IKEA Designs the Ultra-Efficient Kitchen of the Future

by Ariel Schwartz

What high-tech gizmos will we see in the kitchens of the future? IKEA may have the answers. The Swedish superstore recently drew up a concept kitchen for the year 2040, and it’s pretty wild — it features self-cleaning kitchen counters, 3D holographic displays, cabinets on rails, a “sixth-generation” iPad, remote-controlled ovens, and a host of ultra-efficient energy-saving systems.

IKEA’s kitchen of the future contains some pretty incredible theoretical tech, but we’re most excited about IKEA’s vision for kitchen-based smart energy monitoring and 3D food printers — imagine how much energy you could save by ditching trips to the grocery store.
Of course, IKEA doesn’t specialize in consumer electronics, so we don’t expect any of these products to actually come from the company. But we can dream, right?

IKEA Kitchen Of The Future Looks Pretty Much Like The Present

by Lloyd Alter

They just don't do kitchens of the future like they used to. IKEA in the UK commissioned a study by The Future Laboratory, who claim "is recognized internationally for its innovative approach to trend forecasting, consumer insight and brand strategy." They came up with three visions of the kitchen in 2040, that really don't look all that innovative. This is, I believe, the INTUITIV.

As you walk into the INTUITIV kitchen of the future, LED light projections adjust to your mood - it will know if you have a hangover via sensors that will read your brainwaves. Aromatherapy infused walls will be synced to your calendar, calming you before a big meeting or energizing you before a gym session. The fridge will have selected some breakfast options, identifying the essential vitamins for your day via sensors. When you get home, a hologrammed chef will be on hand for recipe inspiration.

Or, as the head of kitchen design for IKEA Dublin told the Irish Examiner,

"In this world of the future, the kitchen will be a thoughtful, considerate friend, steering between being the health hub of the home, a cultural and social structure cradling human connection, and a technological yet animate force making life easier, cleaner, sustainable and enjoyable."

However it might have been the ELEMENTARA, which definitely sounds the most TreeHuggeresque:

The ELEMENTARA kitchen will encourage you to grow your own food and be self-sufficient with a garden or mini allotment as a standard extension of the room. Food will be kept cool through cold larders and recycling facilities will be seamlessly incorporated into the kitchen.

Most the Tech blogs are showing the SKARP.

This kitchen will be intelligent, predicting its inhabitants' needs with smart technology. Synchronized appliances will make everything happen at the touch of a button, communicating through iPad style devices which will act as the brain of the kitchen, making our lives easier.

But except for #2 on the left, the 3D food printer, the layout and the appliances look like the kitchen of today. Will we still be using inefficient two-door side-by-side fridges in 30 years?
Read the entire press release via ENGADGET, which perhaps was a little more realistic in its assessment of the kitchen of 2040:

These guys are certainly optimistic! Hell, we'll be happy if thirty years hence the typical kitchen isn't a leaking tent in a robot-run internment camp.

Personally, I think they used to do a better job of kitchens of the future.
Other Kitchens of the Future:

1939: The Electric House of the Future

1957 Frigidaire Dream Kitchen of Tomorrow

 

"Traditional" Design Meets Passive House Efficiency

"Traditional" Design Meets Passive House Efficiency In Oregon

by Lloyd Alter

Images via owners' website
Most Passivhaus or Passive House designs we have shown on TreeHugger have tended to be modern, but Sarah Evans and Stuart Rue tell Green Building Advisor that "We wanted our house to fit in with the surrounding neighbourhood." At Jetson Green, a commenter makes the point that "It is nice to see more traditional styling reaching higher levels of performance. Many people aren't up for the boxiness of the modern design and the trend in green homes has been so modern that many folks think that is all that can be green."

But I will point out that it is hard to do good traditional design to Passive House standards, because the engineering drives so much of the design. That's why none of the blogs covering this house show the straight-on front elevation; it becomes obvious that the windows on the east side are way too small and out of proportion. Traditional design has rules, as does Passive design, and it is obvious from this photograph that the rules are different.

