Product Review
Washing Machine
Staber Industries, Inc. of Groveport, Ohio is gearing up for production of a horizontal-axis washing machine. Long popular in Europe and common in this country until 20 or 30 years ago, horizontal-axis clothes washers have some significant advantages over vertical-axis machines.Number one is... Read more
News Brief
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is planning a large-scale center for conferences, environmental education, and recreation on 1,040 acres on Mt. Greylock in Adams. The proposed $6.5 million center will feature state-of-the-art environmental technologies and design strategies. Requests for Expressions of Interest (RFEI) are available by calling... Read more
Explainer
Most builders have vaguely heard of those little metal drywall stops that can be used for supporting drywall corners, but remarkably few have ever tried them. More builders we’ve spoken with are familiar with drywall
clips, which are fitted onto the edge of the drywall as it is being installed. Many drywall crews... Read more
News Analysis
Extruded polystyrene (XPS) is the insulation material of choice for many builders when it comes to below-grade applications and is used in many other ways as well. Commonly referred to by Dow Chemical Company’s tradename Styrofoam®, standard XPS insulation is manufactured in the U.S. by four... Read more
News Brief
The CNN Environment Unit is preparing a half-hour show on environmental home renovation featuring EBN Advisory Board members Steve Loken and Marc Rosenbaum. EBN subscribers are invited to suggest renovation ideas, materials, or techniques (for either contractors or do-it- yourselfers) for inclusion in the show, which will air in late May or... Read more
News Brief
by Paul Hawken. HarperCollins Publishers, 1993. Hardcover, 250 pages, $23.
The Ecology of Commerce argues eloquently for radical change in how business works. Hawken compares our present economic system to immature, opportunistic natural environments that grow and spread rapidly but do not last. A mature system of... Read more
News Brief
The Alcyone Light Centre is offering a three-month course in green architecture in the spring of 1994, and another in sustainable building construction in the summer. Contact Architectural Internship Director, Alcyone Light Centre, 1965 Hilt Rd., Hornbrook, CA 96044; 916/475-3310.
News Brief
for Treating Wastewater
by Gerald Steiner, P. E. and James Watson, P. E.; 42 pages, free. Tennessee Valley Authority, May 1993. TVA, 1101 Market Street, Chattanooga, TN 37402. Fax orders: 615/751-7479.
Despite its cumbersome title, this publication will prove invaluable to anyone considering a constructed... Read more
Product Review
Carbon monoxide (CO) is a serious threat in many homes. Approximately 300 deaths per year from non-fire-related CO poisoning make it the leading cause of death by poisoning in the U.S. In addition to death from acute exposure, many people suffer the symptoms of low-level carbon monoxide poisoning—headaches, fatigue,... Read more
News Brief
by National Park Service. September 1993. 118 pages. Limited copies available from the Denver Service Center, National Park Service, P.O. Box 25287, Denver, CO 80225; 303/969-2100. (No charge while initial printing lasts; then copies will be available from the Government Printing Office.)
... Read moreNews Analysis
The Canadian R-2000 energy-efficient homes program is revising and broadening its standards. The Technical Research Committee of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association has made its recommendations to Energy, Mines and Resources Canada (EMR), the government body that administers R-2000. The... Read more
Explainer
Winter Emissions from Major Sources, State of Washington—1984
Source: “Wood Smoke: Emissions, Impacts, and Reduction Strategies,” Washington State Department of Ecology, December 1986
Much large-dimension lumber is wasted on headers in typical wood-frame construction.... Read moreNews Brief
Resource Guide
Victoria Schomer, ASID, editor. PO Box 2386, Mill Valley, CA 94942. Spiral-bound, 230 pages. $40.
If you’ve ever wanted to look through the notebooks of an experienced “green” interior designer, this is your chance. Victoria Schomer has been compiling information on healthy building materials for... Read more
News Brief
A competition for designs that elegantly integrate photovoltaics into individual buildings and into the urban environment is being cosponsored by the International Energy Agency and the Netherlands Agency for Energy and the Environment. Prizes will be awarded in three categories: large-scale application in an urban area; single... Read more
Op-Ed
I enjoyed your article on cellulose insulation in the September/October ‘93 issue of EBN. In general, I thought the article was very well done, but felt that your recommendations on the health concerns left a bit to be desired. First of all, your recommendation not to eat it is obvious, yet by stating it, you seem to... Read more
Product Review
The Cycle II™ line from the Major Paint Company (the manufacturing arm of Standard Brands Paint Co.) contains at least 12% recycled paint collected from consumers and 38% in-house waste from washing machinery. The remaining 50% is virgin material. Cycle II is available in flat, semi-gloss, and primer formulations in about a dozen colors ranging... Read more
News Brief
Markets for recycled plastic lumber are surprisingly uneven across North America. While some manufacturers report having trouble keeping up with the demand for their products, others are struggling. Green Tree Plastics Technology Inc. of Victorville, California is shutting down its manufacturing operations for lack of income. “The sales are... Read more
Product Review
•urethane-reinforced... Read more
News Brief
Trus Joist MacMillan has broken ground for a second manufacturing facility for its Timberstrand™ laminated strand lumber product (see EBN
Vol. 1, No. 3 for product review). The new plant, scheduled to open late in 1995, is in eastern Kentucky. Locally available yellow poplar will be used instead of the aspen used at TJM’s Minnesota... Read more
News Analysis
Green Seal, a nonprofit environmental labeling organization, certifies products that cause significantly less harm to the environment... Read more





