Brummet's Conscious Blog

In response to a lot of questions we've received, I thought I would write a series of articles (3) to answer your interest in how to go about greening a home and yard. We have been on this property for 3 years as of Oct 15, 2013. So I thought the best way to go about sharing what we did was to describe the order we did things in, one year at a time.   *Part 2 of this article will be published on January 7th How we went about the changes and upgrades to our home.  (Part 1) Based on previous properties that we had upgraded over the years we had a good idea how and where to begin with the 1978 home we purchased on October 15, 2010. While this was a well built home, structurally sound, very few upgrades had been done and it was a rental for a while as well. So it definitely needed work. The first thing we did when preparing for the move was to look for boxes from local businesses that we could reuse. While we do keep a lot of packaging materials...

-- Brummet's In the Media -- www.OldGrumpyRadio.com Grow Your Mind and Money is created by several hosts for a 90 minutes roller coaster ride that leaves them moved, touched, inspired and in action doing the work to fulfill their desires. Their pre-recorded interview with Lillian Brummet will be available July 1st and air daily for the next week. You can download the audio until July 15 via:   https://www.yousendit.com/ download/WFJWQndOOW50Njl4Tk1UQw  ** Check out the comment section below!! Energy Efficient Mortgages for a Green Home Today's article was written by: Michael Ciocca - an employee for Total Mortgage and an author for the Total Mortgage Blog There are a lot of reasons to go green, whether you are trying to reduce your energy usage and save some money or keeping our environment clean by reducing your impact on it. Sometimes, the initial cost of switching over to a greener lifestyle can stop people from making t...

-- Quote of the Day --  --> “We are all wonderful, beautiful wrecks.  That’s what connects us – that we’re all broken,  all beautifully imperfect.” ~ Emilio Estevez  -- Path to Green Living --  As many of our loyal blog readers may recall when Dave and I first took over this property some 19 months ago, we had the home evaluated for energy efficiency and upon receiving their recommendations made some strategic choices on eco-improvements based on ROI and rebates that were available. As such we were able to replace all the doors and windows, insulate and finish the basement, upgraded all the appliances, furnace and hot water systems, installed an insulated garage door, upgraded some electronic office and entertainment equipment, and a more water savvy purification system for drinking water.  We also did a lot of physical work to the home including insulation and proper venting in the att...

-- Quote of the Day -- From the book: The Law of Success , by Napoleon Hill (Orne Publishing) Re: the term “failure”: “… Let us distinguish between ‘failure’ and temporary ‘defeat’. Let us see if that which is so often looked upon as ‘failure’ is not, in reality, just temporary ‘defeat’..(which is) usually a blessing in disguise because it brings us up with a jerk and redirects our energies along different and more desirable lines. …Sound character is usually the handiwork of reversals, and setbacks, and temporary defeat – which the world calls ‘failure’. Neither temporary defeat nor adversity amounts to failure in the mind of the person who looks upon it as a teacher that will teach some needed lesson. As a matter of fact, there is a great and lasting lesson in every reversal, and in every defeat. ” -- Eco-retrofit Projects For Your Home --  Install electrical outlet insulation kits for all exterior walls (both sides), reducing drafts. Switch shower taps and faucet h...

-- Quote of the Day --   " The more difficulties one encounters in life, within and without, the more signifcant and the higher in inspiration his life will be ." ~ Horace Bushnell      -- Our New Look... -- Well? How do you like the new look to our blog?    -- Event -- Canadian Association of Recycling Industries' 69th Annual Convention When: June 10-12, 2010 Where: Charlottetown, PEI - Delta Hotel; Canada -- Lillian's Referral Corner -- Lillian's Referral Corner (formerly referred to as Recommended Resources) appears on most Positive Eco-News and Sunday Gardening Segments (each airing once every two weeks) on the Conscious Discussions Radio show ( http://blogtalkradio.com/consciousdiscussions ) - and on the Brummet's Conscious Blog ( http://consciousdiscussions.blogspot.com ). This is where Lillian will share recommended resources including non-profit organizations that she believes in. Here are today's recommend...

-- Reuse in the Workshop -- The workshop is a great place for reusing items formally destined for the landfill. Even if you do not have a shop or craft area you can always donate the items mentioned in the following paragraphs to friends, schools, shops, youth centers… The concept of reusing is as limitless as your imagination. Screws, bolts, picture hooks, plant hangers, curtain hooks, and hinges are common hardware items used in most homes. Although not overly costly when purchased a few pieces at a time, they can add up over the years. Salvage any reusable hardware and parts from old cabinets, furniture or mechanical items before discarding. These can easily be organized and stored in plastic containers of different sizes. Shop with this in mind and purchase items like peanut butter or mayonnaise in clear plastic containers. These are our favorite as they are recyclable, sturdy and you can easily determine the jar’s contents at a glance. When buying screws and bolts avoid the small ...

-- Quote of the Day -- “ (Universal Leadership Energy Environment Design): It began with coming home from the hospital and realizing that 80% of the two story home was inaccessible to me. …We began designing a universal design home – a ranch style without stairs or elevators… accommodating our home offices and lifestyle. …We started thinking ‘why don’t we share what we’ve learned with other people with disabilities? ’. …The breakthrough was through a Master Mind group – it was at that moment that they told us ‘Why don’t you build a national demonstration home and get corporate sponsors? ’ …Universal design needs to be addressed, so that the home is usable by all people, without the need for adaptation or any special design. So think of a house for people of all abilities no matter what their physical limitation – they can get into the house without steps, the hallway and doors are wide enough… the kitchen is set up with various heights of countertops and space for someone seated to mov...