50 Year Old Health Products Company becomes Climate Neutral

Shaklee has become th first company in the world to be Climate Neutral. It has be certified to fully offset its CO2 emissions. This results in a net-zero impact on the environment.

Founded in 1956 by Dr. Forrest C. Shaklee, the health products company, headquartered in Pleasanton, CA, has incorporated innovative design to minimize energy usage and maximize the use of recycled and environmentally safe materials, finishes, and products.

Shaklee is also known for its policy of no animal testing for its products, and the thousands of independent distributors which have been the cornerstone of its success.
======================
Click here to learn more about Shaklee.

Buyer Beware: Products that Increase Your Gas Mileage

In these uncertain times, everyone reacts differently to the continuing increases in gas prices that we have experienced over the last few weeks...and even over years. Many drivers have taken to doing anything they can to increase their gas mileage. This desire to save gas has created a market for products that claim to do just that. The companies that manufacture these products seem to have a great idea, since they know that the public is desperate to decrease their fuel usage.

The important question is, do these products really provide a big difference, or are these companies just making a quick buck off of consumers who are sick of paying so much at the pump?

Testing by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

It can be very easy for a motorist to get roped in by the very gaudy claims that the companies who make these products are making. But, do these products really provide increased gas mileage? Is there any way they can prove the claims that they have made?

Well, that usually depends on who you ask. However, the EPA, or Environmental Protection Agency, has tested a number of these types of products, and has not as yet found even one that significantly increases gas mileage. This means that the organization which is the foremost authority in fuel economy has yet to certify one of these products as being legitimate.

Do They Actually Save Gas?

That is not to say that the products do not work.

Perhaps they do provide gas mileage increases in certain vehicles, or maybe they actually increase gas mileage by a marginal amount. However, since there is no concrete evidence of such an increase from testing done by an unbiased party, so there really is no proof available yet. Again, this does not mean that the products are altogether worthless or useless. However, it is debatable whether or not you should spend your hard-earned money on these products, especially when there are very cheap (or even free) alternative ways to increase your gas mileage.

Cheap and Easy Steps You Can Take To Save Gas

For instance, you can do something as simple as put the proper amount of air in your tires, and check their air pressure regularly. I recently let just one of my tires get very low on pressure, and my fuel economy dropped by almost ten percent! This simple task will usually cost you nothing (although some gas stations may have machines that charge a quarter or two), and will help you to save some of your precious gas when you drive.

Proper tire inflation is just one simple act of maintenance that can help you to preserve your fuel.

Another cheap way for a motorist to increase fuel efficiency is to change air filters regularly. Although this costs more than most fuel economy products do, it also provides genuainely proven benefits that can be pretty substantial in regards to fuel efficiency. If you had the choice between spending some money on an unproven method, or something that is proven to work, what would you choose?

A Few More Tips to Help Save Gas

These ways of increasing fuel efficiency are only just the tip of the iceberg. You can do many simple things like avoiding packing your trunk with excess junk that increases drag and decreases fuel mileage, or making sure you use the proper grade of motor oil. Switching to synthetic motor oil can help save gas, and even simple things like avoiding the use of the air conditioning system whenever possible can provide a marked increase in fuel economy!

I recently moved and noticed that the fuel economy in my Prius, ordinarily a very fuel efficient vehicle, seemed to be suffering quite badly in a new part of the country. Then, one day I looked in the spare tire well and noticed that I had left about 50 pounds of dumbbell plates in there. I removed them and my fuel economy shot back up dramatically.

