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Open House

Green Home; Vegetable Oil Fuel for Your Car; Organic Products, Are They Worth It?; Val Kilmer's Treehouse

Aired October 20, 2007 - 09:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You can also watch some of this online today and feel the drama over and over, share it with your friends. Now, they are saying that this is an annual tradition. They want people to turn out each year, feel free to show up it.
And it's also, width wise, one of the largest bridges in the world, which is where this whole idea came from. What could be an event that could get people to come celebrate this bridge in West Virginia, there you go. That's what they got, Bridge Day.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: So, only eight seconds from the top of that bridge, when you jump, to the time that you could hit the water.

LEVS: Down to the rapids. Yeah, it would only be 8.8 seconds.

NGUYEN: So, really you need to pull that cord immediately.

LEVS: They pull it at four seconds, as a rule.

NGUYEN: I think I'd pull it as I'm still standing on the bridge, just to make sure.

LEVS: I don't I would do that. I mean. Whatever, there are some extreme sports crazes out there. I guess this is one of them, guys.

NGUYEN: Yeah, you know, and I don't jump out of perfectly good planes either, you know?

LEVS: No. Yeah, I'm a little too busy for that. I think that's my excuse.

NGUYEN: Thank you.

LEVS: You got it.

NGUYEN: Hey, coming up in the NEWSROOM, extreme drought, extreme measures. We're tell you bull all about that.

T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: But first, OPEN HOUSE with Gerri Willis starts right now.

GERRI WILLIS, HOST: Hello. I'm Gerri Willis and this is a special edition of OPEN HOUSE. We're going green and saving you money. One way to do that is right in your own home. We spent the afternoon with builder and homeowner, Mike Cascio. He made energy efficient upgrades to a new home with the help of his power company on Long Island. Check out how you can make small changes that can have a very big impact on the environment and your bottom line.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIS: Energy bills are going to go up 33 percent, a third this winter. You have some great ideas for showing us how you can save money on that bill. Show me.

MICHAEL CASCIO, HOMEOWNER & BUILDER: OK.

WILLIS: So, you say the hot water heater is critical. Why don't you show me yours?

CASCIO: OK.

WILLIS: All right. It's right here. It's a tiny little thing.

CASCIO: Yep, the old systems you used to have a free-standing tank and in that tank you were maintaining hot water all the time. The new on demand systems only use hot water when you call for it. So, when you're not home for a week, an hour, there's no hot water, there's no energy being used.

WILLIS: Big savings.

CASCIO: Big savings, yeah, absolutely.

WILLIS: So Mike, you say windows are important, too. You've got some double-hungs here. Why are these so much more energy efficient?

CASCIO: Absolutely, windows are probably one of your biggest heat losses in the house. New windows are not only double pane, which means two panes of glass, but now they're using what they call a "Low E" finish on them, which is they us an Argon gas in between, there's special coating on the glass, as well, that uses the sun's rays to let heat in the winter, reflect it out in the summer.

WILLIS: You've some Energy Star appliances in your kitchen. Let's take a look at them, they're a big savings, too. I see you an Energy Star dishwasher.

CASCIO: Yes, again, these are appliances you're using every day, so the potential to save is huge in both the dishwasher, refrigerator, as well, which is always constantly running. If I could guarantee you an investment if you get a 15 or 20 or 30 percent return, you'd sign up for it right away.

WILLIS: That's right.

CASCIO: Well, that's what you can get with in of these home improvements. WILLIS: So Mike, you've got insulation you put in up here and the beauty of this, even though it's old school, is that as a homeowner I could put it in myself.

CASCIO: Absolutely, this is something you can do on the weekend. You can come up into your attic and you find out you have no insulation. You can properly size by simply measuring what your bays are and going to your local improvement store and buying something that fits it.

WILLIS: Now, you air conditioning unit, also energy rated -- Energy Star rated, you've done something special here in this new house that's now required, but if you have an older house you may not have it. Tell me about that.

CASCIO: Well, in the old days you were just putting in, simply putting in metal duct work. And that metal duct work had absolutely no insulation on it.

