Stay safe and stay green with eco-friendly cycle lights
Cycling is one of the most eco-friendly modes of transport, but now that the evenings and mornings are darker, it’s important to keep safe when you are cycling. Luckily, there is now a range of eco-friendly products available to help you cycle safely without damaging your eco-credentials! Pedalite battery free 360 degree pedal lights are a brilliant solution to the problem of visibility. Designed to keep cyclists visible to motorists from any angle, these lights are powered by your kinetic energy, so as soon as you start pedalling, the pedals harvest and store energy. This means that, if the bike is stopped at a junction or you are freewheeling, the lights continue to flash. Because they use no batteries or rechargers, they are environmentally friendly and cheaper to run. Pedalite also produce a solar powered bag light: this light slips easily over rucksacks and gives over three hours light when fully charged, so is ideal for cyclists (or horse riders) who want to be sure they are seen on the road. Another eco-friendly, battery-free solution is the Power Plus wind-up head light, which comes with a universal clip to attach it to any bike. Visibility isn’t the only issue in these winter months: no one wants to break down on a wet and windy road, so make sure you keep your bike well-maintained. You can buy eco-friendly bike maintenance kits from Green Oil UK, which will help keep you on the road all through the winter.
Shine a light with eco-friendly desk lamps
Stylish but eco-friendly and energy efficient design is hard to come by, but this eco desk light from Luminair manages to beautifully combine high end style with the latest in eco-friendly thinking. The shade and frame of the light are made from black walnut wood, from sustainably managed forests with stringent environmental policies in place. This means that for each tree harvested, more are planted, making this one of the most sustainable materials around. These forests are also in the UK, which cuts down on air miles, often a concern when buying wood-based products, as some imported wood can have environmentally questionable provenance. The light itself incorporates an energy efficient LED light drive, meaning that using the light saves you money and energy – reducing your bills and your carbon footprint! As befits a light made to the highest design specifications, it offers all the features you would expect, including touch sensitive switch and dimmer, and precision machined and turned silver aluminium fittings. The light is also available in a Superflux version, which is similar but offers an ultra-bright 3W ‘super-flux’ LED light head. This Superflux light, too, is energy efficient and eco-friendly, made to the same exacting sustainable and environmentally friendly standards and out of the same beautiful black walnut wood. Either one of these super stylish lights would look great on any desk, making them ideal, eco-friendly gifts.
Stylish solar-powered Sun Jars provide eco-friendly lighting for home and garden
Solar powered lighting is many things, but it is rarely beautiful. However, eco-friendly designers Suck UK Design have come up with an innovative lighting solution that manages to be both green and stylish. Their Sun Jar lights combine solar technology with classical design to provide energy efficient lighting. Made with a traditional Mason jar, the lights contain a solar cell, rechargeable battery and low energy LED lamps. Simply leave in direct sunlight to charge up the Sun Jar, and it automatically activates when it gets dark or when the lights are switched out. (There is an override switch located inside the lid so you can turn it off and conserve the power). Because the Sun Jar uses warm coloured LED lights and the glass is frosted, it gives a warm glow – looking like sunlight diffused through the jar. With no visible external switches, it will intrigue and impress visitors! The Sun Jars are also watertight, so make ideal garden illuminations as they can be left outside whatever the weather. As they give a warm rather than harsh glow, they are also ideal energy efficient and safe nightlights for children. Suck UK Design produce the Sun Jars in a range of colours including pink and blue (the Moon Jar) so you can combine them to beautiful effect. For anyone who likes a more high-tech looking lighting solution, though, Suck UK Design also produces Glow Bricks, which use the same technology placed in an actual lightbulb, encased in an acrylic brick. Available in green and blue, these sharp designs give a contemporary look to your lighting, as well as saving you energy and money.