If You Want to Save Gas, Save Money at the Same Time

In short, there are just too many cheap or inexpensive ways to improve gas mileage to be able to recommend buying most of these costly products that may not work much, or even at all. With so many simple and easy ways to increase your fuel economy, why pay money for something that is not proven to work?
------------------------

Save money on gas by using Amsoil Synthetic Motor Oil. Visit www.amsoil.com

Hybrid Cars and Environmental Pollution

Hybrid Vehicles Cause Less Environmental Pollution
By Beverly Clarke

Hybrid vehicles are the kind of automobiles that cause less or no environment pollution. In practicality, it is absolutely impossible to run an automobile without some kind of pollutant emission. At least, the technological developments so far cannot guarantee such a vehicle, but there are several methods to reduce the level of pollutant that is emitted.

Currently, the worst culprits of environmental pollution among vehicles are automobiles that run on fossil fuels such as petrol, diesel, and gas. That means more than 90% of these at present, are serious offenders of environmental protection. Among the environmental problems, air pollution and damaging effects of the Ozone Layer are the most serious. There have been concerted efforts from various sectors - such as automobile manufacturers, scientists, and governmental regulators - to reduce the green house gas emission from vehicles that run on fossil fuels.

The efforts have been producing good results. Newer models invariably have better emission controls. However, the overall level of green house gas emission has been increasing. The major reason for this is the exponential increase in the number of these cars in use. Over the last decade, the sale of automobiles has considerably increased - not just in the developed countries like the United States and Japan, but also in developing nations like China and India.

Therefore, just reducing the green house gas emission of cars that run on fossil fuels is not sufficient for reducing the level of environmental damage. This realization paved the way for the creation of several types of green vehicles. Examples of such environmentally friendly cars are electric, solar-powered, and those that use hydrogen fuel. Despite the obvious advantages to environmental protection, there are some negative aspects for them. The performance of hybrid cars at present does not compare well to that of cars powered by conventional fuels such as petrol, diesel, or gas. As a result, a kind of hybrid was born. This type of car can run on both conventional fuels and the non-conventional fuel types. Most of the major automobile companies in the world produce the hybrid type green vehicle.

The most commonly used non-conventional fuel is electricity. The market share of battery-powered cars has been expanding steadily. The level of green house gas emission is substantially lower for electric cars. However, in terms of performance, such as acceleration in high speed, these green vehicles pale in comparison with those that use fossil fuels. Therefore, the hybrids that run both on electricity and conventional fuels provide a compromise option between environmental considerations and the desire for better performance.

Solar energy is also used to run automobiles. The mechanism of these cars is similar to that of electric, however, in the case of solar cars, electricity is provided by solar cells. Another kind of green car is the type that uses hydrogen as fuel. More research and innovations are needed to make the performance of these cars to match with that of those using conventional fuels.

Beverly Clarke manages a network of green living websites promoting ecoconsious choices such as alternative energy and smart cars and provides many helpful tips on green living.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Beverly_Clarke
http://EzineArticles.com/?Hybrid-Vehicles-Cause-Less-Environmental-Pollution&id=1990607

A Recent Trip in my Toyota Prius

By Donovan Baldwin

My wife and I recently traveled from Dallas to Phoenix and back in our 2006 Toyota Prius.

Even with over 85,000 miles on the odometer, we still averaged 48.5 MPG.

Gas prices are down right now from what they were a few months ago, but we still saved nearly $100.00 on fuel for the trip.

People often by hybrid cars in hopes of saving a significant amount of money on fuel to offset the cost of the car. In most cases, however, the savings will not be large enough to make the economic aspect of the purchase strong enough to win the argument.

Usually, the ultimate reason for the purchase of a hybrid car will be to do something for the environment.

Also, however, do not forget the potentially higher resale value of a hybrid when it comes time to move on to the next vehicle. One hidden point you may want to point out to a prospective buyer is, that since a hybrid shuts off the engine when it is not needed (which is pretty often), the wear on the engine is probably not at a level equivalent to a standard vehicle with the same number of miles on the odometer.

