All Questions
2,125
questions
4
votes
1
answer
46
views
Does my facial scrub contain microplastics?
I was wondering if my facial scrub contains any microplastics. In particular, the tiny beads that are inside the soap, are they made of plastic? Are they polluting the waste water or they just ...
- 143
1
vote
2
answers
48
views
For Electric vehicles, HOW are miles per gallon equivalent (or L/100 Km) calculated, accounting for different sources of energy in the grid?
Could someone giver a clear and authoritative answer on HOW miles per gallon equivalent (or L/100 Km) are calculated for Battery electric Vehicles like Tesla Model 3 AWD long range? On the Electric ...
3
votes
2
answers
70
views
Why are EV batteries so much cheaper than household batteries from a per kWh basis?
If anything - shouldn't the EV battery have more requirements and be more expensive?
It needs to be lighter as that affects efficiency
It needs to have safety aspects like not blowing up in a crash
A ...
- 280
0
votes
1
answer
26
views
Where to find the column "Decadence Now", which is cited in _Garbology_
My favorite book about garbage is Garbology, by US journalist Edward Humes. It discusses garbage, what we do with it, and better ways to deal with it.
The book is about a decade old, but still ...
1
vote
1
answer
55
views
How to get rid of half a can of durable water repellent spray (similar to 3M Scotchgard)
(Cross-posted, together with additional questions, to a post on the /r/Anticonsumption sub-Reddit.)
I have an 8 ounce (~200 g) can of Foot Locker ultra fabric & leather protector spray. I guess ...
0
votes
1
answer
14
views
Does anyone know of a map of Solar PV Installers in Ireland?
Just checking if there's anyone else in Ireland out there ?
I'll be using the SolarMeitheal tag to group all questions about domestic Solar PV in Ireland.
The Meitheal idea is a workgroup or a peer-to-...
6
votes
1
answer
59
views
Does it matter whether I recycle packaging as one contiguous chunk or as separated parts?
I deliberately avoid cutting off or tearing off parts of packaging which I intend to recycle as in my mind I would imagine that this makes the recycling process easier. But does it actually? Is there ...
- 165
2
votes
0
answers
15
views
Is there a energetically low way to chemically degrade / destroy cement and concrete?
Personally I dislike cement and concrete. Nothing grows on it, it's hard and unconfortable and exists for cars rather than living beings. There are some concrete spots in front of my house where I ...
- 61
2
votes
0
answers
14
views
Resources on reflective cooling
Preparing for the next heatwave with something more sustainable than air conditioning, I'm looking into the idea of installing cooling reflectors as promoted by the site www.meer.org (basically, ...
- 61
1
vote
0
answers
16
views
Which alternatives to PFAS-contaminated cardboards for vermicomposting?
Vermicomposters add cardboard pieces to their waste in order to provide a source of carbon and to dry/ventilate the medium to avoid any hot fermentation. The amount of cardboard is usually high to ...
- 279
3
votes
2
answers
54
views
How to prevent rust on garden tools
Without using chemicals that I cannot easily produce myself, is there a way to prevent garden tools from rusting? They are bound to stay* outdoors, protected from direct rain.
I tried sunflower oil, ...
- 1,407
0
votes
1
answer
25
views
What kind of lenses used for eyewear doesn’t melt in the oven?
Hello and sorry for my silly question! I want to create a pair of sunglasses made of Fimo (polymer clay). I know, maybe no one did something like this, but I'm ambitious when it comes to nonsense. To ...
- 1
0
votes
2
answers
49
views
Because dirty dishes stink, I have to run a half empty dishwasher. How environmentally harmful is that with modern appliances?
My dishwasher is modern, bought 1 year ago.
Because dirty dishes stink, I have to run a half empty dishwasher. Unfortunately I have no other choice, even fungus develops when the dirty dishes are too ...
- 133
0
votes
1
answer
27
views
Why does my max power produced differ depending on the resistance of the test load?
I have a pair of solar panels mounted on my roof. They are rated 90W each, but I want to know, given my latitude and installation, what amount of power they are actually able to generate. I have a ...
- 1
4
votes
1
answer
49
views
Is it inefficient to turn off the airconditioner for short durations of less than two hours?
I was recently recommended not to turn off the airconditioner (A/C) when leaving a room for two hours or less but instead to increase the temperature setting closer to the outside temperature. The ...
- 143
0
votes
2
answers
86
views
Is there any evidence more renewables lowers oil consumption
Has anyone provided any evidence that building more wind turbines results in less oil wells being drilled?
- 1
1
vote
1
answer
32
views
Does a solar powered direct air capture plant capture more CO2 from air than a forest planted on the same area?
