What is wrong with the dark? (difference, areas, Chicago, Maine)
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alrighty, I still wouldn't want someone to sneak up on me in the dark! sorry!
We never appeared to have that problem. Remember, when your eyes have adjusted, you can see well enough (and hear well enough) to tell if someone is trying to sneak up on you (and how many times have you had that happen, by the way?)
We see a lot of hype on TV about all the devices we have that are 'vampires' consuming power. All the little power transformers to charge our phones, the cable box, the DVD player, etc., etc., etc.
Ok they are consuming power, small amounts, and in every household it surely adds up.
Why do I never see anything about the huge amounts of power consumed by unnecessary outside lighting? Why do people feel the need to create a pool of light pollution in the middle of a quiet dark neighborhood? Another observation is the people that do this are almost always from the north. If you drove down my street at 2 AM and noted all the houses with outside lights, vs. houses in the dark, the lighted are from NY or NJ primarily.
It is lovely here, very few street lights, and while you can't see the milky way anymore due to light pollution, you can see lots of stars. Now a couple from NY bought next door, and they have at least 1000 watts of outdoor lighting on 24/7 as the don't even turn them off during the day. No timers, no motion detectors, just always on.
When will the 'that ain't green' crowd broach the topic of outside lighting, or is this just a taboo topic as too many people are scared of the dark? In 24 hours they consume more power than my vampires do in a year.
Probably because I don't want people to die because its too dark for people to drive safely...
oh and anti-streetlight folks who think we should be using lanterns and flashlights in the city .... what about those of us who don't depend on cars and don't have a cute little driveway to park them in? are we supposed to supply our own lighting as pedestrians while also watching our backs?
Works for me in the woods in the dark and on streets with poor lighting here. And the woods, while hiking and checking a trapline in the dark, is considerably more dangerous than a stroll down a town street. Rocks, stream crossings, dropoffs on ledges, etc. And yes I have carried one of my gas lanterns in the city more than once (how about that, 90 year old lantern took care of a problem, no need for wasteful streetlights lighting empty streets or roads or trails all night) though I typically use my large maglite in town. If the pwoer goes out while on a walk I still have light too (that has happened to me BTW).
Works for me in the woods in the dark and on streets with poor lighting here. And the woods, while hiking and checking a trapline in the dark, is considerably more dangerous than a stroll down a town street. Rocks, stream crossings, dropoffs on ledges, etc. And yes I have carried one of my gas lanterns in the city more than once (how about that, 90 year old lantern took care of a problem, no need for wasteful streetlights lighting empty streets or roads or trails all night) though I typically use my large maglite in town. If the pwoer goes out while on a walk I still have light too (that has happened to me BTW).
Needless to say we don't have any street lights on our road. What is so gorgeous are the Northern Lights in the winter with the sky pulsating the beautiful colors as well as the starry nights where the stars look so bright and close against the black sky.
Last edited by Alaskapat528; 08-16-2009 at 06:16 PM..
Reason: add
True, the demand is lower at night, thus power companies don't need to figure nighttime lighting into their calculations for 'peak' demand periods. But to say that 1,000 watts of lighting on a single house is not waste, can't be done, it is a waste.
Overnight power is all base-load. Has to be left running, anyway.
In many places Night-Time-Electricity sells for cheaper than it costs to make.
If they get to Time Of Use metering in your area, you will likely see what I am talking about. About like cell phones where the night hours are free.
But I suppose leaving the light on burns the bulb out faster.
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