• How do I get solar panels on my house?
  
  Solar Installation companies exist in most areas in the U.S. Unfortunately for Pittsburgh, where CCI is located, there are few option for solar installation. CCI is currently looking to get into the solar installation field. If you are interested in getting solar panels on your roof, we’d like to talk to you, you can email us at . If you’d like to do-it-yourself you can check out Gaiam.com for DIY solar installation packages. Or you can check out Solar Power Industries, a local partner of ours who manufactures solar panels.

• What tax incentives are available for weatherizing/insulating or getting solar panels on my home? Check out the article we wrote about Tax Credits on our web blog

• What do I need to know about the mercury in CFL’s?
  CFL’s do contain mercury vapors to make them function effectively. CLF’s contain 4-5 milligrams of the gas, but did you know that mercury is found in an array of health items such as vaccines for babies and infants as well as a standard tooth filling, which has almost 1 gram of mercury!? I imagine that some people have more mercury sitting in their teeth than is contained in one compact fluorescent bulb. It seems that there are some who are willing to forgo the usage of these energy saving bulbs just because there is some mercury in them, but don’t toss out the idea of their usage just yet. Think about this: burning fossil fuels like coal (which is the most widely used fuel in the United States) to produce electricity is the number one culprit of mercury in our air. CFL’s use less than 75% of the energy than that of an incandescent light bulb. So picture this, a power plant will emit 10mg of mercury to produce the electricity that an incandescent bulb needs to run while it will emit only 2.4mg’s to run a CFL. for more information on CFLs visit gelighting.com
• Where can I dispose of my CFLs?

If you live in the Pittsburgh area the Sierra Club would love to help you recycle your CFLs. The office is located at 3109 Forbes Avenue in Oakland, their office hours are 9:30am until 5pm Monday through Friday. IKEA stores are also willing to help you dispose of you used CFLs.
If your not privy to an IKEA or the Sierra Club of Pittsburgh go to earth911 or call 1800-clean-up to find a local recycling center.