The Luzia Energy Report

The Luzia Energy Report
by Luzia, Inc.

When buying, selling, or making improvements to your home, you can plan, budget, and capture the value of energy efficiency with Luzia.

Whether you are selling your home and want to display its energy advantage or you own the home and want to get an at-a-glance reference for your home’s energy systems, Luzia’s technology brings all of your information in one place.

The Luzia Energy Report gives your home a personalized score powered by ENERGY STAR® that ranks the home’s energy bills as compared to similar homes. The profile describes the home’s heating and cooling systems, lighting, insulation levels and windows, and major appliances, along with their efficiency levels. A Savings Summary with an estimate of your possible savings from small steps to major upgrades, including their return on investment and other statistics highlight your home’s energy friendly ways.

The Luzia Energy Report gives you a simple, effective way to know your home’s energy friendly features and achieve the next ones. Luzia works with you in a short turnaround time so you receive your home’s Luzia Energy Report and can begin using the information.

Selling your home? Showcase the energy friendly features with a Luzia Energy Report.

Home buyers or owners, get the energy facts for your home with a Luzia Energy Report. Use your report to make informed upgrades and save on home improvement costs using rebate and tax credit resources.

Get the power of home energy information you can use with Luzia. Visit www.LuziaEnergy.com to see a sample report or email, request@luziaenergy.com, to get started on your own personalized report.

“I am very excited about the Energy Report, it’s been very well received,” claims Erin Green, marketing agent for PRG.

Fat vs. Fiction

Fat vs. Fiction
Photos by CM Photography

Most of the questions I hear as a trainer revolve around one thing, you guessed it, “How do I lose weight?”
Coincidentally, the people who ask me these questions are the same people who have tried numerous diets and exercise programs all promising fantastic results. My goal today is to clear up some of the myths about losing weight, especially when it comes to body fat.

Myth #1 Carbohydrates make people fat.

Truth #1 Consuming too much of anything whether it’s fat, protein, carbohydrates, or even alcohol will make you fat. Most snack foods have a very high concentration of simple carbohydrates or sugars, which provide little to no sustenance and often lead to overeating. Eating a combination of protein, carbohydrates (especially fiber), and fats will fill you up longer than carbohydrates alone.

Myth #2 Aerobics or “cardio” is the best way to lose weight.

Truth #2 Burning more calories than you consume is the best way to lose weight. While aerobic activity helps you burn calories, it doesn’t increase your resting metabolic rate (RMR) like weight resistance training does. Our RMR makes up the majority of the calories we burn in one day, unless you happen to be an ultra endurance athlete. Resistance training boosts our RMR by increasing our muscle mass. Weight training not only burns calories while doing it, but also has a residual effect of helping burn more calories 24/7.

Myth #3 You must train in the “Fat Burning Zone” to lose body fat.

Truth #3 We burn a combination of carbohydrates and fats all day long. The “Fat Burning Zone” is when the percentage of calories used from fat is higher than that of carbohydrates. This doesn’t necessarily mean you are burning more fat calories overall. As the intensity of an activity rises, our use of carbohydrates increases, while our use of fat remains the same. Only the percentage of calories burned from fat goes down. In addition, higher intensity exercise increases EPOC (Excess Post Oxygen Consumption) after the workout. This is commonly referred to as the “After Burn” of exercise, when metabolism is elevated following completion of a workout.

Myth #4 Working out on an empty stomach helps burn more body fat.

Truth #4 Although the percentage of calories burned from fat will be higher, working out on an empty stomach usually shortens the duration and limits the intensity of exercise you can perform that workout. The best policy is to eat a small snack or meal 1 to 2 hours before exercise. Eating a small amount of calories before exercise, especially early in the morning, will help ensure you don’t fatigue prematurely during your workout.

Myth #5 Weight training turns fat into muscle.

