LEED Your Way To A Green Home

There are tons of exciting new green options for folks interested in building or remodeling their home. Even if you aren't going to DIY your project, take a look at the U.S. Green Building Council’s website. The USGBC has develed an eco-savvy rating system called LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) that serves as the national standard for certifying green buildings. Homes that are LEED certified utilize eco-friendly products and building methods in their design and construction, to reduce their overall impact on the planet. Of course, it costs a bit more to go the LEED route, but the end product is an energy effiecient home that will save you a fortune in future energy, water, and sewer bills while boosting the home's resale value. Even if you aren't after LEED certification, you can use many of the same ideas to get the most green from your building project. And in some areas, environmentally friendly homes may qualify for special "green" financing, called Energy Efficient Mortgages (EEMs). Check with your lender to see if you’re eligible.

Got Mushrooms?

Eben Bayer grew up around mushrooms, helping his father harvest fungi on their farm in Vermont. But he probably never realized he might be inspired by mushrooms to patent an invention that would take the green building movement by storm. Bayer, and his classmate Gavin McIntyre, graduates of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, N.Y., recently launched "Greensulate" a organic product they developed together that uses mushrooms as insulation. The fire-retardant board is made of water, flour, oyster mushroom spores and perlite, a mineral blend found in potting soil. While studying at Rensselear, the two grew the mushrooms under their beds. But now they are hoping to take their product wide-scale. The two inventors are hoping the invention will soon be part of the growing market for eco-friendly products.