Alan Meier

MAINTENANCE DOESN'T NECESSARILY LOWER ENERGY USE

Author: Barbara Litt, Andrew Megowan, Unknown Author and Alan Meier

archive CONTENT

January 01, 1993

Utility bill stuffers direct customers to clean their refrigerator coils in order to save the customers a few dollars and the utility companies a few power plants. [continue reading]

Performance Versus Projections: Does Your Refrigerator Measure Up?

Author: Alan Meier

archive CONTENT

January 01, 1993

Every new refrigerator is sold with a bright yellow "Energy Guide" label affixed to the door. The label lists the refrigerator's energy consumption (translated confusingly into dollars per year) and compares that unit to other, similar models. [continue reading]

Dear Bill Clinton

Author: Alan Meier

archive CONTENT

March 01, 1993

Now that you have moved into the White House, we would like you to take a careful look at your new home. Is it energy-efficient? We doubt it. [continue reading]

Lessons from the Electrical Frontier

Author: Alan Meier

archive CONTENT

May 01, 1993

More and more households are opting for photovoltaic (PV) electricity supply systems, and with them a change in household technology and lifestyle. In fact, a recent study estimates that at least 25,000 homes operate "off the grid," relying on PV to harvest electricity and on batteries to store it. [continue reading]

Cheap Electricity

Author: Alan Meier

archive CONTENT

July 01, 1993

A minor revolution is occurring in the electricity supply industry. A flood of cheap natural gas, combined with high-efficiency, low-cost combined-cycle gas turbine generation units, has made it possible to supply electricity at very low prices. [continue reading]

What Stays On When You Go Out

Author: Alan Meier

archive CONTENT

July 01, 1993

"We were away for a whole month and our utility bill barely dropped." This comment (or some variant) is heard at the end of the summer in millions of American households. [continue reading]

It's the Duct's Turn for Retrofits

Author: Alan Meier

archive CONTENT

September 01, 1993

Pity the poor neglected duct. Put end-to-end, there are enough of them in American homes to reach to the moon and back. [continue reading]

Retrofitting the White House?

Author: Alan Meier

archive CONTENT

September 01, 1993

We would like to think that Bill and Hillary Clinton read the Home Energy editorial advising them to retrofit the White House (see "Dear Bill Clinton," Mar/Apr '93, p.2). [continue reading]