Free Workshop: Build Your Home Energy Toolbox

Learn the latest tools and online resources, to help manage home energy costs and shop for electricity. Save money by learning how your home uses and loses energy. Explore an overview of the benefits and limitations of renewable and nonrenewable fueled systems, including mini-split heat pumps and on-demand hot water systems. What is the latest and greatest heating technology? What do you buy if your hot water tank fails?

Wayne Pike Workforce Alliance, PPL and SEEDS (Sustainable Energy Education and Development Support) will present this workshop to help you build the tools needed to make wiser choices about your home’s energy use. Attendees will receive an overview of subzero air source heat pumps, air source hot water heaters and on demand hot water systems. This workshop is geared for residential electric and heating fuel customers. Learn what to shop for and what rebates are available. Computers will be available for demonstration of some of the online tools and resources available. Or bring your own a personal smart phone/tablet. Free WIFI is available. If you are a PPL customer, bring a current bill.

Presenters include PPL Electric Utilities’s Regional Affairs Director Alana Roberts, and Michael Touey, Key Accounts Manager, also Larry Reeger, Green Building Associate Professor at SUNY Sullivan.

REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED as space is limited.

Click HERE to register or call: (570) 245 – 1245

Or visit www.seedsgroup.net for more info

All registrants will be provided with information about any changes that weather may impose.

This event is free and open to the general public. Light refreshments will be served. Donations are appreciated.

Other Training

Residential Energy Audits
Commercial Energy Audits

SEEDS (Sustainable Energy Education and Development Support) is a non-profit organization that promotes energy efficiency, renewable energy and sustainable living. Click HERE to join the SEEDS newsletter.

Conservation Tips

Article Submitted to Connections Magazine for February 2018 American Heart Health Month

Show Your Partner You Care – “Know Your H20”

By: Brian Oram, Professional Geologist

This article was prepared based on the topic of “Romance”.   On the topic of romance, I am not an expert.  I have been married only twice and currently love only one women my current wife.  Robin is great!   Many see this as a time to show the one you love you care by going that extra mile, saying I love you, being more considerate, and trying to at least let that other person know you care and you love them.   Therefore, it is good to have big strong heart and for that reason it is “American Heart Month”.

Heart disease is a leading cause of death for both men and women in the United States and in the month of January my good friend had a massive heart attack.  He is currently doing well.   Since I am not a physician I can only tell you what my doctor tells me   “Make heart-healthy choices” and “Know the risk factors”, and stay hydrated.

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Since I am in expert in geology and water quality, I would like to add “Know YOUR H20”.  It is critical to know what you are putting into your body and what you are using to hydrate your system.    Humans are big bags of water.    Since hydration impacts the circulatory system, improper hydration may cause the heart to pump quicker.  There are a number of contaminates in drinking water that can impact your heart and overall health.  These contaminants include: atrazine, arsenic, antimony, barium, cadmium, lead, microorganisms, and selenium.   In general, 50% of private wells in Pennsylvania have elevated levels of bacteria and 8% contain elevated levels of arsenic, and about 40% may contain elevated levels of lead/copper and other trace metals.  Even “city water” may contain elevated levels of trace metals and chlorine by-products that can impact your health.  To show your partner you care, get your water tested and make sure you “KnowYour H20” and the Neighboorhood Hazard Reports.

PS: Buy native flowers and say I love you !

Keystone Clean Water Team
http://www.pacleanwater.org

Brian Oram is a licensed professional geologist and a soil scientist.  He is the owner of B.F. Environmental Consultants, Inc. and the manager for the Keystone Clean Water Team a 501 c3.

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Water Treatment – “The Salt Free Water Softener”

The Keystone Clean Water Team is a 501c3 and the main goal of the organization is to educate and inform the public on issues related to watershed management, water quality, groundwater, conservation, and the links between the environment, economy, and living within a community.    As a group, we provide educational outreach via are webportals, workshops, and other training programs.  During the past year, one of the most common questions we get ask is:  “What do you think of the “Salt Free Water Softener”,  my normal answer is “It depends”.