Standby solutions save you energy
Leaving devices on standby – instead of switching them off – wastes energy and costs you money, but it’s a habit that many of us have fallen into. The Bye Bye Standby Energy Saving Kit is aimed at reducing your energy bills and your carbon footprint by simply cutting the power to devices that are plugged into it when they are not in use. The device is easy to use – simply plug a Bye Bye Standby Smart Socket into a mains wall switch and plug your electrical appliance such as a DVD, TV, stereo or TV into it. You then just make sure your remote control (included in the pack) is set to the same ‘house code’ as the Smart Socket and you can switch off your devices from up to 30m away. Working on the same principle, the Intellipanel for desktop computers allows you to plug your PC into the master socket and all peripherals into the other socket, so that when you power down your computer, power to the peripherals is cut at the same time. There is also an Intellipanel for laptops available. Another smart eco-solution – designed for both PCs and laptops – is the Ecobutton. Pressing this clever little device puts your computer into energy saving ‘eco mode’, saving you energy – and when you want to start working again, you simply press the Ecobutton and your PC or laptop is reactivated at exactly where you left off! With all of us worrying more about energy bills, as well as our carbon footprint, these standby solutions offer an easy and eco-friendly way to save energy and money.
Eternaled and PIR: eco-friendly floodlights
Unfortunately, gone are the days when doors could be left unlocked at night without the fear of burglary. Sadly, gone too are the days when doors can be left unlocked during the day – even open windows are a risk in this age of social and moral decadence. Nevertheless, despite the oft-reported mobs of ASBO-crazed teenagers and recession-hit scoundrels who bring horror to communities up and down the country, the present day and age is also no time to be leaving the lights on. In fact, one of the few remaining social crimes happens to be relatively new: environmental inefficiency.Indeed, whilst the aforementioned unruly delinquents are served up meaningless anti-social behaviour orders and thieves are handed fines or suspended prison terms, anybody seen doing harm to the planet is likely to face a public hanging, at least metaphorically speaking. Thus, installing old style security floodlights may seem like a great idea to those who do not fancy having their properties ransacked, but to others they may appear to be an incredible waste of energy. Fortunately, the Eternaleds Floodlight Bulbs are on hand to make home security an environmentally friendly pursuit. Available in 9W and 18W varieties, the LED floodlights from Eternaleds offer energy savings of around 80% over their incandescent cousins. Furthermore, the bulbs feature a shatter-proof plastic casing with passive cooling technology, which basically means the bulbs are kept cool enough to be handled. Also of value to the environment, these superb floodlights contain no hazardous or toxic materials, such as mercury, which can cause harm to the local environment on disposal. Indeed, the Eternaleds bulbs provide basic home security in an entirely eco–friendly manner.
Another eco-friendly solution is the solar powered PIR Light Stake. Retailing at under £30, this can be wall mounted or freestanding and is ideal for driveways and gardens. Operated by a motion sensor, it is a perfect green choice for security lighting.
Green Flashlights: Make Hay While the Sun Shines
Well, not so much hay as energy. Indeed, the new generation of eco-friendly flashlight will only work if it has been exposed to sunlight. The Verilux ReadyLight is a superb new flashlight that uses totally free and renewable solar energy to charge up three NiMH rechargeable batteries, which can then be used to power the torch.
This stylish new flashlight comprises a relatively large solar panel on its side, which, when fully charged, will offer around four hours of continuous use. Providing the same brightness as a conventional flashlight, the Verilux ReadyLight also features a sturdy and robust construction that is designed to withstand considerable shocks, impacts and water exposure. Furthermore, the ReadyLight is an aesthetically pleasing hand-held torch that is also easy to use and not overly heavy or cumbersome.
Of course, the real benefit of using a solar powered flashlight is that it can charge itself throughout the day at absolutely no cost to the user. The entire torch including batteries (although these can obviously be replaced very easily) is designed to last at least twenty years, so there ought to be no issues in respect to wear and tear or electronic faults. Moreover, the flashlight is a reliable tool that can be kept close to a source of direct sunlight, such as on a window sill, to provide emergency lighting whenever it is needed. Thus, the next time a thunderstorm knocks out a pylon, users will be content to reach for their Verilux ReadyLight in the knowledge that this eco-friendly tool was charged up at no cost to the user, planet or atmosphere.