I couldn't find a fair comparison. Let's the compare the following two:
A direct air capture plant which is surrounded by solar panel farm which provides the energy to run it. It obviously runs only ...
- 273
-4
votes
2
answers
59
views
Airline CO2 emissions
There are 50,000 aircraft in the air or idling all the time. An airliner consumes 5 tons (or whatever) per hour of fuel. So 3 billion tons per year of fuel. So one ton of fuel is actually 3 tons of ...
- 1
3
votes
1
answer
48
views
Why is adding thermal mass good for heatwaves, given the importance of cooling off at night?
Thermal mass is the amount of thermal energy needed to raise a building one degree. Sometimes it's desirable: earthships have very thick walls with a lot of material, while phase-change materials ...
- 151
0
votes
1
answer
24
views
How do modified square and sine wave inverters work and which to use?
Today there are two kinds of inverters sold: modified square wave (sometimes erroneously marketed as "modified sine wave") and true sine wave. These allow converting low voltage direct ...
- 4,700
0
votes
0
answers
13
views
What are least harmful options for parts from disfunctional ceiling fan beyond my repair?
A ceiling fan of mine is running so slow it is no longer useful. From what I can tell this fan (here when I moved to my home) is either 9 or 14 years old. I dismantled it entirely, inspected and ...
- 859
1
vote
1
answer
35
views
US: Does canned pineapple produce more CO2 per calorie than fresh?
I've seen a few papers (like this and this) which suggest that fresh pineapple is less CO2-intense (also way less fresh water-intense) than canned pineapple in a few different contexts.
However, these ...
3
votes
1
answer
38
views
For dehumidification purposes, does a ductless heat pump use more or less energy than a dehumidifier?
We have recently installed a ductless heat pump (Mitsubishi) in some soon-to-be-finished basement space. It will be used primarily for heating during the winter (we live in Maine). During the summer,...
- 245
1
vote
1
answer
42
views
Does banning plastic bags really help protect the environment? I always re-use them as rubbish bags anyway
According to Wikipedia, there has been a global trend of banning plastic bags. But does it really help protect the environment?
In the past, I always re-used plastic bags as rubbish bags so I seldom ...
- 13
1
vote
1
answer
27
views
At which points in a pressurized municipal water distribution system are energy-recovering turbines placed as part of "in-pipe energy" generation?
I just watched the June 9, 2023 DW Planet A video In-pipe energy: The hydro power nobody is talking about. It's a "happy story" video light on data and specifics. There's a demonstration for ...
- 370
2
votes
0
answers
33
views
Where do forests store the carbon?
I am beginning to doubt the obvious answer: in the branches and trunk.
The soil organic carbon (SOC) pool is larger than global vegetation and the atmospheric pool combined
source
Forest soils store ...
- 443
2
votes
1
answer
31
views
Can we do without plastic film without an explosive growth of food waste?
The big plastic says we need plastic films to make fresh produce last longer. It seems a bit of a stretch: after all, retailers can just buy less, just as much as they can sell. However, the demand is ...
- 1,653
0
votes
1
answer
26
views
Estimating real, overall efficiency of an air conditioning unit
I want to research into electrical consumption of air conditioning units. While trying to make a rough estimate of efficiency, found that the btu/h capacity of the specifications does not make sense ...
- 61
1
vote
1
answer
16
views
What kind of experiment could be conducted to determine how harmful different kinds of soap are for cleaning floors?
Suppose that you are worried about soap entering the rivers after soapy water goes down the drain. The water from the river might be used to irrigate crops, and then people will eat vegtables grown ...
- 139
0
votes
4
answers
110
views
Is there a more sustainable alternative to buying water glasses for the kitchen or dining room?
Glass (silicon oxide) is sourced from two types of places on Earth:
Quartz mines featuring large white colored boulders.
Sand deposits.
The quartz mines are sometimes mined more often than the sand ...
- 139
0
votes
2
answers
44
views
What is more sustainable than putting peanut butter jars in the trash?
📦 🥜
Given two courses of action a1 and a2, there exist times such that we can classify action a1 as more sustainable than a2 (relatively speaking).
Suppose that one of the two actions is to put ...
- 139
1
vote
2
answers
18
views
What is a sustainable source of mailing envelopes?
Where can one obtain mailing envelopes which are more sustainably sourced than usual?
- 139
4
votes
1
answer
46
views
Is washing solar panels useful/needed/mandatory?
Washing solar panels is sometimes recommended by some third party companies but it involves monetary and environmental costs.