One might also point out that this house is no less boxy than the modern passive house designs we have shown; it is in fact a perfect box. Every jog and corner is a problem in passive house design as it creates an opportunity for a thermal bridge. The only place that the talented architect Nathan Good could have any jogging fun was with the garages.
But once one gets past the issue of style, Stuart Rue and Sarah Evans have built a great demonstration of how Passive House design really can work to make a comfortable, healthy home that runs virtually on body heat.

The walls are double-stud with almost a foot of Greenfiber cellulose insulation (made from recycled newspaper, you can still read bits of it). Windows are our favourite Serious Windows, with a U value of .105 (R 9.52, which is why even with the best windows in the country you have to be careful of how big they are and where you put them.) Serious Windows has posted a video of the builder, explaining the house.
The only mechanical heating and cooling in the house is a mini-spit heat pump with 12,000 BTU of heat and 9,000 of cooling. Some houses use that much energy for their bedroom.

Inside, they have used natural materials (wool carpets, wood floors) and minimized the use of products with VOCs. The owners have been writing a terrific and thorough blog about the process, while the builder, Bilyeu Homes, did a thorough presentation about it for the Passive House Northwest Regional Meeting in April.
Nice work, even if I have trouble calling it "Traditional."

Dwell’s Super Minimalist Prefabs Make Small Living Swell

Dwelle’s Super Minimalist Prefabs Make Small Living Swell

by Yuka Yoneda

UK-based Dwelle has unveiled a brilliant set of prefabs that illustrate how small living is the new way to live big. With a tiny footprint (the bigger of the two is 253 sq. feet), understated modern design, and sustainable features like insulation made from 100% recycled newspapers, double glazed windows and the ability to achieve zero-carbon status, these sophisticated houses definitely are overcompensating for their small size — and we like it!

Recently, we were flabbergasted when a reader commented on Facebook that 700 square feet hardly seemed like enough room to live. True, some people might need more space, but there are plenty of perfectly livable tiny abodes – like Dwelle’s beautiful line of modern prefabs. Called the Big Dwelle.ing, the larger of the two models measures 6.7 meters by 3.5 meters (22×11.5 feet or 253 square feet) and costs around £35,000-£50,000 ($52,000-$75,000).
One thing we love about this prefab is that it can be clad in almost any material from timber to rubber, and it even has the option of being fully planted with foliage that will cover the whole structure in about 12 months. 253 sq. feet may not seem like a lot of room at all but look at how cavernous the interior feels! In a smart move Dwelle doubled the ceiling height over the main living area, giving the illusion of a much roomier space. The external timber louvres add spiffy detail to the exterior of the house while letting you control daylighting and shading

The smaller of the homes, named the Little Dwelle.ing is 4.9 meters by 2.65 meters (16×9.5 feet or 152 square feet) and costs around £20,000-£35,000 ($30,000-$52,000). Unlike its big sib, it’s meant to be more of a retreat, office or storage area than a main home, but it has almost all of the awesome features mentioned before. Just like in the Big Dwelle.ing, there is enough room for a bed that is lofted about the kitchen and main living area.
In addition to using FSC-certified timber, every Dwelle.ing has the ability to be fitted with renewable energy options that allow them to operate off-grid. The walls, floor and roof are insulated with cellulose fiber that is extracted from 100% recycled newspaper. The prefabs are heated by electric underfloor heating, and the windows are double glazed to further boost thermal performance. Plus, if you suffer from allergies or just want to live a healthier life in general, you’ll be pleased to know that all of the interior fittings and finishes are designed to improve air quality, health and general safety.

 

Small Space Living: Tiny House Trend Grows Bigger

by Lea Bogdan

An increasing number of Americans are expressing interest in smaller space living, with some even owning homes under 100sq ft! One indicator of the trend is that instead of saying that tiny house owners are “downsizing”, those writing and speaking about little homes have coined the euphemism “rightsizing,” which more aptly describes how many view their choice to go small. Rising costs of energy, the recent mortgage crisis, and the troubled economy have all contributed to the tiny house trend, but the tiny house owners don’t describe a sense of loss with the space change. Instead, they feel they have traded in square footage for an increase in the richness of their life. Dee Williams, who has gained national attention for her 84sq ft Tumbleweed home, says that that her small house made her realize that “the more intentional you are in your choices, the more every change makes room for more changes.”