WILLIS: So these are the ducts that are going to carry the air conditioning to different parts of house.

CASCIO: Yes, they're all now, by code, they come, they're insulated. If you have older metal ducts in your house, again, that's something you can do yourself by simply covering and wrapping the duct work with insulation.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIS: If you want to make green improvements in your home and get the most return for your money, first off, seal your house. The air that leaks in through the cracks and gaps in your home could be the same as leaving a window open all year long. Use insulation and weather stripping to seal out the cold. You could save 200 bucks.

Look for Energy Star products. These are energy efficient home products that will return their extra costs within five years. The savings calculators on Energystar.gov will show you how quickly your investment will pay off.

A high efficiency washing machine could, for example, could pay off in just three years. And check with your local utility company, they may offer incentives to help you upgrade.

For a fascinating look at the effects of global warming, join CNN's Anderson Cooper, chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta and wildlife biologist Jeff Corwin for the four-hour documentary "PLANET IN PERIL," airing this Tuesday and Wednesday at 9:00 p.m. Eastern, right here on CNN.

Lots more ahead on this special edition of OPEN HOUSE. Cows are cutting electricity costs for one dairy farm in California. We'll show you how.

Then, how you drive can affect the environment and your bottom line. And movie star Val Kilmer is living the high life the green way. We'll explain.

But first, your "Tip of the Day."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIS (voice-over): Think you're going green washing your dishes by hand? Wrong. Using a dishwasher for a full load of dishes saves 35 percent more water than hand washing. That's not the only way going green in the kitchen can save serious cash.

(on camera): Here we have a refrigerator with the regular fridge up here and the freezer down, that's one of the new design styles. And in fact, it's more energy efficient than the side-by-side, 15 percent more energy efficient. So, if you want to cut your bills, get a refrigerator like this.

(voice-over): What about cooking that casserole? A gas oven with an electric ignition is 50 percent more efficient than that electric oven. And make sure to check Energystar.gov to find the most efficient appliances all over your house.

That's your "Tip of the Day."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WILLIS: You may think trains, planes and automobiles are to blame for most greenhouse gases, but you would be wrong. Methane has 21 times the warming potential of CO2. One farm in California is working to use methane to its advantage.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIS (voice-over): These cows produce almost one million pounds of milk a day and almost as much waste. But the waste isn't wasted at this Gallow dairy farm in Atwater, California. The cow manure contains the gas methane, which is used to generate almost six million kilowatt hours of electricity per year here, almost 70 percent of the farm's electric needs.

CARL MORRIS, GENERAL MGR, JOSEPH FARMS: How do we collect the manure? It's flushed. Water flushes down the lanes where the cows stand and then it goes into these channels and water flows down to a separator. The water with the manure in it is pumped up over the separators and the coarse solids fall off the front and they're taken away and composted. And the water with the suspended and dissolved solids goes through pipelines underground to our digester.

WILLIS: And that's where the bacteria and the water convert the nutrients in biogas which floats to the top and is collected.

MORRIS: It's taken over to a treatment system. It removes the hydrogen sulified and the moisture through a refrigerated gas dryer, then the gas is piped in a low-pressure pipeline around the dairy, over to the cheese plant and then it's used to fuel two engines.

WILLIS: Harvesting methane not only reduces the harmful greenhouse gas, it also reduces the amount of fossil fuels burned and thus the amount of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere. All in all , the project cost close to $3 million, a little more than one- third of which was covered by government and utilities subsidies in this case, by PG&E. The farm expects the project to pay for itself in less than five years.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIS: Gives a whole new meaning to cow pie.

Utility companies are pushing to collect extra energy from methane plants and resell that green energy to consumers across the grid. In addition to methane, carbon dioxide is another culprit and transportation is responsible for most CO2 emissions.

Hey, but there are ways you can save the environment and your budget when it comes to your own car. Robert Sinclair is with AAA. He's here with us.

Good to see you.

ROBERT SINCLAIR, AAA: Good to see you.

