By Madison Hopkins
4.9
1313 ratings
The podcast currently has 42 episodes available.
"Science by Ashley" is an amazing TikTok and IG account with 159K followers! And today I got to meet with the woman of the brand, the brains behind the scene, and the beauty in front of the camera, Ashley Diedenhofen!
Ashley loves science, food, and our natural world and is really good at communicating how these three things work together. I first found her accounts organically - because I have similar interests to her content - and have been double clicking her posts ever since. Ashley provides science infused food preservation tips that is both impressive and leave me understanding more of why that food preservation method does work and why it makes sense. She also describes to viewers how natural phenomena happen, introduces us to great eco-friendly brands, and influences us to adopt more sustainable behaviors. Hence why I was so excited to speak with her and get to know this very impactful person.
To follow Ashley's content you can go to TikTok or Instagram using the handle @sciencebyashley. She's also on YouTube as @ashleyydeeds.
Social Links:
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sciencebyashley
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sciencebyashley
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/ashleyydeeds
Science by Ashley is a science communication platform for Ashley's growing Science Communication business. Feel free to reach out to her via email to discuss ways tyou too can enhance your helpful and meaningful science based message. Email: [email protected].
To work with me as your Denver based Eco-Friendly Realtor, email me too, [email protected]. I can also help you locate a Green Realtor in your area if you live elsewhere!
And big thanks to our amazing podcast sponsor, PJ Vilardo, owner of his own Mortgage Brokerage, Millennium Mortgage. MM works in Florida, Colorado, and California! Email him, [email protected] and let him know you heard about him on the Eco-Friendly Homes podcast!
Link: https://www.millenniummortgage.io
I'd also like to give a shoutout to my favorite bedding brand ever, Sheets & Giggles! These sheets are insanely soft because they're made of sustainable eucalyptus fibers. Eucalyptus is a far less thirst fabric to make than either cotton or bamboo and uses a closed loop water system in it's making. The fabric is officially called lyocell and a branded form of that is called Tencel Modal. So check out Sheets & Giggles and take 15% off your order with my discount code, ECOHOMES.
Link: https://sheetsgiggles.com/
In this episode of Eco-Friendly Homes we meet with Matt Sandy, Founder of the digital email newsletter, Seedlings.
https://seedlings.media/
Seedlings is a really cool because they tell stories that inspire us to keep being better to each other and to the earth. It is a sustainability focused, earth centric, positive vibes only kind of e-newsletter that comes to your inbox three times a week.
Matt and his founding team of journalists at Seedlings work hard to fill their news with really engaging stories like "Hila The Killa" Eco-Rapper, going green in filmmaking, and upcycled art made to protect cats from the extreme changes in climate.
https://www.instagram.com/hilathekilla/
https://lwlies.com/articles/green-filmmaking-sustainability-in-cinema/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duaNyMwgHmA
Lastly, Seedlings has a Slack channel that allows people to contribute new ideas or initiatives they've found or are doing! They also have Seedlings "campuses" found across several college campuses in the USA. Email them if you want to bring a Seedlings outlet to your school!
https://seedlings.media/ourcampus
[email protected]
Meet the Founder, Matt Sandy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewsandy/
Looking to get in touch with me? Email me, [email protected]
Looking to get in touch with our sponsors at Millennium Mortgage? Email PJ, [email protected]
Have you ever wanted to buy a house? Do you know where to start? The answer is with your lender! PJ Vilardo, owner of his own Mortgage Brokerage in Colorado, California, and Florida, walks us through the home loan origination process so you know exactly what to expect!
He gives us a great analogy, that buyers often want to eat the ice cream before they have their broccoli. Ice cream being the house shopping process that people do with me, your Realtor, and the broccoli being the loan origination process that buyers need to do with PJ. But, as any healthy child knows, you've got to eat your broccoli before you get to eat the ice cream :-)
Without having your loan in place there's no reason to go house shopping. Because whatever you see that weekend will be sold by Sunday and you cannot submit an offer for that house without your loan pre-approved ready to go. But when your loan amount is known, it really opens up a cool opportunity for home buyers to feel strong in knowing what they can afford!
PJ and I cover very important topics like what documents you need ready to buy a house, the national FHA program where you can give as little as 3.5% down payment, and the difference between self employed buyers and W2 buyers.
He also leaves us with a really great tip, basically a mental mortgage calculator, if you will: Every $5,000 up or down on your loan amount will change your monthly mortgage payments by $20 to $25 dollars! That's really amazing and not that much money.
