Green Build Boston Show Review

This week we attended the Build Boston show in Boston MA and got free passes to the Greenbuild Expo which was also held in Boston.  The Green Build Expo had the largest WOW factor of any show that I have ever attended!  From the vendor selection to the layout to even the free beverage stands, the show was a model of what a Green Show should look like.

The Green Build expo’s security did a good job keeping out the random people off the street who just attend events for something to do.  This allowed the vendors to handout all sorts of goodies to people that might actually use their goods and or services.  While the show floor had thousands of people at all times, the venue was so large that we never once felt crowded.  Most of the booths that we visited were staffed by knowledgeable people who could answer all of the questions that we asked of them.  This green show was not staffed by sexy college girls working for $15 an hour without an interest in promoting a product line.

We walked the show floor of the Green Build Expo from about 3pm until it closed at 6pm on both Wednesday and Thursday.  The 6 hours that we spent on the show floor was about really not enough time to meet with all of the vendors that we had an interest in talking to.  If you are planning to attend the show next year, I would suggest being there from when the doors open until they close each day.

Greenbuild Boston Expo Highlights

RECYCLING BINS

If you have ever spent any time on my blog you would know that I have a thing for recycling and recycling bins.  In fact, I love to take pictures of recycling bins and see if people actually used them based on their design, placement and ease of use.  I feel that one of the highlights of this Green Show is the amount of vendors who were selling recycling bins, recycling garbage stations, solar powered recycling stations and recycling products in general.  Another thing of interest was that they actually had staffing at some of the shows recycling stations to educate people on what garbage goes in what bin.  I found out that my coffee cup belonged in the composting bin, I did not even know that coffee cups could be composted!

DRAINING EXTERIOR SURFACES

Gone are the days of rain water run off issues since almost every exterior surface that you could dream of is now being made to drain water.  Several vendors had running water displays to show how their asphalt, stone and other exterior surfaces could drain water.  Some of these displays were several inches thick and they drained water from a garden hose as quick as the water could be applied!

REPLACEMENT WINDOWS

Since I own a replacement window company in Boston I love to learn about all of the new glass technology as it is invented and rolled out into the market place.  When you have several different glass and window companies showing off their new inventions it keeps the whole industry on their toes with new inventions.  The triple pane replacement windows that are in the market place today perform several times better than windows from even 5 years ago!  One of the vendors had windows with built in solar panels, another had a skylight with a built in water heater!

EXPANDING LIVING SPACE WITHOUT ADDITIONS

I’m a big fan of expanding your living space without expanding the foot print of your home (building an addition).  We talked to a vendor of the only green certified basement system on the market.  I never knew that basement systems were in the market place that actually looked attractive unlike ones that look like they belong in mobile homes!  The vendor’s R-17 wall system that has zero potential for mold/mildew issues was so impressive that my company might add it to our product line!

Another impressive system was a system that is used on flat roofs to suspend a decking system above the roof that will not harm the roof.  The system looks like a great way for commercial buildings to add outdoor space without ripping up lawns or disturbing the environment.

In conclusion, I would suggest this show to and Green Building Professional and anyone who has any interest in green products, green vendors or ideas on how to “green up” their home or business.  Over the next few weeks I will update this post or create new posts in order to highlight some of the green products that we found interesting.

Part #2 of cheap solar power.

A couple weeks ago I bought a few cheap solar powered lights from a home center and this is the review on the solar powered LED clip light. This solar powered light is intended for lighting outdoor tables but I found many other uses for it. The solar panel size is about 2″ wide by 7″ long and it charges 3 1.2 volt Ni-Cd batteries. The batteries provide power for the 6 LED lights and 6 LED lights provide a ton of light!

We found that the solar panel is large enough to charge the batteries in such a short time that the panel has the potential to be used as a battery charger along with being a good light. This is where the issue about cheap products enter in, the cheap plastic housing does not look like it will hold up if I keep opening it. I assume that someone with a little skill could rewire it and charge the batteries externally if they wanted to. So far the black plastic has not warped due to being left out in the sun all day. Hopefully Hampton Bay designed this solar charger so it will hold up to the UV rays!

Since my 6 year old daughter has a passion for sleeping with flashing lights and leaving them on all night, this light is our green solution! Now that she uses this as her night time reading lamp and as her night light we are going to put a couple of batteries companies out of business. I feel that this product could be considered green since it provides power (lights) by using the sun. Since the light only cost around $15.00, I would recommend it for anyone that is looking for some cheap solar lights.

Stay tuned for our next review on solar powered lights for your stairs (outdoors stairs).