and gold and expensive ones are only reserved for special occasions but for everyday use and personal “shout-outs”, it’s going to be the colorful and cheap yet amazing ones.

Bernard Steimann
http://www.articlesbase.com/jewelry-articles/your-necklace-can-speak-something-about-yourself-747021.html

Related Blogs

Apr 30

Make Your Business Greener

The hospitality industry is on its boom. Consumption of resources and massive waste generation by hotels is polluting the city. These days travelers not only think about their pockets but also about the planet when they check in.

To help your business become efficient and improve the quality of life on the planet, going green is a must. The best way to implement green thinking in each part of company’s supply chain is to create and implement a green business plan.

Going green and becoming a sustainable organization has become really important. The high prices of oil, global warming, etc. are what drive the move towards going green and becoming a sustainable organization.

What Going Green promises?

Going Green promises:

o Reduction in costs

o Increase in sales

o To keep customers and investors happy

o To maintain market share

o Increase in efficiency

o To enhance public relations

By Going Green, companies are able to find new sources of business. Going Green is all about believing that it is more economical to go green than continue adding harmful chemicals to the atmosphere.

How to make your business greener

Small steps can help you to make your business go green. Few actions that companies can take to go green are:

Energy Audit: The first step in going green is to have an energy audit. An Audit helps you find the areas where you can reduce usage and save money.

Survey regarding “going green” or “sustainable organization”: Annual surveys with employees should be conducted to find how well the organization is doing by implementing green business practices. This will provide information and suggestions for future actions.

Go paperless: Encouraging e-mailing can reduce the usage of paper. Photocopying and printing on both sides can save paper.

Recycle: Elementary step towards going green is to start recycling waste. Sustainable supply chain makes the output of waste move into input creating a cycle where wastes turn into raw materials and are no longer wasted. Recycling paper, glass, metal and plastic can help in going green.

Green buying: Suppliers should know that you are interested in sustainable products. When purchasing, environment should also be a factor not just price.

Leadership for going green: To head up initiatives of Going Green, an executive level person should be assigned. Business plans can also include the aim of going green in the mission statement.
Involvement of employee: For leading the company’s eco-efforts, creation of a team is a must. Involvement of employees is a must.
Save Water: Proper monitoring should be done to see where the water is wasted. Water conservation practices must be implemented to save water.
Implement alternative energy sources: Exploring alternative opportunities like using solar energy, wind power, etc. can help save energy.
Implement green policies: Policies and standards like waste disposal, using recycled material or products, alternative energy sources are the measures taken to go green.

Thus, Going Green involves examining every aspect of the company’s supply chain and identifying areas where deficiencies exist. The next step is to alleviate the identified problems by creating green procedures. The final move involves implementing new procedures and practices to make your business greener, cost effective and efficient.

www.ecogreenhotel.com

M. Scott Parisi
http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/make-your-business-greener-697917.html

Related Blogs

Apr 30

5 Steps to Effective Waste Management

What is waste management? There is more to waste management than collecting rubbish and dumping it at landfill. Although this is a vital step in the process, there is more to it than that! This article will address the steps involved in the cycle of waste management and will hopefully give a greater understanding to the topic.

Waste Management flows in a cycle: Monitoring, Collection, Transportation, Processing, Disposal / Recycle. Through these steps a company can effectively and responsibly manage waste output and their positive effect they have on the environment.

Monitoring is identifying the waste management needs, identifying recycling opportunities and ways to minimize waste output, and reviewing how waste minimization is progressing. Through keeping records of the different waste streams, a customer can see the results of their efforts in becoming more environmentally friendly, and a more efficient business.

Collection involves the logistical organization to guarantee that bin containers will not overfill and waste sit time does not become too long. The correct bin container size and service frequency is a must to prevent overspill or excessive smell. The correct bins for different wastes must be available with sticker and bin colour identification. Locks, chains, lids and bars prevent public access and non-trained personnel putting rubbish in the incorrect bins.

Cooperation between the waste company and customer is vital. Bins must be accessible to the truck driver at the agreed times. Access to work premises outside work hours will cause an issue if unaddressed. Bin wheels can allow customers to move bins from convenient areas to serviceable locations.

Transportation is the organizing of waste transport vehicles with the authorization and ability to transport the specified wastes from a customer’s work residence to landfill or processing plant. A waste must be transported by the vehicle designed for it. For example, general waste requires a vehicle with thicker compacter walls, to that of a cardboard and paper waste transporting vehicle. Therefore, a customer may require a series of vehicles to meet their waste management needs.

