San Diego switches to 'green' street lights [22 Sep 2011|10:21am] air max chaussuresMore than 35,000 low-energy light fixtures are going up across San Diego as the city seeks to cut costs and reduce energy consumption, city officials announced Monday. San Diego is changing out streetlights with high-efficiency models such as this one to save energy and money. When the project is done in about 18 months, San Diego will have replaced about three-quarters of its street lights as part of a $16 million program. City officials figure it will take less than six years to make their money back in lower energy bills. air max chaussures It's part of a regional initiative to go green using new technology in lighting. From Carlsbad to El Cajon, agencies are switching from old-style fixtures such as sodium vapor lights to "induction" lights and other energy-efficient varieties. In all, there about 145,000 streetlights in the service territory of San Diego Gas & Electric. "This is great for San Diego from every perspective," Mayor Jerry Sanders said in a statement before a morning press conference to announce the initiative. "The city will save $2.2 million annually from reduced energy and maintenance costs, and the higher-quality light will make our neighborhoods safer." The new light fixtures will make colors easier to see at night because they produce a broader light spectrum than sodium vapors. air max chaussures However, the movement to new types of lamps has caused concern among dark-sky advocates who worry that modern lighting will spoil night views at local observatories. In response, city leaders have sought to cut down glare from the new lights, for instance, by using shields to direct light downward instead of into space. San Diego said the retrofit will be paid for by a $13 million bond, $2 million in federal grant stimulus funding, and a $3 million low-interest state loan. In addition, SDG&E will provide a one-time $1.2 million rebate for the lighting change. Access to the state bond money allowed the city to more than triple the number of lights had planning to replace through San Marcos-based Southern Contracting. The bid for the work came in low enough that city should be able to do even more than anticipated, said Tom Blair, a deputy director in the city's Environmental Services Department. San Diego's retrofit project began Sept. 13 and is planned for completion in early 2013. It's expected to reduce electricity consumption by 16 million kilowatt-hours each year and trim carbon pollution by more than 12,000 tons yearly. air max chaussures City leaders said they chose induction lighting over LED lamps citing a 20-year life-cycle study that showed broad-band induction lights saved more energy, were less expensive and provided better light. "It is the most cost-effective energy efficiency project because it is (replacing) lighting that's on from dusk to dawn, which we basically figure as 11 hours a day," Blair said. In general speaking, 12V LED has become more and more affordable, therefore auto LED bulbs have been used widely.air max chaussures post comment

Eight Essential Components of an Inexpensive Home Gym [22 Sep 2011|10:24am] air max chaussuresYou can put together a cheap home gym that gets the job done if you buy the essentials. As long as you stick with the proven equipment list -and stay away from the latest ab-flexor- you can't go wrong. The following are my 8 home gym must-haves: 1) Dumbbells Dumbbells are essential for the home fitness gym, necessary for presses, arm exercises and even a few core exercises. There are many kinds of dumbbells out there, from the cheap to the boutique. All of which fall into one of two typ [Error: Irreparable invalid markup ('<a [...] chaussures.net>') in entry. Owner must fix manually. Raw contents below.] <a href=http://www.airmax-chaussures.net>air max chaussures</a>You can put together a cheap home gym that gets the job done if you buy the essentials. As long as you stick with the proven equipment list -and stay away from the latest ab-flexor- you can't go wrong. The following are my 8 home gym must-haves: 1) Dumbbells Dumbbells are essential for the home fitness gym, necessary for presses, arm exercises and even a few core exercises. There are many kinds of dumbbells out there, from the cheap to the boutique. All of which fall into one of two typ<a href=http://www.airmax- chaussures.net>air max chaussures</a>es: fixed weight or handles only. Handles are plate loaded. This requires you to slide the weight plate on yourself and then fasten the weight with collars. Most handles are either standard or Olympic. Standard are smaller in diameter than the Olympic version. You'll want to coordinate any plate loaded barbells you purchase with your dumbbells. That way the plates are compatible. Standard handles start at around $8. Olympic handles are pricier and longer. This added length actually takes getting used to on a few exercises. 2) Barbells You need a good barbell, and, like dumbbells, they come in standard and Olympic. Again, definitely be sure that they're compatible with your dumbbells. Although, an Olympic bar won't fit on a standard bench, a 7-foot standard bar will work on an Olympic bench. A standard barbell set includes a 20 pound bar, 2 dumbbell handles (with collars) and 85 pounds of plates. A unit like this will run about $100. This isn't a lot of weight, so<a href=http://www.airmax-chaussures.net>air max chaussures</a> you'll probably want to buy more before too long. 3) Bench In a truly cheap home gym, you can use any old bench for presses and one-arm rows. Make sure that it's 2 to 3 feet wide and solid. A piano bench could work if it's heavy enough. Otherwise, a picnic bench also works well. Get creative: you can put something under the front or rear to have an incline or a decline bench. 4) Chin Up Bar A chin up bar can be constructed out of any material that will support your weight. You can find a chin up bar for $10 to $40. 5) Swiss Ball Although I think that these are somewhat overused, they can add a little variety to your home fitness gym workouts. In addition to making you look more sophisticated by simply having it around the house, they also increase balance and tend to strengthen the core muscles. You can find one for $20. 6) Jump Rope Jump rope for cardio: $5. Simple.<a href=http://www.airmax- chaussures.net>air max chaussures</a> 7) Stairs If you have a few stairs in your house, you can add a couple outstanding exercises. These include the lunge and the step-up. Since they elevate heart rate, both are good if you're performing circuit training. And, if you live in an apartment building with several flights of stairs, your cheap home gym includes a free stairclimber. 8) Yard If you have a backyard, you can always do basketball style conditioning drills, such as sprints and short intervals. Make sure to build up your joints and tendons first with slower, more deliberate strength training to avoid injury. And if you have solid walls, you could bounce a medicine ball. This move is good for ab development and keeping a high heart rate. <a href=http://www.airmax-chaussures.net>air max chaussures</a> Now that you've built it, don't forget to use it. 2 comments|post comment

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