GetwithGreen.com would like to congratulate RainTube who recently achieved the Gold Level Cradle-To-Cradle Certification from MBDC. RainTube is one of only eleven in world to reach this environmental milestone.

MBDC was founded in 1995 to promote the “Next Industrial Revolution” through the new paradigm called Cradle-to-Cradle Design implementing eco-effective principles. Instead of designing products based on the ?take-make-waste? model of the last century (‘cradle-to-grave’), Cradle-to-Cradle Design helps to eliminate waste entirely.

For more information on MBDC, visit their website at: http://www.mbdc.com/

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 2008 is fast approaching, and the team at GetWithGreen.com is stopping now to recognize a few of our favorite eco-friendly home improvement products for 2007.  These products are assembled together under one roof:  GetWithGreen.com’s 10 Best Green Home Remodeling Products for 2007. 

GetWithGreen.com’s 10 Best Green Home Remodeling Products for 2007 consists of manufacturers (or categories) who deliver eco-friendly products, which make our planet a greener place.  These products help us conserve, help us reuse, help us recycle, or help us become less reliant on existing harmful resources.  We also looked heavily at the popularity of these products with you, our readers.     

Let’s give a GetWithGreen.com Thumbs up to our 10 Best Green Home Remodeling Products for 2007:

1)   Cyber-Rain ? ?The smartest, greenest, and easiest irrigation system on the planet.?

The Cyber-Rain XCI System caused quite a bit of stir at GetWithGreen.com in 2007.  It was one of the most widely read stories, and for good reason.  Resetting the sprinkler timer at every change of season, or for un-seasonal weather changes, just isn?t practical ? and we don?t do it!  Instead we just let our sprinklers turn on when it is not necessary, and we waste our most precious resource.  The Cyber-Rain XCI System made it to our list because it automatically adjusts our sprinklers depending on the weather forecast, thus greatly reducing water usage, and associated needless run-off.                                      

2)   EcoTop- The next generation recycled paper and wood composite countertop

Countertops are one of the most popular remodel topics on the web today, so it was only fitting that one material made it into the GetWithGreen.com 10 Best for 2007.  This year we?ve talked about just about every type of alternative to granite, and our top pick for 2007 is the new material called EcoTop.  Following up success at PaperStone, Joel Klippert has another winner here with EcoTop.  We expect big things from his team in 2008 as their color pallet increases, and they go broader in distribution!  Again we expect this one to be a game changer in 2008, and probably one to watch on next year?s list!

3)   GreenFiber – Out with the pink, Get with the Green

There are many alternatives to the pink fiberglass, and GreenFiber is our pick for 2007.  The GreenFiber team had the guts to come to GetWithGreen.com, and ask our audience for recommendations on packaging alternatives because they care.  Sure you can go with recycled denim, or new types of bio spray foam insulators, but we like the simplicity and the cost of GreenFiber.  We were also amazed at how well this product stands up in a fire vs. traditional fiberglass.  Don?t let you contractor put in fiberglass for your remodel ? check out GreenFiber cellulose insulation.

4)   Solar Tunnel Skylights- Who needs CFL’s or LED’s when you have one of these?!

Solar Tunnel Skylight as a category took the #4 spot this year on our List.  We like these products because during the day they go one step better than any fluorescent light bulb or LED solution could ever do ? they give you light via the sun so you don?t have to turn a light ON.   Ranging in various sizes, all homeowners remodeling should consider these products!  Check out our list of solar tunnel skylight manufacturers.

5) Holiday LED Lights ? The save power, enough said.

GetWithGreen.com estimates that one of the top (if not the top) most talked about green products of the year was the traditional incandescent light bulb who grew up to be a CFL in 2007.  Consumers, utilities, retailers, businesses and news outlets alike embraced and were a buzz around CFLs.  Judging from your interest and support of our 100+ places article that excitement and interest spilled right over to the energy saving LED holiday lights that took stores by storm this Fall and Winter.  These little lights save a lot of energy, and they are here to stay.  Way to go Philips and others!  Note To Manufacturers:  GetWithGreen.com would like to see a plastic color that matches the warmth of traditional white lights.  If you get this right you will have the killer product according to our readers!!

6) PlayMart ? This product is doing something for our kids in more ways than one!

