Amazingly for most homeowners and those wanting to be “green” and energy smart few realize that hot water in homes is the second biggest user of energy in most households. If your household is typical, then 15 to 20 % of your total annual energy bill and wattage use goes to heat ordinary domestic hot water.
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Is there an energy shortage, are energy shortages looming or is it just a case of us being wasteful and using more than our fair share? Experts in the energy and energy conservation fields have stated time and time again that “Our trouble is not just one of being a simple shortage and shortfall of energy”. The same can be said for an alcoholic in that one drink is neither enough nor one thousand.
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The summer is winding down. The days are shorter and the temperature is dropping. So are all those leaves that have provided shade for you during the “dog days” of summer. Now is the time to look forward to turning all those leaves into
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Wherever you and your family reside you can start easing yours, theirs and family members as well into the “natural energy “picture right away. If you look through recommendations from solar , wind and governmental energy saving agencies you will notice that most of what is being done in this area of “alternate energy” and energies is for the most part completely new , complex and complicated and certainly not outside the boundaries of good old fashioned common sense. For the most part we are returning to good old proven and sustainable ways and means. The sun has been there for a long time – billions and billions of years. People have burned wood for heat since the dawn of man.
Add in the potential for heat from hot springs and geysers.
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An electric KW saved is a good chunk of coal or fossil fuel not burned. Home electric or natural gas / propane clothes dryers are convenient. Yet we should use them sparingly using solar power and warm temperatures outside on a clothes rack or wire to dry out laundered clothing and bedding. Still if there are times of the year – say in a 40 below zero Winnipeg prairie January winter season then we should ensure that our appliances use as little electrical power as possible to reduce and conserve our energy usage in 2011. With some simple and basic home appliance procedures we can well work to this goal of reduced and minimal energy usages and less power wastage.
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If you’ve heard it once, you’ve heard it a thousand times: “we need more investment in renewable energy.” Some of the greatest minds of our day are busily at work trying to find a solution–even if it is a moderate solution to the world’s energy crisis. Companies and individuals are investing billions of dollars and perhaps billions of man hours to find “the next big thing” in the utility and power market. With all these self-proclaimed green energists has come a litany of critics claiming that such and such a method is not worth pursuing for any number of reasons. I disagree. I think each segment of the green and renewable energy space needs to be explored. For none of them alone hold the grand key that will unlock and solve our problems and addiction to commercial electricity. Read the rest of this entry »
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Everyone likes to be a cool and comfortable cat at home. Yet it is often said that there is nothing more energy wasteful and consuming than an extra mass transit vehicle – be it train or bus. In the same way if a home air conditioning unit is going full steam – using and wasting electrical power and energy units and the fan is stuck or malfunctioning its of benefit to no one. No one, living or working areas are being cooled and energy is being thrown down the drain and the windows. All the while you and everyone else swelters in the heat. Read the rest of this entry »
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With more and more people becoming environmentally aware, consumers are thinking about the best rechargeable batteries to use. This is another area that impacts both human life and the environment. For example, it is much better to use rechargeable batteries than throwing away single-use batteries.
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We all should do our part and parts in not only using less energy, being green but also in addition use energy efficiently – not to waste this limited , rare and vital resource. What we don’t use by energy savings is there for someone else today or in the future to use. One routine maintenance task that most home owners and apartment dwellers oft think of or neglect is the routine seasonal inspection of evaporator and air conditioning condenser coils both on central and window installed room air conditioners.
