Green Products
The Top “GREEN” Products On The Market.
Hunter Douglas Duette® Architella® Honeycomb Shades
- The Patented Architella® honeycomb-within-a-honeycomb construction can reduce energy loss up to 50%!!
- Customers can take advantage of up to $1,500.00 in the Federal Energy Tax Credit on Architella® Shades
- Architella® is now available in 3/4 & 3/8 pleat sizes, both available in room darkening or semi opaque.
Hunter Douglas Applause® Honeycomb Shades - VintageTM Fabric
- New VintageTM material is made from 40% recycled polyester fiber from post-consumer textiles
- Recycling saves energy, landfill space and reduces CO2 emissions.
- Honeycomb design also provides energy savings.
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There are several things to look for when choosing green window treatments. First of all you will want to look for energy efficient treatments that will reduce your carbon foot print and save you money on your utility bills. Next, you will want to try to use treatments made from renewable materials. And lastly, you need to look at how the materials affect the air quality. Unfortunately, it may be hard to find window treatments that will do it all, so you may need to make some compromises.
Carbon Footprint
Carbon Footprint is a popular term these days, directly related to the amount of natural resources it takes to manufacture and deliver the product to its end user. Made in the U.S.A is a label that more and more American consumers are looking for today. Purchasing products made in the U.S.A from local sourced materials not only will drastically cut down your carbon footprint, it also helps the economy and helps to keep and create jobs in the U.S.A.
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VOC’s - Volatile Organic Compounds
What is Off gassing?
Off gassing is the evaporation of volatile chemicals in non-metallic materials at normal atmospheric pressure. This means that building materials can release chemicals into the air through evaporation. This evaporation can continue for years after the products are initially installed which means you continue to breathe these chemicals as you work, sleep and relax in your home or office.
What Building Materials Offgass?
Materials such as paints, stains, varnishes, carpet, insulation, flooring, kitchen cabinets and countertops, plywood, particleboard, and paint strippers can produce significant off gassing in your home or office. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) warns about the health effects of poor Indoor Air Quality from the off gassing of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs).
Can You Give Me an Example?
Everyone knows how badly most paints stains and varnishes smell; your instincts probably tell you the fumes are bad for you. Much of those fumes are from VOCs. But there are VOCs in less obvious products. For example, that film that accumulates on the windows on a new car. This film is the result of chemicals off gassing into the air and then condensing onto the windows to form the film. This same process is very likely going on in your home and workplace right now, and the chemicals are not only in the air and on the windows, they are in your lungs. Have you ever noticed how hard you have to rub to get that film off your windows?
(Courtesy of the EPA)
Below you will find a list of product that are Certified Green or have “Green” properties and links to the vendor’s websites for additional information. Some products like cellular shades may not be Green in the typical sense of the word but offer increased solar and thermal protection. Although the product itself may not be “green” other vendors like Graber make up for this with a strong company policy of environmental care including recycling 80% of all unused raw materials. Please contact us for further information on these products.