***
If you want to contact PJ, who is also our podcast sponsor for this month, you can reach him via his email, [email protected], or his website http://www.millenniummortgage.io/
Millennium Mortgage social profiles:
Zillow: https://www.zillow.com/lender-profile/millenniummortgagellc/
IG: https://www.instagram.com/millenniummortgagellc/?hl=en
FB: https://www.facebook.com/millenniummortgagellc
***
To contact me, Madison Hopkins, your Colorado local Green Realtor, email me at [email protected]!
My social profiles:
Zillow: https://www.zillow.com/profile/MadisonHopkins80203
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ecofriendlyhomes
And follow my YouTube to watch the full podcast! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCixRflPmGyiytxoKIqVArFQ
We Don't Waste is a nonprofit based in Denver, Colorado servicing clients by receiving their food waste and servicing the community by then turning that recovered food into a meal for families and shelters.
Julia Lennon is the Programs and Education Manager at We Don't Waste.
https://www.wedontwaste.org/
Food waste does not have to exist with food recovery programs like We Don't Waste!
Contact your host, Madison Hopkins, via email [email protected]
Contact our podcast sponsor, PJ Vilardo, with Millennium Mortgage via email [email protected]
What is composting? What are the benefits of composing? What are the different types of composting? How to compost? And how to compost in an apartment? All of your questions will be answered in this podcast by our amazing guest speaker, Alexa Rosenstein, Director of Operations for Scraps Mile High Composting!
Scraps is a compost collection service that does weekly compost pickups for residential homes and businesses! They deliver you a pail and compostable bags, you fill the bags with your food waste, put the baggies in the pail, then once a week a Scraps compost collector comes to your house, takes the bags, and brings your food waste to an industrial compost site to be turned into compost!
URL to Scraps: https://scrapsmilehigh.com/
Scraps' service is amazing for so many reasons; but my favorite, and the reason I started composting with them, is their ability to service our vast geographic area. As of February 2022, Scraps collects compost from residents and businesses in the Denver Metro cities of Denver, Edgewater, Lakewood, Wheat Ridge, Broomfield, Arvada, and Westminster. I really appreciate their strong efforts to service so many areas!
Use this link to see if your city is in their service area! https://scrapsmilehigh.com/signup#servicemap
If not, not to worry because there are other compost collection services in our city!
In fact, if you live in the City of Denver and are a resident in a house or apartment with 7 units or less, you can compost with the city! Just request the City of Denver bring you a compost bin and they will take your compost to a facility every week, just like your trash and recycling!
URL to City composting https://www.denvergov.org/Government/Agencies-Departments-Offices/Agencies-Departments-Offices-Directory/Recycle-Compost-Trash/Compost
Contact me to be your Green Realtor in Denver, CO!
[email protected]
Contact EFH's sponsor, PJ Vilardo for your home loan originations in both CO and FL! [email protected]
During the episode, Alexa dives into the scientific details of how industrial composting works. Scraps uses A1 Organics as our local industrial compost site. This turns all of our food scraps into a healthy, vibrant, amendment to add to your house plants and personal or community garden.
By taking food waste out of our trash and landfills, we are diverting 40% of waste! Food waste in the landfill doesn't break down for decades and releases toxic methane gas into the atmosphere - which significantly contributes to green house gas emissions. But when we place our food waste into a compost, it create a life providing substance! Two totally different end products from the same origination product.
Here are great resources that Alexa provided during our podcast:
Documentary "Wasted" about food waste science.
URL https://www.imdb.com/title/tt6207096/
Documentary "Kiss the Ground" about Regenerative Agriculture.
URL https://kisstheground.com/support-the-film/
Ridwell, a hard to recycle collection service.
URL https://www.ridwell.com/
Continue your listening with my Eco-Friendly Homes podcast episode, "The Ingredient Insider, Elizabeth Boulos" from Feb. 24, 2021.
URL https://ecofriendlyhomes.buzzsprout.co
Does your eco-friendly closest contain sustainable yoga leggings? Well, if it doesn't, it's about to! I'm here to give your eco-friendly closet an upgrade based on 2 really amazing textiles I have been learning about. Plus, a deep dive into the textile industry with Sheets & Giggles CEO and Founder, Colin McIntosh (more about him from Eco-Friendly Homes episode six).
Contact me, Madison Hopkins, [email protected]
Major Textile #1 is Tencel™ Lyocell, which is a cellulose fiber.