WILLIS: All right. So, if I'm going to save money driving my car without getting a hybrid, you say job No. 1 is change your driving style.

SINCLAIR: Absolutely, driving style, you know, being very aggressive when behind the wheel, charging off from the stoplights, waiting to the late braking, speeding.

WILLIS: I hate those people, anyway. You know?

SINCLAIR: Yeah, they're terrible. Not only that, probably you're breaking the law in doing so, but those things can burn up to an extra $1,000 per year, those bad habits. And doing things like slowing down when we're on the highway, being more gentle, leaving extra time when we're on our commute. Combing our errands with our commute, go a long way to saving money on gasoline.

WILLIS: You know, a friend of mine says he coasts and he gets 40 to 50 miles a gallon. I just had to add that. But, of course, maintaining your car, very big deal. How much can I save by maintaining my car?

SINCLAIR: More than $1,000 and we're talking about things like spark plugs that are fouled up, or oxygen sensors, things like that. Each one of those can waste 30 to 40 percent of your gasoline. And it really adds up.

Gasoline is upward of $2.70 a gallon these days. It's going to add up a lot. So, vehicle maintenance is very important. Unfortunately, a lot of people, because of manufacturers commercials, think we don't have to do maintenance. But we still do.

WILLIS: Oh yeah, you do. And you say, you come on my show and you say lose weight. What do you mean?

SINCLAIR: Lose weight, junk in the truck. You're carrying around a lot of extra baggage. Maybe even when you go on a trip you've got things on top of the vehicle, that kills the aerodynamics. But having those extra things in the trunk, the golf clubs and all those various items that we carry...

WILLIS: Not good.

SINCLAIR: Well, very bad.

WILLIS: Do you know how much that costs me?

SINCLAIR: That's upwards of 100 bucks or more per year. That might not seem like a lot, but it adds up.

WILLIS: Idle more.

SINCLAIR: For every hour that you're sitting at idle, you're burning a gallon of gasoline.

WILLIS: Wow.

SINCLAIR: Yeah.

WILLIS: So, if you are like in a traffic jam, it's a good thing.

SINCLAIR: Well, that might not be a good idea shutting the engine off then. But if you pull over to a stop and you're waiting for someone and if you're going to be there more than 60 seconds, shut the engine off. The common question is, do you burn more gasoline idleing or when you start the vehicle up. Well, if it's not running, you're not burning, so obviously.

WILLIS: Now, another idea, which I thought was really smart, never heard before, thinner grade of oil. Tell me about these products that help.

SINCLAIR: Well, there are oils designed to save gasoline and there are also the synthetic oils and because they're slipperier, there's less internal friction within the engine. And the more friction that those parts have to overcome, the more horsepower they're going to use, the more gasoline they'll burn.

Yeah, so switching to a thinner oil, especially in the winter time, which makes it harder to start when you've got that thick oil trying to overcome the jelly-like effect that oil has when it gets cold. It really helps you out a lot.

WILLIS: Robert, I think we've saved thousands of dollars, here. Thank you so much.

SINCLAIR: He have, definitely. You're welcome. Thank you. WILLIS: High gas prices make it expensive to drive. But, what if you could get a restaurant to pay you to cart away their used vegetable oil? And what if that oil could then be used as an alternative fuel for your car?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIS (voice-over): Forget the gas pumps. Vegetable oils, new or used in the tank of your diesel vehicle.

NORWOOD CHEEK, LOVECRAFT CUSTOMER: I have been looking for kind of an alternative energy car for a while and it seemed like veggie oil was a way to go. I drove past Lovecraft several times and decided, wow, if these folks are doing this right here in my neighborhood, then I need to find a diesel car to convert.

WILLIS: So, Norwood Cheek did.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All of the components are in the engine compartment.

WILLIS: In about three hours, the folks at Lovecraft in Los Angeles outfitted his engine to run on vegetable oil.

TRACEE WEBB, OWNER, LOVECRAFT BIOFUELS: People have been doing vegetable oil conversions for, you know, many years. That most of the systems have been two-tank systems. Our system is the one-tank system where you can put biodiesel, diesel or vegetable oil or waste vegetable oil all in one tank in any proportion.