Hybrid Cars and AMSOIL Synthetic Motor Oil

Not Hybrid Cars, but Alternative Fuels

Alternative Fuels Now
By Tom Tessin

The fact that our economy is in a downward spiral and the oil is basically being produced overseas is causing many people to wonder if we should discontinue use of oil based gasoline and look for alternative fuels. The ecosystem has brought out the fact that gas burning vehicles are harmful to the atmosphere and to human beings. We need to be better concerned about earth and what we are doing that is causing it to become destroyed. Some consumers are crying for us to use our own oil instead of continuously going abroad for what we need. The problem with that is we would have to destroy the natural habitat of certain wild animals as well as the earth. We would have to drill in the wilds of Alaska which is our last frontier when it comes to earth's beauty and abundance of all natural environments. What price should we pay in order to drive our gasoline fueled vehicles? Many people are greatly concerned and feel that an alternative fuel would best suit our needs.

There are now many alternative fuels that could provide our vehicles with power and save our eco system. Farther, it has been discovered that some alternative fuels are being made from crops such as corn or oats which makes them environmentally safe and helps the American farmer. There are some alternative fuels that come from emissions let loose from landfills. We need to look to the future care of the earth and start maintaining our ecosystem. We cannot exist without earth it is our home and as human beings we have no other place to go. It may sound foolish to think that a few gasoline driven vehicles could upset the balance of nature but it is not. When we upset the balance of nature then we indeed risk destroying our world and all the inhabitants.

Using alternative fuels like hydrogen, propane, natural gas, ethanol, electricity and the many other sources is much more desirable than that of destroying the world that we live in. We need to think of not only today but we need to think of the future that our children and their children will have living on earth. Many auto manufacturers are seriously considering changing the engines in the new vehicles to operate on alternative fuels rather than the continuous use of gasoline. Many economists are afraid that if we stop using the gasoline based engine that our economy will go even farther in the red causing another great depression. The truth is that we can survive not using oil based gasoline for our vehicles and that by using alternative fuel we might save our economy. We no longer would have to depend on foreign countries for our energy supplies. This would increase our own economy production of fuel based products making our country that much stronger financially.

Start saving on gas today with gas credit cards at FINDgascards.com, where you can find more of Tom's work.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tom_Tessin
http://EzineArticles.com/?Alternative-Fuels-Now&id=1983418

Hybrid Cars and AMSOIL Synthetic Motor Oil

Beyond Hybrid Cars - The Air Car

Alternative Fuels - Air Car, the First Car That Runs on Compressed Air and Biofuels
By Bob Randooke

Our country has been in troubled economic times for the past year now and almost no one is immune to this recession. It is common knowledge that high oil prices, mortgage debt problems and the war in Iraq helped to get us into these troubled times but the the problem is we as a nation depend too much on oil and the oil companies to help satisfy our addiction for quick energy. Another problem is global warming. Many studies have been done that have shown that burning fossil fuels (fuels made from the fossils of animals) contribute significantly to global warming because they increase greenhouse gas in the atmosphere. Also there are many leading experts that are saying we are nearing peak oil levels which means that the production of oil has neared to a point where it will level off. Combine this with the fact that oil demands among the new powerhouse nations like China and India are increasing at astronomical rates you can begin to see the urgency for us to start researching alternative biofuels that will help us solve the global warming problem and also give us cheaper fuels sources that we can easily duplicate.

One incredible new alternative energy source for use in automobiles is the Air Engine. It is an engine that works by expanding compressed air and this releases energy. This method is not really anything new and has actually been around for a few centuries but the technology is starting to become very efficient during the last few years. A company called Zero Pollution Motors has been working on a car that runs on air and a combination of either ethanol or most kinds of biofuels. Theoretically this air car could have a range of between 750 to 950 miles based on a single tank of air and 8.2 gallons of biofuel. This is an exciting new kind of vehicle with the potential to have zero emissions which would be awesome for our atmosphere as well. ZPM says that they will have the air car into the market by sometime in 2010. Imagine having your very own car that runs on air and has a range of just under 1000 miles per fillup. Alot of people are looking at the Chevy volt all electric vehicle as our savior but with this air car it will utilize biofuels in a way that will not only help us end ourt dependency on oil but also give our atmosphere some breathing room to get out of the danger zone of global warming.