Major Textile #2 is Econyl® regenerated nylon, by Aquafil, made from ocean and waste.
My Sheets & Giggles discount code is ECOHOMES for 15% off!
Top Rated Brands (by me) that provide sustainable yoga leggings:
None of these are affiliate links.
#1 Allbirds Women's Natural Legging because it contains 43% Tencel™ Lyocell, 30% Recycled Nylon, 18% ZQ Merino Wool, 9% Elastane. The wool is anti-itch approved by me as well!
#2 Girlfriend Collective because their entire collection uses recycled polyester, they promote sustainability, and have their own clothing recycling program through their website called ReGirlfriend. Additionally, their sizes range from XXS to 6XL, which is amazing!
#3 TomBoyX entire line of undergarments made of TENCEL™ Modal! They are super soft (I own a few pairs) and they whole company is gender neutral! So their underwear fits a variety of body types!
Shoutout Brands:
None of these are affiliate links.
Well Know Brands:
These are not in my top brand winners because I see them as "keeping up with the times" and not being true textile industry leaders.
None of these are affiliate links.
Michael Rubino, an innovative expert in mold contamination and remediation! While only in his 30s, he is already turning the mold remediation world on its ear with his unique approach of focusing on his customer's health and wellness through their home environment.
Michael values education and in order to educate those who are struggling with mold in their homes, he wrote his own book, Mold Medic. He advises readers on how to choose a mold remediation company, the processes that company should be following, and how to be proactive by performing a routine home maintenance. Michael also explains how to recover from mold-related illnesses, mold exposure, and mold toxicity. His message is perfect for those interested in achieving and maintaining robust health.
Michael and his company All American Restoration have been featured in USA Today, NJ Biz, Reader’s Digest, New Jersey Monthly, and Digital Trends. He was also selected as a speaker for the Spring 2020 Indoor Air Quality Association Meeting and Expo.
He received a Bachelor of Science degree in 2008 and is a council-certified microbial remediator from the American Council for Accredited Certification, and a New York State Department of Labor Remediation Contractor. He has spent the past seven years involved in construction and remediating mold contamination.
Links:
Mold Medic Book, https://www.themoldmedic.com/
All American Restoration Company, https://www.allamericanrestoration.com/about/
His podcast, Mold Talks Podcast, https://www.themoldmedic.com/mold-talks-podcast/
Contact:
Guest speaker Michael Rubino, [email protected]
Your Host Madison Hopkins, [email protected].
I am located in Denver, CO!
The Passive House (Haus) movement is a design standard that challenges builders and architects to create a house that uses as little energy as it can! There is no right or wrong way to go about achieving this standard but in order to achieve a Passive House Certification the build team does have to implement a plan and prove that the performance of the building does meet the passive house energy standard.
The Passive House Standard was invented by Dr. Wolfgang Feist as a means to regenerate Earth's health by reducing the amount of energy a home uses. While solar panels may change the source of energy for a house or building, a Passive House uses less energy. Way less! We're talking 10% of what a "normal" building uses. To avoid using so much energy, the best place to reduce consumption is in the heating and cooling of a building. In fact, 40% or more of our household energy consumption is used for heating and cooling!
Johnny Rezvani, our excellent guest speaker today, is the Communications Director for 475 High Performance Building Supply. 475 supplies various products for these passive buildings to be built. Such as moisture evaporating weather wrap, which in such an air tight house, is very important for reducing moisture levels and avoiding mold buildup.
Johnny says the buildings that do not entirely reach the Passive House Standard are classified as "high performances homes" because they still perform to better energy efficiency than a standard building. Johnny also explains how and why these buildings feel different. The building design is focused on temperature regulating through the extremes of summer and winter. Thus, the whole home stays 72 degrees Fahrenheit all year round. Which means the heating and cooling bill are $0.
If any additional heat in the home is needed in the winter, a simple towel heating rack in the bathroom is enough to heat the whole house! How is this possible? The building is sealed so tightly, the walls are so thick, and the windows are all triple pane that it is difficult for heat to transfer from the inside to the outside of the building. This also creates a sound proof home that blocks noise from the outside. There is also a lot of thought that goes into meeting a Passive House Standard. This includes where the sun will be in the summer vs winter and how can the building be built to intake more sunlight in the winter and less in the summer. Window coverings and angles also play a large factor so that the house can be naturally heated.
How cool is this?!? (no pun intended).
For more information check out these links! 475 has a great YouTube channel so there is one link for that!