Truth #5 Fat is fat and muscle is muscle. Over time, when we weight train, we build muscle and it increases our metabolism. If we don’t increase the amount of calories we eat after building the muscle, we may burn off the fat for energy to support the muscle. Sometimes people believe their fat turns to muscle because they appear smaller even though they weigh the same. Muscle is very dense, so a pound of muscle appears smaller than a pound of fat.

Myth #6 You can exercise specific areas of your body to burn off the fat located there.

Truth #6 Working out a specific area of your body will increase muscle activity in that area, but won’t necessarily reduce body fat there. Body fat typically comes off in just the opposite order it comes on. Although you can’t target areas to burn off body fat, usually you can predict where you will lose it first, last, etc. If the last place you noticed a little more chub was your abs, then as you start to lose body fat that will most likely be the place you notice shrinking first. Likewise, the first place you put on body fat is often the last place you are able to burn off the unsightly nuisance.

Mark Brandenburg is a fitness professional with a B.S. in Exercise and Sport Science from Iowa State University.
He serves the greater Twin Cities area as a personal trainer and fitness consultant. For more information about the services Mark has to offer go to www.fitandfitted.com or call (651) 366-1988

Choose the perfect wine for your big day and remain sustainable

Tips from an Expert: Choose the perfect wine for your big day and remain sustainable by Leslee Miller

As the most important day of your life approaches, you check your lists over and over, dotting your I’s and crossing your T’s making sure that every last detail is in place for the big day. Don’t worry over the wine list – it should be fun! Take the stress out with these easy steps.

1. Be original! When the banquet manager passes you the wedding wine list, don’t get roped into the traditional ‘wine packages’
that are provided by the hotel or event space. Ask to take a look at their regular wine list, one coming from their main dining room or bar area.

2. Pick up to four wines; one should include your ‘toasting’ bubbly. Keep it simple with the number of varietals. It eliminates headaches for your guests, the staff, and your budget.

First, choose a sparkling. Champagne from the Champagne Region in France is expensive. Your best bets for bubbly are: Cava, Prosecco or Sekt. Cava, sparkling from Spain, Prosecco, sparkling from Italy, and Sekt, sparkling from Germany, are all great options to save money. Many are produced sustainably or organically.

Next, choose a white. To satiate the appetite of all your white wine drinkers, your best bet is to select something crisp, clean and delicious. Chardonnay is a white grape that most will recognize. Pick an ‘unoaked’ version of the grape, and for a great tip on ‘affordable’, I’d go with one from the Pacifi c NW. Washington and Oregon do a wonderful job producing organic and generally, inexpensive delicious Chardonnays.

Reds, Reds, Reds… This is where most folks will head if they are drinking wine for the night. My first recommendation is to chose a lighter bodied red – something like Pinot Noir or even, Tempranillo. Pinot Noir is a great grape- however, it has taken a big price increase in recent years due to demand. Check into northern Italy or even Argenti na to fit your bill. Many are grown sustainably and fit the profile…easy-drinkin’, light and delicious.

Most folks like Cabernet. You can also lookinto Malbec or Syrah as a savvy alternative. Chile and Argentina give you great price
points, and again most are grown in part, organically. As your last red, for selecting a good, green, affordable wine head to South America; some of my favorites come from Spain, Argentina and Chile. The farming in many of these regions truly sticks to the livelihood of these green areas. Handled and produced by people, in a way that sticks to keeping the wine traditional.

3. Ask questions. Ask the banquet manageror event space director questions. Is the wine sustainable or organic, does the winery use recycled glass or labels? What are your favorite wines on the list and why? Can we taste through a couple of them before we
decide? Do some homework before you go. Pick up some of these regional wines, and try them for yourself.

4. And, last but not least…enjoy! Because, after all, it’s just grape juice for Pete’s sake, and it is, don’t forget, the biggest day of your life, so enjoy it. Salut!

Taking the LEED

Walser Subaru embraces green business practices

Story and photos by Josh P. Roberts

Building green costs more. Sure there are payoffs in energy savings and other benefits over the long haul, but it can take upwards of twelve years to even reach the break-even point.