Vehicles, drivers, and companies need licenses and approval in certain Council Areas to transport waste. EPA standards need to be upheld as well as General Public Safety. Safety standards are vital to the transportation of clinical and hazardous wastes. Drivers must undergo training for emergency circumstances that may arise.

Processing involves the separation of recyclables for treatment, and then after treatment are packaged as raw materials. These raw materials are sent to factories for production. Non-recyclable wastes by-pass this step and are delivered straight to landfill. Liquid and hazardous wastes are delivered to treatment plants to become less hazardous to the public and environment.

Disposal / Recycling is the disposal of non recyclables into landfill. Landfill sites must be approved by legal authorities. Legal authorities guarantee that specific wastes are buried at the correct depth to avoid hazardous chemicals entering the soil, water tables, water systems, air, and pipe systems.

In this step the raw materials made from recyclables are produced and sold as products on the market. Companies can purchase such products to further sustain the environment and natural resources.

In conclusion, waste management is a science that addresses the logistics, environmental impact, social responsibility, and cost of an organization’s waste disposal. It is a detailed process that involves human resources, vehicles, government bodies, and natural resources.

Learn more about waste management by contacting your local Wanless Enviro Services Representative.

Wanless.Enviro
http://www.articlesbase.com/management-articles/5-steps-to-effective-waste-management-754924.html

Related Blogs

Apr 30

What Are the Alkemi Countertops

What Are The Alkemi Countertops

There are many materials to choose from when it comes to countertops. There are natural stone countertops materials such as granite and marble that are elegant but expensive. Wood is another material for countertops use that gives certain warmness to a home but requires proper care and maintenance. Fabricated solid surfaces like the corian countertop, is another way to go in your quest to find a perfect fit for your kitchen cabinet. Now there is another option to look at in the Alkemi countertop.

Alkemi countertops are made of recycled composite material consisting of at least 60% post industrial aluminum scrap and polymeric resins. The recycled aluminum scrap and the resin are put together to form a solid surface material that is strong, durable and exquisite looking.

As mentioned above, the Alkemi countertop is made of mainly two materials. The first is aluminum scrap. The aluminum scrap collected is post industrial and not post consumer because processing post industrial aluminum scrap consumes less time and energy. The collection of the post industrial aluminum in fabricating the Alkemi countertop diverts the scrap aluminum from entering the waste stream where aluminum is typically burned while emitting pollutants.

The other material that makes up an Alkemi countertop is polymeric resin. This resin is made of polyester and is normally sourced from resin manufacturers. The polymeric resin is used to bind the aluminum scrap to form a solid countertop surface. Polymeric resin is widely used in the eyeglass industry and there is hope in the future that the polymeric resin used in Alkemi countertops could be from recycled sources as well.

Since resin are toxic, especially when it is in liquid state, Alkemi ensures that the resin dust that are produced from sanding the countertops are re-captured and re-circulated into the formula to form one of the opaque resins in the Alkemi countertop line.

As proof of commitment to recycling and protecting the environment, Alkemi are committed to taking back their unused products such as unused pieces from a countertop installation to be used as sample countertop materials sent out to designers. From the packaging in which they send their samples, to the paper the brochure is printed upon, their passion for the environment is evident.

Arturo
http://www.articlesbase.com/home-improvement-articles/what-are-the-alkemi-countertops-69597.html

Related Blogs

Apr 30

Practical Compost Making

Whether you are an ordinary gardener, or an organic gardener which doesn’t use of any sort of chemical additive for fertilization or pest control, a quality compost becomes one of the most important factors in determining the ultimate success of your garden. Compost is one of nature’s best mulches and soil amendments. With a good quality compost there is no need to use any sort of commercial fertilizer, and one of the best features of compost is that it can literally be made without spending a dime.

What Exactly Is Compost

Compost is the remnants of any organic material that has been aerobically decomposed. Compost is often also called humus. In earth science “humus” is defined as any organic matter which has reached a point of stability, where it will break down no further and can remain essentially as it is for centuries, or even millennia. So both words, for practical gardening purposes, basically mean the same thing; the end product of decomposed organic matter. It is also important to note that this decomposition is a result of a aerobic process as opposed to an anaerobic process. For example, vegetables placed in an airtight plastic bag will still decompose but will do so in an anaerobic manner since there is limited oxygen available. Anaerobic decomposition is what produces the foul odor that most of us are quite aware of.