WILLIS: But you don't have to pay a professional. For a few hundred dollars, depending on the make and model of your car, you can buy a DIY kit.

WEBB: Straight vegetable oil is just clean vegetable oil you can get at any grocery store and straight vegetable oil can be soy oil, peanut oil, canola oil, but mainly, we want people to use oils that are local to them.

WILLIS: One benefit, the oddly familiar smell of French fries.

WEBB: People love it. They get so excited about doing something that's not supporting foreign oil and also that is better for the environment.

CHEEK: The maiden voyage of this car. And it's running pretty smooth. I'm excited. I just got to go to the grocery store and get some gas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIS: That's crazy.

Most diesel drivers should know wait to switch veggie oil until their car's warranty is expired. It's a good idea because making alterations to the energy would likely render that warranty null and void.

Still ahead on OPEN HOUSE, organic products, are they worth your money or simply a rip-off?

Then, he's known for his movies, but there's something you don't know about Val Kilmer and it has to do with a tree.

But first, your mortgage numbers.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WILLIS: Organic products, they're supposed to be better for you and the environment. But, hey, you know they usually cost more as well. So, is it worth the investment or are you just getting ripped off? Decide for yourself.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIS: They say organic, Urvashi, but you look all through this store and you can buy organic anything: organic grapefruit, organic kiwi - you name it, grapes, mangos, it's everywhere. But at the end of the day, what really pays to buy organic?

URVASHI RANGAN, SENIOR SCIENTIST, CONSUMER REPORTS: It's a great question. And people don't have umpteen dollars to spend, and there's often a premium associated with organic.

WILLIS: As much as 50 percent, right? I mean, a lot of money.

RANGAN: That's absolutely right. Yes. And there are some ways to cut that. You can shop at local farmers' markets, as well.

But if you're going to prioritize your organic dollars, you're buying say, for health reasons, but there's also certain vegetables and fruits that typically contain higher numbers of pesticide residues and higher levels conventionally. And so, if you want to get the most value for your organic buck, buying organic versions of those can be really helpful.

WILLIS: So, what's on the dirty dozen list? Which wouldn't you buy and which would you buy, Urvashi?

RANGAN: Well, for example, apples have been shown to have very high pesticide residue levels, peaches, as well. So, those are great examples of fruits that you might want to choose organic.

WILLIS: Wow, this is awesome. So, what does it mean when meat is organic? Does that have any real meaning?

RANGAN: Yes. Actually, organic meat production is very significant in terms of value added. The animals don't eat animal byproducts, they don't receive antibiotics, synthetic growth hormones, steroids.

They eat all organic diets from vegetables that were grown organically. So, there's a lot of value to having it. WILLIS: So, you say that when you eat seafood, you really take your chances. Right?

RANGAN: Well, I think that a lot of people are looking for, say, more natural seafood than not. Here are the key labels when you're trying to decipher that.

"Wild caught" means that a particular seafood was fished from the ocean. "Farm-raised" means that it was generally raised in a fish farm.

WILLIS: So, Urvashi, when I'm picking up cleaning supplies, there are lots of labels that are confusing. I don't know if they're marketing labels or they actually mean something. Are these meaningful? Or is it just a marketing gimmick?

RANGAN: A number of cleaning products make a lot of natural claims. And if you see something that sounds vague or just meaningless, treat it as such. Take the product, flip it over. You're going to need to do some additional work.

So, if something says "natural," for instance, there are no standards for what that has to mean. If something says "nontoxic," there are no standards for what that has to mean.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIS: All right, keep in mind when it comes to cleaning products, the federal government does not regulate what's green and what's not. For example, many companies get away with using the label "all natural" because the product's No. 1 ingredient is, that's right, water.

As always, if you have an idea on how to save money, send us an e-mail to openhouse@cnn.com. And if you want to check out this project savings again, check out our Web site, cnn.com/openhouse.

Still ahead, see how movie star Val Kilmer is living the high life and doing his part to save the environment.

