Simple Steps

Cutting energy consumption painlessly

© Bryan Zepp Jamieson
3/11/07
http://www.mytown.ca/zepp

Last week, I wrote about the fooforaw the right wing set up about Al Gore’s electric bill. I showed how this organized and corporate-financed group of thugs and liars launched a smear to try and counter the positive publicity “An Inconvenient Truth” garnered from winning two Academy Awards.

The piece drew a fair bit of response, mostly positive. But several made one point that I couldn’t refute: why doesn’t Gore live in a smaller place? With most who asked the question, it was politically motivated, and they would quickly dry up and blow away if I simply asked them if they favored laws mandating an upper limit to the size of a home a family might live in. As happens far too often with right wingers, they wanted to limit good behavior – which they see as a sign of personal weakness – to those on the other side.

But one significant exception to this came from a local resident, Todd Cory. Todd, who has been featured in several magazines for his energy-saving lifestyle, doesn’t ask that particular question for political purposes (in fact, he likes Gore), and would strongly approve of people living in more reasonably-sized homes. Todd wrote, “Al Gore does not walk his talk and it is correct to chastise him for this... not make excuses. I see this all the time. There are so many "green" people that are all about talk yet do not behave in a way that reflects that... it is called cognizant dissonance.” Up here in the northern mountains, we were discovered as an enclave of peace and serenity by frightened wealthy urbanites from the Bay Area in the wake of 9/11, and they’ve been busily striving to tear up the woods and build McMansions all around the Mount Shasta area. Many of them assuage their feelings about their houses by showing up for pro-environment events in their SUVs. It isn’t an encouraging development.

We batted it back and forth in email a couple of times, and one of us mentioned that the improvements Gore was making to his property were beyond the range of a typical middle class family. It’s one thing to say that designing the house for passive solar heat will save a couple of thousand a year, but when the outlay for such changes approaches $25,000, then it becomes non-feasible for most of us. So I told Cory if he would pass along a list of low-cost and simple ways in which people could cut energy use, I would be delighted to build an essay around it. It was a win-win situation. Not only would I be providing a valuable service to my readers, but Todd would do all the work and I would get all the glory. What could possibly be wrong with that?

It turned out Todd was well ahead of me. He had a list of recommendations for folks just starting on energy conservation made up already
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-6Jt2TPsldKLlM7a.OEdixw--?cq=1&p=3 as part of his greater blog, located at http://360.yahoo.com/toddcory. Todd says that most people can cut their energy use in half without making any significant sacrifices in lifestyle. Indeed, some of them will improve the quality of one’s life.

Todd’s suggestions appear here, and at the links above.

As part of all this, flourescent light bulbs have been in the news this week. The European Union announced that they will ban incandescent light bulbs by 2009, and estimate that this will result in a energy savings of “up to £5.4 billion a year in fuel bills and also about 20 million tonnes of carbon emissions every year.” Obviously that represents a significant change.

There’s been talk of a similar legislation here in North America, with a predictable uproar. In addition to the American freak show who believe that government should limit itself to imposing the views of a religious minority on us and naming anyone they want to be “enemy combatants” subject to eternal incarceration and a little light torture, there are those who make dire warnings that it will create a vast black market in 360w three-way bulbs, and cite low-flow toilets and freon as examples of how horrible it can be when government puts public interests ahead of corporate interests.

Back in 1995, we bought three flourescent bulbs. They cost $25 each, were eight inches long, and took about three minutes to come up to full brightness. One of them would flicker a few times before lighting up. I had bought them with the idea of deploying them in the areas that got the heaviest use, but found that they were going to end up in the only three areas where they fit: the laundry room, the bathroom hall, and in the table next to my chair in the living room.

Twelve years later, we still have two of those three dinosaurs. One (the one that flickered) was deliberately sacrificed, used as our “canary” in a brownout to let us know when it was safe to plug all our appliances back in.

Since then, the technology has advanced, and the flourescent lights available are compact, brighten immediately, and cost less than $5. They have a warm, natural light that I prefer to incandescent lights (and I mentioned this to a friend, an artist who specializes in painting with extremely subtle tones and graduations, and she agreed that the bulbs give a superior light), and don’t flicker or hum.

Two of the better ones around are the Westinghouse Minitwists, and the GE Helicals. Both are bright, warm, instant-on, and will fit anywhere a conventional incandescent will fit.