The Compost Decomposition Process

The decomposition of organic matter is actually a process of repeated digestions as organic matter repeatedly passes through the intestinal tracts of soil animals or is attacked by the digestive enzymes secreted by microorganisms. Compost is the end product of this complex feeding pattern involving hundreds of different microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi, worms, and insects. In reality composting simply replicates nature’s natural system of breaking down materials on the forest floor. But fortunately for us, the organic gardener, this process results in a product that significantly improves soil fertility and helps keep the soil in a healthy balanced condition where nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus will be produced naturally.

Compost Ingredients

Although almost any organic material can be used for compost pile, caution should be used when backyard composting as most backyard systems will not reach high enough temperatures to kill pathogens or deter vermin. So generally pet feces, non vegetarian animal manure, meat scraps, and dairy products should not be used unless you can be sure that an adequate temperatures will be reached.

To ensure proper composting your compost pile needs the right mixture of carbon rich “brown matter” and nitrogen rich “green matter”. Brown matter can consist of such items as dried leaves, straw, sawdust, wood chips, and even non-inked paper and cardboard. Green matter can include green plant material such as grass clippings, fresh cut hay, weeds, animal manures, fruit and vegetable table scraps, seaweed’s, and coffee grounds.

The Composting Process

This speed by which the composting process will occur will depend to a large extent on amount of effort you desire to put into creating the compost. Passive composting obviously takes the least amount of effort on your part. You simply mix the materials together in a freestanding pile and allow them to sit and rot on their own. This process may take a year or two but eventually you’ll have compost.

However, by actively managing your compost pile, you can often get finished compost in as little as one month. You can actively decrease the amount of time it takes to create compost if you’re willing to take the time to chop up your materials since shredded organic materials can heat up more rapidly and decompose quickly.

Heat is an important factor in effective composting. Hot composting allows aerobic bacteria to thrive. The ideal condition is for pasteurization to occur in a hot compost. Pasteurization will occur when the temperature reaches 55° Celsius (131°F) or more for three or more days. This will kill most pathogens and seeds. Pasteurized compost is valuable to the home gardener since the pasteurization process is otherwise both expensive and complicated, and adding chemicals to produce pasteurization is not an acceptable alternative for organic gardening.

Compost Tumblers

For many gardeners, space is often an issue, and even you have adequate space in your backyard you may not want to have a large unsightly compost heap. Compost tumblers offer a reasonable and effective alternative to the compost pile. And while the claims of some compost tumblers to produce compost in as little as 13 days may be slightly exaggerated, they do offer several benefits over the standard compost heap and they actually can accelerate the decomposition process because of their convenience.

There are a number of benefits of compost tumblers. First, they are generally easy to use and come in a number of sizes and styles that make the turning of your compost piles much easier. Second, because they are fully enclosed they are pest proof from such common pests as squirrels, raccoons, rats and dogs. Also, because tumblers are in a closed environment it’s much easier to retain moisture so your compost doesn’t dry out. Also in wet weather it won’t get too soggy. The enclosed environment also keeps unpleasant orders inside the compost tumbler (however if you’re keeping your compost properly aerated by proper turning there should not be any unpleasant odors).

Whether you garden by more modern means, or are a strict organic gardener, one thing is certain; healthy plants come from a healthy and nutritious soil. By making your own compost (a.k.a. gardeners black gold), not only are you being environmentally friendly and very economical, you’re producing your own natural black gold for your vegetables, herbs and flowers and providing healthy, safe, and great tasting food for your loved ones.

Katie Collins
http://www.articlesbase.com/gardening-articles/practical-compost-making-129669.html

Related Blogs

Apr 29

Maintaining your Atv

Maintaining your ATV

Many people take for granted that just because they paid a hefty sum for their ATVs, it will last as long as they want it to but they fail to realize that in order to prolong the life span of their ATVs, it is important that they maintain their ATVs with proper care. Or, in some cases, there are many who do not even know how to properly maintain their ATVs! At Jackel Motorsports, we strive to provide excellent after sales service to our customers and we believe in sharing with ATV riders the importance and proper maintenance of their ATVs at all times.

Keep it clean

It is best that you wash your ATV after each ride and not wait till the dirt becomes too difficult to be washed off. While you dry it off, do remember to check all the fasteners and levers and always ride your machine for about a minute to dry out the brake pads. We also recommend that you apply WD40 to all the pivots, levers and exhaust pipe to prevent rust and premature wear. To remove stubborn gasket remnants or rust from exhaust pipes, try using Scotch-Brite (or something of similar material) pads. Don’t throw away your old toothbrushes as they make wonderful small parts cleaners!

