It's surprising how many different ways you can use solar power. People tap solar energy for heating, cooking and electricity, and for all those tasks there are both commercial products and DIY plans. Here's a quick overview of the many ways people choose to go solar.

Photovoltaics (PV). Put photovoltaic panels on your roof, and they can produce electricity for your home. Here's an article about a home-size PV system, a plan to use a smaller PV system for  DIY solar lighting, and information about how to calculate the costs and payback period of your own PV system.

Solar Hot Water. A solar water heating system can provide all the hot water your household needs. Learn about the benefits of purchasing a solar water heater, or how to build your own.

Solar Space Heating.  You can also use the sun for home heating. Learn more about the commercial options for solar heat collectors with this buyers' guide to solar heating, or find out how to build your own. (This simple DIY space heater heats the air directly, while this more complex solar heating plan heats water and warms the building with radiant floor heat.)

Passive Solar Design. Another strategy for heating your home with the sun's energy is to capture heat through the entire building's design, rather than through a single solar heat collector as described above. Here's an article with more about using the principles of passive solar design to take advantage of natural heating and cooling.

Concentrating Solar Power. When you buy electricity from your utility it usually comes from power plants that burn fossil fuels, but in a growing number of locations utility companies are offering clean renewable energy from sources such as hydropower, wind — and yes — solar. One of the most promising technologies for these large solar power plants is concentrating solar power.

Other Uses for Solar Power. There are many other ways people are harnessing the sun, including with solar cookers, solar food dryers, solar water distillers and solar tractors and mowers.

Do you use solar power in your home? Have you found other ways to tap solar energy? Share your thoughts and experiences in the comments section below.

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The old washing machine finally bit the dust after nearly 14 years. Yea! What a great opportunity to invest in a new energy-efficient front-load washing machine! But the new machines work differently. You might be surprised.

There were several factors involved in our decision, but my wife Sue and I are now the proud owners of an LG WM2016CW. We checked the Consumer Reports Buying Guide and epinions. After shopping around a bit to see what was available from retailers in our area, we also read the reviews on the Home Depot and Sears sites. I was relying on the yellow stickers on the machines to determine energy efficiency, but could have checked the Energy Star ratings online first.

After the machine was installed and tested, Sue started the first load. A few shots of water entered the machine and the clothes started tumbling. Hmmm. They still look dry. A few more shots of water; still tumbling. This isn't like the front loaders at the laundry mat. So Sue made a call to be certain the machine was not malfunctioning. She was reassured that it was and allowed the machine to run.

Sure enough, the machine kept adding water a bit at a time until the clothes were thoroughly soaked. But there was never so much water in the machine that it was visible along the door. At the end of the 51-minute cycle, the clothes were spun out — probably drier than our old top-loader. It's really an amazing and efficient process. For the first few loads we sat on the floor in front of the machine, watching it like TV.

This week, I've been using a Kill a Watt at home. It's a small meter that costs about $25, and you can use it to measure the electricity consumption of your appliances and home electronics. (There are other meters that do more or less the same thing, including the Watt Minder and the Watt's Up.)

The way it works is simple. For any electrical appliance that you plug into the meter, it can tell you how many watts that appliance is using. Over time, it also adds up the kilowatt hours used, so you can relate that number directly to what's on your electric bill.

Using the Kill a Watt is easy, and it's easy to get a little carried away with it. I measured the energy use of every appliance and electrical gadget in my house, even when it required moving furniture. (Is your refrigerator running? As I write this mine is, and it's using almost 150 watts!) On the other hand, if you're just interested in a ballpark estimate of how much electricity each device uses, you can check out this list from the Department of Energy which has typical values for radios, coffeemakers, DVD players, washing machines and many other common appliances.

Once you've identified the electronics and appliances in your home that are using the most energy, you can target the areas where saving energy will save you the most money. For example, you might decide to start using energy efficient light bulbs, turn on the power saving settings on your computer, or replace inefficient older appliances with newer energy-efficient models.

Have you tried measuring your electricity use at home? Have you found easy ways to reduce it? You can add your suggestions to the comments field below.

For the next several weeks, I plan to blog about a variety of green and natural building methods. Each will include a short summary of the method, plus links for those who are interested in learning more.

Building with adobe is roughly equivalent to building with brick or cinder blocks, but adobe 'bricks' can be made yourself. Adobe is basically a mixture of clay (the glue holding everything together), sand, straw (or other fibrous material) and water. When you think of a sand castle, sand doesn't seem like a strong building material. But there is more sand than clay in adobe.

Take a look at these articles from Mother Earth News:

 The Owner-Built Adobe House 

 Putting up Adobe Walls 

 Building with Earth 

These are also informative sites:

 www.greenhomebuilding.com/adobe.htm 

 www.adobealliance.org 

 www.adobebuilder.com 

And a very nice video on the process of building a small adobe house:

Want to learn more about the benefits of compact fluorescents (CFLs)? This very short video from Common Craft is a fast and fun explanation of how the new efficient light bulbs can be better.

For more information on CFLs, check out these related Mother Earth Living links:

Light Bulbs with Style: New Types of CFLs

Mercury and Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs Change Your Light Bulbs, Change the World

Wondering if radon is a problem in your home? Should you be concerned about it? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that 21,000 people die each year of radon-related deaths. The EPA has a Web page with information and links regarding testing for radon and fixing problems.

Does your favorite Presidential candidate support the use of nuclear power? What about biofuels? Do you know what he or she is saying about renewable energy?

Grist always has great political coverage, and right now they've got a fantastic collection of information on the 2008 elections. I've been trying to follow their interviews with the candidates on environmental issues, but it's also nice to be able to see all of that information at a glance so you can compare candidates.

That's why I was excited to see that Grist has condensed all of the candidates' positions on energy issues into one simple, easy to read chart. Hurrah! If, on the other hand, you'd like more in-depth information, you can find much more of their election coverage here.

If you're a professional builder or contractor and would like to be certified as a Sustainable Building Advisor, visit BuildingGreen.com and investigate the Sustainable Building Advisor Certificate Program. More information is available on the SunyUlster site.

If you're seeking advice from a builder or contractor, you should consider asking them about their credentials in the area of green building.