The National Association of Home Builders reports that the average size of newly constructed homes was 2438 sq ft in 2009, but sizes have been decreasing since 2007, where they peaked at over 2500sq ft. The NAHB chief economist, David Crowe, believes that the “decline is related to phenomena such as an increased share of first-time home buyers, a desire to keep energy costs down, smaller amounts of equity in existing homes to roll into the next home, tighter credit standards and less focus on the investment component of buying a home.” Census studies show that new houses are being constructed with fewer bedrooms, and the percentage of homes with three or more bathrooms has also dropped.
Many would argue that the recent trend has been heavily influenced by American architectural history. Specifically pointing to times when there was a need for affordable, quickly constructed homes, Levittown homes, built in the 1950’s, were an extremely successful small house style built for returning veterans of World War II that could be bought with a down payment as little as $100. Other historians point further back to the efficient design of row homes, like those in Philadelphia and Boston.

Prefabricated homes are another style of small, affordable housing. They are often built in large sections before being assembled on site, and they have been widely covered on Inhabitat. North American retailers are noticing the need for prefabs, and they have introduced a wide range of reasonably priced, well-designed models. The Katrina Cottages that were designed in the aftermath of the hurricane disaster are now available from Lowes. Another US-based retailer, Design Within Reach, was until recently selling their ultra-stylish kitHAUS. Shipping container prefabs are also available in the US from companies like Phoenix-based Upcycle Living. Builders have answered the call too, offering modules or cottages like the Eco-Cottages from Nationwide.
There are many web-based resources available for those interested in tiny houses, including a list generated by the Small House Society of design firms that specialize in small spaces. The Tiny House blog will show you examples from around the world, and if you want to build your own, Tumbleweed House Company and PAD(Portland Alternative Dwellings) have plans and workshops to show you how.
You may be interested, but not sure that the tight quarters would work with your lifestyle. To get a feel for life in a tiny home, google and check out the video of Dee Williams in her 84 sq ft home in Washington. Living off the grid in a home you built yourself sounds like it could be really cozy and liberating at the same time!

 

The Signal Shed: A Modern and Micro Prefab Cabin

by Andrew Michler

This simple, but modern little cabin was recently featured in Sunset Magzine as a micro-hideaway in the woods. Designed by an enterprising couple with the desire for a getaway, the pair sought to build a small home with a very limited budget, but not at the price of short-handing the planning stages.  What resulted from their diligent efforts was an uncomplicated yet eye-catching design where accommodations have been programmed to take advantage of the fantastic views while also keeping a pleasing and proportioned form. A perfect addition for anyone looking to create some extra space, the Signal Shed is now being offered as a prefab, quick to plant in any choice of scenery.

Sitting on pier footings similar to a deck, the inside floor measures a scant 8 by 16 feet, for a total area of just 130 square feet. Heat to the interior is provided by a wood stove, and by placing a bunk over the small dining space, the total floor area is kept open. However, what keeps the space efficient is the over-sized 8 foot shed door which opens up to a small deck overlooking Oregon’s stunning Wallowa Lake – in effect extending the overall feel of the home’s scale. Movable screens cover the windows nicely, and a vertical weathered cedar screen contrasts beautifully with the natural boards lined horizontally on the veranda.

Read more: Signal Shed: A Micro Modern Cabin Prefab | Inhabitat - Green Design Will Save the World 

Density

Do We Really All Have To Live Like New Yorkers? Does Density Matter?

by Lloyd Alter

Reading David Owen's The Green Metropolis, one would conclude that density is everything, that New York is, as he wrote in the New Yorker, "The Greenest City in America":

"Barring an almost inconceivable reduction in the earth's population, dense urban centers offer one of the few plausible remedies for some of the world's most discouraging environmental ills. To borrow a term from the jargon of computer systems, dense cities are scalable, while sprawling suburbs are not. The environmental challenge we face, at the current stage of our assault on the world's non-renewable resources, is not how to make our teeming cities more like the pristine countryside. The true challenge is how to make other settled places more like Manhattan."