It wasn’t just a dollars-and-cents calculation, explains Walser Automotive Group director of marketing Alan Krutsch. Without factoring in an “it’s the right thing to do” attitude, a 20-30% premium on the upfront costs to create an environmentally friendly showroom and repair facility might not have made sense. Fortunately, when it came time for to build a new Subaru dealership in Burnsville, both Subaru’s green corporate image and their customers’ interest in environmental issues helped tip the balance.

“Our customers,” he adds, “will feel better about doing business with a company that has a sensitivity to environmental issues.”

The building, which opened just before Thanksgiving, is Minnesota’s first (and Subaru’s first American) LEED-certified automotive dealership To achieve this benchmark, which becomes official after this edition goes to press, Walser had to meet some strict criteria.

Simply green

The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), a program of the nonprofit United States Green Building Council, promotes environmentally-responsible building practices by providing guidelines for building design, construction, and operation. Being LEED-certified means meeting standards set for sustainable site development, water and energy conservation, materials choice, and the quality of the indoor environment.

Much of building green is high-tech innovation that might elicit a “wow.” Yet much of it is simple common sense, Krutsch says.

Walser supported its application by citing the ways in which it fulfilled LEED’s standards, beginning with selecting a site that had already been developed, rather than virgin land (it used to be a small used car lot). The placement, orientation, and shape of the building were all designed to maximize the use of sunlight for interior lighting and heating. A reflective white vinyl roof requires less energy for air conditioning. Recycling bins are placed prominently in the showroom. The furniture, the hoists, and the car wash were recycled from previous projects, or purchased used and refurbished. The latter may not have earned any LEED points, notes shop general manager Jason Loechler, but they’re part of the puzzle — new resources that didn’t have to be produced, and existing ones kept out of the landfill.

Higher-hanging fruit

Designing a LEED-certified building requires harder choices, and occasional compromises. Walser’s showroom is multi-storied, with floor-to-ceiling windows on several sides—not necessarily the most efficient to heat and cool. “We have to balance business needs with environmental needs,” points out Don Schilling, Walser’s director of facilities. “What type of shopping experience do we need to create so we can stay in business and pay for the environmental improvements?”

Those improvements themselves should ultimately pay dividends, at least in the long run. The glass is specially glazed, and the ceiling is heavily insulated, to reduce heat loss. The concrete and tile floor acts as a heat sink. High-efficiency heating, air conditioning, ventilation, and lighting are run by sophisticated environmental controls — complete with timers, motion detectors, and carbon monoxide sensors — that divide the building into multiple zones.

Even plain old recycling reaps significant benefits. Walser burns spent motor oil to produce heat, rather than trucking it away to be disposed of. And water from the car wash’s rinse cycle is reused in the next wash cycle.

Healthier, too

Specs for Walser Subaru’s new building called for low-VOC (volatile organic compound) adhesives to be used. Core-filled decorative block walls eliminate the need for paint. And only ecologically friendly chemicals are used for cleaning.

Things are even greener on the outside. One side of the building was planted with drought-resistant native prairie grasses. A computerized weather system decides how much and when to irrigate the rest of the landscaping.

Most of the signage is lit by high-efficiency LEDs. Lights illuminating the lots have shields on them to reduce light pollution, are mounted closer to the ground so less light is required, and are controlled by light sensors so that they won’t go on unless they’re needed.

Just in case that’s not green enough, all the building’s electricity—purchased through Xcel—comes from wind turbines.

Recipe for Fun

By LouAnn Berglund Haaf

Children love making the meals they eat, and the toys they play with. Give a child the opportunity to take part in the process, and the end-result suddenly seems much more appealing. I’ve noticed with my own kids, that when they are involved in making anything, whether it be food, toys or crafts, they appreciate the finished product so much more. Pride is a pretty powerful feeling, and it’s not reserved for adults. But don‘t take my word for it. Pick one of these fun recipes, create it with your kids and see what happens.

