What will we have to give up?
Ann Baird writes of the trade-offs her family faces by living in a sustainable building
In response to a discussion thread on the BCSEA-ENERGY listserv, Ann Baird shared these insights on how her family has adapted to life in North America's first code-approved, seismically engineered, load bearing, insulated cob house, featuring solar PV and wind power, grid intertie, solar thermal heating, rainwater harvesting from a living roof, composting toilet, grey water re-use, and passive solar design.
Here at Eco-Sense our 6 member family uses on average 5-6 kWhrs per day. This ranges from 4kWhrs per day in the summer to 8.5 kWhrs in the winter (due mostly to more lights, and more pumps and controls for the heating system).
We have a 2 kW grid tie solar array that produces from 3-12 kWh on average per day seasonally (based on weekly averages).
People on tours always ask...What is the biggest sacrifice we have made. My answer is always the same...I gave up my toaster. I happen to really like toast, but anytime we use electricity to make heat we use enormous amounts of electricity.
My mother would probably have a different answer...likely that she gave up the clothes dryer...no big deal in the summer...but this time of year it's a bit more work to hang clothes inside...(which happens to work well in an earthen building where we NEVER have mold or moisture problems).
My dad would probably say he likes to stand and think about his next cuts while the 220 table saw is running...he will often leave it on while doing something else in the workshop. (this makes Gord and I twitch)
For the kids, they would probably say they get really tired of being told to turn off the lights they are not using...but due to our consistency they are really quite good.
Everyone would no doubt have different answers, but the bottom line for me is I'll give up toast anytime if it means making a real difference...you know...protecting a new watershed from being flooded, species extinction, droughts, flooding, massive storms, and all the general nastiness associated with climate change.
So in summary, my vote is for conservation first and then site appropriate renewable energy. In my opinion renewable energy is beautiful and we need to celebrate it with prominence...remember, leaves are the ultimate in solar technology and nature doesn't hide them from view.
Ann
Less life stuff... More life style
www.eco-sense.ca
250-478-2680
3295 Compton Road
Victoria BC V9E 1C8