If you are on a tight budget, check with your local utility and county. In some areas, they will actually give out some bulbs for free.

I want to amplify on a couple of other suggestions Todd made. He strongly supports insulating the plumbing in the home (and checking for and stopping leaks). A lot of people insulate their water heaters, and some have put a timer on them so that they go off an hour before bedtime and come back on in the morning. Contrary to popular wisdom, hot water pipes are more prone to freezing in the winter than cold water pipes are, and so it is doubly important to insulate.

If you have a place to dry laundry in the sun, do so. Sun-dried laundry smells fresher and cleaner than any dryer can manage, and costs nothing.

Todd mentions ways to save on heating and cooling the home, and the fact is that if you live in a dry climate, no matter how hot it gets, you don’t need air conditioning in the home. Swamp coolers will do an excellent job of cooling a home, and if you happen to be on a budget and in an apartment, simply filling a tub with cold water and hanging a towel above the water, dipping into it to “wick” the water up, and playing a fan across it, will reduce the temperatures quite a bit. Having a rotating vent on the roof so the house can “exhale” the hot air that forms at the roofline and sucking in cooler air at ground level will help, too. If you live in a hot climate, high ceilings are best, and if you live in a cold climate, low ceilings are best.

If you think the energy savings Todd proposes are inconvenient or cost money, just imagine what sudden and dramatic changes in your local climate will cost you in terms of income and convenience. Todd’s suggestions are reasonable, inexpensive, and will improve rather than decrease the quality of your life.

If you happen to be one of those sorts who glowers in suspicion at any action for “the common good,” then reflect on the fact that Todd’s suggestions will save YOU trouble and money.

Simple Steps to Save Energy and Money

From Todd’s Blog:

Most people can easily drop their energy use by 50 to 75%, harnessing wealth from waste! Sustainability is all about using less. Rather than thinking “How much do I need” consider “How little can I get by with.” We live on a finite sized planet with finite resources. The paradigm of unlimited growth is a dead end street.

Before you consider active renewables you should make your life as efficient as possible. Here is a list that details some things you can do to reduce energy use / waste in your home and life.

Beginner (behavior changes - low / no cost)

Light only the areas you are using rather than full room lights, which use more energy. Turn lights and appliances off when not needed.

Replace all your commonly used light bulbs with compact fluorescents. They use 1/3 of the energy of a traditional incandescent light bulb and last approximately 10,000 hours. Standard fluorescent fixtures can have their ballasts changed to energy saving, electronic designs.

Unplug, or use switched plug strips on appliances or unplug device chargers that use power even when they are "off." While we are only talking 5 to 10 watts per appliance, it does add up 24/7. 10 watts of waste adds up to 7.2 kWh a month!

Set your computer to go into standby mode (monitor and hard drive off) after 15 minutes of no use.

Turn your water heater's thermostat down to the lowest usable level (?110 º), where when you shower, you use full hot rather than having to mix cold with the hot to prevent scalding.

Check for plumbing leaks. Dripping hot water taps or pressure relief valves can cause your water heater to run more frequently.

Turn the water off during a shower when you are soaping up. Showers use about ¼ the water that baths do.

Do only full loads of laundry. Wash your laundry in cold water.

Line dry your clothes. Clothes dryers use TONS of energy. Your clothes will last longer and smell better. In the winter you can use wooden racks indoors.

Wash your dishes by hand, and if you must use an automatic dishwasher, use the air dry and other low energy use settings.

Set the refrigerator’s thermostat to the warmest temperature and energy saving setting that will still preserve your food. 40 degrees uses less power than 35.

Closing your curtains at night helps hold in the heat. Close doors to unused rooms in your house. Condition the space (heat / cool) only when occupied. Set your thermostat down to 45-50 at night in the winter and only 65 when you are using the spaces. This can be done manually or through the use of automatic set back thermostats. During each 24-hour period, you will save about 3% on your heating bill for every 1° that you lower the thermostat setting. This means a nightly setback from 65 to 45 degrees will save you 30%!

Dress warmly. Wear a long sleeved insulated shirt and even consider a hat indoors to stay warm with cooler heating temps in the winter.

Invest in down comforters for beds in cold climates.

Use “Mountain A/C,” opening your windows at night to cool off your house and closing it up during the day to keep the heat out.

Consider eating lower on the food chain by incorporating more vegetarian food. It is healthier, contains fewer toxins (especially if organic) and is more efficient.