Home Made Play Dough
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup flour
1 cup water
1⁄2 cup table salt (such as Mortons)
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
food coloring (use as much or as little as you want, depending on how intense you want the color)

Place all the ingredients in a saucepan or pot and stir with a wooden spoon over low heat until smooth, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the pot and place on a counter top or a piece of waxed or parchment paper. Knead until dough is smooth and elastic. You’re ready to play! (Make sure to keep it in a Ziploc bag or Tupperware to retain its moisture when you’re not using it).

Flubber

Watch out for clothing and carpets with this amorphous material. It is sticky and inedible!
A half-batch is usually plenty! Full recipe follows.
2 1⁄3 c warm water
food coloring (we usually leave this out since it stains hands and flooring)
2 cups school glue
3 tablespoons borax

1. In one container mix 2 cups warm water, food coloring and glue. Stir until glue has dissolved.
2. In a separate container, combine 1⁄3 cups warm water and borax. Stir until borax has dissolved.
3. Add borax solution to glue mixture and mix with hands (sans jewelry) for about 5 minutes (or more).
4. Pour out extra water and voila!
5. Play with flubber immediately or store in airtight container.
Photo and recipe courtesy of www.paperandcloth.com

Stickers
1⁄2 c. Elmer’s glue
1⁄4 c. vinegar

Stir together. Brush on the back of wrapping paper or other paper with small pictures. Let dry. Moisten with sponge or brush activate the stickiness. Great pre-cursor to making valentines or Christmas card. Mom can prepare the stickers the night before and it removes the glue from the equation the day of assembly

NOTE: Not for human consumption—no licking!

Finger Paint
This is a washable finger paint — as washable as it can get. Don’t assume it won’t stain clothing and if you do get it on anything, treat and wash immediately. Find an old shirt to use as an art smock, and you won’t have to sweat the paint getting all over them. After all, making a mess is part of the creative process.

2 tablespoons sugar
1⁄3 cup of cornstarch
2 cups water
1⁄4 cup dishwashing soap
food coloring

Put the sugar and cornstarch in a saucepan and then slowly mix in cold water. Then cook the mixture over low heat for 5 minutes, stirring constantly until you have a smooth gel. Let cool and then add dishwashing soap. Divide into as many containers as you would like colors and then mix in food coloring drops until you have the desired color.

Funny Putty
1 tablespoon liquid starch
2 tablespoons white glue
3 drops food coloring (optional)
Plastic egg or screw top jar
Bowl

Put starch in bowl.
Add glue and let set 5 minutes.
If desired, add food coloring.
Mix until starch is absorbed and color is spread smoothly. Hint: the more you mix the better it gets

Here’s some great finger paint versions for the little ones. No worries if their fingers end up in their mouth. The Jell-O version is fun in the tub, too!

Pudding Paint
instant vanilla pudding
food coloring

Mix pudding according to directions.
Add food coloring for desired color.
Finger paint on paper plates.
Completely edible!

Kool-Aid Finger Paint
2 cups flour
2 packs unsweetened Kool-Aid
1⁄2 cup salt
3 cups boiling water
3 tablespoons oil

Mix wet into dry.

Jell-O Finger Paint
Any kind of flavored Jell-O
Boiling water

Mix Jell-O into boiling water until it is a good consistency for finger paint. Use normal finger painting material or glossy paper. Kids love the smell and feel of it.

Massage

Everyone knows the pleasure that a great massage provides, but are there other benefits of this age old art? Here’s a glance at the extraordinary health benefits that come with it. Ryan Flicek gives us

A fresh look at an ancient art.

It’s not often that you find something that feels good and is beneficial to your health.  Those who regularly enjoy massage can attest to the benefits, both to personal health and to the pleasure-center. Most people know, from personal experience, how pleasurable massage can be.  On the other hand, the extraordinary health benefits of massage are not widely realized.

Massage is an ancient art, its earliest documentation dating back to 2000 B.C.  The art of massage has greatly evolved over time.  Today, massage has crossed over into many types of herbal and eastern medicine, making it nearly impossible to determine the number of massage types.  Massage therapy is the most common form found in local spas and wellness centers.  Even among massage therapists, there are over 50 different recognized types.