Click to enlargeUrban density and transport-related energy consumption. (2009). In UNEP/GRID-Arendal Maps and Graphics Library. Retrieved 15:38, July 27, 2010 from http://maps.grida.no/go/graphic/urban-. density-and-transport-related-energy-consumption1.
But just as the Archtypes survey of Canadian cities calls this into question, so does this graph prepared by UNEP. While New York has the lowest transport-related energy consumption in the States, it is still higher than Toronto, the only Canadian city listed, every major city in Australia, and just about every city in Europe. Hong Kong is the exception that proves the rule; incredibly dense and just as efficient. At the other end of the scale is Houston, the highest energy consumer per capita on the chart. But as one wag said, "In Houston, a person walking is someone on his way to his car."
In the end, a lot of smaller, medium density cities in Australia and Europe do a lot better than New York. Density is clearly not the only factor in energy consumption per capita.

Gadling.com
A quick look at this illustration comparing gas prices shows a much closer correlation of energy consumption per capita than does a density to energy consumption comparison. Why is Toronto more efficient than New York? I live there, and it ain't Copenhagen. The only possible reason is that gas is significantly more expensive. Of course Hong Kong is the most expensive, but the Netherlands is close behind. And lo and behold, everyone there rides bikes. (Oslo is an aberation caused by the fact that it is such a big oil exporter, see the Economist Big Mac index to see how it is out of whack). Putting these two graphs together, one has to conclude that energy prices are a bigger determinant than density. It appears that long term, consistently expensive gas, cars and parking make alternative patterns of transportation and development viable.

Guelph, Ontario, with the highest walkscore I have found.
In my spare time I volunteer as president of a heritage preservation organization in Ontario, Canada, and tour the province lecturing about how heritage conservation districts are really energy conservation districts. Everywhere I go I use Walkscore as a proxy of energy efficiency and am constantly blown away by how walkable these towns are. They are usually built on rivers and have water, nearby farms, even their own hydro power generation. They were designed in a time when people didn't have cars, so things are built more closely together. But Manhattan, they are not.
David Owen, and after reading his book, this writer, were seduced by the bright lights of the big city. But the key drivers of energy efficiency appear to be less about density and more about walkability, with a big dose of gas prices thrown in to promote the latter. And in such communities where gas prices are the determinant, it is no surprise that new development is built at a walkable, cycleable density.
You can't have walkability at suburban densities, but you don't need to be New York or Hong Kong either. There is something in the middle, and it is in our smaller cities and towns all over North America.

Shipping Containers

Deceiving Shipping Container Home That Doesn’t Look Like One

by Bridgette Meinhold

 

 

If we hadn't told you this was a shipping container house, would you have known?? With a contemporary classic style, regular-looking facade and huge light-filled windows, this lovely home in Richmond, California, designed by Leger Wanaselja Architects, is a great example of the beautiful work that can done with shipping containers. You may like the industrial look of the container, but if you're into a more traditional look, this is the house for you! Check out the interior shots of this deceiving home - they give you a really good idea of the available space.

 

Built out of three insulated shipping containers and stacked on two levels with a two-story atrium in the middle, this home packs a lot into a small footprint. Coming in at only 1,350 sq feet, the home has three good sized bedrooms, and a large open living room which connects into the long kitchen and dining room. Two 40′ containers are stacked on top of each other serving as the master bedroom on top and a kitchen/dining area on the ground floor. The other container is cut in half and stacked to create two more bedrooms. Between the stacks is a large two story living area with floor to ceiling windows and a staircase and bridge to connect to the rooms upstairs.
Solar passively designed, deep roof eaves were used to protect from summer solar gain and operable windows were used to maximize ventilation. As the containers are already insulated, they act as weatherproof exterior siding, insulation, and structural frame. Insulation was only needed in the roof and flooring and framing was only done on interior walls and for the windows. Additional green features include the use of low VOC paints, a 100% wool carpet, bamboo flooring, a 50% flyash concrete foundation, blown-in cellulose insulation, stacked plumbing, roof rainwater collection, high efficiency lighting, solatubes, and a ton more green features.

