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Living with Ed follows Ed Begley, Jr., and his wife, Rachelle, as they green their home, family, and celebrity friends. But if you've ever wondered what kind of advice they'd give the rest of us, then the Ask Ed forum is your chance to find out. Readers submit questions and comments about the show, green living, etc., and Ed chimes in with his green answers; here, we've rounded up some highlights of the past week.
Q. In the process of trying to recycle all the plastic we can, we have run into a problem. A lot of products come in plastic bags without a triangle on them. How do I go about recycling them?
A. Most plastic bags are #4 LDPE low density polyethelyne. Some are also #3 PVC.
You'll want to make sure you take them to a plastics recycler that has no problem with 3 or 4.
Ed
Q. I am building a home [and] was told I couldn't have the soy insulation put in by my builder—is that an easy product to install after the home is built? Also, what parts of the house would be better to use the soy insulation?
A. I'm not a huge fan of the soy foam—although the soy replaces the petroleum, the other components are somewhat VOC laden—the guys who install it wear space suits—not for me. In new construction, I like Ultra Touch recycled cotton insulation—it works very well and is very healthy and a recycled product. In existing walls, I like blowing in cellulose—again natural and recycled. I have cotton in the attic and cellulose in the walls of my home. The new garage remodel has cotton throughout. Couldn't be better!
Ed
Q. Would you consider a HEPA filter green? If your goal is to remove very small things from the air like cat dander, you're going to most likely be using a HEPA filter. If your goal is to remove chemicals, you're going to need a chemical filter. If your goal is to kill germs, you're going to need to run UV and maybe more fancy items to kill off things that might make you sick. So with all that said are there any "green" options out there for someone trying to clean the air?
A. I have a very good quality HEPA filter system on my heating and cooling which I change quarterly. I also use a couple of electronic devices from www.advancedpureliving.com. Beyond that, the biggest difference for us has been the other stuff—using all biodegradable and non-toxic soaps, detergents and cleaners in the house, removing all wall to wall carpet and having wood or marmoleum floors—and washing the area rugs regularly, taking off shoes when entering the house and keeping them in boxes (shoes track lots of germs), organic bed mattresses. These have been the big difference makers.
Ed
Ask Ed: Leave Your Question for Ed Here
More about Ed Begley, Jr.
Living with Ed: Inside the Show
The TreeHugger Interview: Ed Begley, Jr.
Ed Begley, Jr., on Going Off the Grid, Greening Traffic, and More
