Energy Matters Global and Domestic

[mickthemaverick]

Having read that analysis I decided to take a step back and view the entire issue from a global viewpoint. The weather, climate change, global warming, greenhouse gasses etc all have their part to play but the fundamental issue is clear to me. We use too much energy to live!! That is to say more than we can comfortably supply. Mr Micawber comes to mind!! So, if we can't supply more then the obvious solution is to use significantly less!!
With rhat thought in mind I wonder how much of the electricity we consume is used for essential purposes, eg food, heat and light etc and how much is used for non essential activities. Eg internet/computing, entertainment, leisure activities, flying to the moon, carrying commonwealth batons all over the place etc. It would be my guess that the latter is the higher proportion so all we need to do is revert to the mid 20th century consumption pattern and all will be well!!

[NewcastleFalcon]

It would be my guess that the latter is the higher proportion so all we need to do is revert to the mid 20th century consumption pattern and all will be well!!

We have evolved a few "indispensable conveniences" of modern living world which are energy guzzlers like the tumble drier and the dishwasher. Even our gas boiler. The old one you turned the hot tap on, boiler fired up and a reasonable not too inconvienient time later it got hot. The new one left alone maintains the domestic hot water at 25 degrees all the time, by constantly switching itself on and off 24 hours a day wasting gas. Presumably this is to get less of a delay getting hot water out of the tap. My management of this is turning it off at every opportunity I can get away with and always through the night.

Maybe a "Remember these all our yesterdays" mid 20th Century Washing Machine theme is brewing. I'll see if I can find a video of the sort of thing I remember, Washing machine next to the sink for draining and filling, a nice little agitator a tub full of water with Daz etc hoyed in foaming away, a seperate wringer mangel thing and a tray at the back where the sheets etc would gloriously fold themselves as they emerged and a separate spin dryer with a life of its own. The energy saving bit was of course the clothes posts, clothes line and clothes props and wooden pegs, and an ingenious way of pegging sheets so the got the full benefit of any breeze.

Regards Neil

[myglaren]

It would be my guess that the latter is the higher proportion so all we need to do is revert to the mid 20th century consumption pattern and all will be well!!

Maybe a "Remember these all our yesterdays" mid 20th Century Washing Machine theme is brewing. I'll see if I can find a video of the sort of thing I remember, Washing machine next to the sink for draining and filling, a nice little agitator a tub full of water with Daz etc hoyed in foaming away, a seperate wringer mangel thing and a tray at the back where the sheets etc would gloriously fold themselves as they emerged and a separate spin dryer with a life of its own. The energy saving bit was of course the clothes posts, clothes line and clothes props and wooden pegs, and an ingenious way of pegging sheets so the got the full benefit of any breeze.

Regards Neil

We had various outhouses and one had the 'posh-tub' in, basically a dustbin with a gas ring under it to heat the water, and a 'dolly' - wooden pole with elaborate 'fingers' on it to agitate the clothing. Then the mangle to squeeze the water out before hanging out as Paul Simon so eloquently puts it "In the dirty breeze".
When the twin tub washer arrived it was as exiting as a new car.
Still stayed in the 'wash house', though. Even the automatics resided there, never in the kitchen.
My washing is still mostly dried in the garden, prefer it to the tumble dryer which gets used once in a blue moon.
As does the dishwasher. Hardly required now.

Pleased that my boiler isn't like yours, just the standard combi. It is a bit too clever for me though - four individually programmable time periods with a lowest temp of 5? (frost guard) and a basic temp that it won't go below, then a 'comfort temp it will maintain.
I was a bit shocked to find the heating on at 2 a.m. the second morning. The controller was on the windowsill, all the windows open and the temp in the room was 9? - well below the 18? it was set to.
Have learned a bit how to work it but it is a bit like a mobile phone.

[mickthemaverick]

Two other significant changes come to mind which are pretty universal nowadays and must mske a noteable loading on the energy supply. The changeover from brushes and brooms to the vacuum cleaner which has continously fitted more powerful motors during its evolution. The first Electrolux one we had was equipped with a 250 Watt motor, nowadays company's proudly proclaim 1.2kW upwards!! Then of course there is the humble electric drill, the mainstay of almost every man's toolkit. I still have my Dad's brace and bit and his two handrills, both of which still do the job but require more time and effort. How much energy is consumed by similar power tools which are not essential to complete the job?
As an aside we do not own , and never have, a dishwasher or a tumble drier although we do have an almost new 9kg load auto washing machine. SWMBO, when fit, sweeps our floors daily and I vacuum once a week. We try to only fill the kettle with the water we want to use immediately and use the remaining bit for the washing up. Life is very pleasant for us and I'm sure many more people could make similar adjustments to their lives without causing themselves any heartache!!

