Heating bills will go DOWN, not up, as heating oil prices rise: <heating bills this coming winter will be brutal.> People will simply make like an Eskimo and wear fur indoors. I doubt that they heat igloos because they are made of ice and if the air temperature indoors is above zero, the walls would turn to water and make their feet wet.
Wear a nice down jacket inside and hey presto, there's no need to heat the air. A dehumidifier might be good to keep it dry and that would take a little edge off the cold.
Initially people will turn the thermostat down a notch, but that will only be a couple of degrees. Then it's a matter of turning it off altogether. Admittedly it'll have to get very expensive to make most people take that approach, but some already do it. We mostly just heat one room and wear some warm clothes in the rest of the house.
It seems silly to heat a huge volume of air and house, to have the heat go gushing out windows, leaks, walls, roof, floor, when keeping the heat inside 80 litres instead of 600m3 = 600,000 litres is a LOT more economical.
Not only that, the 80 litres is self-heating due to metabolic processes which are unavoidable. Some cooling is necessary to avoid over-heating. If the air is cold enough, breathing can just about do it. But leaving hands, face, and neck exposed provides enough cooling.
It's also much easier to insulate 80 litres as it's a simple matter of slipping on the right clothes when insulation is needed. The capital cost of insulating 600,000 litres is measured in $000s.
Also, the insulation of the 80 litres can be taken outside, far from the house. Since people often go outside, they have to have that insulation anyway. So there's no need to buy the insulation for the house too.
It saves getting dressed to go outside if one is already wearing the insulation. Just open the door and walk out. Simple, quick.
Mqurice |
