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The average person probably spends at least 8-9 hours in their home every day.  Please note, this average just factors in sleep time, it doesn’t include eating at home, working at home, spending time with the family at home, etc.  However, 8-9 hours a day is a lot of time….especially if your home had hidden toxins in it such as carbon monoxide, radon, lead, mold, etc.

If you have harmful toxins lingering around, the question becomes, how do you test for and get rid of the harmful toxins without getting ripped off?

Just like you would only give your vehicle a TESTED and PROVEN fuel additive to reduce harmful emissions, improve performance and enhance fuel economy - you need to ensure you are using a TESTED and PROVEN method to detect and remove harmful toxins from your home.  It’s vital as that is where you and your family live.

And according to an article from Money magazine, “Now that homes are tightly sealed to prevent airflow from outside, chemicals can become more concentrated in your indoor space.  That risk goes up in the winter, when your doors and windows generally remain shut.”

So, let me run through a few of the more dangerous and common toxins and some of the recommended ways to test for or handle them:

- Radon: an odorless, colorless gas that comes from the soil and can leak into homes.  To test for radon, you can buy a decent test kit at most hardware stores for $10-20.

- Arsenic: anyone who has a wooden deck, porch, fence or outdoor play furniture built before 2005 probably has arsenic in it.  Believe it or not, up until about four years ago, wood was treated with arsenic to preserve it and prevent it from rotting.  Of course getting new wooden furniture that isn’t treated with arsenic is always the best option - but unfortunately not always a feasible one.  So apparently just treating the wood yearly with an oil-based stain so that when you touch the wood you are just touching the sealant, is one of the least expensive ways to handle it.

- Lead: Most homes that were built earlier than the 70’s have some form of lead in them, such as in the paint on walls or windowsills.  Getting a home test kit is not recommended as it isn’t as reliable as a test from a private lab recommended by your state housing department.  The private lab test usually costs about $20-30.  If it comes back positive, some recommend covering the walls with a coat of encapsulant (about $40/gallon).

- Carbon Monoxide: a colorless and odorless compound produced by incomplete combustion.  To avoid exposure, one step is to get your furnace inspected and cleaned regularly.  Other potential sources of CO can be open flames, space heaters, water heaters or running a car inside a garage.  A simple, yet effective way to detect carbon monoxide is to buy proven carbon monoxide detectors and place them around your home where levels can tend to be highest.  Placing one in your bedroom to sound an alarm if you were sleeping is also highly recommended.

So in this new year, please take the time to help ensure you and your family have a safe and healthy year by testing for carbon monoxide and other potential toxins in your home.  The tests don’t take long, but results could last a lifetime.

Image by NCinDC

In the beginning of December I came across a great blog from Greenversations titled, “Celebrate the Environment: Check in to an ENERGY STAR Hotel to Check Out with Energy Savings”.  It was about finding and staying in ENERGY STAR hotels during the holidays.  I thought it was cool because finding an ENERGY STAR hotel is a great way to help the environment and be even a little bit more biofriendly during your travels.

Then recently I read through a short article in Money magazine about how there are no shortage of resorts claiming to be eco-friendly.  The unfortunate part is they usually charge a hefty markup for it and of course, how can you really be sure you are checking into a green and biofriendly hotel?

Lucky for us they also covered a new website, www.wholetravel.com, that ranks over 4,000 hotels and resorts in 100 countries on how well they preserve the environment, promote local economic development and provide sustainable accomodations.

Now, just a note, from what I noticed these are not your typical “by the side of the road” hotels or motels.  For example, I searched for health spa in the United States and one of the hotels I came up with was the Ambrose Hotel in Santa Monica, CA.  The hotel is listed as “Upscale tranquility meets affordable luxury at Santa Monica’s only award winning sustainable boutique hotel” at $240/night.

But whether you decide to go with an ENERGY STAR hotel , go with a greener hotel such as 1Hotel or go full out with a biofriendly, sustainable hotel during your 2009 travels, just remember no matter where you go, you can take steps to help make 2009 a year for the environment!

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It’s getting close to that time of the year - time to make your New Year’s resolutions.  What kind of resolutions are you going to make this year?  Are you thinking about the economy and what you can do to ensure you become more economically sound?  Are you thinking about what you can do for the environment and how you can live a greener life?  Personally, I’m thinking about both.

As the year comes to a close I’ve been taking a look at recent economic and environmental events.  While they may not be as promising as we all would like, improving our economic status or taking steps to be greener are actually easier than you might realize.  And if you haven’t figured out what steps to take yet, New Year’s resolutions are a good place to start.

Here are a few simple resolutions that will help either economically or environmentally:

1. Resolve to recycle.  It doesn’t mean you have to recycle everything starting at 12:01am January 1st, but if you start small by recycling cans, bottles, plastic, etc then you are off to a good start.
2. Resolve to lower harmful emissions.  Pick one day a week (or more) that you take public transportation.  Trade in your older vehicle for a new, more biofriendly vehicle.  Keep up with your vehicle’s required maintenance schedule so it runs properly.  Use a liquid fuel enhancer, like Green Plus, proven to produce a cleaner burn and thus increase fuel economy and lower harmful emissions.
3. Resolve to save money every month.  I’m not talking about setting some unrealistic goal, but you know if you save just a dollar a day, you’ll have an extra $365 per year.  That’s not the only way to save money - if you bought and used the ever popular Sham Wow! to clean up messes rather than using paper towel after paper towel, you’ll save money and help the environment at the same time.
4. Resolve to use environmentally friendly products like Seventh Generation.  Use a non-toxic laundry detergent.  Buy paper towels made from recycled materials.  Use natural cleaning solutions rather than chemical filled solutions.

So before you sit down and write your New Year’s resolutions, don’t forget ones like I bring up here.  They will not only make you feel better about yourself but will help you both economically and in your steps towards helping the environment.  Here’s to a greener and more prosperous New Year!