What's new at Eco Geek Living?

Fall/Winter is always a busy time for us at Eco Geek Living. We just returned from the Green Festivals in Washington, D.C and San Francisco! Thanks to all of you who stopped by our booth -- it was nice to make new friends hear your feedback.

You'll notice that our blog has a new look, we're working on a new template to complement the look and feel of our website. Feel free to send suggestions our way.

Look out for our holiday shopping and living guides in the next few days. We have some holiday shopping deals you won't want to miss! Our 2008 Holiday Catalog is now available for you to download here:

As always, we appreciate (and look forward to) your feedback!

Portable power solution: The Powertraveller Power Gorilla (PowerGorilla) Laptop Charger

We all know what it's like to be on the road and have the dreaded no battery power signal. Whether you're a regular commuter or a road warrior, being connected and always reachable is probably a necessary (though possibly inconvenient) reality for you.

Unfortunately, as laptop computers and similar gadgets (think iPhone, Blackberry) have become more portable over the years, the efficiency of battery packs has not followed in the same trend. Most laptops are still not very energy efficient, with high energy usage and short battery life still a very prevalent issue.

Enter the Powertraveller Power Gorilla Laptop Charger, the ultimate portable battery source.

Packing an impressive 21,000 mAh of power, the Power Gorilla is robust enough to power your laptop and many other electronic devices, while being portable enough to carry in your regular laptop bag. This translates to up to 6 hours of additional laptop battery power (depending on your laptop brand/voltage requirements) wherever you are not close to a power outlet. The Power Gorilla Portable Laptop Charger includes a kit of 25 connector tips which are compatible with everything from your laptop, iPhone, iPod, portable gaming systems, and cell phones!

PowerGorilla Features:

• Easy, one button voltage selector - switch from 16 volt, 19 volt, and 24 volt based on what you're charging/powering
• 2 - 6 hours of laptop power, depending on your laptop's specifications
• Over 20 hours of extra power on other electronics like: iPod, cell phone, Blackberrys, etc.
• Universal AC adaptor - can be used in more than 150 countries in the world
• 3 charging options - AC adaptor, USB port, pair with Solar Gorilla Solar Laptop Charger

The Power Gorilla also has a number of safety features which will protect your electronic device during charging, namely: an automatic shut-off feature to prevent overheating, over-charging protection, voltage and current limitation protection, and so many more!

Not the least of its achievements, the Power Gorilla Portable Laptop is also compatible with Apple Macbooks, with the purchase of Apple's Magsafe Airline adapter.

You can purchase the Power Gorilla from Ecogeekliving.com.

10 Easy Tips for an Eco-Friendly Lifestyle!

Ever heard the saying “small changes make a big difference”? Well, we have – in fact, we believe there is a lot of truth to that maxim! Consider this: turning off the water faucet while you brush your teeth or shave can save up to 3 gallons of water each day! That’s 90 gallons of water you save a month, just imagine the cost savings to your household energy bill (not to mention the impact this could have on the rapidly declining freshwater sources like The Great Lakes!).

We’ve compiled a list of 10 basic tips which we believe serve as a great starting point for anyone concerned about reducing waste and leading a more earth-friendly lifestyle. It’s worth emphasizing that these tips, although very helpful, are quite basic. There is much more to be done if we are to reduce our harmful effects on this earth.

1. Close the curtains in your home in the summer when it’s sunny and when it’s cold in the winter. This creates additional insulation and could reduce your energy consumption by up to 25 percent.
2. Stop delivery of phone books to your home and use online directories instead. If you must receive paper telephone directories, be sure to recycle them when you no longer need them.
3. Reuse paper or plastic shopping bags as trash can liners. You’ll not only save money on those expensive trash-liners, you’ll save some energy and a few trees along the way!
4. Use a clothesline to dry your laundry whenever it’s possible. You won’t be paying for the sunlight you’ll use, which is always a bonus!
5. Take a shorter shower. Spending even two minutes less in the shower could save more than 10 gallons of water.
6. Even better, install low-flow water-saving shower heads. This could save as much as 800 gallons of water per month!
7. Use solar chargers instead of the traditional electric chargers to power your electronic devices. Solar chargers on the market today can be bought for under $100 and can usually be used interchangeably with different cell phone brands as well as to power mp3 players. Solar energy is not only less harmful to the environment than electricity, it’s also free!
8. Recycle your old electronics. Electronics are widely known to harbor toxic materials like lead and mercury. Dumping old computers, televisions, and/or cell phones can lead to serious health and environmental risks since the toxic materials in these electronics tend to leach into the ground and neighboring water sources.
9. Reduce your in-home energy consumption by using less electricity. You can use less electricity by investing in compact fluorescent light bulbs or LED lights. These are much more energy efficient than the traditional incandescent bulbs and are proven to reduce carbon emissions!
10. Do you use an automatic sprinkler system to water your lawn? You might want to consider installing a rain sensor which will override your sprinkler cycle during and after rain, preventing your yard from being watered unnecessarily.

Welcome to our blog!

Thank you for stopping by the EcoGeekLiving.com Community page! We intend to expand this portion of our website to include a community board, message forum, interactive games and many more activities which we hope will engender a sense of kinship among the small (but ever-growing) "eco geeks" on the web.

Our blog will be updately quite regularly with all kinds of interesting information. Please feel free to stop by and share your thoughts on our posts via our comments section.

Again, thanks for stopping by and please, don't be a stranger!

If you have any questions about EcoGeekLiving.com or any of the posts on this blog, please feel free to send us an email at: info@ecogeekliving.com.