I was going to post this over in the energy use log thread, but then it got a bit lengthy and I figured I've neglected my journal of late anyway, hey, I'm still alive /waves...
In my spare time, I think about very little outside collapse and sustainability these days, I think I even dream about it, so with that in mind it's time to put some money where my mouth is. 2019 is going to be a year of action. No, that's not a resolution to be forgotten about by March.
Energy saving special update
I have a few confessions to make after revisiting my
post there in June 2017...
I haven't yet weather stripped the house, I noticed after the initial post most windows were done before we moved in so that reduced some urgency, but some strips need replacing now they are showing their age and the front door still needs doing, I did buy a roll with best intentions, I need to get motivated! It's just a case of cutting desired length with scissors and pulling off the sticky plastic covering for goodness sake, the inaction is inexcusable!
The dog ripped off the inner letterbox draught excluder in the spring... (he hates the postman!) I couldn't find a replacement at the time and forgot to sort it before winter set it, it wouldn't go back together because the chassis is ruined, we may get a new front door when the dog karks it, but that could be 6 years or more unless some tragedy were to befall him, the claw marks on the door all but have ruined it. Hah
![Rolling Eyes :roll:](./images/smilies/icon_rolleyes.gif)
. I could also do with covering the keyhole somehow too, but need access internally still. Just the front door is leaking huge amounts of air, you can feel the draft 5 meters away on a breezy day and I swear it makes the whole ground floor feel cold, even if the ambient temp is 18C. Any DIY/bodge ideas for those ladies and gents?
We DID swap out halogen bulbs for LEDs, with a couple exceptions, rooms and appliances that are hardly used didn't get the upgrade. Because I whipped out so many functional bulbs (mostly halogen and a couple florescent energy saving type) we've been re-using them in the infrequently used downstairs toilet, garage and conservatory rather than throwing them out. Unlike the rest of the house, the kitchen seems to have an excessive amount of light sockets for such a small space, 7 in total. I haven't yet successfully trained DW to turn off lights when leaving the room (despite best attempts and persistent pleas). The light rails are adjustable, so with a bit of positional tweaking, I was able to remove 3 bulbs without making the room noticeably darker by focusing the light where it's needed most. DW still hasn't noticed, but when left on, the lighting in that room now use 42% less energy
And... to offset any savings, we recently acquired a tumble dryer (I know, I know!) on account of the ridiculous amount of drying you need to do once you have a baby that throws up, pees and poops on everything. We don't have room to use 3x clothes horses without turning the house into an obstacle course, its too cold at 53.8N to dry outdoors in the winter. The dryer is used sparingly though, all my own clothes are dried on the horse by a radiator.
I also added a mini fridge to the garage, to keep beers cool in the summer but it's cheap to run, well insulated and opened so rarely I swear the compressor kicks in only once a twice a day for a few brief moments. I mentally justified it to myself in case I decided to build a DIY solar system so I could refrigerate on a much small scale than the main fridge freezer in the event of grid down... I haven't gotten around to seriously planning that yet. I may never do. It's been off since October now the garage is cool enough to chill beers from ambient temps alone. It will remain switched off until spring arrives.
I've literally just run around the house and reduced the time to auto-off on everything with that feature to combat DWs efforts to warm the planet.
2x TVs (One 300W, the other 100W) now switch off after an hour inactivity.
1x Sound system (150W) same
2x PCs (1 tower 80-220W depending on usage), 1 laptop 20-25W) Screens off after 5 minutes, sleep after 10, hibernate after 30, both down to 1-2W when hibernating.
Space heating is suboptimal, but DW insists on it and with a baby in the house, I kind of agree, I have taken measures to reduce waste. The thermostat rarely goes above 16C, it looks like I won thermostat wars after all, DD no longer complains. It doesn't go higher unless we have guests or we suspect DD is poorly. The mother in law does not get special treatment, when she's around the thermostat doesn't budge!
![Laughing :lol:](./images/smilies/icon_lol.gif)
. I also added a thermostatic switch to the conservatory's 2000W electric fan heater that keeps being left on unattended (by she who will not be named!) Surprisingly it hasn't got one built in and makes the room obscenely hot if not managed manually. Infuriating. I'm thinking about installing those fire door contraptions that shut doors behind you for rooms that are used infrequently, the radiator thermostatic valves are turned low in the spare room and kitchen when not occupied, but leaving those doors open results in warmer air leaking in when not used rendering the efforts with the thermostats pointless.
Aside from abstaining from kitchen appliances, TV, web-browsing and gaming, I can no longer think how we can reduce electricity consumption without switching to non-electric alternatives, i.e. burning wood fuel in an outdoor oven, rocket stove, etc. The low hanging fruit have truly been picked. These are resilience projects I have been thinking of implementing anyway, had DD not arrived last spring, I probably would have started working on them by now. I'm going to dig out my permaculture stash and plan the garden layout soon, and with a bit of luck and a solid business plan, DW will grant me permission to start tearing up the lawn in the spring! I'm not sure this is our forever home, so I haven't yet ripped out the natural gas burning fireplace. UK households have a strange obsession with these faux open fireplace alteratives, a hangover from after the war I think? I haven't seen these in houses on the continent or anywhere else?! I'd love a wood burner for added fuel resilience, but the gas flue isn't suitable for a wood burner, so it will involve extensive remodelling... but the delicious smokey scent makes me all tingly. I may pull the plug on that next year as we have little else in the way of home improvements left to entertain. I would hate to get caught with my metaphorical pants around my ankles should gas supplies become intermittent in a SHTF scenario. Putin may not always be so obliging to share his nat gas with us!
I'm in the process of doing a full energy audit in the house to see if I missed anything else obvious, tune in later for the results.