Despite the wide array of massage, most share the same common health benefits:

Circulation - The mechanics of the act of massage aid in improving circulation.  During massage, blood vessels dilate, allowing blood to flow more freely.  In areas of damaged tissue and decreased blood flow, the deep stroking involved in massage also encourages blood to flow back towards the heart.  This attribute can be especially beneficial to those recovering from injury.

Lymphatic Flow - In addition to decreased blood flow, injury or immobilization decreases the flow of fluid within the lymphatic system.  Massage improves lymphatic flow and helps to avoid the swelling usually associated with immobility or prolonged inactivity.

Adhesions - When your muscles are tense for a prolonged amount of time, on a microscopic level they actually tear open and bleed.  Once the muscles heal, scar tissue forms.  When you are undergoing a massage, you may hear a “crunchiness” in some of your muscles.  This crunchiness is scar tissue or adhesions which the massage will work out.

Stretching of Muscles - Muscles can be stretched and lengthened through direct exercise stretching.  However, when muscles remain unstretched for long periods of time they may shorten, making direct exercise stretching difficult and painful.  Massage can aid in stretching these muscles and increasing range of motion.

Muscle Tone - Massage helps improve muscle tone by thoroughly working all muscle groups.  Those who are immobile as the result of injury, illness, or age can help delay or prevent muscular atrophy by regularly receiving massage.

Infant Massage

It is well documented that infants are happier and less fussy when spoiled with skin-to-skin contact.  Aside from the obvious survival requirements, your baby needs and desires close physical contact.  Although massage therapy for adults is often associated with a need for physical healing, massage for infants has more of an emotional purpose.

Infant massage is fairly simple and many self-help books are available for new parents.  Massage helps parents bond with their baby.  “If you can massage your baby while looking into their eyes, that provides a very powerful bonding effect,” says Charlette Cornillie.

The first language your baby will ever know is the language of touch.  Skin stimulation is essential for the proper psychological development of babies.  The regular physical contact provided by massage allows a baby to be calmer, relaxed, and generally content.

Choosing a Massage Therapist

Knowing where to go for a quality massage can be somewhat confusing.  Each of the 50 states has its own rules and regulations with regard to massage therapists.  That, combined with the fact that so many different facets of massage exist, highlight the importance of carefully finding the right professional for your treatments.

“When it comes to massage therapy it’s definitely buyer-beware,” states Charlette Cornillie, a certified massage therapist at Cram Chiropractic and Wellness Center in Northfield, Minnesota.

If you find a massage therapist you think you might try, Charlette suggests finding the answers to three questions:

What are their qualifications?
Ask to see a certificate, license, or proof that they graduated from a certified massage school.  Many states do not require a certificate or license so there is virtually nothing preventing an untrained person from opening a massage business.

Do they possess liability insurance?
Although massage therapy is a very low-risk practice, possessing liability insurance displays a high level of professionalism on the part of the therapist.

Do they have references?
Ask for references of clients or colleagues.  This is often a better predictor of whether you will be satisfied than is a certificate or license on the wall.

If you try a massage therapist and have a negative experience, don’t give up on massage.  “It’s peculiar,” says Charlette. “If someone has a negative experience with a doctor or a dentist, they simply find a new doctor.  If someone has a negative first experience with massage, they likely avoid massage.  Touch evokes powerful memories.”

Truffles

Mmmm, a great recipe to make your own delicious chocolate truffles at home. They’re organic too! Quinn Olson shows us why truffles are

Decadent, elegant and oh so easy to make.

What is a day without chocolate? Just an ordinary day. And when it comes to chocolate, nothing tastes more indulgent or satisfying than a truffle. Chocolate truffles in their most natural form are meant to imitate the look of the prized mushroom by the same name—a little rough around the edges and just rooted out from under a tree—but with the lusciousness only good chocolate can deliver.

