Grow Air

Have a Green'er Christmas

Found this on hgtv.com

1. Use Fluorescent Bulbs
Replace conventional incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs). They cost a little more, but last up to 10 times longer, use two-thirds less energy and give off 70 percent less heat.

2. Look for the Energy Star Label
Energy Star-qualified refrigerators use about half as much energy as refrigerators made before 1993, and saving energy also cuts down on pollution. Look for Energy Star certification when shopping for other home appliances such as dishwashers, clothes washers, water heaters and many home electronics. Visit www.energystar.gov/ for more information about this program.

3. Get Unplugged
Many home electronics still consume energy even when they are turned off. Many devices with a "standby mode" will continue to use power, running up your electricity bill. Also, chargers and power adapters continue to draw power from the wall socket even if the device is not attached. Unplug these devices or use a power strip to turn off multiple units, when they aren't being used to make sure that you aren't wasting energy.

4. Double-Up on Windows
Replacing old single-pane windows with double pane-windows helps reduce heat loss in winter and heat gain in the summer. They can also help reduce noise pollution in your home.

5. Turn Down the Thermostat
Lowering you thermostat by just one degree can reduce costs by about four percent, so keeping the heat turned down just a little bit can reduce energy costs. Using a ceiling fan in the summer and the winter can also help with A/C and heating energy consumption.

6. Sustainable Floors
Cork flooring not only looks great, but it's also natural insulator. So when you look into purchasing flooring, consider using bamboo, cork or another sustainable material. Not only will your new floors look fantastic, but they'll also save you money in the end.

7. Earth-Friendly Decks
A lot of deck material comes from tropical hardwoods. These woods look great and stand up to the elements for a very long time. But when choosing decking material, make sure you choose wood that has been harvested using sustainable methods. This helps the environment and preserves endangered rainforests.

8. Low-Flow Faucets
Low-flow water fixtures such as showerheads, faucets and toilets reduce water consumption and water heating costs by as much as 50 percent.

9. Buy Renewable Energy
Check with your local utility company and see if you can purchase renewable energy. Renewable, non-emitting sources such as wind, solar and hydroelectric power cut down on emissions, reduce volatile fuel prices and can save you money.

10. Recycle!
After you replace all those inefficient, windows and fixtures, make sure you recycle all that metal and glass. Also, most household paper items, glass, aluminum cans and plastic can be recycled. By recycling half of your household waste, you can save 2,400 pounds of carbon dioxide annually. Find more information about programs in your area at www.recycle.com/.

Real Estate Overload -- Here is a distraction

I Planted a Tree Today

It did not require a shovel.
It took less than 2 minutes.
It was cheap.

Contribute if you can.

DIY- Underlayment and Laminate Flooring

I wanted to present a DIY project for the garden, but with winter coming I opted for this project. Fortunately, it happens to be a good one. A couple clients of ours actually did this back in the summer and it ended up looking fantastic. Hope someone out there enjoys it.

Providing a Face to Real Estate

Yesterday was a special day for CD-Realtors. A couple weeks back we set up an appointment to bring in a camera crew to film our first commercial. Following some troubleshooting and ambitious ideas, the big day finally arrived.

We ended up choosing to do a straightforward breakdown of what sets our real estate firm apart. I am very excited to see how the film turns out. No one at CD-Realtors has seen the final cut with edits and green screen effects.

I will spare you the details of the filming process, turns out I’m not too good in front of a camera. Luckily Miranda Devlin stepped up to bat, and you can tell us whether she hit a home run or not. The commercial should be ready to post by next week so check back!

Tax Incentives for Green Home Owners

Found this blog today, thought you guys might find it useful.

Tips to go Green

I found this list of going green tips on www.frontdoor.com

I know sometimes reading these lists can make you think ‘good ideas, too much effort’. The fact of the matter is investing your time in green is an investment back in your pocket. <--Not inspirational enough, then let me know specifically what you want help doing in your home and CD Realtors will be happy to assist you!

1. Reduce water waste. Replace pre-1994 toilets, showerheads and sinks to instantly save water. Federal standards now require that these fixtures use less water. An upgrade to a low-flow toilet can also trim about $90 a year off your water bill.