Use cloth shopping bags rather than throw away paper or plastic ones.

Compost your vegetable scraps.

Walk, ride a bike or carpool to work.

When you drive, change your habits to accelerate slowly, anticipate stops and reduce your freeway speed. Keep your engine tuned up and tires properly inflated. Consolidate trips to reduce unnecessary mileage. Do you really need 4WD?

Reduce consumption, reuse what you can and recycle. (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle)

Monitor your electric usage daily. Chart it, if it helps. Keep a daily eye on it; like one would if you were living off-grid. This will keep your focus on conservation. Set a goal for daily kWh usage, achieve it, and then try to go lower. An average American home uses 40 kWh per day. Efficient homes use as little as 14 kWh a day, which includes winter heating (electric heat pump). Some off grid homes as little as 1 kWh a day!


Intermediate (technical / handyperson work - minimal costs)

Buy a case of caulk and seal all the exterior holes / gaps where air can infiltrate your exterior walls. Reducing air infiltration is more important than insulation R-Value. This is the most effective and least expensive thing you can do to make your home more efficient.

Seal recessed can lights and electrical plugs/ light switches against air infiltration.

Buy a water heater blanket... or two of them, putting one on top of the other to reduce the tank’s standby loss. Replacing the water heater’s sacrificial anode will make the tank last indefinitely.

Insulate your exposed hot water pipes.

Keep your refrigerators warm, outside condenser coils clean with regular vacuuming. This improves the efficiency of the unit.

Replace air filters on forced air heating / cooling equipment as needed.

Add a storm door to reduce heat loss through your entryways. Check / repair door and window weather stripping to reduce air infiltration.

Adding cellulose insulation to the attic is easy and pretty inexpensive to do. Most lumberyards will loan you the blowing machine for free when you buy the cellulose from them. Install at least R-60. Wall insulation can also be done, but it is expensive when retrofitting. Floor insulation is pretty easy if you have a crawl space and don't mind confined, creepy places, otherwise hire it to be done for you.

Cook meals with a store bought or home made solar oven.

Plant fruit / nut trees and grow a garden. Every calorie of food you eat contains 20 to 200 calories of fossil fuel energy. The more food you produce at home the more you reduce the embedded energy in your diet. When you buy food, support sustainable agriculture by purchasing only organically grown items.

Plant deciduous shade trees to reduce direct solar gain in the summer when you do not want it. Also wind breaks help reduce heat loss in the winter.


Advanced (contractor / substantial economic investment)

Change your computer monitor to a liquid crystal display (LCD). A standard monitor would use around 150 watts, an LCD about 60. LCD TV’s save similar amounts of power. Laptops use much less power than desktop models.

Buy a front-loading washing machine. You will be amazed at how fast they spin and how dry the clothes are when they come out. This reduces line-drying time. These washing machines use about 1/3 of the water & soap of a traditional top loader.

If your refrigerator is over 5 years old replace it with the smallest one your can get by with. Use the government’s energy star web page to select the most efficient model. Manual defrost ones use much less power, reduce freezer burn and here on the dry west coast, this means once a year defrosting.

Replace single pane windows with dual or triple pane glass with the lowest "U" value you can afford to get. Consider "low E" glass for North facing windows.

Install pleated R-4 cellular window blinds. They work great, but are expensive. Another option is to make coverings out of recycled bubble wrap. 3M makes a one time use window shrink wrap that can be put on frames for removable, seasonal use.

If you are doing new construction, be sure to use a passive solar design, and frame to reduce heat loss through the framing members (i.e. 2 X 8 studs set on 2 foot centers rather than 2 X 6 studs on 16” centers).

Buy the smallest, most efficient vehicle you can afford. If that is a hybrid, consider the Toyota technology over the Honda. The Toyota uses a parallel system rather than the Honda's series. This means the Toyota can run on gas OR electric rather than gas AND electric. Soon, an aftermarket modification will allow you to plug in the Prius and use it as a pure EV for short (20 to 40 mile) trips using NO gasoline at all.

Only after you have made your home / life as efficient as possible, is it time to consider active renewables like solar thermal (hot water) and solar electric (photovoltaic). Throwing energy and money into gigantic and expensive renewable energy systems to offset inefficiency and waste, embodies more of the same unconsciousness that got us into the mess we are in now.


http://www.relocalize.net/groups/appleshasta
http://www.feedmtshasta.org