One of the great secrets about chocolate truffles is that they’re incredibly easy to make, but taste like you’ve spent years mastering the technique. Fortunately, great quality chocolate is now widely available and for the last few years, a growing number of organic varieties are also appearing in supermarkets and specialty stores.

For this recipe, where chocolate is the featured player, use the best quality bar chocolate you can find. Don’t use “baking chocolate” or chocolate chips.

Basic Chocolate Truffles

1 cup organic heavy cream
8 oz organic dark chocolate, chopped
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch of sea salt
½ cup organic cocoa powder or powdered sugar for rolling

In a medium saucepan, heat the cream until it starts to bubble, but not boiling. Remove from the heat, then add the chopped chocolate and salt. Whisk until smooth. Pour mixture into a shallow bowl and refrigerate until firm (about an hour).

Spread cocoa powder or powdered sugar onto a plate for easy rolling

Using a melon baller or small spoon, scoop the firm chocolate into bite-sized balls (approx. 1 inch). Shape with your fingers, but don’t worry if they’re not perfectly round. Roll in cocoa powder to coat completely. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week.

TIP: If the chocolate starts to get too soft, return it to the refrigerator for a few minutes so it’s easier to work with.

Variations
The possibilities are endless when it comes to truffle varieties. Here are a few favorites.

Raspberry Truffles:
Replace 1/4 cup of the cream with an equal amount of seedless raspberry puree.

Fleur de Sel Truffles:
Sprinkle a pinch of fleur de sel or other high-quality sea salt over cocoa powder before rolling truffles for an unexpectedly delicious flavor combination.

Almond Truffles:
Replace the vanilla with almond extract. Roll in ground or crushed, toasted almonds.

Mocha Truffles:
Dissolve 1 tablespoon espresso powder (not ground coffee) in the hot cream before adding the chocolate.

Sources

Organic Chocolate:
Endangered Species Chocolate Company • www.chocolatebar.com
Equal Exchange • shop.equalexchange.com
Green & Black’s • www.greenandblacks.com
Newman’s Own Organics • www.newmansownorganics.com
Rapunzel Pure Organics, Inc. • www.rapunzel.com
Trader Joe’s • www.traderjoes.com
Whole Foods Market • www.wholefoods.com

Organic Cream:
Support a local Minnesota dairy. Find one near you at the Minnesota Department of Agriculture’s website:
http://www.mda.state.mn.us/food/minnesotagrown/directory.htm

Or look for these brands in your favorite grocery store:
Horizon Organic • www.horizonorganic.com
Organic Valley • www.organicvalley.com

Quinn Olson loves to eat. And if he can tear himself away from the kitchen long enough, he writes about his culinary adventures from northern Minnesota. Email Quinn at quinn@livgreenmag.com.

Hybrrrrrids

Sure, hybrids get great mileage, but how do they handle a harsh Minnesota winter? Scope out this in-depth look at the cold weather performance of hybrid cars. J. Trout Lowen shows us that

Despite a dip in gas mileage, gas-electric hybrids make good winter cars.

If you’ve lived and driven in Minnesota for more than a few years you might recognize this as the sluggish sound of a cold engine. With temperatures that can bottom out at 30 degrees below zero or worse, frequent snowfall and icy roads, Minnesota winters can be tough on cars.

Over time we’ve developed a host of inventive ways to make sure our cars start each morning, from heated garages and the electric block heater to low-tech solutions like engine blankets and climbing out our warm beds to trek to the garage at 3 a.m. to start the car.

There is one group of car owners, however, who can remain snugly tucked in, secure in the knowledge that their cars will start: hybrid vehicle owners.

As combination gas/electric vehicles like the Toyota Prius, the Honda Civic, and the Ford Escape become more popular, owners are finding out that they’re more than good for the environment, they are good winter cars.