2. Go for a gas fireplace. Gas fireplaces provide heating with less indoor and outdoor pollution than the traditional word-burning style. The most efficient option is a direct-vent model, which vents without a chimney. Increase the efficiency of a traditional fireplace by installing a wood stove or using natural gas or pellet inserts.

3. Get a cooler roof. A roof that reflects heat instead of absorbing it allows you to keep your home cool with less energy. Metal provides a cool roofing option that lasts for decades and can mimic the look of materials like wood, tile and stone.

4. Save on heating costs. While it's pricey to purchase, a solar water heater will save you money in the long run by reducing hot water bills up to 80 percent. For best results, install the heater where there's an unobstructed southern exposure.

5. Be counter intuitive. Granite is great, but explore other eco-friendly countertop options, including counters made from recycled paper or hemp. These durable surfaces are easy to clean, but color selection can be limited.

6. Encourage recycling. Make recycling convenient for you, your family and your guests by having a designated spot for recycling in the kitchen.

7. Explore green flooring. Hardwood floors make for a great home investment, but you can get the look and feel of hardwood with sustainable wood options. Cork flooring, made from leftovers at bottle-stopping factories, is one eco-friendly option. It's durable, warm and resistant to spills, making it an especially sensible option for homes with kids or pets.

8. Choose natural wallpaper. Conventional wallpaper options often contain harmful chemicals and synthetic materials, but natural alternatives exist. Consider wallpaper made of sea grass, an abundant, sustainable resource found in saltwater marshes. Sea-grass wallpaper gives walls a natural, textured look.

9. Reject a traditional deck. As an alternative to a hardwood deck, try composite decking made from wood waste and recycled plastic. In addition to being eco-friendly, composite decking outperforms ordinary wood decking; it lasts longer, requires less maintenance and won't warp, crack, splinter or rot.

10. Try recycled mulch. Recycled from scrap tires, rubber mulch serves as an eco-friendly substitute for wood mulch, especially useful as a playground safety surface. The mulch also hinders weed growth in gardens without rotting or blowing away. However, some gardeners are reluctant to use it because the rubber can contain zinc and other heavy metals harmful to plants.

A Day at the Zoo

On November 8th my brother and I went to the National Zoo in Washington D.C. I felt like I had stumbled upon some great secret: hundreds of amazing animals at a free zoo.
I saw five pandas; I don’t believe I ever saw any of their eyes as they were all sleeping in elaborate, surely uncomfortable positions. Orangutans climbed ropes overhead, three Golden Lion Tamarinds engaged in a high risk wrestling match (these animals looked up to some evil deed), and an armadillo curled up so statically it might as well have been a rock.

There was also a lion, a terrifying and beautiful creature. I stood particularly entranced by our first stop in zoo. Eventually, I lost interest moved on to the adjacent tiger, then the rest of the zoo.

BUT GET THIS! Apparently 15 minutes after we left the lion, maybe 6 minutes after the Tiger, a deer, a live, wild, foolish deer, jumped into the ‘lion’s den’, literally.

Watch the video:

Hello and Welcome to my Blog!

My name is Saied Abbasi and I am heading Carter-Devlin Realtors’ social media campaign. That being said please check us out on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, this blog, and of course our website: http://www.cdrealtors.com/.

The real estate industry is undergoing profound transitions. The average buyer/seller is more tech. savvy than ever and is tapping the copious amounts of information provided online, a process that has marginalized the need for a traditional real estate agency.

Carter-Devlin Realtors is championing you by ceaselessly delving through internet resources to provide our clients with knowledge. The fact of the matter is the average person buying or selling a home is making the most significant financial decision of their lives.

It is with this understanding that CD Realtors has formulated its business model: To create a transparent network of resources. Allowing the consumer to accelerate their knowledge of the market, with the hope that the buyer/seller will feel confident in their transaction and form a trusting relationship with our real estate agency.

To encourage the relationship between CD Realtors and our clients this blog is designed to provide:

1. A forum for our clients to discuss their experience with CD Realtors with one another, let us know what you would like to see from our firm, ask general questions, etc.

2. Information every client should know from articles, government policy, tips, informational videos, etc.

3. Encourage everyone to undergo green renovations from our Green Audit service to simply walking you through DIY Green modifications

4. Give you more direct access to CD Realtors team