But first, your "Local Lowdown."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATRICK CONLON, DIR OFFICE OF ENERGY MGMT: The Palm Desert Energy Partnership is an energy conservation program with a 5-year goal to save 30 percent of our energy citywide, a 250 million kilowatt savings in electrical energy.

WILLIS (voice-over): New residential and commercial buildings must consume 10 percent less energy than currently allowed by state law.

CONLON: The program entails incentives for people to invest in energy efficiency in their homes and businesses. WILLIS: Some ideas? Install solar panels, Energy Star appliances, high-performance windows and high efficiency air conditioning. Palm Desert is also banning drive-through restaurants and declaring electric golf carts street legal in order to lower carbon dioxide emissions. That's your "Local Lowdown."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WILLIS: Most people know Val Kilmer from the big screen, ever wondered where he goes when he needs a break? Well, no not to the spa or a luxurious resort or a villa in Tuscany. Val Kilmer likes to unwind in a tree. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VAL KILMER, ACTOR: Bruce Wayne.

WILLIS (voice-over): From "Batman..."

KILMER: You're everyone's problem.

WILLIS: To "Iceman," to Jim Morrison, Val Kilmer's career has been bright lights and red carpets. But, it's when he gets away from it all that he feels most at home.

KILMER: As soon as you get in it, you see every adult just immediately used to start smiling. It's just fun to be in a tree.

WILLIS: No million-dollar mansion for Kilmer. He escapes to a 300-square-foot treehouse tucked into a tiny corner of his 6,000-acre New Mexico ranch.

KILMER: Yeah, I mean, I lived in New York for ten years and loved it, but I think once you find out what you really want, it's important to live where you pray the best, where you're the healthiest.

WILLIS: For Kilmer, this project was a labor of love.

KILMER: I put every darn nail in this treehouse. It's all built with screws, you see. That's my little contribution.

WILLIS: The real genius behind this design, treehouse designer Roderick Romero who's built above ground hideaways for Sting and Donna Karen.

RODERICK ROMERO, TREEHOUSE DESIGNER: I got a call and it was Val and he says, "Hey, you know, I want to have you out to New Mexico. Are you interested in coming?" and I said, absolutely.

KILMER: Roderick would nod and smile and pretend to consider my ideas and then he just did what he wanted.

WILLIS: What he wanted was a natural design built to complement its surroundings.

ROMERO: Nature is the architect and we're just trying to figure out how to work within it.

WILLIS: Within it and with it.

ROMERO: This actual treehouse is 100 percent reclaimed. All salvaged from various areas within five miles of this exact site. So, that's what makes it look like the structure has been here forever.

KILMER: Go ahead, Manny, go ahead. Just to share this land and the wilderness and the wildlife with my children is a priceless experience. Just saw a coyote hopping through this tall grass. Not hopping. What are they do? Pronking (ph) almost, just seeing every six or eight feet, it's strangely satisfying.

WILLIS: Kilmer's love for nature, particularly trees, has deep roots. His second cousin Joyce Kilmer wrote the famous poem "Trees" in 1913.

KILMER: I think that I shall never see a poem as lovely as a tree. So it's in the blood, the treehouse.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WILLIS: There's another star on Kilmer's ranch that we've just got to show you. Val has the biggest goat we've ever seen. Say hi to Tommy. He weighs 300 pounds. Well, the camera adds a few extra pounds, of course. It's right out of the movies.

We'll continue to make the environment your personal business, here on OPEN HOUSE from going green at home to being green at work and on the road. And of course, we'll save you money at the same time.

You can hear much more about the impact of this week's news on your money on a special green edition of YOUR MONEY with Christine Romans and Ali Velshi coming up in a few hours at 1:00 p.m. Eastern here on CNN.

As always, we thank you for spending part of your Saturday with us. OPEN HOUSE will be back next week right here on CNN. And you can catch us on HEADLINE NEWS every Saturday and Sunday at 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time. Don't go anywhere, your top stories are next in the CNN NEWSROOM. Have a great weekend.

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