Cold cranking

There are a couple of reasons it’s hard to start a traditional gas-powered engine in the cold. As the temperature drops, oil turns sluggish, making it harder to turn the engine over. Cold is also tough on car batteries. A traditional 12-volt lead-acid battery loses half its starting power at 5 degrees Fahrenheit.

“The Prius is the only vehicle in the world that specifically addresses cold weather conditions. Through the use of a heat recovery system that functions similarly to a thermos bottle, the engine can be kept at approximately 170 degrees for up to three days,” says Alan Krutsch of Walser Automotive Group.

Hybrid cars are less vulnerable to the cold. Their electric motors don’t use oil, and the nickel-metal hydride batteries they run on aren’t nearly as sensitive to the cold as lead-acid as they are much larger than a traditional car battery.

Hey, what happened to my mileage?

Hybrids aren’t completely immune to winter’s woes, however. That terrific gas mileage that hybrid owners like to tout does drop off as the weather turns colder, and that can come as a surprise to some new owners.  “Drivers of all vehicles including Prius will notice about a 4% decrease during winter months owing to the ethanol ratio in gasoline,” says Krutsch.

Paul Clabo, an attorney who commutes 25 miles each way from his south Minneapolis home to his office in Anoka, watched the gas mileage on his 2008 Prius fall from 52 mpg during the summer to just below 30 mpg this winter.

“I’ve just watched it consistently drop as we’ve gotten colder and colder,” Clabo says. “It’s still very good, but it’s not as good as it was in the summer months.”

Kathy Ayaz of Eden Prairie has also seen a similar drop in gas mileage with her 2005 Prius, from around 50 mpg in the summer to 40 mpg in the winter. The decrease in mileage isn’t specific to hybrids, however; the same cold weather issues affect all types of vehicles.

Nobody likes climbing into an icy cold car, so we tend to let our car run a bit more in the winter to warm up the cabin, or while we scrape off the windshield. Those extra minutes idling add up to reduced gas mileage overall.

Cold engines run at higher rpms and the colder it is, the longer it takes for the engine to warm up. Cold tires are stiffer, and roads covered with ice and snow offer more resistance. The ice and snow on your car can add to the drag on gas mileage. Running the heater, defroster and headlights also factor in.

“And finally,” says Matt Stenstrom, a sales representative at Buerkle Honda in White Bear Lake, “winter road conditions just require more breaking and slower starting on slippery ground after you stop. While all these things are true for traditional gas-powered cars, too, the drop in gas mileage for a traditional car, which is lower to begin with, might not be as obvious.”

Despite any decrease in mileage, both Ayaz and Clabo are happy with their hybrid’s winter performance. “I’ll only buy hybrids from now on,” Ayaz says. “My husband’s going to buy one for his next car, too.”

A Friendly Remodel

Looking to make your home greener? Check out this journey through a Minnesota GreenStar Gold certified residential remodel. LouAnn Berglund Haaf takes us on

A VIP tour of a Lake of the Isles green remodel.

In 1997 when Jay Miller purchased his Lake of the Isles home in the Kenwood neighborhood, he did it knowing full well a whole house remodel was in the cards. Glaring problems: a kitchen that was small and cramped and a single bathroom, up on the second floor. The home wasn’t without its charm, however, with features like a front foyer, hardwood floors, a spacious living room, a fabulous view of the lake and (as they say) location, location, location.

Fast forward to 2007. Jay called on Michael Anschel (principal at Otogawa-Anschel Design-Build) and shared his ideas for transforming the space. Michael recalled their first meeting: “We sat in the dimly lit dining room and tiny kitchen talking about how we could improve the flow of the home.” The two agreed that an addition was a given, but as much of the backyard as possible should be preserved. And they agreed to continue the existing style and visual elements of the home. Jay added one final stipulation: the new place had to be green.

Going Green…

Of course, green can mean many things. To Michael Anschel, it meant everything from energy savings to reducing carbon emissions to the governing  principle of treading lightly. In fact, going green meant considering a wide gamut of concerns, from resources to people. The Miller home presented a unique opportunity to achieve the new MN GreenStar certification—one of the most progressive and rigorous standards in the country. As one of the founders of the new rating system, Anschel was in a position to create a home that embodies its principles. To his delight, Jay Miller loved the idea. Though he knew the lofty standard meant additional testing and inspections, he foresaw  the unique value certification would add to the home.