[Dormouse]

We have just installed a Wifi enabled thermostat to our central heating and it has different adjustable times and frost stats too. I set the temp to 25c last night to try out the controls on my phone and forgot to reset it - oops. Isn't technology wonderful, when you remember how to use it. Doooooh!

[myglaren]

The combination of that and my hopeless mobile phone would signal Ragnarök.

[Dormouse]

Then you would be double dumfounded by this bit of CH kit.

[myglaren]

It is more the touchscreens.
I hate phoning but have to now if it is more than a dozen words.

[Dormouse]

Here we are over 3 hours later and the temp has dropped 1c. At least it proves all of the insulation and heat saving sealed windows are all working as they should - our lower floor is all open plan and we have been in and out of both doors as well as having the window open in the downstairs shower room all morning!

[NewcastleFalcon]

I've had a flick back through some of the justhaveathink content, on the back of the "gas price" mini armageddon and had a watch of the take on "Is Germany Sustainable". Germany have made a fair few bold moves and plans but in Europe remain the most dependant on Coal and Gas, and whether they like it or not a little too dependant on the supply from Russia in particular.

As ever Dave presents his well researched summary of the position, in another informative 14 minutes. It dates from 2020 so prior to the current manifestation of gas price problems. I liked his summing up

" One things for sure though the people that control the fossil fuel industry are not going to give up without the mother of all battles so we can probably expect very turbulent times over the coming years."

I presume the turbulent times will involve a bit of market manipulation, deception and misinformation, industrial espionage and sabotage, targeted hacking and chaos creating.

So who is going to benefit from the current salvo which is rising gas prices. One of the very large suppliers of Natural Gas? All suppliers of natural gas

If carbon capture and storage is indeed a viable technology at scale, where is the first new, or adapted Gas Power Station with a proven working system in 2021. Surely it would be a win win for the global Gas suppliers, to have the continuation of Gas-Fired Power stations generating valuable baseload power, with a bit of carbon capture and storage, and up their game a touch on leaking methane from extraction, transport, and use.

So as not to bog the thread down with Dave's face, the Germany energy story is a link to click should you wish to see it.

Is Germany Sustainable?

Regards Neil

[Dormouse]

18 years ago when we planned our early "retirement" to Fife so we could be on hand for my in-laws failing health and to be nearer to my own mother, we set about a long term plan for our Final House. We have poured quite considerable sums of money and planning into making our house as well insulated and useable as possible. Upstairs bathroom ensuite, ground floor shower / wc, Stannah stairlift in pieces ready to instal when we need it, wheelchair accessibility in now from roadway to the very bottom of the garden. You name it, we have planned it. On the lower front of the house is wooden cladding and a substantial wooden porch with hanging baskets and planters. All very twee but behind that gardening extravaganza is insulation. All the upper floor is clad in white UPVC with insulation behind it. The loft has insulation on the floor, The roof has insulation ridge to verge. The sealed units have UV reflection and interior heat reflection as well as rain deflecting coatings with argon gas in the centre. I think you get the idea of overkill I go in for. All this is to make it easier for us to afford to live in our house as Pensioners (technically LOML is not a pensioner yet but the Endowments we paid into are now funding her early medical grounds retirement - 4 years after we had originally planned for). It has not been easy and is not helped by the near tripling of our energy bills that British Gas wants us to sign up to. Not going to happen! Just signed up to So Energy for half of what British Gas's estimate was. Still more expensive than we had been paying but nowhere near as crippling as BG. If anyone wants referred as a "friend" to So Energy to get a deal just ask. What is the worst I can say back?

[Dormouse]

This picture pretty much encapsulates my day.

My gin is finished (the yardarm must have a sun over it somewhere in the World?)
My umbrella stops the pesky little black fly that is left from getting my drink
The afternoon snacks are really quite spicy!
And the room is still 25c.

some things are definitely working as planned

[NewcastleFalcon]

I read this little snippet of Wind Energy News on Electrek. It was about the Moray Firth.

Starts off with Scotwind
What is ScotWind?.

Then it mentioned Aker Offshore Wind...They want to build an underwater substation in the Moray Firth.
Where are Aker Offshore Wind Based

Then Ocean Winds got a mention
https://www.oceanwinds.com/uk/

Ocean winds is a 50/50 partnership between which 2 companies

REgards Neil

[Gibbo2286]

When I visited my daughter in America she had a huge top loading automatic washing machine, I said I was reluctant to use it for my few shirts etc. she told me when her husbands nieces visited they'd put it on to wash one bra.
I've got a tumble drier on my washing machine but it's never been used, it all goes on the line or on another line in the conservatory.

[myglaren]

My parents had a washer/dryer.
My dad would wash a single shirt, then a towel then...