No sign of a "hello section", but I have seen previous newbies attempt to say hi in the " announcement section". So I will formally announce my hello here.
Danny is my name, but I am not Alvin's son. The stardust was merely an acknowledgement of what I am made of, and will no doubt end up as once again, whenever that time comes. This may happen sooner rather than later judging by the path humanity seems to be taking.
I just wanted to say it seems like a great forum with interesting and diverse "stuff" to read up on and broaden one's perspective, and also some knowledgeable individuals commenting on various topics, which for me is both positive and inspiring, or negative and quite scary depending on the info being submitted.
I have been trying to decide if I should build a new house or not. The current abundance of ever changing rules and regulations, and the uncertain financial future have made me realise that I am not convinced about committing to such a large and involved project and all that it entails. Once a house is built, it is a fixed asset, meaning that one cannot take it with them if life throws a spanner in the works and a move to another region or country is required. The chances of selling it and finding a comparative residence elsewhere will be slim.
Whilst renovating my current home I have been staying in a static caravan with a wood burning stove to heat and cook on. I use just over 1kw of leccy a day and that is basically made up of the PC (120w) on for several hours a day (more when rained off or being lazy) for info and entertainment, the low energy light bulb and the odd kettle blast for a brew.
This got me thinking as to why I should bother spending an awful lot of time, money and inevitable stress building a new house that will need more energy than I currently use and have become comfortable with.
Maybe I should just convert a vehicle to a residence without all the ties and regulations that I feel would probably break me judging from past experience dealing with planners and utility companies.
A vehicle could even be driven to warmer climbs when winter comes round and thus use less energy for heating. There is no reason why the project could not utilise many of the technologies discussed on here. It is really just down to lifestyle choice and the scale of one's energy requirements and consumption that determine the need.
From a sustainable point of view it makes more sense to use less energy in the first place, rather than have to produce more in a renewable way to power things that I seem to be able to do without these days.
Is it really worth me "going greener" to save the 1kw a day I currently use?
