Canadian Reader Points Out the Need for Energy Efficiency and Conservation

Roger Priddle, a reader from the central part of Canada, made a few comments on energy efficiency and conservation that I thought folks might find useful.  I appreciate the constructive criticism.  He writes:

I’m already powering my home with a combination of PV and solar hot water.  So I’m a fan and a believer. The only thing I wish to point out is that your presentations do not sufficiently emphasize the need to use the energy more wisely.

For example, how many of the dissenters who complain that we can’t produce enough power from renewable sources are writing from large desktop computers with lovely 25” monitors, and lighting their workstations with incandescent lights, ignoring the light coming in from outside?  How many are heating and cooling large spaces with minimal insulation and inefficient windows?

To me, the “fantasy” is that we can continue to consume energy as we did in the era of cheap oil. It’s cloudy today – 100% cloud cover – and my refrigerator is running, but my net consumption is still only 7.5 amps @ 24vdc.  It’s 13C outside but the furnace isn’t running.  (Ok, that’s slightly misleading – our house doesn’t have a furnace, just a heated floor in the lowest level from solar hot water and a masonry wood stove on the main level.)

The fridge just went off – net drain 1.3 amps.  1600 amp/hr batteries will run the house until the sun comes out.

I don’t mean to be critical – we need all sorts of new ideas (I believe this is a reference to our list of clean energy investment opportunities – ed.) and there are a lot.  But I think the people promoting them will be better received if they include the impact of conservation too.

Btw, we’re in Central Canada, where sub-freezing temperatures are the norm for 6 months of the year, along with copious amounts of snow!  Yes, it’s cold and dark much of the time, but careful use of the energy we have means that our home runs on about 10% of the neighbor’s average.  Part is in the design/construction of the physical building, the rest is a function of behavior.

And I think I’ll download your book to read too.  I may have more comments after that… <grin>).  

Many thanks,

Roger