Use the right tools

It is important that you use the proper tools for different parts of your ATV. Wrenches ratchets or your hands do not make good hammers. If you intend to do your own engine work, it is best that you invest in a high quality torque wrench because your engine will definitely last longer when it is properly assembled with the correct torque on the fasteners.

Recycling is the key

The next time you are done with using aerosol cans, don’t just throw the plastic caps away – keep them as they make great containers for sorting parts for your ATV as well as small quantities of chemical for dipping and cleaning your machine. In this case, recycling is certainly the way to go!

Polish your ATV to keep the mud stain away

It is been said that floor polish used on the plastic parts of your ATV will not only keep your machine shiny – it will also keep the mud away. Even if you do get mud stain on the plastic, you can easily wipe it off with a damp cloth. Another way of cleaning the stains off if your machine has white plastic is to use an SOS pad – but be warned, this don’t work on red plastics as the pad will leave on white streaks.

Check the tires!

Yes, this is a very important part of the ritual of maintaining your precious ATV. Before you ride on your machine, check the tire pressures, as ATV tires are inherently leaky. If you intend to ride on rocky conditions on your machine or if you are going for high speed riding, you need to run higher tire pressures for your ATV.

The above are just some suggestions on how you should maintain your ATV to give it a boost of “extra life”. If you have any great ideas to share, you are always welcome to do so at the forum at www.jackel.com or www.atvoutdoors.net Your fellow ATV riders will thank you for sharing!

Ray Martin
http://www.articlesbase.com/motorcycles-articles/maintaining-your-atv-133009.html

Related Blogs

Apr 29

Gaming and Graphic Design Computer Monitor Solutions

CRT screens are fast moving towards obsolescence and are now almost the preserve of Graphic designers, gamers and photographic professionals. In effect their large, bulky size has resulted in them being consigned forever to the recycling bin. Even so, their abilities far outstrip even the most modestly priced LCD or flat panel display. Why? Well, the refresh rate, color saturation, even-ness of brightness and ability to multi-sync (have more than one native resolution) means that they can still meet the requirements of high end digital users. Only a LCD displays offer true multisync and these are significantly more expensive than any CRT screen, either new or refurbished. So where do LCD displays beat the traditional CRT? I’ve already noted than they take up less desk space, but they don’t flicker either and the glare is much less. As a result of this, eye strain is reduced significantly.

Liquid crystals were discovered in 1971 and comprise a liquid chemical compound that can be aligned precisely when subjected to an electric field. By placing rows of liquid crystals in between 2 polarizing filters (the same filters used in sun glasses) no light can pass through. Upon applying a charge to the liquid crystals, they are excited which causes them to align with the polarizing filter. If a light is shone through the layers, only those crystals that have been excited will allow the photons to pass through and align then up with the second filter. This is in effect how a monochrome screen was produced (basically black and white or on and off). Backlights, that produce the light source are cold sodium cathode tubes similar to ceiling strip lights.

In a color LCD screen, three liquid crystal cells make up each pixel. Each of those three cells has in front of it either a red, green, or blue filter. Light passing through the filtered cells creates the colors you see on the LCD. Nearly all modern color LCDs use a thin-film transistor (TFT), also known as an active matrix, to activate each cell. The process of manufacturing a TFT is similar to the process used to manufacture a silicon integrated circuit or silicon chip. Extremely thin insulators, conductors and transistors must be laid into a glass substrate, which becomes the lower glass of the LCD. TFT LCDs create sharp, bright images. Previous LCD technologies were slower, less efficient, and provided lower contrast. The oldest of the matrix technologies, passive-matrix, offers sharp text but leaves ghost images on the screen. This is because the electric field was not delivered directly to the liquid crystal because the TFT layer was not present.

Because LCDs address each pixel individually, they can create sharper text than CRTs, which, when badly focused, blur the distinct pixels that make up the screen image. But the high contrast of LCDs can cause problems when you want to display graphics. CRTs soften the edges of graphics as well as text, and while this can make it hard to read text at very small resolutions, it also means CRTs can blend and convey subtleties in photographs better than LCDs. Also, LCDs have only one “native” resolution, limited by the number of pixels physically built into the display. If you buy a modern 15 inch TFT, it’s native resolution will be 1024×768. Emulating 800 x 600 on this screen will cause it to produce a picture where everything displayed looks to have fuzzy edges. A further note is that Many people claim that TFTs are crisper, but at close working distances the pixel structure is visible on a TFT. This is not the case on modern CRT screens, where the dot pitch is at or below 0.25mm.

