Energy Independence for the Average Joe

[FactFinder]

It can be accomplished, unraveling the apron strings to dependence on financial institutions and energy companies trying to suck you into forever payments for their bloated and ever gouging products. Took me about 10 years but I can now confidently say that I rarely imbibe on their addiction.

Let's see, some of the things that I have done to free myself from oppressors:

_Insulated the hell out of my house, including building up berms that pose as planters around my foundation

_Bought a kick ass wood stove that easily gets the house to 80 degrees while affording me the pleasure of the quest in burning 6 cords before spring.

_Adjusted my job and vehicle to the point where I only use about 8 gallons a week for work.

So I have adjusted my net dependence on creeps to about 8x 3.30 or ~$25/week. In my mind that is still excessive.

I'll continue to work on it.

 

[RGR]

_Insulated the hell out of my house, including building up berms that pose as planters around my foundation

Good one! Same here! No point in giving it away…can't say I feel oppressors have anything to do with it though.

_Bought a kick ass wood stove that easily gets the house to 80 degrees while affording me the pleasure of the quest in burning 6 cords before spring.

Too much pollution, all those particulates, your neighbors have to breath, nasty stuff. I say go for CH4 in whichever guise you prefer, efficient, clean burning, inexpensive.

_Adjusted my job and vehicle to the point where I only use about 8 gallons a week for work.

Pathetic!!! I take the kids to and from school, go to work, run around to the mall, go Black Friday shopping, and use nearly ZERO gallons in a week. I can go a month or two and not need 8 gallons.

So I have adjusted my net dependence on creeps to about 8x 3.30 or ~$25/week. In my mind that is still excessive.

I'll continue to work on it.

Get cracking! If folks like me who aren't even that worried about oppressors can use less gasoline and don't poison our neighbors with particulate pollution, you need to do better SOON!

 

[flacaltenn]

I did my part.. I only had one child.. I figure my carbon footprint is WAAAAY below Al Gores..

So I COULD "leave the Christmas lights up all year", heat a story of my house just for 2 turtles, drive a Hummer and STILL save the planet more than you guys are..

 

[ScienceRocks]

Buy yourself one of those electric car + 8 kw of solar panels to run your home and power the car.

Enjoy

 

[ScienceRocks]

Almost forgot that you'll need a wall of batteries to store energy at night

 

[RGR]

I did my part.. I only had one child.. I figure my carbon footprint is WAAAAY below Al Gores..

So I COULD "leave the Christmas lights up all year", heat a story of my house just for 2 turtles, drive a Hummer and STILL save the planet more than you guys are..

Good point. I've got 2 kids. Each kid must be worth ilke gigatons of CO2 emitted, or not.

 

[RGR]

Buy yourself one of those electric car + 8 kw of solar panels to run your home and power the car.

Enjoy

I do. But the sun don't shine at night genius. So during the day I make clean power for my neighbors mostly.

 

[RGR]

Almost forgot that you'll need a wall of batteries to store energy at night

Only if you lack imagination. Industrial scale storage is as simple as pumping water uphill. I don't have the room for that kind of operation in suburbia, so I stick with making power for the neighborhood, and getting it back from good old fashioned base load coal power at night.

Thank goodness for coal base load!

 

[Old Rocks]

63% coal, 27% natural gas, 6% wind.

http://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/state-regs/pdf/Colorado.pdf