About the Author

I love writing about alternative fuel sources such as Biofuel and car that run on air. You can read about the newest advances in biofuels at http://www.biofuelguide.net which is updated regularly with the newest , most exciting biofuel technologies coming out.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bob_Randooke
http://EzineArticles.com/?Alternative-Fuels---Air-Car,-the-First-Car-That-Runs-on-Compressed-Air-and-Biofuels&id=1950314

Hybrid Cars

Hybrid Cars - The Incentives

Want a Hybrid? Don't Forget the Incentives!
By Matthew Keegan

The lowest gas prices in five years has taken the sting out of filling up, but very few people believe that current price levels will be sustained. In all likelihood as we move closer to summer, demand will increase and prices with it as supply is cut back to meet current consumption. Add in that our current political leadership is eager to raise taxes on gasoline to encourage you to drive more economical cars and you could end up with gas priced above three dollars a gallon.

One way that consumers are battling the high cost of a fill up is to choose a hybrid vehicle. Powered by a combination of a battery and a gas engine, most hybrids deliver exceptional fuel economy while reducing the amount of exhaust fumes down to a minimum. Many of the hybrid models on the market in 2009 deliver fuel economy above forty miles to the gallon, well higher than what most gasoline powered cars offer.

But there is a huge drawback to most hybrid vehicles which makes this type of purchase an unprofitable one for most buyers: they carry a price premium that may never be fully recovered. True, if you drive twenty thousand miles or more annually, plan on keeping your car for at least ten years, and gas prices return to higher levels, you may recoup your costs. But, that five to ten thousand dollar price premium can be a bit hard to swallow, a problem for cash strapped consumers.

There is one way that consumers can still buy a hybrid vehicle without busting their budget: federal tax credits. It is a convoluted system where buyers can get a credit of as much as $3400 per vehicle provided that the manufacturer hasn't sold its allotment of 60,000 hybrids. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS), beginning on January 1, 2006, has allowed buyers of select hybrid and lean-burn engine vehicles to obtain a credit, but that credit is phased out as manufacturers draw closer to their 60,000 vehicle limit. Once the limit has been reached, then no credit is available.

Thus, if you are planning to buy a 2009 Toyota Prius, your credit is now $0 because Toyota has far surpassed that threshold. On the other hand, if you plan to purchase a 2010 Ford Fusion Hybrid (available Spring 2009) you'll be eligible for the full $3400 because it is an all new model for Ford. Oh, by the way, that $3400 figure is for the most fuel efficient hybrids; some vehicles have a lower credit - for example the 2009 Saturn Aura Hybrid credit is $1550 - because it isn't as fuel efficient as the Ford.

Some states and municipalities offer credits too. If you reside in an area where relief is offered, you can usually take that additional credit to help you save more money. Log on to your state's website and do a search for "alternative fuel vehicle" to see if a program is currently available and what requirements are in place in order to receive a tax credit or rebate.

Oh, by the way, it is IRS Form 8910 - Alternative Motor Vehicle Credit - which will help you determine if your vehicle is eligible and at what cost. A good tax program will walk you through filling out the form.

Driving a gas-electric hybrid is a desirable option for some drivers. Find out what assistance is available to you may be able to shave thousands of dollars off of the cost of owning one of the most fuel efficient vehicles on the road.

Matthew C. Keegan is a freelance writer who resides in North Carolina. Matt is a contributing writer for Andy's Auto Sport an aftermarket supplier of quality parts including Mitsubishi Evolution camshafts and Ford F250 roll pans.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Matthew_Keegan
http://EzineArticles.com/?Want-a-Hybrid?-Dont-Forget-the-Incentives!&id=1938942

Hybrid Cars