I "own" two homes. At least the mortgages I pay indicate that some day I will own them...if... Well, I have been very interested in doing the "right thing" as anyone who has been reading my posts knows. This year I have installed a metal roof on one of my homes, installed two on-demand water heaters, produced even more food than last year on my own property and driven less miles than ever before. I have also invested in both insulation, air sealing and electrical energy saving devices. Because I am poor enough that I receive all of my Federal Taxes back, there isn't a single cent of incentive to help me with my energy-saving purchases. My biggest issue with this is not, as you might think, my own pocketbook. Although I would like a little help with the thousands that I have spent over the years out of my own pocket, my concern is for the affluent who are being subsidized in their quest for lower utility bills.
It is a well established fact that energy costs will continue to rise as we begin to include higher costs of procurement, negative effects of coal mining, transport and "end-use", as well as the ecological harm that results from oil and gas production, transport and use. We are past peak with regard to oil, and natural gas. 2010 saw the cost of energy rise for the first time with a concurrent drop in production. Utility companies are well aware of the fact that it is cheaper to reduce the need for more energy than to produce any additional watts, BTUs or therms. Hovering, as I do, near the poverty line, there is little to inspire my actions except for my own personal responsibility. Sometimes, doing the right thing is it's own reward. If I were rich enough to pay taxes, I would qualify for up to (what equals for me) more than a month's wages! Perhaps then I could afford to take a vacation. The ultimate benefit is financially accruing to energy corporations who reap the rewards of reduced demand. More and more of their income is based on fixed charges, service fees and procurement costs, so that they can deal with selling less energy for a higher cost. Many wealthy families might barely notice, the $1,500 Energy Tax Credit. It would hardly register on their family budget. For me to spend nearly ten percent of my annual income on energy savings means far more than someone in a 3,000 square foot drywall castle adding a few more inches of insulation to their attic. In their defense, what they save might equal my total use, but as a percentage of their bill, the savings would be minute. Surely less than running their gas fireplace for the holidays or the cost of heating the hot tub.
My investments in conservation rest solely on my shoulders. I bear the burden of their costs and reap the rewards of smaller utility bills. Several years ago, I installed what uppity solar techs call a "scorched air" furnace. It's basically a box that has double glazing on the south (sunny) side, insulation on the north (shady) side. Cool air from the house goes in on one end and warm air comes out on the other, as long as the sun is on the panel. Two automatic dampers isolate the box from the house when the sun goes down and a thermostat turns on a fan to blow cool air into the unit when the box warms up. It is a simple and elegant system that many people don't even notice sitting out behind the back porch. The solar panel cost four hundred dollars, used, and it cost about $1,000 for the installation. Right from the start, the system saved me about 1/3 of the heating bill. This unit has been producing heat sine 1972 and shows a bit of age, but works well. The system paid itself off in less than two years and now saves us nearly $1,000 per year. The way I see those avoided costs is that they help to fund my next round of improvements. Over the years I have found 30-50% energy savings easy to get from each and every home that I have owned. the problem is that very few people understand or can conceive of why these issues are important. I rest easier knowing that in fifty or more years, when my roof needs replacing, the material that comes off can be recycled. I also delight in the fact that I don't have to keep a giant container of hot water in my basement anymore! When you live in 680 square feet of space, a water heater wasting space from floor to ceiling (even if it is in the basement)seems way bigger than I have space for. The small, suitcase size, on-demand water heater that replaces it and hangs on the wall is much better suited to my small footprint lifestyle. An added benefit is that it fits our lifestyle on multiple levels. Installing a through the wall venting unit allowed us to eliminate our chimney opening up nearly four square feet per floor for living space. Efficiency isn't just about energy savings, it is about living a better lifestyle with the resources that you have on hand, spending less on resources from far far away and appreciating what is all around us all the time.
The fact is that energy providers make money on every bit of energy they sell, the hot water that flows down the drain and away from your house is money in their bank. The light left on overnight is accruing to their bottom line and the wasted trip that you took to the store that advertised one thing but ran out before you got there, helps put the children of the CEOs of some faceless energy giant corporation through ivy league university. The rules are set so that they never lose money on waste and inefficiency. It's all just a write off for them. In fact the systems that we establish to "save energy", though somewhat effective reward those who should be paying for these things themselves while the folks who are least able to afford the upgrades are stuck paying the lion's share of the bills, living in drafty old buildings and wishing that they could find a way to keep the lights on for another month. I have seen folks too poor to afford glass put cardboard up in place of a broken pane. There will always be people too poor to pay attention, but when folks like me are ready and willing to make whatever changes are needed to reduce energy use, subsidizing the changes for the well-to-do just doesn't make sense. The ultimate winners are the utility companies. Financially, the table has been set for them with all the trimmings. The poorer classes, can only hope to scrape together an ort or two for a meager holiday dinner of scraps.
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