Playground equipment and green are not typically something that you would think about in the same thought, but you should!  Why do we care about going green, getting green, being sustainable, or read sites like Treehugger.com?  Because, most of us are working to save our environment for our children and generations to come.   So please look seriously at installing backyard playground equipment alternatives to wood, especially wood that is harvested inappropriately.  Play Mart equipment makes use of recycled milk jugs, recycled metals, and other materials and then delivers them all back to your children in the shape of backyard play equipment.  We challenge you to find another product by the way that carries a 100 year warranty!!

7)   EnergyStar Special Offer/Rebate Finder ? A service that pays you back!

Our tax dollars are hard at work over at the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency when it comes to ENERGY STAR.  ENERGY STAR makes GetWithGreen.com?s 10 Best List this year because we really like their Rebate Finder.  Simply enter your zip code into the locator, check the product types you are interested in (e.g. appliances, heating and cooling equipment, home electronics, etc.), and out pops available rebates for ENERGY STAR products in your neighborhood.  How cool is that?

8)   RainTube? The only eco-friendly gutter protector solution

In a world of metal gutter protectors, 2007 saw the emergence of an alternative ? RainTube.  It blew our minds at GetWithGreen.com that we could not find an alternative metal solution (e.g. recycled aluminum, etc.).  After all, you can buy metal roofs made from 100% recycled materials!  RainTube?s eco-friendliness starts with its composition of 100% recycled plastics materials.  Once installed the product keeps your gutters clear, which helps diversion of water from your homes foundation ? thus reducing other long-term costs and the need for pesticides for termites etc.  To top it off this product is priced to sell, so we all save!

9)   Ready Solar ? Reducing the requirement for specialized installers

Ready Solar?s ?Solar in a Box? gets our vote this year, as the company is on a mission to demystify and drive down the overall cost of solar installation.  They are making an attempt at accomplishing this by punching out standardized solar systems that can be installed by any Ready Solar certified contractor.  Ready Solar is still a young company, but we still like their IKEA box-like approach to solar.

10)   Pella Windows ? Windows that work to conserve

Fully insulated windows cut down greatly on energy consumption ? especially the Designer Series from Pella.  This year homeowners voted via J.D Powers that you liked what Pella is offering, and GetWithGreen.com is voting with you.  The company is working hard to tell both their internal recycling story, the story of reused materials in their products, and the conservation of energy that their products provide.   Virtually all of our remodels will involve one or more windows.  Before you buy, take a look at Pella and their Designer Series.    

In addition to the 10 Best above, GetWithGreen wanted to recognize 3 others who made a difference in 2007. These three didn’t necessarily fit into a specific product category in 2007, but deserved a mention for their ability to influence others. 

From the big box home improvement retailers we wanted to give a mention to The Home Depot.  THD continued to evolve their eco-friendly educational material throughout the year.  You may not know it, but the company has an entire green section on their website called Eco Options!  If you don’t know this, it is probably because the company has placed Eco Options at the bottom of their website!  THD, please move Eco Options closer to the top of your page and expose your customers to your very valuable material, so that others can learn and make a difference!!

And to close things out for this Year’s 10 Best, we wanted to mention a couple of the web giants out there for committing valuable resources in an effort to spread the word about getting green.   Specifically, we are calling out the team at Microsoft with thier MSN Green website, and the team at Yahoo! with their Yahoo! Green site.  These massive web titans are taking each other on, and this battle for your readership will only help bring better educational news to a broader base of readers – leading to a greener planet in 2008 for everyone.  

In closing, thanks to all other manufacturers who have helped move the home improvement industry toward a greener place.  We look forward to 2008 at GetWithGreen.com!  Thank you to our readers and advertisers for continuing to support our efforts!

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Fall is here and the leaves are starting to fill your gutters, unless you have RainTube that is.  We covered this product several months ago, and it remains one of our favorites here at GetWithGreen.com. 

This week the RainTube team garnered several awards at the Green Building Industry Awards.  Read on below, and make sure you check out RainTube’s product made from 100% recycled materials…

RainTube product recognized for outstanding achievement in environmental sustainability — Wins Four International Green Building Industry Awards.
 