Remodeling an entire house with an eye toward green requires a lot of decision making early on. Miller and Anschel agreed that the home would receive a two-story addition across the back of the home that was about 12 feet deep. The flow issues were resolved and light fixtures selected. The first tangible green step was to test the old house to see how much air leaked from it. Sure enough, the blower door test revealed that the house was quite leaky—4200cfm, to be exact. By construction’s end the house would be at 900cfm, a fourfold improvement in efficiency. And so the “friendly remodel” began, leading to today’s remarkable dwelling.

The kitchen, though twice the size of the original, still manages to feel cozy. The granite countertops are all reclaimed and seem to change color as as you move around the room. The stone was cut with Otogawa-Anschel Design-Build’s signature hand-drawn organic edge, as was the soapstone backsplash extending upward from the Viking range—truly a beautiful and custom touch. Custom hickory cabinets  look like they could have been original, right down to the inset doors. What makes them green? They were crafted locally in Eden Prarie and shipped without any packaging. The plywoods and glues are free of cancer-causing carcinogens. The finish is a low VOC finish that imbues the wood with a more vibrant, richer, and deeper color than oil-based, heavy-polluting finishes.

A mudroom/transition space was added to the back of the home, complete with built- in bench and storage. One of the challenges faced was in fashioning a transition from the library to the kitchen area. The solution was for the stonework of the mudroom to meet up with hardwood floors in an intricate series of cuts and curves.

The new library is spacious and filled with light during the day, with excellent views of the back yard. The formal living room and dining room are virtually all that is left of the original home.

The addition of a powder room on the first floor and the remodel of a basement bath brings the house into the 21st century and provided an opportunity to have some fun with materials. Dual-flush toilet, low-flow faucet, carcinogen-free vanity, CFL lights, water-based finishes, and a socially responsible mirror show how even a small space can be green.

The home is fully wired for TV and sound, in nearly every room in the home, and in keeping with the green requirement each bedroom is fitted with its own system that also includes a special shut-off switch to eliminate lost energy when not in use. The basement floor was excavated, insulated, and heated with hydronic radiant heat to create a sunken-floor home theater.

The house features a geothermal heating system that runs a combination of radiators and radiant heat in the home. Windows were replaced with triple-pane Pella windows, and Icynene insulation was added throughout. The paints used were all low VOC; even the cabinet finish is water-based low VOC (though you would not know just by looking at it). Salvaged hardwood floors are mixed with newer wood, dual-flush toilets are installed in every location, low-flow shower heads, CFL lights, and reclaimed limestone patio are just a few of the many steps that were taken to make this home green through and through. The backyard was modestly redesigned to include a spacious thermal-cut Kasota limestone patio and walkways. Plantings include native species that are beautiful and require less water than others. The yard was reseeded with a drought-tolerant grass that requires virtually no mowing or irrigation. Any water not captured in the permeable patio and rain barrels is directed to a rain-garden that is both beautiful and functional.

In short, the finished home is a masterpiece that combines visually engaging high-end design with the latest in green building to create a home that is beautiful, spacious,  healthy, and efficient. The addition blends seamlessly with the fully-remodeled home giving new life. A sun-filled kitchen and library, luxurious master suite, wraparound second-floor deck, and dozens of intricate design details all create a sense of refinement and class. The geothermal heat, low-VOC finishes, water-conserving fixtures, and dozens of features make this a vibrant, healthy  house.  Which brings us to the most astounding conclusion: if no one had told you this well-appointed house were green, you  might never know. It is first and foremost a place to be comfortable – its ulterior identity as a poster house for healthy living is its beautiful secret.

Note: The house is pending certification and Michael is optimistic it will achieve the Gold level certification, the highest level offered.