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For each 100 people telling us to "just install more solar panels", only 1 person will consider ways to reduce power usage. Instead of scaling our battery banks

For each 100 people telling us to "just install more solar panels", only 1 person will consider ways to reduce power usage. Instead of scaling our battery banks to our needs, we chose to adapt our needs to the available space for batteries and surface for panels. The world could stand to learn to apply such habits and mental models more generally.

sexy_seedbox 5y ago
You mean the western world? The rest of the planet live with/on very little.
- y4mi 5y ago
  Maybe he should've said the developed world. the west is definitely wrong however, as there are wealthy nations all over the world
  - DoreenMichele 5y ago
    I said exactly what I meant. I would like to see a trend towards passive solar design and similar principles for humans generally. All humans, even those for whom that would be a huge step up, not just those who might currently think of it as some kind of virtuous personal sacrifice. I would like to see a world where The Haves are not obscenely wasteful, The Have Nots are not screwed by a system that makes it impossible to find some means to get your needs met on a budget and the middle class is not being exterminated by our social practices, policies, etc. I'm too old to believe in faerie tale endings, so I'm not holding my breath here and waiting for anyone else to agree with me. But I'm also old enough to speak my mind anyway and say exactly what I mean rather than what I think other people will find palatable or expect based on their current mental models and world view.
- DoreenMichele 5y ago
  Much of the world lives in poverty and then lusts after what wealthier nations have and usually tries to emulate their methods. This is about living well without living wastefully. Too much of the world believes we can either live in poverty or ruin the biosphere for future generations. If you make no effort to both live well and live within a reasonable footprint, it shouldn't be surprising when you fail to achieve both goals.
Gigachad 5y ago
This article is about boats but if you are suggesting this thinking for the home, its just kind of pointless. Almost all home power usage comes down to heating and cooling. Calculating the power usage of a macbook is a drop in the ocean for power usage. And people talking about efficient heating, cooling, and insulation is a very common topic that has been thoroughly discussed. No one talks about switching your tv off at the plug because it's a lot of work to save virtually no power.
- mediocregopher 5y ago
  > Almost all home power usage comes down to heating and cooling. What is it about a house which makes these things more of a requirement than on a boat? People have lived and do live without these things in their home as well.
  - Gigachad 5y ago
    Because a boat doesn't have an enclosed space to heat. Well not usually anyway. And yes of course many people can live without heating and cooling in their homes, but that comes at a significant comfort cost. If you come to me with the suggestion of "Don't use any air conditioning to reduce power usage" its a non starter because air conditioning significantly improves my enjoyment of life. If you came to me with the suggestion of "Lets allocate more government funding to renewable and nuclear investments" I am much more interested in the proposal. It might sound selfish but this is how everyone feels. No one wants to give up their most important comforts if they don't have to. And they don't have to.
    - DoreenMichele 5y ago
      And yes of course many people can live without heating and cooling in their homes, but that comes at a significant comfort cost. It doesn't have to be that way. You might try looking up passive solar design..
      - DarylZero 5y ago
atoav 5y ago
My father does this: he tried to decrease energy use years before he started generating his own energy. By using timers on most hallway light switches, by installing energy saving light sources, adding thermal insulation, thinking a lot about when the heating ia on for how long etc. Which devices are running etc.

sexy_seedbox 5y ago

You mean the western world? The rest of the planet live with/on very little.

y4mi 5y ago
Maybe he should've said the developed world. the west is definitely wrong however, as there are wealthy nations all over the world
- DoreenMichele 5y ago
  I said exactly what I meant. I would like to see a trend towards passive solar design and similar principles for humans generally. All humans, even those for whom that would be a huge step up, not just those who might currently think of it as some kind of virtuous personal sacrifice. I would like to see a world where The Haves are not obscenely wasteful, The Have Nots are not screwed by a system that makes it impossible to find some means to get your needs met on a budget and the middle class is not being exterminated by our social practices, policies, etc. I'm too old to believe in faerie tale endings, so I'm not holding my breath here and waiting for anyone else to agree with me. But I'm also old enough to speak my mind anyway and say exactly what I mean rather than what I think other people will find palatable or expect based on their current mental models and world view.
DoreenMichele 5y ago
Much of the world lives in poverty and then lusts after what wealthier nations have and usually tries to emulate their methods. This is about living well without living wastefully. Too much of the world believes we can either live in poverty or ruin the biosphere for future generations. If you make no effort to both live well and live within a reasonable footprint, it shouldn't be surprising when you fail to achieve both goals.

Gigachad 5y ago

This article is about boats but if you are suggesting this thinking for the home, its just kind of pointless. Almost all home power usage comes down to heating and cooling. Calculating the power usage of a macbook is a drop in the ocean for power usage. And people talking about efficient heating, cooling, and insulation is a very common topic that has been thoroughly discussed. No one talks about switching your tv off at the plug because it's a lot of work to save virtually no power.

mediocregopher 5y ago
> Almost all home power usage comes down to heating and cooling. What is it about a house which makes these things more of a requirement than on a boat? People have lived and do live without these things in their home as well.
- Gigachad 5y ago
  Because a boat doesn't have an enclosed space to heat. Well not usually anyway. And yes of course many people can live without heating and cooling in their homes, but that comes at a significant comfort cost. If you come to me with the suggestion of "Don't use any air conditioning to reduce power usage" its a non starter because air conditioning significantly improves my enjoyment of life. If you came to me with the suggestion of "Lets allocate more government funding to renewable and nuclear investments" I am much more interested in the proposal. It might sound selfish but this is how everyone feels. No one wants to give up their most important comforts if they don't have to. And they don't have to.
  - DoreenMichele 5y ago
    And yes of course many people can live without heating and cooling in their homes, but that comes at a significant comfort cost. It doesn't have to be that way. You might try looking up passive solar design..
    - DarylZero 5y ago

atoav 5y ago

My father does this: he tried to decrease energy use years before he started generating his own energy. By using timers on most hallway light switches, by installing energy saving light sources, adding thermal insulation, thinking a lot about when the heating ia on for how long etc. Which devices are running etc.