GLI Systems Inc. of Jacksonville, Oregon, manufacturer of the RainTube Gutter Protection System, has been awarded an unprecedented four 2007 Green Building Pages Benchmark Sustainability Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Environmental and Social Sustainability.  The awards were presented at the US Green Building Council ?Build Green Exposition? in Chicago, the world?s largest building products exposition focused on sustainable, eco-friendly building products and methods.  RainTube won in four of seven categories including:

• The top award ? The Sustainable Product Award ? for the highest overall product sustainability rating,
• The Global Climate Change Award,
• The End of Product Life Award, and
• The Installation, Use and Maintenance Award. 

RainTube was recognized for exemplary performance according to the Green Building Pages rigorous Benchmarking Sustainability evaluation criteria.  The Green Building Pages is a leading building products certification organization that provides consumers, architects and building contractors with internet-based guides and resources supporting sustainable building design and information about green building products.  Green building, an ecologically sound method of residential and commercial construction, has become a major area of interest and concern among consumers and the building industry worldwide.  The Green Building Pages certification database, which is consistent with the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) criteria, placed RainTube in the lead position among the sustainable building products of some of the nation?s leading manufacturers. RainTube use also generates LEEDS points for builders and owners seeking ?green? certification for their projects.

RainTube is an effective, low-cost gutter protection system made in the USA from 100% post-consumer recycled materials.  RainTube helps protect homes, apartments and commercial buildings from water damage from clogged gutters, reduces fire risk from gutter debris in compliance with new fire prevention building codes, reduces maintenance and promotes cleaner rain water harvesting systems.

Steve Spratt, co-founder of GLI, said ?We are very proud to be recognized at the Green Building Exposition with these important awards.  The fact that we are the only ?green? product in the gutter protection industry is a source of great satisfaction to everyone in our company.  Meeting the high criteria of the benchmark Product Sustainability Award set a standard we will continue to emphasize in all our business operations.?  Spratt went on to note ?Green Building standards are increasingly important to consumers today.  It is gratifying that RainTube has been recognized for making its contribution to the planet while helping homeowners preserve the value of their buildings.? 

Checkout more information on RainTube here at GetWithGreen.com.

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Fall will be here soon, and the tree leaves will find their way into the gutters on your new roof to clog your downspouts – resulting in potential water damage, dryrot or mold on/around your newly remodeled home. There are several types of solutions to help prevent gutter clogging, and here is one eco-friendly option that we wanted to bring to your attention.

The RainTube System is a tubular piping system that fits snuggly into your existing or new gutters.  The system is designed to prevent large debris such as leaves and pine needles from entering.  Tiny particles such as dust, fine seeds, and roof grit may still enter, but with proper sloping and drainage these particles will remain in solution and flush out through the downspouts according to the RainTube team.

The RainTube team outlines the installation process as follows:

• Your gutters and downspouts are inspected to ensure they are in good condition
• All gutters and downspouts are cleaned.
• RainTube technology is fit into your existing gutters. 

RainTube is manufactured by GLI Systems Inc., and it is made from 100% post-consumer high-density polyethylene (HDPE), and can be recycled again if needed.  The products are manufactured in Oregon.  Ballpark pricing for the product is $5-6/ft (that includes installation) – pretty good!

Some interesting recycled plastic factoids from Raintube:

• The energy saved by recycling one plastic bottle will power a computer for 25 minutes.
• 17 one-gallon milk jugs are reused to make one 13′ length of RainTube.
• 227 one-gallon milk jugs are reused to protect the gutters of an average home with RainTube.
• There are about 1,000 milk jugs and other bottles in a recycled plastic party bench.
• If you lined up all the polystyrene cups made in just 1 day they would circle the earth.
• Americans toss out 14.4 million tons of plastic every year according to the Plastics Museum.
• Americans go through 2.5 million plastic bottles every hour.
• Half of all polyester carpet manufactured in the U.S. is made form recycled soda bottles.

Other products created from recycled plastics:

• 14 20-ounce green soda bottles = one extra-large T-shirt
• 85 20 ounce soda bottles = filling for one sleeping bag
• 96 one-gallon milk jugs = one 6 foot long piece of 2/4 plastic lumber
• 1,200 plastic bottles = one 200 pound railroad tie
• 68,000 milk jugs (reinforced with fiberglass) = one 30 foot long bridge in New Baltimore, NY

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