phil@brahms.amd.com (Phil Ngai) (01/15/91)
Some of you may have heard of the time I saw a family buy three
electric heaters from the hardware store. I calculated that if they ran
all three of them at once (why else would they buy three, presumably
one for each bedroom) it would use about one megawatt hour per month.
I was there buying a compact fluorescent light bulb so I could
save 55 watts, and feeling foolish.
My neighbor just remodeled their house. Nice job, big bucks, very
fancy. She had the fluorescent lights in her kitchen taken out! She
says she likes a lot of light so she put in 11 incandescent recessed
lights, 75 watts each, 825 watts total. They're not even PAR, which is
ideal for recessed lights, they're just regular incandescents, which
waste a lot of light in that kind of fixture.
Much as I hate to admit it, and it has never happened before, I think
that Russ Nelson isn't too far off when he talks about the potential of
conservation. My neighbors are not poor or uneducated yet they just
made a big fixed investment in using MORE energy and they did it with
the help of professional interior decorators, architects, and
contractors, and the city "community development" issued a permit for
this.
There is something seriously wrong in our system when things like this
happen. And I think it's because energy, oil, and electricity are too
darn cheap! Unfortunately, when electric rates do rise, my neighbors
will be somewhat locked in to their power burning lighting system.
Recessed lighting is pretty difficult to change.
--
militia: 1.a. A citizen army, as distinct from a body of professional soldiers.
b. The armed citzenry, as distinct from the regular army.wilber@aludra.usc.edu (John Wilber) (01/15/91)
In article <1991Jan14.185100.24703@amd.com> phil@brahms.amd.com (Phil Ngai) writes: >My neighbor just remodeled their house. Nice job, big bucks, very >fancy. She had the fluorescent lights in her kitchen taken out! She >says she likes a lot of light so she put in 11 incandescent recessed >lights, 75 watts each, 825 watts total. They're not even PAR, which is >ideal for recessed lights, they're just regular incandescents, which >waste a lot of light in that kind of fixture. It sounds like maybe >GASP!< saving energy was not her reason for remodeling. Maybe she just wanted a nicer place to live. >Much as I hate to admit it, and it has never happened before, I think >that Russ Nelson isn't too far off when he talks about the potential of >conservation. My neighbors are not poor or uneducated yet they just >made a big fixed investment in using MORE energy and they did it with >the help of professional interior decorators, architects, and >contractors, and the city "community development" issued a permit for >this. Yeah, we can't have the city allowing people to build their own houses the way they want to build them can we? The city should make everyone do what Russ & Phil think they should do. Bye Bye pursuit of happiness! It was nice knowing you. >There is something seriously wrong in our system when things like this >happen. Yeah, too much freedom and not enough central planning. I hear there are a large number of eastern european bureaucrats looking for work these days. Maybe we can hire them to check all our toilets to make sure they have bricks in them, huh? >And I think it's because energy, oil, and electricity are too >darn cheap! Yeah, cheap and abundant. Imagine that. I can remember back in the mid-'70s when all the eco-experts were claiming that we would be out of gas and oil by 1985. I guess they were wrong. If you think you are right and want to make a bundle though, I suggest you buy enormous options to purchase gas and oil in 10 years. If you are right you'll be a very rich man. What? Not willing to gamble your own money? If not, then why are you willing to gamble your neighbor's house for him? >Unfortunately, when electric rates do rise, my neighbors >will be somewhat locked in to their power burning lighting system. >Recessed lighting is pretty difficult to change. OK, it'll bethem paying the extra bill, not you. Why should you complain? Mind your own business.
phil@brahms.amd.com (Phil Ngai) (01/16/91)
In article <14164@chaph.usc.edu> wilber@aludra.usc.edu (John Wilber) writes: |>My neighbor just remodeled their house. Nice job, big bucks, very |>fancy. She had the fluorescent lights in her kitchen taken out! She | |It sounds like maybe >GASP!< saving energy was not her reason for remodeling. |Maybe she just wanted a nicer place to live. I live next door to her. I talked to her. She simply didn't know about CFs. She was quite interested in the possibilities but no one had told her about this stuff before. She admitted she was already concerned about the high energy use and cost. (just wait until she finds out she'll be changing light bulbs every two weeks also) |>My neighbors are not poor or uneducated yet they just |>made a big fixed investment in using MORE energy and they did it with |>the help of professional interior decorators, architects, and |>contractors, and the city "community development" issued a permit for |>this. | |Yeah, we can't have the city allowing people to build their own houses the |way they want to build them can we? The city should make everyone do what |Russ & Phil think they should do. Bye Bye pursuit of happiness! It was nice The point is that their choice was a mistake, as freely admitted by the owners themselves. It is not that they should not be allowed to build what they want, it is that they still managed to be misinformed even though they did "all the right things and hired the right people and got the right permits". Assuming you aren't an engineer type who is obsessed with this kind of thing, the best you can do is hire professionals whose job it is to presumably keep up with the field, and my neighbors did that. I am concerned that the professionals and the city did not even tell my neighbor about this option. |>There is something seriously wrong in our system when things like this |>happen. | |Yeah, too much freedom and not enough central planning. I hear there are You don't have to force people like my neighbors. Education is quite enough. They want to do the right thing, but they don't have time to make a major project out of learning the field. They thought they could hire the expertise of professionals. Isn't that how it's supposed to work? |>And I think it's because energy, oil, and electricity are too |>darn cheap! | |Yeah, cheap and abundant. Imagine that. I can remember back in the mid-'70s Relatively cheap and abundant right now. Like it or not, most people don't have the interest or ability to forecast the long term consequences of their decisions like what kind of lighting to put in, what kind and how much window, what kind of heat, where they live etc. There is a lot of potential for education here. |>Unfortunately, when electric rates do rise, my neighbors |>will be somewhat locked in to their power burning lighting system. |>Recessed lighting is pretty difficult to change. | |OK, it'll bethem paying the extra bill, not you. Why should you complain? |Mind your own business. They were certainly happy to have the information I was able to present to them so it is a good thing I did not "mind my own business". I like to think I live in a community and if I can help someone I will. If we ever have a major earthquake here I will be sharing my stored food with my neighbors. I would not be able to eat while watching everyone around me suffer. That's where I'm coming from. I am sure there is at least one person reading this who is also benefiting from it. That's enough for me. -- militia: 1.a. A citizen army, as distinct from a body of professional soldiers. b. The armed citzenry, as distinct from the regular army.