Shipping Containers Used for Employee Housing In Dubai Desert

by Bridgette Meinhold

In the world of green architecture and affordable housing, shipping container homes are often considered to be practical, cost-effective and even environmentally-friendly. In Dubai, however, the prospect seems a bit dubious. Gulf News reported today on a contracting firm in Dubai that has built housing for workers out of shipping containers, which can become unbearably hot in desert environments if they aren’t properly insulated. On the other hand, the containers probably didn’t cost that much, can be easily relocated to the next job, they can withstand sand storms, and the contracting firm says that the containers have sufficient insulation against the scorching desert sun.

Dubai-based construction firm Alsahel Contracting Company LLC (ACC) noticed its employees had to drive long distances to and from the job site each day and were coming to work tired. To combat this, they built employee housing from 40′ shipping containers that house 8 people each, with two separate rooms on either side outfitted with bunk beds. The containers are also equipped with an air conditioner per side, exhaust fans, and “decoration wood”, which is meant to help insulate the container. In the hot desert, the metal containers are likely to soak up a lot of heat, although they are better suited to withstand sand storms than wood cabins, which are more likely to degrade.
The Gulf News article seems to insinuate that the workers are being mistreated by being housed in shipping containers, although it is never blatantly said. Granted, these containers are certainly not luxury condos — but they do seem to provide adequate housing for a temporary workforce. The construction firm says that the containers are safe and have governmental approval and they have tried to make them look respectable. What do you think — does the Gulf News article raise a red flag or is this a cool use of shipping containers?

Solar Powered Shipping Container is a Pop-Up Prefab Party

by Andrew Michler

Planning a party? You might want to check out Boxman Studio’s solar-powered party venue, which comes conveniently packed into a pop-up shipping container. The innovative system that takes just 20 minutes to set up but creates a classy place to enjoy a party. Unlike tents, the container is quick, lower impact, and much more durable, plus it’s about the hippest way to green your summer shindigs.

 

Check out these party digs- seating for 26 folks, a full bar, solar powered plug-ins for a TV, fridge, karaoke, lava lamps, whatever. The container walls fold down to create a covered 500 square-foot bamboo floor. Place several panels next to each other and you have a huge dance floor. They are happy to customize individual units for different needs.
Boxman Studio dutifully notes that energy to recycle the steel container is 4000 kWhrs, while the conversion of a container is 200 kWhrs. That is a powerful example on how sustainable reuse can be. Tents are notorious for getting shredded in a season or two, and they can be tough to set up on hard surfaces – the Boxman Studio’s sturdy containers can keep the party going.

 

Bercy Chen Buries a High-Tech Update of a Traditional Pit-House

by Lloyd Alter

Bercy-Chen Studio is doing a fascinating 1400 square foot residence in Austin, Texas that hits all the right TreeHugger buttons. It is on a modern version of the pit-house used by ancient Pueblo and Cherokee Indians.
The Red Bluff house is a little more sophisticated; like the pit-house it uses the earth's thermal mass to temper the climate. However it adds a few modern touches like hydronic heating & cooling, geothermal heat exchange, phase-change thermal heat storage, rainwater collection and a green roof.

The architect writes:

The house's relationship to the landscape both in terms of approach as well as building performance references the oldest housing typology in North America; the pit house. Like a pit house, the house will undergo a 7-foot excavation gaining benefits from the earth's mass to maintain thermal comfort throughout the year. Such architectural settings create opportunities for maximum energy efficiency using a proposed Integrated Hydronic HVAC system.

The heating and cooling system is very sophisticated, yet based on simple principles of thermal mass and time-shifting. Heat from the sun is absorbed through the patio floor and circulated into phase change storage, smoothing down the peaks and reducing load on the heat pumps. (See full size drawing on flickr here)

According to Designboom, the site is a brownfield that contained an oil pipeline that will be excavated and removed, and that "central to this retreat for a science fiction writer is the healing of the land, a charges site where the urban/industrial condition once met nature in a brutal and unsympathetic manner."

