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Week 5 closes and I am driving my way to being green

November 23rd, 2009

Another week has ended and I have learned quite a bit about green driving. The actions I have taken this week will help not only the environment, but also our pocket books. Our driving has an effect on the amount of gas we use and each gallon saved prevents over 19 pounds of greenhouse gases from getting into the atmosphere. Our daily driving can dramatically impact the amount of greenhouse gases that are spewed into the atmosphere.

Probably the biggest changes I have made and expect to continually follow are checking/filling my tires and also to keep track of my mileage. By keeping track of my mileage and mpg, I will be able to make a game out of this and try to get the best mileage possible. I like that kind of stuff. Checking my tires is something that I did know about, but have just failed to do. I have now created a game to motivate me and numbers that I can chart or follow.

I will also try and change my actual driving habits to drive slower and take it easy on my breaks as Ashley recommended this week. This might be a bit difficult for me though since these are habits I have been forming for nearly 20 years. I think I already drive like a grandma, but will do my best to slow down (but always driving like those around me to ensure safety). The game I created may come into play to see if speed helps me get better mpg.

Also, I did a bit of poking fun at NASCAR and implying that they are bigoted against right turns. The message I was really trying to convey is the waste that surrounds this sport. Also, on the other end of the spectrum, we had a guest post from EcoGeeco who owns a GEM electric car and charges it with solar panels he built. Very cool stuff and really appreciate the guest post.

It has been an environmentally productive week and I am continuing to make changes every week that is having long term benefits. If this is something I can do, it is something anybody can do. Follow me via RSS or email to go through this journey with me!

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Posted in Air, Week 5 Driving

Tags: car maintenance CO2 green green driving solar

Dear NASCAR-forget your environmental impact-SAVE THE RIGHT TURN!

November 19th, 2009

I think it is important for me to step away from the normal topic of my blog (going green) and bring up a topic that I feel needs to be addressed if we are to move forward as a people. NASCAR needs to start respecting the right orientation now. I started this topic with the intention of relating it to this week’s task of increasing driving efficiency, but looking through the various NASCAR tracks I noticed almost NO tracks where they could turn right. It appears that NASCAR is bigoted against the right turn and I am asking you to sign a petition for orientation equality! Save the right turn.

Yes to the Right Turn

I was trying to write an article that highlighted the horrible gas mileage (about 5 mpg) over long periods (about 500 miles) and not really going anywhere, but this obvious bias to the left turn kept on nagging at my soul! I think I even got to the part where they indicated between 9 and 14 sets of tires are used during a race, but then had to change my topic. NASCAR needs to stop being bigoted to the right turn!

There are many things that are wonderful about the right turn. Some of which are follows:

Could you even have a left without the right?
You can turn right on red lights.
This song would not be the same without the right orientation.
Most people would not be able to write without their right hands.
The loss of Righty Tighty / Lefty Loosey will cause hours of inefficiency and worldwide safety issues.

There are many other things that are wonderful about the right turn and NASCAR should act now to treat the right turn as an equal to the left turn. NASCAR might be turning over a new leaf and just starting to try and go green by putting someone in charge of green innovation, but I still think they should put someone in charge of right turn equality. Some may think it hard to excuse the 14,000 TON carbon footprint of the 2008 Daytona 500, but I think the obvious bias to turning left cannot be overlooked any longer and this is where the real outrage should be. Save the right turn!

People of the universe… join me in this great cause. Once I have collected as many signatures as possible, I will submit this to NASCAR along with this post.

We, the people of the universe, believe that you favor the left orientation and demand that the right turn be provided equality. The right turn is just as good as the left and want to see more right turns in NASCAR racing. Save the right turn!

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Posted in Air, Week 5 Driving

Tags: CO2 green nascar vehicles

Ashley’s tips for efficient driving and conserving fuel

November 18th, 2009

This week’s task, efficient driving, is somewhat new to me. I started researching it more when the gas prices were soaring way above my comfort level. I needed to make my tank of gas last longer between fill-ups. I came across an article in thedailygreen.com just around that time that talked about several ways you can conserve gas just by changing your driving behavior. You can save 10% on gas by utilizing these simple changes.

Ben already touched on some general car maintenance tips that will help save you gas, but I would like to go more into what I believe gives you a noticeable change in your gas consumption right away. Some of these things require some thought right away, but you eventually it becomes a part of the way you drive that you don’t even think about it anymore. First thing, pay attention to the traffic lights. If you notice that the light has turned yellow and you are still far enough away, take your foot off the pedal. This will slow you down enough, that you probably won’t have to break, and the light will turn green before you get there. This not only saves idling time, but also wear and tear on your breaks. Cost savings: 66-70 cents per gallon.

Second tip; don’t use your cars’ heat or air conditioning unless you absolutely need to. This last summer I don’t think I even used my air conditioner once. I opened the nice little window, and that worked enough to keep me comfortable. Also don’t idle your car. This incorporates warming up your car in the winter, which I am not sure if I believe it doesn’t help, but if I am planning on waiting over 30 seconds, I turn off my car.

Third tip; clean out your car. For every 100 extra pounds carried around, your vehicle loses 1 to 2% in fuel efficiency. Not only does this make your car easier to car-pool your favorite co-workers, but also saves you an extra 3 cents per gallon for every 100 pounds of junk removed.

Fourth tip; slow down. This has many facets to it. First don’t “jack-rabbit” start and stop. Rapid acceleration and breaking can decrease fuel economy by 33%. Also, mind the speed limit. You burn 10% more fuel at 65 mph than you do at 55. At 70 you lose 17%, and 75 mph you are 25% less fuel efficient. Ah-hem Ben! Mr. “I like to drive 80 mph to keep up with everybody else” Myhre. I also learned that there is an organization drive55.org that promotes this notion of staying at 55 mph or below will keep you safer and improve the fuel efficiency of your car dramatically.

A lot of things to teach yourself, but these things become a part of your driving habits quickly. Before I would fill up every 2 weeks; now that it’s colder, and I have implemented these new driving habits I have increased the amount of time between fill-ups by a week. If there is any other tips you have for improving the efficiency of your car, leave us a note in the section below.