Earth Friendly Focus at Cedar House Inn & Yurts, Dahlonega, Georgia

Earth Friendly Features & Operations

Eco/Earth Friendly, Green Lodging

We are sensitive to the Earth we call home and the utilization and conservation of our natural resources. We offer an alternative that has less impact on the Earth's resources than other types of lodging while maintaining a comfortable environment.

We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect. Aldo Leopold

"Your advocacy for responsible, sustainable hospitality is inspiring." The Laseters, Georgia

We feel that the Earth's resources are finite and all human beings should conserve them. Our water and air are the most obvious examples of resources that mankind has chosen to not care for. Clean water is becoming scarcer in many parts of the world and the air we breathe is becoming more contaminated with automobile exhaust and pollution created by manufacturing processes.

What have we done to preserve the earth's resources?

At the Cedar House Inn we are sensitive to the Earth we call home and the utilization of our natural resources. Since August 2003 we have been offering guests a lodging alternative that has less impact on the earth's resources. We don't talk green, we live it.

Inn Design

In deciding where to have our inn we chose to find an existing structure needing repairs House that became Cedar House Inn.

versus building a new building. A new structure would have increased our carbon footprint and the impact on the environment.

The building we purchased had great "bones" but was in serious need of renovations and repairs (pictures at right). The realtor mentioned that many "passed" on the property due to the condition. Had we not purchased the property it most likely would have been purchased by another party for rental property and fallen into greater disrepair.

A positive we immediately noticed was that the inn was designed using passive solar

principles. The structure faces south to capture the sun's warmth with most windows located on the southern, eastern and western exposures. Larger than normal roof overhangs allow winter sunlight to reach inside the home and summer sun to be deflected. Quarry tile floors in the living room collect the winter sun's heat thereby reducing the need for conventional heating in the day time hours. An airtight wood stove in the living room helps in heating the inn during evening hours. We use only standing dead wood and newly fallen trees for our cord wood. Framing lumber for the inn was purchased from local saw mills.

Structures' Footprint

The yurts are built on decks elevated off the ground to minimize the footprint on the earth. Typical homes on concrete foundations disrupt the ground. The yurts also are fully insulated to reduce heating and cooling demands. When remodeling to add two guest rooms with private baths and the bath house, we stayed within the original footprint of the house and patio minimizing impact on the environment.

Wildlife/Landscaping

Prior to our purchasing the property all trees and shrubbery near the house had been removed for unknown reasons as seen in picture above. Birds and wildlife were absent.

We have planted over 200 fast growing deciduous and evergreen trees and bushes to provide shade and to create a more favorable habitat for birds and wildlife. A large variety of birds have returned. Deer and rabbits are seen occasionally in the evenings. Restoring the habitat through planting native trees has also helped in sequestering carbon dioxide and lowering the property's carbon footprint.

We will continue adding trees over time. The property is certified by the National Wildlife Federation as a "Backyard Wildlife Habitat". We have provided food, water and shelter for birds and wildlife.

Studies show that trees can produce savings of more than 50% in air conditioning use & associated energy costs & as much as 17% of heating bills. National Arbor Day Foundation

Our lawn is considered a "Freedom Lawn" where weeds and clover are allowed to grow with the various grasses. This eliminates the need for watering, fertilizer, pesticides and herbicides. Most homes have "Industrial Lawns" that require frequent fertilizing, pest control, weed control and watering which impacts the eco system in a negative way. (from the book by Herbert Bormann, "Redesigning the American Lawn", Yale University Press, 1993). We are adding wildflower and native plant/tree areas to reduce mowing, watering and maintenance.

Energy & Water Conservation

In the rooms and yurts we have added low wattage fluorescent lights to lower electricity consumption and limit the need for more power generated

The average Georgian uses 25% more electricity in their home than the national average. And more than 97% of the electricity generated in the state comes from nonrenewable sources of energy.

by electric generation plants that may use fossil fuels. The new lights also generate less heat than incandescent bulbs making cooling easier during the warmer months. Each light switch plate has "turn off the light" stickers to remind guests to conserve.

The baseboard heaters in the rooms, yurts and bath house use a silicone fluid to heat the area saving electricity in the process of generating heat. The portable air conditioners in the yurts have an EER (Energy Efficiency Rating) higher than 12 which is considered good.

If every American home replaced just 5 high-use incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescents, each family would save more than $60 every year in energy costs. Together we'd keep more than one trillion pounds of greenhouse gases out of our air – equal to the emissions of 8 million cars. That's a $6 billion energy savings for Americans, equivalent to the annual output of more than 21 power plants. Energy Star

The shower heads in the bathrooms are "low flow" and use only 1.5 gallons per minute. They provide a more comfortable and stimulating shower than conventional "low flow" heads by adding oxygen to the water. Aerators (1.5 gpm) are also installed on all sinks to conserve water.

We wash bed and bath linens with an EnergyStar rated washer, Fisher & Paykel Ecosmart model. During good weather a clothes line is used to dry guest linens. Sunshine serves as a great

earth friendly bleach for whitening towels.

In the inn, storm windows have also been added to all windows and ceiling fans in every room to reduce heating and cooling needs. Caulking has been performed to minimize outside air filtration.

Low flow toilets & showerheads can save the average household about 30 gallons of water/day. the book "One Makes a Difference" by Julia Butterfly Hill

Both hot water heaters are propane and have been wrapped in blankets to hold heat longer.

In the future we hope to add solar hot water heating systems and solar electric.