How About 90% More Efficient Air Conditioning?

by Michael Graham Richard,

Photo: Pat Corkery/NREL
The National Renewable Energy Lab has Done It!
As Lloyd and other sensible people keep pointing out, if our buildings and cities were better designed, we would need a lot less air conditioning, and in many cases none at all. That should be goal #1. But because it's doubtful that's ubiquitous A/C is going away any time soon, it can't hurt to make the technology more efficient (keeping buildings cool is using about 5% of the energy used in the US). That's exactly what the engineers and scientists at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) have done.

Image: NREL

The U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory has invented a new air conditioning process with the potential of using 50 percent to 90 percent less energy than today's top-of-the-line units. It uses membranes, evaporative cooling and liquid desiccants in a way that has never been done before in the centuries-old science of removing heat from the air. (source)

This is Going to be Huge Someday
The problem with most evaporative cooling A/Cs is that they only work well in dry climates and add humidity to their cool air output. The NREL's technology, which they call DEVap, solves that problem by using liquid desiccants to remove the humidity from the air that has been cooled down. Combining those two things isn't new, but nobody has quite made it work well so far. Until now, that is.
And the energy savings aren't the only benefit of DEVap.

Because DEVap uses salt solutions rather than refrigerants, there are no harmful chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) or hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) to worry about. A pound of CFC or HCFC in refrigerant-based A/Cs contributes as much to global warming as 2,000 pounds of carbon dioxide. A typical residential size A/C has as much as 13 pounds of these refrigerants.

NREL is planning to keep improving the tech for a few years, and then license it to industry. So don't expect to see commercial versions of the DEVap for a few years...

Sun-Powered Bamboo House Sprouts at Solar Decathlon Europe

by Brit Liggett

Tonji University Shanghai’s Bamboo House at the European Solar Decathlon is a beautiful sun-powered abode inspired by nature. It has two elegant sloping roofs and is almost entirely constructed from bamboo. Its impressive solar array generates 9 kilowatts of electricity which powers its one bedroom, one living room layout. We love how the house combines traditional Chinese architecture with state of the art technology — it has temperature and humidity control systems, high-level thermal insulation systems, and a bamboo enclosed garden.

   

Tonji University’s team has 20 members and is composed of doctors, postgraduates, and undergraduate students who range across many disciplines — from architecture and urban planning to energy development. They hope that their solar-powered house can help promote their forward-thinking ideas aboutrenewable energy use in residential urban areas. The team has spent six months designing and constructing the house from scratch and they are hoping their hard work will pay off. Structurally, the house is strongly influenced by traditional Chinese architecture but with a tinge of the efficient look of contemporary architecture.
The Solar Decathlon Europe kicked off with a bang today and Inhabitat is on the scene to provide a first peek at the amazing sun-powered architecture on display. The European Solar Decathlon is the sister of the US Solar Decthalon — which we covered in Washington DC this past October — and was organized in a partnership between Government of Spain’s Ministry of Housing and the United States Government. The decathlon is taking place all through next week in Madrid, so stay tuned to Inhabitat as we bring you a front seat view of all the action!

 

Greener Appliances

Bosch Factory Tour Unveils 5 Keys to Buying Greener Appliances

by Evelyn Lee

In the small, unimposing town of New Bern, NC (infamously known as the birthplace of Pepsi-Cola) lies the only US appliance manufacturer with complete lines of Energy Star-certified dishwashers, washers, and refrigerators — Bosch. That’s right, the German Company. Surprised? It was the first of many surprises I discovered while touring their US manufacturing facility. Here are five lessons learned from Bosch that have me taking a second look at my appliances, where they come from, and what they are or are not doing for the environment.

