Waste not, want not, go green, stay healthy

The Green Shop helps homeowners save money while saving their health

Susan Schell

of the Gateway

A lot of Washingtonians are staunch environmentalists and “going green” is all the rage. People are tired of putting up with toxins inside their homes, but finding eco-friendly building supplies can turn into a frustrating hunting expedition.

No longer with “The Green Shop” in town. The shop opened up next to El Pueblito Restaurant on Harborview Drive in April and specializes in “green” building supplies.

“We cover everything from the foundation to the top of your roof,” said Eric Byers, who runs the shop with his fiancée, Diana Chatelain. “My clients are homeowners, contractors, anyone who is interested in green products or being more eco-conscious.”

If Byers doesn’t carry exactly what a client wants, he will connect them with vendors who can help get the job done.

“I outsource to people who are professionals in their fields,” he said. “And I deal with the very best in those fields. All people have to do is come in and tell me what they want and I can make a list. Someone might say, ‘What can I do right now that’s going to reduce my power bill?’ Or we can set them up for a full home remodel.”

Something as simple as replacing light bulbs with LED lights can immediately start saving on electricity. Byers also sells on-demand hot water systems and DuctwoRx, a system that goes in the HVAC after the filter and bombards the air with a UVX lamp. The system kills bacteria viruses, yeast and mold in the air.

“It’s like scrubbing and sterilizing the air,” Byers said. “They use them in day care centers and have found a decrease of up to 60 percent in illness in the kids.”

Laundry-pure is a device that attaches to most washing machines that cleans clothes without soap, bleach, fabric softener or hot water.

Roofing material made from recycled rubber can be custom colored or shaped to look like cedar shaker or tiles. Permeable concrete can be used in place of asphalt to absorb rainwater runoff and reduce or eliminate the need for a water retention pond near large structures. Large containers designed to collect rainwater runoff from roof gutters are modern looking and come in different colors.

“You can hook these up to your hoses and sprinkler systems and use the gray water for gardening, landscaping or washing your car, just with what comes off your roof,” Byers said. “Around here it doesn’t take too long to collect enough.”

Byers has been in the construction field for many years. Looking around his store, he said, “For the most part, most of the stuff I have in my store I have in my house. I don’t sell stuff if I don’t use it.”

The Green Shop offers demonstrations of products to educate the public and is moving toward setting up a monthly workshop.

“Education is the biggest thing,” Byers said. “There are a lot of products out there that people just don’t know exist and that’s the problem.”

The shop has environmental newsletters written especially for children.

“We’re the generation that has the technology and it’s up to us to use it,” Byers said.

“The decisions we’re making now are life changing for the future. We just need to act. The time for procrastination is over.”

The Green Shop LLC

Located near the waterfront, the shop leads homeowners down the path to an eco-friendly environment

Address: 3226 Harborview Drive in Gig Harbor, next to El Pueblito Mexican Restaurant

Phone: 253-509-0334 or 253-514-1661. E-mail enbyers@yahoo.com

Reach Lifestyles Coordinator and reporter Susan Schell at 253-853-9240 or by e-mail at susan.schell@