Author
http://www.articlesbase.com/information-technology-articles/gaming-and-graphic-design-computer-monitor-solutions-94874.html

Related Blogs

Apr 29

Success With Garden Composting

My Compost decomposes very slowly. Why?

The compost process requires material, water and air. If the heap is too dry, the process slows down. Simply add some water. Introduce some air into the composter by turning contents over with a fork. During very cold periods place some polystyrene or old carpet on top of the compost inside the bin to help retain heat.

Will my composter attract vermin and flies?

If you avoid adding cooked food and meat, your composter will not attract rats or foxes. In the summer you may find fruit flies hovering over your composter but they pose no health hazard. If you really don’t want them, simply cover compost heap with a thin layer of soil and they will disappear within hours.

Will my composter smell?

Provided that you do not add large quantities of grass cuttings, a compost heap does not smell. The problem with grass is its high water content and lack of structure. This can cause a slimy heap. To prevent this, tear up an old newspaper and add to the pile when you empty the grass box, but remember you are trying to achieve a good mix of different ingredients.

Can I add weeds to the composter?

Yes you may but many would recommend that you avoid weeds to composter for fear of dispersing weed around garden.

Do I need to add an ‘activator’ to my composter?

If you have included a good all round mix of high nitrogen (grass, plants, vegetable cuttings) and high carbon (dried leaves, hedge clippings) ingredients in your composter, you should not need to add an activator or accelerator. The most important role of most is to add nitrogen to the heap, which stimulates bacterial activity. Animal manure is a good natural activator (but do not add cat or dog faeces), and there are of course proprietary activators/accelerators available from your local garden centre.

Happy gardening.

Owen Chubb
http://www.articlesbase.com/gardening-articles/success-with-garden-composting-685149.html

Related Blogs

Apr 29

Cell Phones: Environmental Disaster in the Making

If you’re like most people you probably own 2-4 cell phones. You simply use one of them and the other ones are stuffed in a drawer or closet gathering dust somewhere in your home. Well good news for those of you who haven’t thrown out your cell phone or other old and used electronics. Recycle-Cell a company with 3 offices throughout the U.S. wants them and in turn will send you a FREE $1000 dollar grocery coupon book or believe it or not, a FREE 3 day, 2 night vacation at over 22 locations. WHY?

The American public is slowly catching onto the fact that the disposing of not only cell phones but other electronic devices in the trash is detrimental to the environment. They contain many hazardous materials such as lead, mercury, and cadmium. Dangerous chemicals like brominated flame retardants (BFR’s) and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) which are found in many of the plastic casings of cell phones. By throwing cell phones and other electronics in the trash we are not only posing a potential environmental nightmare but we are basically poisoning ourselves when these chemicals leak into our water supplies. With nearly 700 million used or old cell phones in America today and approximately 130 million discarded every year you can see how this is becoming a major problem.

Recycle-Cell began in 2007 to address these issues. All you have to do is gather your old cell phones, chargers, mp3 players, even Gps units. Box them up for shipment and Recycle-Cell does the rest all-free of charge to you. They even pay for the shipping charges. In return, they will actually send you your choice of a Free $1000 dollar grocery coupon book (all major brands) or a Free 3 Day, 2 Night Vacation (22 locations). Talk about an incentive. Compare them to the other few companies that do the same and you’ll quickly understand why we chose Recycle-Cell for our electronic recycling needs.

We hope that you jump on board with us and help slow down this process. Recycling you old cell phone is Simple, Fast, and very Rewarding especially when you get a Free vacation out of it.

You can find Recycle-Cell online at Recyclecell.tv go there now to do your part in helping to save our environment one cell at a time. They also offer fundraising opportunities for charities and other organizations. They have helped raise over $500,000 dollars as of 2008.

Nick
http://www.articlesbase.com/causes-and-organizations-articles/cell-phones-environmental-disaster-in-the-making-700126.html

Related Blogs

« Previous Entries

Easy Home Recycling

Related Blogs

Related Blogs

Related Blogs

Related Blogs

Related Blogs

Related Blogs

Related Blogs

Related Blogs

Related Blogs

Search Posts

Categories

Daily Tips

LINKS

Cool Stuff

More Cool Stuff

Tag Cloud-Does Anyone Use This?