In a time when everyone seems to be pushing for green appliances it may be time to re-evaluate one of the largest energy hogs in my home, the washer / dryer.

Now, I am sure there are some energy efficient models sold in every department store around the country, but just walking into a store and buying that shiny showcased appliance certainly isn’t as much fun as building one yourself. Homemade washing machine? sounds like fun.

And, who says it has to be some large techie project? check out this energy efficient clothing washer below. It needs no power, little water and runs on leg power. I’ll call this the  “good for your heart” model. Can’t beat that with a stick.

This one here, a bit more complex than the previous washer model above. A lot more work to build, but, you get a lot more washer. Also, you get more of a health benefit for using it since now you aren’t just walking to do the laundry, but cycling. The cool thing about this one is you no longer have to worry about your clothing shrinking in the laundry and not fitting you. Along with the shrinking clothes, you will also have a shrinking waistline. If you do laundry for a large family, you may have to sneak in a few cheeseburgers between loads to make sure that you don’t out-shrink than your clothing. The environment friendly washer below is also a dryer.

Check it out.

If the above model is too complex, there is a scaled down version that is a washing machine only

Face it, people. Flying cars are science fiction, and no matter how badly you want to be Marty McFly the closest thing you’re ever gonna get to a flying car is a tiny airplane. But hey, the basic tenants of logic don’t stop people from chasing the dream, and who are we to judge?

Vernon Porter and Clarence Kissell are hard at work on their own flying automobile in their backyard shop in Texas . Seeing that these enterprising engineers are 72 and 70 respectively, they’ve got more motivation than the average dreamer to get their car off the ground before they’re six feet beneath it. Will it take to the skies? Well, not to be a cynic, but I’d be very surprised. But don’t let that stop you, Vern and Clarence! Prove my cold, jaded heart wrong! –Adam Frucci

and for the non-grandpa design… I may trust the older men more on this one

Need to get to another city really fast? Just drive your car to the nearest airport, take off, land in your destination city, and drive to where you want to go. That’s the scenario envisioned by Milner Motors as it unveils a prototype of its AirCar, coupled with its ElectriCar, at the 2008 New York auto show.

The AirCar prototype won’t fly you anywhere now, but you can drive it, and it could be your transportation of the future.

Check out CNET Car Tech for more coverage of the 2008 New York auto show.