For some “salt free water treatment” systems by most common answer is quackery.  I will not mention these systems, but I will refer you to a great website so we do not have to worry about liability  (H20.com).   Of the softener and “salt-free” systems we have been able to seen the field the ones that appear interesting would include the following:

Water Softener (Conventional and With A Twist)

In general water softeners reduce the level of total hardness in the water and when this hardness is removed it is replaced with ions of sodium or potassium. The total hardness can include elements like calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese, and other divalent/or mulivalent cations, i.e., ions that have a positive charge of more than one.  These ions are replaced by ions with a positive charge of one.   The system requires an internal resign that acts as the treatment area and a brine tank that is used to backwash and recharge the resin.   These have a long-history of use, but can increase the level of sodium and potassium in the water.  These systems can be vulnerable to bacterial regrowth, chlorine interaction, and in some cases “Iron Out” needs to be added to the brine tank.   A water softener can add in dealing with issues related to more significant scale formation and problems with iron and manganese.  If you are considering this treatment system, we recommend that you conduct a comprehensive water quality test and seek the advice of a local expert.  If you are a DIY, get your water tested and  please visit this portal (Whole House Water Softener / Alternative No-salt Softener (just reduces hardness- Using a Crystal Eagle Anti-scale media ) ).   For the record, we have seen problems when a water softener is added to an older home and system. In these cases, we have seen that water softener was typically removing too much of the water hardness.  When this softened water was introduced to the system, the system experience elevated levels of lead, copper, and other trace metals and because the line was not properly shock disinfected intermittent water quality problems with “dirty and discolored water” (PS: this is Flint Michigan in a nutshell).

Crystal Quest Systems

US Water Systems

Aquios Systems (Aquios FS-220)  (Salt Free)

The Aquios technology uses a polyphosphate/silicate additive in the media to bind or sequester the hardness as a mineral form.  The media is known as Siliphos Data Sheet. Rather than feeding a polyphosphate chemical into the water like is done for corrosion control and sequestering for some municipal water sources, this is accomplished using a point of entry or use treatment system.  The filter has a fixed capacity for hardness reduction, so it is critical to get a detailed water quality test so the system can be properly sized.  In addition, the system normally included prefiltration to reduce or remove sediment and chlorine.

Nuvo H20 (Salt Free)

This systems uses a chelatin approach to reducing the total hardness of the water. Therefore, the hardness is bound and sequestered within the media, which is very similar to the Aquios approach, but they use CitraCharge.  CitraCharge appears to be an additive that includes citric acid, which is a weak organic acid.  From the companies website, “The chelant in CitraCharge creates a ring structure to bind the ions to the CitraCharge instead of to other ions, which is what typically causes scale and hard-water deposits.”

Other Products

Lemi Shine Natural Dishwasher Cleaner – Citric Acid Cleaner  (Dishwasher, etc)

Citic Acid based cleaner-Food Grade Citric Acid Powder Natural Cleaner & Descaler

Please make sure to get your water quality tested.  For this problem we would recommend, the following for  Well Water or City Water.

Senator Yudichak and Senator Baker to Host Roundtable on Lead Exposure and Lead Testing

Senator Yudichak and Senator Baker to Host Roundtable on Lead Exposure and Lead Testing

Senator John Yudichak and Senator Lisa Baker will host a roundtable on lead exposure and lead testing. The event will be held on Tuesday, February 13, 2018 at 11 a.m. at King’s College.

The roundtable will feature comments and discussion on lead exposure and testing from individuals with experience in regional youth and health services.

Participants will include members of the Senate Lead Task Force, Luzerne County Head Start, Maternal and Family Health Services, Early Intervention Services for Luzerne and Wyoming Counties, and St. Luke’s Hospital – Miners Campus.

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Because classes are in session, visitors are asked to use metered on-street parking or the public parking garage at 30 North Main Street.  We look forward to seeing you there!  Flier about Program.

PA Biomass Energy Association Expands to Mid-Atlantic

Today, the Pennsylvania Biomass Energy Association (PBEA) announced that it has expanded its focus beyond the keystone state to the region and will now be known as the Mid-Atlantic Bioenergy Council (MABEC). The material focus of the organization remains the same: representing the use of biomass to produce clean heat, power, biogas and soil amendments, but now the organization is geographically expanded from Pennsylvania to the Mid-Atlantic region. The council remains dedicated to supporting the use of biomass in the residential, small business, commercial, institutional, agricultural, and industrial sectors.

MABEC Board Chair, John Costlow, President of the Sustainable Energy Fund remarked: “More than anything, this move is a reflection of our members’ business interests which have never been confined to one state.  This expanded focus will allow MABEC to better support the biomass energy industry, in all its forms, and create new opportunities for its businesses and our organization.”

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MABEC can be found online at www.mabec.org and Twitter @MABEC_.

About the Mid-Atlantic Bioenergy Council

The Mid-Atlantic Bioenergy Council (MABEC) is the non-profit trade association representing the use of biomass to produce clean heat, power, fuels and soil amendments throughout the Mid-Atlantic region. We educate and advocate for the use of biomass for all kinds of energy in the residential, small business, commercial, institutional, agricultural, and industrial sectors.  Find us on the web at www.mabec.org, Twitter @MABEC_ and on Flickr.

You can view a PDF of this press release here.

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