Is it beneficial? I compared the ratio production over insolation the week ...
- 419
0
votes
0
answers
20
views
Spinning plastic fibers out of molten plastic?
Can a machine intended for making cotton candy use used to make 100% recycled plastic fibers?
Perhaps it is possible to put molten plastic bottles and/or beverage containers inside of a cotton candy ...
- 139
4
votes
1
answer
43
views
Do Energizer ultimate lithium disposable batteries waste supply that should be used on rechargable batteries?
I was surprised when I went to go buy some new rechargable batteries to see non-rechargable AA and AAA batteries advertised as containing lithium. I assumed this was wasting material that should be ...
- 51
1
vote
1
answer
35
views
Understanding the irradiance on a panel or Plane of Array (POA) value from Python pvlib
I was trying to calculate POA value at a solar plant for my Data Science project. I need to get the foretasted POA value up to next two days. I just have seen that their is a python tool called pvlib; ...
- 121
2
votes
0
answers
29
views
What 'average' conditions are used to test the energy usage of freezers for a EU energy label?
I'm orienting myself on buying an extra (small) freezer on top of the limited amount of freezer space I already have in my fridge/freezer combination, so I can more easily cook and store fresh produce ...
- 121
1
vote
1
answer
49
views
is rubbing alcohol considered eco?
I wanted to find out if rubbing alcohol is truly considered eco. I know it is biodegradable and more eco than many of its substitutes, however I have also read it is closely related to acetone.
- 21
1
vote
1
answer
34
views
Siding for weather resistant cover over outdoor equipment
A simple wood frame is going up over some infrastructure in a farm field (a device with a motor in a sealed weather-resistant stainless-steel box). This wood frame is meant to help protect against sun,...
- 859
0
votes
0
answers
13
views
At-home regeneration of (microbial) cellulose into spinnable fibers
I make kombucha, and an inevitable byproduct is pellicles of microbial cellulose. Is there a practical method by which I could reform or regenerate this into fibers than can be spun into thread or ...
- 101
1
vote
0
answers
18
views
Dragon Arum in the landscape
Our property is becoming overrun by Dragon Arum, planted by a previous owner and exacerbated by some excavation work we’ve done. It’s very difficult to eradicate, so I’m wondering/hoping there’s some ...
- 11
5
votes
2
answers
1k
views
Gravity assist as energy source
The Gravity Assist allows for a spacecraft to gain more speed and energy ("stealing" it from the planet).
Can this approach be used for creating power plants that generate "cheap" ...
- 53
0
votes
1
answer
31
views
GHG emissions per company per year (carbon footprint database)
Which countries require corporations to report their GHG emissions (eg tonnes of CO2 or GWP emitted), and where can I find those numbers per company?
I'm trying to find companies who do high-energy ...
- 121
0
votes
2
answers
47
views
What are light tiny home framing materials?
In "How to Build Super Lightweight Tiny House Wooden Wall Frame (EP3)" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0CnXxN43_8), Robert Klemensberger demonstrated building framing tiny home walls with ...
- 101
5
votes
4
answers
102
views
Can I recondition the batteries from a mobile phone or a bike light?
My family uses lots of bicycle lights and I need to buy some more now because they break or get lost or stolen.
I'm trying to work out whether it is better to buy the bike lights that use AA or AAA ...
- 153
2
votes
3
answers
94
views
How best to get rid of household stuff?
I'm moving across half of the country to take a new job and I have a storage unit full of household and miscellaneous stuff. Was planning to move everything to the new place but the moving companies' ...
- 21
1
vote
3
answers
137
views
Smaller 800W Off-Grid Solar Panel System Arrangement
I'm planning to setup a smaller 800W off-grid solar panel system for my weekend cottage in Western Europe.
I already bought the necessary parts, cables, and accessories, here's my design sketch for ...
- 111
1
vote
3
answers
114
views
What are promising replacements for throwaway electronics?
What are promising replacements for throwaway electronics?
Computers, mobile phones, etc. certainly seem useful, but they have a limited lifetime, and the recycling of components seems a difficult/...
- 111
3
votes
0
answers
47
views
Are there toasters with a selector for one or two slices?
I noticed that all toasters I could find (even the ridiculously expensive ones, 300 Euro/dollars) toast both slots at the same time, instead of offering a selector one/two.
The closest I could find ...
- 419
3
votes
1
answer
99
views
Best strategy for turning off computer/laptop monitors to save energy but not reduce lifespan?
When doing what's best for our planet, there are often trade-offs involved. One such trade-off can be saving energy vs. reducing lifespan of equipment (which can result in significant environmental ...