We recently replaced the dark asphalt shingle roof with a metal silver roof to reflect the summer heat by providing a radiant barrier. A metal roof also prevented us from needing to tear off the old shingles and dispose of them in the landfill.

Composting Toilets

The yurts have composting toilets that require no water. Ninety per cent of the waste that goes into a traditional toilet is liquid and ends up in a septic system or sewage treatment plant with the possibility of contaminating the water that we all eventually drink. The composting toilets evaporate the liquids and create a usable compost at the end of the composting process. Composting toilets also do not require a septic system that often requires the destruction of trees and vegetation for drain fields.

Greywater Systems

We would have a greywater system for the property but it is illegal under Georgia codes. It's

unfortunate that Georgia has chosen to outlaw greywater systems since they not only preserve the groundwater (that we all drink) but also give a source of water for irrigation of plants. Summer water restrictions could be eliminated if homeowners could water their lawns with greywater from their showers, sinks, dishwashers and clothes washing machines. For more information on this topic and the system shown at right visit Greywater.

We do use a bucket in our personal shower to catch the colder water before it turns warm to keep it from going down the shower drain. We use the water for watering houseplants or flushing the toilet in our bathroom. Rain barrels and gutters will be added in the future to collect water for the garden and plants.

Food Purchasing

We use only organic milk and eggs are free range from a farm not too far from the inn (yes we visit the chickens during our egg pick ups). We also purchase organic coffee. Herbs from our garden add zest to the breakfast. We are also mindful to purchase food that is not in containers/packaging that cannot be recycled.

Office Supplies

We use copy paper that has recycled content. We also recycle our printer cartridges. We use an energy star rated laptop computer. We do not print brochures to save trees. Business documents and sensitive junk mail is shredded and placed in our garden composter for compost. Our web site is hosted by a company that uses 100% Green Energy.

Recycling, Reuse, Composting & Gardening

Recycling bins are located in each room and yurt.

Americans dispose of 810,000 aluminum cans/year. If they were recycled 730 million gallons of oil would be saved by not making new cans from scratch. Sierra Club

We make a frequent trips to our local recycling center for bottles, cans, plastics and paper. Also we have built bottle trees and shrubs made of used wine bottles from guests(see picture below). They are colorful and provide an "artsy" look to the gardens.

Paper napkins guests use at breakfast, paper towels and toilet paper are made from recycled paper (from Publix GreenWise) to conserve trees. Occasionally we also use cloth napkins that can be reused.

We have started using reusable grocery bags on many trips to the grocery store. Sometimes we forget to bring them and resuse the plastic bags as trash can liners.

Compared to paper made from 100% virgin forest fiber, paper made from 100% recycled content reduces:

total energy consumption by 44%

net greenhouse gas emissions by 38%

particulate emissions by 41%

wastewater by 50%

solid waste by 49%

wood use by 100%

Environmental Defense Paper Calculator.

Cooked food waste is disposed in our solar food composter. Garden, vegetable scraps are composted in our Sun Mar Garden Composter. Our small vegetable garden uses biointensive techniques to minimize the need for weeding and insect control. Herbs from the garden provide seasoning. We hope that the garden increases in size over time to provide more of the ingredients needed for breakfast. In the meantime, wild blackberries already add sweetness to summer meals.

Food waste sent to landfills generate a majority of the methane gas (worse than carbon dioxide) created by landfills and can make up as much as 40% of landfill trash. A solar food composter can help.

We only make trips to the local landfill every few months since we either compost, recycle or resuse most of what we have. We also love to go shopping to the local nonprofit thrift store (Community Helping Place) for household items and clothing. We in turn donate things we no longer need or use back to the thrift store.

If every household in the U.S. replaced just 1 roll of virgin toilet paper with just 1 recycled roll 424,000 trees would be saved. Kleercut.net

Housekeeping Methods

Earth friendly cleaning products are used to

The average home contains 25 gallons of hazardous chemicals - a major portion of these can be found in household cleaning products. Deirdre Imus

clean the inn and do the laundry. Laundry and dishwashing detergent is from Trader Joe's. We make most of our own cleaning products (see some recipes at green cleaners).

Plastic grocery bags are recycled for trash can liners as previously noted.

Soap and shampoo dispensers reduce waste in guest bathrooms (no little plastic bottles or unused soap bars to throw away).

What can you do as a guest?

As a guest we want you to be as comfortable as possible and enjoy yourself.

There are a few things you can do if you choose to help us preserve and sustain our natural

resources.

Turn off lights when leaving your room, yurt or bath house. If in a yurt turn off or turn up the thermostat on your air conditioner while you are out for a few hours or for the day. In the cooler months turn off or turn down the thermostat on your heater before leaving the rooms and yurts.

In a yurt keep the astrofoil window covers over the windows in cold weather to maintain the warmth created by the heaters.

Bed and bath linens are not changed on a daily basis to conserve water. If you need linens please let us know. Also hang towels after bathing and we will dry them on the clothes line (weather permitting).

Please use recycling bins for plastic, cans, glass and paper that tears.

Your participation is greatly appreciated.

At your own home consider the " 5 R's, Rethink your purchases, discover your consumer power; Respect life; Reduce the amount you purchase; ReUse what you already have; Recycle to save energy and water (keep paper glass, plastic and aluminum out of overflowing landfills)". from the book "One Makes a Difference" by Julia Butterfly Hill

Thanks for helping us conserve and preserve our natural resources.

Cedar House Inn and Yurts are members of the following:

"Although we recycle at home, we probably waste without being aware. You have certainly given us an awareness that will help us make small changes to "Going Green" and small changes can make a big difference in the future for our girls." The French's, Georgia