Plant Nerd and Fish Guy Update Home with Solar, Solar Water Heating
Chris and Christy Dewees have owned their house in Village Homes since it was originally built in 1977. The house came equipped with energy efficient features such as passive solar cooling, extra insulation, dual-paned windows, and solar water heating panels. As the home aged, its…
Want to Add Solar Panels to Your New Home? Five Considerations
Editor’s Note: Solar tax credits begin to sunset at the end of 2019. To take advantage of the full 30% credit deducted from your tax owed, get your system by December 31, 2019. Before adding solar to your recently purchased home, here are five considerations:…
Grilled Vegetable Pasta Salad Recipe
Bean pasta is one of my favorite food innovations. The comfort of pasta, but the nutrition of beans! One serving of lentil pasta has 14 grams of protein and 8% of your Daily Value for iron. It is also a great option for those who…
EV&Me: Eric Wilson and His 2014 Tesla and 2018 Bolt
The Owner/Driver Name: Eric WilsonOccupation: Director of Sustainability and STEAM InitiativesLocation: Thousand Oaks, CA The Vehicle Year/make/model: 2014 Tesla Model S and 2018 Chevrolet BoltType: Both fully electricRange: 208–262 miles (Model S, depending on battery size); 238 miles (Bolt)MPGe: 89–95 (Model S, depending on battery size; 119 (Bolt)MSRP: $69,900–$119,000 (Model S, depending on specifications);…
Burger Battle Focuses Attention on the Impact of Meat
The COOL Cuisine Burger Battle wrapped up March 31 with an amazing 5,110 plant-based burgers sold according to event organizers. That’s an average of 161 burgers per day. Compared to consuming that many beef burgers, diners together prevented 15.5 tons of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions…
Savory Spring Salad
No matter the season, I always prefer savory over sweet options! This salad recipe features a flavorful herb vinaigrette and several seasonal ingredients like green onions, fresh chives, and wild arugula. This salad can be adapted to your preferences – dried cranberries, fresh blueberries, chopped…
The Sun Is Setting on the 30% Solar Tax Credit
The solar tax credit has been with us since 2005. In its current form, it provides a 30% tax credit for the installation of a solar system to generate electricity or for a solar hot water system. This allows a homeowner to directly subtract 30%…
Secretly Healthy Muffin Bites Recipe
Beans can be a great alternative for more resource intensive protein sources like poultry, eggs, and beef. In addition to protein, beans are good sources of fiber, iron, and B vitamins – nearly a one stop shop for plant-based health. Nowadays beans come in convenient…
Tim Stevens and His 2017 Honda Clarity
The Owner/Driver Name: Tim Stevens Occupation: Retired (previously an environmental scientist with the State of California) Location: Davis, CA The Vehicle Year/make/model: 2017 Honda Clarity Fuel Cell Vehicle Type: Fully electric (uses a hydrogen fuel cell to generate electricity) Range: 366 miles MPGe: 68 MSRP: The Honda Clarity FCV is primarily…
Home Energy Retrofit Saves Money and Energy for Happy Owner
Stephen Peithman had been warned that his West Davis home’s central air conditioner was ready to fail. But he didn’t do anything about it until two years later in April 2015 when he received a letter from PG&E alerting him to potential rebates for energy…
Spinach Artichoke Pasta Bake Recipe
I had a hunch that artichoke hearts, frozen spinach, creamy cashew sauce, and pasta would make for one delicious dish. According to my official taste testers, I was right! This vegan pasta dish would be a great addition to any potluck or family dinner table…
Food Fairy: Healthy winter flavors
Happy New Year! Everyone has now vowed to eat only healthy food, and it’s all salad all the time. As always, that won’t last long — interesting salad takes time to prepare, and, more crucially, it’s not really salad season. There are no lovely tomatoes,…
Miso Soup Recipe
Who doesn’t love a warm bowl of savory miso soup? While most soup recipes require lots of chopping and simmering, miso soup can come together in minutes. Stick to the recipe for a simple appetizer, or add in rice noodles and seasonal greens, like kale…
Local real estate agent outfits own home with energy efficiency retrofits
Knocking on the front door and looking at one of the few windows that lined the front of the house, I didn’t know what to expect. Trees and vegetation surrounded the house, with ferns lining the covered walkway to the front door and leafy vines…
Phoenix Chong and Her 2011 Nissan Leaf
The Owner/Driver Name: Phoenix Chong Occupation: Retired attorney Location: Oakland/San Francisco, CA The Vehicle Year/make/model: 2011 Nissan Leaf Type: Fully electric Range: 84 miles MPGe: 99 MSRP*: $32,780 Time owned: 7+ years *When new, at time of model release. The Experience What made you decide to go electric and how did you…
Muir Commons Cuts the Ribbon on 26 Electric Vehicle Chargers
The Muir Commons community in West Davis “cut the ribbon” on its first electric vehicle (EV) chargers 17 years ago, quite early in the EV game, according to resident Eugen Dunlap. After years of consensus building and leadership, Muir Commons recently cut a new ribbon…
Solar “Power Pioneer” Proves Payback Period Has Decreased Dramatically
It’s not surprising that Sue Fields decided to put solar panels on her roof in 2010 — a relatively early time in the movement – she’s an environmental engineer after all. Sue freely admits she didn’t research all of the installers in the area or…
Latke Recipe: Vegan & Gluten-Free
Hanukkah means one thing in my house – latkes. (Latkes are delicious even now, after the holiday has passed.) While I used to make these fried potato pancakes with corn flake crumbs, eggs, and wheat flour we have changed things up to fit our current…
Jered Sneesby and his 2014 BMW i3 REx
The Owner/Driver Name: Jered Sneesby Occupation: Civil engineer Location: Sacramento, CA The Vehicle Year/make/model: 2014 BMW i3 REx (with range extender) Type: The BMW i3 is available as a fully battery-electric vehicle, but adding the range-extending gasoline engine (as my car has) makes it a plug-in hybrid. The REx…
Solar water heating systems: Cost-effective and carbon reducing
Solar water heating (SWH) systems heat water using energy from the sun in rooftop collectors that generally loop into a solar water storage tank. This additional storage tank adds hot water storage capacity and reduces household energy usage. Monthly savings compared to a typical natural…
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