Urban myths re electricity/fuel/energy/power.

[BritDownUnder]

California used to be 50 hertz until 1948.

[adam2]

With the rising cost of electricity, a few old myths are resurfacing.

One is that the running cost of an electric heater is related to dimensions and not to the wattage. Example "I have started to use a small fan heater in each room, instead of the big wall mounted heaters previously used"

And related, the belief that a 1kw electric kettle will produce cheaper boiling water than a 3kw kettle.

And a more complex one, that reducing the temperature setting on an electric shower will save money. No it will not. The loading of the element is fixed. Temperature variation is achieved by altering the flow rate. Lesser flow=hotter water, greater flow=cooler water.
Some more sophisticated showers have several fixed wattages, for example 4kw, 6kw, and 10kw. Energy can be saved by selecting the lower setting in that case, but the flow of hot water is likely to disappoint.

[Lurkalot2]

Sliced Bread on radio 4 recently looked into claims that a type of ceramic heater uses 30% less energy than other forms of heating.
Short but interesting programme.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001dxtx

[kenneal - lagger]

Then there's the myth of heating a room with a candle and a ceramic flower pot.

[Lurkalot2]

Yes I've noticed that one cropping up on social media again recently . Opinions seem divided but there do seem to be quite a few who say it works.. From what I've read the idea sprang up during the war when people used it to take the chill off air raid shelters. In a small enclosed space such as an anderson shelter often partly buried and with several people inside I can see how it might have some effect but trying to heat a room in a house would require dozens of the things. I also don't really understand how the idea has resurfaced with regards to the cost of energy. Even if it were effective in heating a room it must still be more expensive and that without considering air quality issues.

[adam2]

A candle produces about 100 watts of heat, this varies a bit according to flame size which depends upon a number of factors. 100 watts is a fair average.
100 watts will raise the temperature of a small space noticeably, but is unlikely to much influence a large room. Back in the in the good old days, a large room in an affluent household might be lit by as many as 100 candles, producing 10kw or so of heat.

Gas lighting was cheaper than candles and was often used liberally due to this. The heat output was considerable and most welcome in winter but unpleasant in hot weather.

Candles will almost certainly be more expensive than electricity per unit of heat, and a lot more expensive than oil, natural gas, LPG, or coal. Candles purchased very cheaply in bulk might be a bit cheaper than electricity.

A person at rest produces about 100 watts of heat, increasing to several hundred watts with physical work.

[adam2]

Here are some facts and figures regarding candles as a heat source.

Dinner candles in bulk from fleabay, about 35 pence each, my estimate, actual prices vary a lot.
Burning time per candle, claimed as 8 hours.
Heat output 100 watts for 8 hours=0.8kwh.

0.8kwh for 35 pence=43 pence per kwh. A bit more than the present capped domestic electricity price.

And of course candles purchased from high street shops are likely to be more expensive than bulk packs ordered on line. The cheapest equivalent from tescos are 58 pence each.

[adam2]

And a new urban myth that is rapidly gaining ground. "save electricity by use of battery lights instead of mains"

Total rubbish in almost all cases. Do the sums. Costs per 1,000 hours are (ignoring purchase price which is about the same for either case)

Mains LED bulb of 5 watts will in 1,000 hours consume 5 units of electricity at a cost of about £1.75.

String of battery LED Christmas lights, uses 3 AA cells for runtime of about 50 hours. So in 1,000 hours 60 AA cells will be used at a cost of about £30.
The battery lights will be MUCH dimmer. If a dim light is wanted then buy a 1 watt mains LED bulb.
The already dim battery lights will get even dimmer as the batteries are used, and 25 hours per set of batteries might be more realistic, which will double the cost per 1,000 hours to about £60.

Alternatively, simply consider the cost per unit of electricity !
Mains at present capped domestic price---------------------about 35 pence a unit.
Batteries, bulk purchased, D cells----------------------------about £50 per unit
Batteries, smaller cells, high street prices------------------about £500 per unit.

[Lurkalot2]

Perhaps this myth assumes the use of rechargeable batteries that are then charged elsewhere such as at the workplace for instance ,

[adam2]

Perhaps this myth assumes the use of rechargeable batteries that are then charged elsewhere such as at the workplace for instance ,

Charging a battery at work in order to use it at home could save money, but disappointingly little money. Do the sums.
A 12 volt 80 amp hour battery will store about 1 kwh, worth about 35/40 pence. A lead acid battery of that capacity is only just about portable, and should not be regularly deep discharged.Saving about 20 pence a day without deep discharge.The battery will cost about £100 and need roughly annual replacement. The "free" electricity will cost about

Battery cost £100 a year.
Battery cycled 250 times a year, to 0.4 kwh, so total energy throughput is 100 kwh a year.
That is about £1 a unit, for the "free" electricity.
Even if the battery lasts longer than my estimate, the "free" electricity will still cost more than the retail price.

A lithium battery might last 5 years, but costs about 5 times as much, more portable though.

[Lurkalot]

I never said I believe it really saves much to charge elsewhere although I do try and charge my cordless tools up on the job if I can.
I also tend to feel that these energy saving myths tend to refer to personal usage rather than electric consumption as a whole. It may reduce personal consumption by a tiny amount and subsequently impact bills to an equally tiny amount but the electricity to charge those batteries is still being generated even if those pennies are going on someone else's bill.
Incidentally I did have a little trouble with the new registration login but seem to have sorted it out.

[Default0ptions]

I’ve largely switched to a dumb phone which I only need to recharge now and then rather than my smart phone which I had to recharge a few times a day and over night.

I’ve also rediscovered just ‘being in the world’ as a result.

Unfortunately I’ve also been forced to realise how annoying it is when even the people in your own family are so absorbed with their phones that it’s almost impossible to interact with any of them in real time.

The real urban myth is that you need all the power tools. We built the Industrial Revolution out of hand tools in the first place.

[Lurkalot]

The real urban myth is that you need all the power tools. We built the Industrial Revolution out of hand tools in the first place.

I've been a woodworker for most of my working life and use a trade/diy forum. There's often a "what's the best tool to use" question when it's really a "what power tool" question. I do sometimes suggest the hand tool option but that's not normally well received. I've also noticed battery tools becoming far more common and pushed over corded tools. When I worked for a firm over a decade ago we were provided with a cordless drill but pretty much everything else was corded 110volt . I'm still in a similar position although as most of my work is now domestic I generally have 230v tools alongside the cordless drill. I see other people with vans full of cordless drills , saws , routers , sanders and so on.
One of my hobbies is re-enactment and in that I portray a medieval carpenter. A lot of the work is done with simple tools , often just an axe and while drilling holes is hard work it's nice to get away from it all.

[Catweazle]

John Seymour, the famous self sufficiency writer, once said that you should use powered tools whenever possible as you only get one set of joints. Now you can have a hip or knee replacement, but I wouldn't count on that continuing. Human joints aren't designed for the length of working life we face.

[adam2]

John Seymour, the famous self sufficiency writer, once said that you should use powered tools whenever possible as you only get one set of joints. Now you can have a hip or knee replacement, but I wouldn't count on that continuing. Human joints aren't designed for the length of working life we face.

Yes, I agree, power tools save a lot of effort and wear on ones joints and should be used when possible for intensive DIY. For paid employment, power tools are almost essential if the work is to be done in an economical time.
Whilst we used to manage without them, the world changes.