Johnny Rezvani on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnnyrezvani/).
Passive House Institute (https://passivehouse.com/).
Passive House United States site (https://www.phius.org/phius-certification-for-buildings-products).
475 High Performance Building Supply (https://foursevenfive.com/).
475's YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/c/475HighPerformanceBuildingSupply).
Passive House Accelerator which has some super in-depth information and virtual meetings every week (https://passivehouseaccelerator.com/)!
The first certified Passive House in Colorado (https://www.5280.com/2020/08/this-colorado-getaway-is-the-states-first-certified-passive-house/).
Architect Andrew Michler'
Welcome to our first ever eco-friendly HOMEOWNER guest speaker, Lisa Geason-Bauer! Lisa and her husband, Mike, own their own home in Nashotah, Wisconsin--just out side of Milwaukee--and they have decided to go all out eco-friendly!
Connect with Lisa on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/lisageasonbauer/).
Their current home has undergone a full green retrofit (new systems) and green remodeling, particularly in the kitchen, living room, and dining room. Their house was built in 1972 and they bought it from the builder.
After the retrofits and updates that Lisa and Mike performed, their Wisconsin ranch-style home (single floor house) has reached a Home Energy Score of 10 out of 10! With the average home in the United States scoring a 5 out of 10, their home is twice as eco-friendly as most!
Get your Home Energy Score (https://www.energy.gov/eere/buildings/articles/home-energy-score).
They changed almost everything in their house and the green features now include: All new Energy Star appliances, new ceramic tile flooring, solar on the roof, electric car charging, no and low-VOC paint throughout, quartz countertops made from reclaimed quartz cuttings, heat pump and AC unit, convection oven, vegan diet, composting, edible garden with a veggie patch, buys locally grown food, wild animals living in their yard (a very regenerative element as they are living in community with nature), heated ceramic floors, updated windows, natural stone fireplace, LED lights throughout, Energy Star rated water softener, furnace, water heater, and washer-dryer, and Malarkey white roof shingles (which absorb and transform smog, resulting in as much carbon reduction as planting 2 trees)!!
Energy Star (Energy Star (https://www.energystar.gov/).
Malarkey Shingles (https://www.malarkeyroofing.com/features/smog-reducing-granules/).
Energy Audit (https://www.greenhomeownersunited.com/).
During their green remodels, Lisa and Mike used a Green Refinance to help cover part of the cost of renovating and retrofitting. They went through Green Penny Bank based in Iowa, which operate as the first carbon neutral bank in the mid-west. If you're interested in learning about Green Refinances or Green Loans you can contact Green Penny Bank too! You can also ask your local and trusted mortgage broker if they have knowledge of Green Refinances, as this is a Federally accessible program.
Green Penny Bank (https://www.decorahbank.com/greenpenny/).
Lastly, Lisa is the president of her own sustainability focused marketing agency, Evolution Marketing, which is a Certified B Corporation and is carbon neutral. Her clients have included other sustainable Realtors and the U.S. Green Building Council!
Evolution Marketing (https://www.evolutionmarketing.com/).
Thank you Lisa for being such a fantastic guest and for being the first eco-friendly homeowner on Eco-Friendly Homes!
Contact me to help you sell and buy your eco-friendly home in Denver, Colorado!
[email protected]
Madison Hopkins
Certified Green Realtor®
Do you have a really sweet dog that's just so bad sometimes? I do! My tiny dog has been marking, otherwise known as peeing in, our new build home and it is driving me crazy! So I asked Cheryl Ciecko to be my first ever repeat guest so we could explore how accidental moisture in the home, like dog pee or pee from unwanted animal infestations, could cause mold issues inside the house.
In this episode Cheryl explains why a mice infestation caused mold to grow in her drywall, why my dog's marking is not likely going to be a mold problem, and that bacteria is actually a large concern in both of these cases.
If bacteria grows from urine in the house, it can cause infections and lower your indoor air quality.
In the second half of the episode, we dive into how laminate flooring and mold relates (also known as floating floors), how concrete slabs contribute to home moisture levels, why repeatedly wet carpet can ruin your hard wood floors, and why tile is the best best for mold free flooring options.
Live mold free!
Learn more on Cheryl's website, Avoiding Mold and enroll in one of her courses for a deep dive into something that you don't know about your house!
Links:
Website: https://www.avoidingmold.com/
Courses: https://www.avoidingmold.com/education/
The podcast currently has 42 episodes available.