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Almost everywhere in the United States and Canada a home without air conditioning can be effectively cooled by a single, powerful fan, mounted on the floor joists of an attic and controlled most simply and easily by a switch downstairs in the home . The fan pulls cool, fresh air into the house through open windows and in return as part of the circuit pulls cool fresh air through gables and soffit vents. Much less expensive and much more energy saving and efficient than central or room air conditioners the fan costs a lot less thermal generated electrical or hydro generated energy to run. Read the rest of this entry »
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Just when you thought you were energy efficient with your consumption of electricity and natural gas, you read the title of a post like this and say to yourself, “now that sounds cool.” Well, it’s because it IS cool. Water desalination has been a technology which has been around for decades, but it has not yet had its day in the sun. Read the rest of this entry »
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In summertime our air conditioners work overtime. Yet what can we do to lighten the load and save wasted power use when it comes to cooling our homes and reducing electrical power use and consumption with air conditioning units. After all the power that runs air conditioners is usually thermal generated from the burning of fossil fuels – coal mainly and some diesel. Hence it behooves us to make our coolers run as efficiently as possible and save the earth’s resources. True at some future point in time solar power will fuel these units and in addition in some areas of the world – Canada and especially the province of Manitoba have vast hydro electric power and reserves for the creation of hydro-electric power generation.
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For many years we have lived in a “throw away” society. Fortunately, today, we are becoming more aware of our need to live responsibly. The “living green” philosophy addresses this in many practical ways. Here are 5 ways that we can “go green”.
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What did people do before air conditioning and mechanical air conditioners came on the scene and were installed in homes and offices? Somehow “people lived” and they got through long hot and humid summers – even the elderly and those comprised with breathing illnesses. Yet how did previous generations manage to cool their homes and buildings with little external supplementary energy and power sources?
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Businesses, especially start-ups, are looking for practical and sometimes extreme ways to save money in whatever ways they can. Electricity is no exception. I have a friend whose wife works at Amazon. Back in the earlier years at the company, they were actually quite extreme when it came to saving money. And, being the analytically anal company they are, they assessed the costs of electricity being consumed by the vending machines throughout the office. After some simple math, they discovered they could save $XX each month by simply pulling out all the light bulbs from the vending machines. This may sound extreme, but if you are in the business of making money, it only makes sense.
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It was recently announced that Qatar has successfully won their bid to host the 2022 World Cup. Qatar is a Middle Eastern emirate located close to the border of Saudi Arabia and its climate is typical of desert regions with an average sweltering temperature of 46 degrees Celsius during the peak of summer. The 2022 World Cup is being launched in the month of March but even during this cooler month, the average temperature high is 27 degrees C – that would be declared as heat wave here in the UK! Read the rest of this entry »
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Its a downright shame the things and volumes of items that we routinely throw in the trash. Where do we think these waste items are going ? What about the energy costs involved both in the production of these commercial products which serve us , the waste of limited resources on our globe senselessly and lastly the energy and energies involved to transport these items to the landfill or perhaps incinerate them. Its a one way sinkhole that few give much thought what so ever. Perhaps they should . Read the rest of this entry »
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Many of us trying to be “green” and working to reduce our power and electrical consumption may find handicaps in trying to calculate electrical “loads” themselves as part of the scale down and scaling down process themselves. If you do suspect that even if a circuit is drawing too much power overall and wish to bring this downwards you will need to calculate the load factor. In sum total the maximum load of any household or industrial electrical circuit will be indicated by the amperage rating of the circuit breaker of fuse – which should be clearly stamped on it. Obviously both for safety and to be green and not greedy with power and energy usage you should be way lower than that – and always working and thinking diligently on means of ever decreasing power drains. Read the rest of this entry »
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There are a lot of marketing buzzwords going around these days when it comes to IT and computing. In the midst of all the hype marketed towards corporate audiences, it’s rather easy to overlook some of the more important ramifications of the latest technology trends. Let’s talk about a couple of them now. Read the rest of this entry »
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Four basic systems of simple, safe and ecological safe disposal systems include the seepage pit, a network of underground pipes, and evapo-transpiration bed and lastly a septic tank with absorption trenches.
A “seepage pit” is essentially and simply little more than a stone-filled fit which contains waste water which is slowly absorbed into the surrounding soil and earth. It’s adequate for low-volume water treatment. Waste water and liquids will flow down from the home, cottage or area exuding the waste liquid via a 2 inch pipe, entering small grease trap – which can be little more than a 30 gallon plastic garbage pail. Read the rest of this entry »
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