  

1. Performance

Imagine a room filled with 50 dishwashers running through their various different cycles — do you think you could hear a pin drop? That might just be possible if they’re Bosch’s latest 800 Plus Dishwashers, which feature a LED indicator light that shines on the floor when it’s closed so you can tell whether or not the machine is actually running. If, like me, you are wondering why Bosch has so many machines running at once, you will be interested to hear that Bosch runs performance tests on each and every one of their machines prior to packaging and shipping to retailers. When looking a machine’s performance you have to decide what’s most important for you. If it’s efficiency you’re looking for, don’t stop at the Energy Star label. With so many products now sporting this government-backed certification, it is important to look at the small print and really asses how much electricity and water is being used each cycle. Which leads us to our next lesson…

2. Cost Savings in Efficiency & Rebate Programs

Cost savings do not depend solely upon the initial purchase price — they should also include the overall performance of the appliance itself. Bosch’s latest Vision line features the most energy and water-efficient full-sized front-load washers that are available in the U.S. (They also happen to be available in a variety of cool colors including: sliver, anthracite, sky, and sepia.)
A lot of manufacturers are offering additional rebates to those looking to make green changes in their homes. One quick way to find available rebates it to check out the SEEARP (State Energy Efficient Appliance Rebate Program). Bosch also has an available Rebate Resource Center for consumers to learn all about government, retailer, and Bosch rebates that are currently available.

3. Lifecycle Management

The last time my parents purchased a major appliance, the old one ended up in our garage, as a back-up fridge. (Really – a back-up fridge?!?) When considering the entire lifecycle of your appliance or future appliance, don’t forget to consider what happens after many years of holiday dinners and family bake-offs. In Bosch’s case, 90% of their cooking appliances by weight can be recycled, and wall ovens are at least 92% recyclable. How many of your current appliances will end-up in the junkyard?

4. Supply Chain Management

It takes many suppliers to build one product — especially with all the individual parts that come together in big appliances. Bosch helps motivate their individual suppliers to integrate more environmentally-conscious methods into their practices, especially when it comes to their shipping materials. In 2009 the company saved approximately 52,200 pallets and cardboard boxes through the use of returnable containers. When taking a hard look at the appliances that you’re purchasing, think out of the box and beyond the finished product to see where other sustainable efforts are being made – if any are being made at all.

5. A Sustainable Company

Earlier this winter Bosch was recognized for the second consecutive year as the Energy Star Partner of the Year for Appliances by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), which says a lot about the Germany company. One of its primary motivators to manufacture in New Bern, NC has to do with their desire to produce locally in the markets they sell in – reducing the associated environmental effects caused by shipping items overseas and meeting sustainable manufacturing goals.
I admit that the trip may have left me a little bit biased and my roaming designer eye has a tendency to lean towards a European aesthetic. However, the next time you go through the decision-making process to purchase your next big appliance consider the following: overall performance, cost savings, lifecycle & supply chain management, and the company’s overall commitment to sustainability. You might be surprised to find out that the most homegrown decision you can make just might be a European one.

Zero-Energy Bio Refrigerator Cools Your Food With Future Gel

by Brit Liggett

In a valiant effort to rethink the ubiquitous refrigerator — which has seen few design changes since the invention of freon refrigerators in the 1930’s — Russian designer Yuriy Dmitriev has unveiled a fresh-looking, gel-filled appliance of the future. His Bio Robot Refrigerator utilizes a special gel-like substance that suspends and cools food once inserted. Dmitriev’s design is one of 25 finalists in the Electrolux Design Lab competition, which challenged entrants with the task of redesigning modern appliances for the future.

 

The Bio Robot Refrigerator mounts on a wall — Dmitriev points out it can be mounted horizontally, vertically or even on the ceiling. The fridge does not have a motor or other traditional technology like most refrigerators, — the gel does all the work — so, 90% of the appliance is actual usable space. To use the fridge you basically shove food into it’s biopolymer gel — which has no odor and is not sticky — and it is suspended and cooled until you need it again.
Dmitriev notes that the cooling agents are the “bio robots” inherent in the gel that use luminescence — light generated in cold temperatures — to preserve food. Although this sounds super techy and fun, Dmitriev doesn’t really explain how it’s going to work, so we’re a little skeptical of the Bio Robot Refrigerator becoming a reality someday. Viability aside, the fridge is definitely a huge step forward in terms of rethinking the design of one of our most-used appliances. Probably the best thing about this concept machine is that it uses zero energy for cooling — it just needs energy for it’s little control pad. Compared to the typical modern fridge, which uses about 8% of a household’s energy, this nifty-looking gadget of the future could cut our energy use significantly.