Low-hanging Fruit #1: Conserving Electricity at Home

Okay, I am scrapping my first attempt at this post. It sounded like I had just graduated with an online associates degree for technical writing.

 

So, let's try again and start this off with electricity. Most US electricity is produced in coal-powered or natural gas plants, both of which cause environmental destruction and create serious health problems for living beings - especially for those who are stuck living near these plants. If we want a healthier planet and a better life for people we have two options: start using cleaner production methods (wind, solar, etc.) or start using a lot less energy. (Or both.)

30% of our country's greenhouse gas emissions come from electricity production!

If you are like me, the solar/wind thing is out of the budget and you live in a town (like Lubbock) that strongly discourages solar and wind with prohibitive local zoning. It ain't easy being green (or frugal) here in the LBK.

It ain't easy being green! (Kermit)

So, I guess we need to focus on using less electricity at home.

Take a look around your house to see what is powered by electricity: heaters, air conditioners, washers, dryers, TVs, phones, computers, fans, lights, ovens - the list is extensive!

Let's pick out some of the low-hanging fruit - heaters and air conditioners.

Now you are probably scratching your head here. Does this crazy Mesquite Hugger know how expensive heaters and air conditioners are? Yes, I do. But this is not a post about scrapping it all and starting over. This is a talk about efficiency. Let's look at three steps.

Step 1: Stop those embarrassing leaks.

Energy.Gov: Air Sealing Your Home

Yep, your house probably has air leaks. Doors, windows, light switches, vents, ductwork, ceilings - all of these are possible place where your conditioned air is sneaking out. The leaks cause your heater/ac to work harder which requires more electricity to be consumed which causes you to pay higher bills and our environment to suffer. So, stop those leaks! The hardware is cheap and the skills required are minimal for those of you who want to do it yourself. If you don't want to, then pay a handyman to help you out. You will be amazed at the bang for the buck.

Step 2: Dress appropriately.

This guy gets it!

Let's say it's 30 degrees outside but you are comfortably running around the house in your undies. There's a problem here. Put on more clothes and turn the thermostat down a few degrees. It's a simple but very productive approach to lowering your electricity consumption. And who knows, you may look smoking hot in a sweater! It's all about insulating yourself.

Step 3: Speaking of insulation...

Energy Star: Attic Insulation Project

Add more insulation to your home. Heat rises, so a lot of heat escapes a house by going up. By adding more insulation to your attic, you invite your conditioned air to stick around longer and keep things cozy. Yes, this step is a little more involved than the first two, but it also pays big dividends in conserving energy (and money!)

So there it is - our first low-hanging fruit post. I hope you are finding it tasty and helpful.

May we all find ways to (easily) work together to heal our ailing world.

Bonus Mr. Rogers post: Vintage Electric Car in Mister Rogers' 'hood!

Another Bonus Mr. Rogers post with a dash of Jimmy: Misters Rogers and Carter again? MH looks back a bit.

And another post about energy conservation at home: MH Disclaimer 2: Solar/Wind Power vs Energy Conservation

Misters Rogers and Carter again? MH looks back a bit.

I wrote yesterday about an electric car on a 1981 episode of Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. I wrote about it as a mirthful sidebar, a novelty to be enjoyed by you, dear reader. However, the whole thing has been fermenting in the overactive brain.

1981 was the beginning of the Reagan era and the subsequent denouncement of the eco movement. (I was 13 years old at the time.) We were headed into a time of hedonstic self-focus, a time to forget about electric cars, gas shortages, and environmental damages. It was a time to put off such worries...

...until now. Here we are, just beginning to recognize these massive climate changes that are swirling all around us. We are seeing species disappearing at an alarming rate. We are seeing the oceans rise and the snowcaps melting. We keep driving our gas-powered cars and keeping ourselves distracted by electronic devices powered by coal-generated electricity. But we have cat videos and more apps every day. We worship at the altars of the NFL and Apple unless we are rebels, then we worship at FIFA and Droid.
 

We live in a world in which we need to share responsibility. It's easy to say, "It's not my child, not my community, not my world, not my problem." Then there are those who see the need and respond. I consider those people my heroes. Fred Rogers 

What if we had paid more attention to hippies like Mr. Fred Rogers and Jimmy Carter? What if we had paid less attention to the message that told us America needed to spend its way to self-serving economic greatness? In 1985, the Reagan administration had had enough of that silly clean energy and had Mr. Carter's solar panels removed from the White House. Where would be now if we had continued working toward a sustainable future then?

Arcadia Power: Reagan Took Solar Panels Off The White House, And We Calculated The Impact

History of the White House Solar Panels

 

May we learn from our past. May we preserve and enrich our fututre.

Vintage Electric Car in Mister Rogers' 'hood!

Blogging for me is one step closer to a 25-year dream that I have clung to - the PBS life. I have watched guys like Rick Steves (travels in Europe with an all access pass), John Viehman (mountain biking the Great Divide, kayaking rapids, and sea kayaking with orcas), and Bob Phillips (driving around Texas talking to crazy interesting people) navigate lives that any overactive brain would kill for on the PBS or [plug in your favorite adventure travel channel] sponsor budget. And these guys have one thing in common - they are boring guys living exciting adventures. I want to live the PBS life!

Today, I found another example of the PBS-life adventure in a very unlikely locale - Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood. Green Car Reports featured an episode of MRN where Mr. Rogers visited an electric car factory, Electric Vehicle Industries, and was allowed a test drive. From the accents, I'm thinking the cars were built in Massachusetts or thereabouts. The episode aired in 1981. I found myself on youtube right away. Oh, the envy! (I tried to tour the Zero Motorcycle factory once, but I never had much luck communicating with them. Life has been much less frustrating since I sold my Zero.)

Mr. Rogers Electric Vehicle and Divorce (complete episode from youtube)

The vehicles in the show were powered by 16 lead-acid batteries (96 volts) driving a GE motor coupled with a front-wheel-drive transaxle. Very ugly-cool machine. Ironically, the episode deals with divorce, electric cars, and excessive airplane fuel consumption. If I brought this particular car home, my wife might consider jumping on a plane and filing for divorce. (Just kidding - my wife is entirely too supportive of my ugly electric car obsession.) Mr. Rogers even talks about how cool an electric airplane would be.

May your neighborhood be filled with people who care enough to drive electric!