By P Gosselin
Back to the 19th century…climate-crazed political leader: Washcloths and heating just one room are enough…
Since Germany put itself on the path to de-energize by throttling energy production and creating high prices, some German leaders lately have offered creative ways of dealing with the resulting crisis, among them: advising people to prepare themselves for a possible blackout lasting for days.
Some weeks ago we reported on how the Minister President from Baden-Württemberg, Winfried Kretschmann, suggested that people stop taking hot showers and instead use a washcloth with a sink with some lukewarm water for bathing. This would help to curb a gas supply crisis later this winter.
Heating just one room
Mr. Kretschmann is back in the news again with a new idea, one that he says he himself practices: Allegedly, he heats just one room in the house, the living room, and expects others to follow his lead. This means citizens are now expected to bathe themselves with a washcloth, turn off the lights and to sleep, eat and do their home office work in frosty rooms.
The message in Germany is clear: politicians have no intentions of re-establishing a steady energy supply that would return its citizens to normal comfort. Instead citizens are being asked to return to the 19th century.
Health and property hazard
But there are of course problems with going back to the stone ages. Not only is cold dangerous to people, but not heating the rooms in your home poses another health hazard: toxic black mold. According to the online Karlsruher Insider:
Meanwhile, experts warn against heating only one room or no room at all. The cool air in the room would lead to increased humidity, which would then promote mold growth.
Ventilation and adequate heating are therefore both important basics for getting through the winter in good health. Mold can cause lasting damage to the apartment and the house, as well as to one’s own health.”
Everything climate-crazed politicians touch seems to turn into destruction, misery and death.
Also, see here what it will cost on average for a German family to heat a 100 square meter residence tomorrow (1 day).
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Ukraine has no heating or lights because of Russian missile strikes. Germans have no heat because of self-inflicted policy failures.
And
eating one meal every other day is good for you.
wearing a hair shirt is good for your soul
self flagellation will appease the evil climate spirits
One serious problem with power outages is freezers and fridges warming and spoiling food. Here every grocery store has to have diesel backup. I suppose Germany plans to keep the power up for food storage in wholesalers and stores. For the ordinary people, the loss of just the food in the freezer compartment of the fridge would be serious.
Our last outage was about 48 hours. The generator kept our freezers cold, and then the neighbours the neighbour’s.
That’s why they want you to only warm one room in your house. If the kitchen is cold, the fridge stays cold longer.
Politicians of this ilk should have the experience of living in one room. I am sure that accommodation could be found for them in a suitable facility.
Do you have any leaders who dare to speak out against this?
Thanks to the contributors here. Interesting stories.
I’d love to be able to drop in on him un-announced, to check that out.
How do you characterize the behavior of your home? How do you estimate the conductivity of its different parts? Do you use thermal cameras?
Do you identify your home with an electric circuit with a resistance network?
Can AI be used to model homes?
Its so obvious that the population of the western countries have been conditioned to believe things that are so ridiculous-, false narratives, illogical policies, obvious corruption , its like a sickness, who in their right mind would elect a Joe Biden or Fetterman? I think we may have already damaged our social fabric and economic resilience worse than we think; and maybe our microbiologic fabric too.
Heating one room in the winter has been normal for me for a long time.
Howsabout just stop lying about the cost of renewables doomsters?
https://www.msn.com/en-au/money/news/be-honest-on-bill-shock-from-new-energy/ar-AA14oko9
I wonder if the German Parliament is as warm as the British one? They probably live there not at home.
My long. detailed comment explaining the relationship between German energy problems and Ukraine military actions was deleted arbitrarily. I will no longer comment at this website. Apparently one must be pro-Ukraine to comment here.
While I wish details, especially usage, were provided regarding the daily energy cost in the link it is fantastic given my work, travel and design experience with the hydronic systems that are used nearly exclusively for space and domestic water heating in German homes.
The typical German detached or semi-detached home is solid masonry structure usually a foot or more thick covered with four or more inches of rigid foam, typically on five sides as the roofing tiles are removed and reinstalled on top during renovations. Windows are triple glazed and often fixed. When operable sometimes only a small portion will open or free movement will be restricted. Automatic exterior insulated rollup blinds are very common on all windows and secondary doors.
You’re essentially in an upside down foam ice chest–it’s really that tight–so ventilation problems and regulations ensure with what we would call an ordinary kitchen exhaust fan a source of significant and not always adequately addressed complications.
The heat source will be a gas fired boiler that recovers heat by condensing water vapor produced in combustion and is frequently capable of modulating its output substantially. Radiators–usually steel panels whose output is principally convective–are sized to allow 140F or lower temperature water (a condensation related rule of thumb) to heat the structure under normal conditions.
Thermostatically controlled flow modulating valves are required by law on all radiators. Combined with constant circulation of the water heating medium whose temperature varies inversely with outdoor temperature; the high mass of the structure; the extreme insulation and the meager ventilation produce a home that takes very little energy to heat by what those of us in the USA consider normal measure. Add a tendency to keep the temperature lower than normal in the USA (65F or so) and very little energy is used with outdoor low temperatures near the freezing point like at present. Daily temperature setback is lightly, if at all, used but unused rooms that can be closed off are often maintained at a substantially lower temperature. The rather apt nickname for them is “Eurocave.” Personally I find such conditions comfortable as long as relative humidity is kept in check and there is adequate ventilation.
The same boiler provides domestic hot water on demand. While more efficient than a tank heater the boiler does not recover condensation energy.
It’s not a perfect system but it’s an extremely energy efficient system especially given the nature of their housing construction. Combined with a concentric flue that preheats combustion air I’ve measured sustained boiler efficiency above 98% while heating a real world home.
The “heat one room” suggestion from that energy minister does not apply well to this sort of home. Something tells me he lives in one of the few genuinely historic structures that is protected and also comparatively airy–“windy” might be a better comparison.. Completely shutting down heat from any radiator under any conditions is normally impossible. Keeping just one room significantly warmer than the rest is possible with the system but it adds inefficiency and significant comfort issues. Humidity and ventilation issues are only magnified and the massive masonry core of the home cools considerably which results in what people call “bone chilling” cold as the walls suck yet more radiant heat from their exposed flesh while the face of the small “radiator” that’s designed for convection is barely above ambient temperature in all but one room. Using electricity for the extra heat in that room would be better with regards to efficiency but with a nearly 350% rise in electric cost in a year and the threat of blackouts who knows?
Were it not for the rush to decarbonize the worst of this could have been avoided even given the situation ion Ukraine where the people will suffer miserably this winter. Germany it seems may not be far behind but it will be because of their own foolishness in believing that they could conquer the whims of nature any better than those of human beings.
As a former Minnesota resident let me suggest that the frozen broken water pipes inside outer walls in under-heated houses will contribute to the black mold issue as well as the humidity.
While he may be speaking of another home, this was the minister’s new residence in 2011. The living room likely outsizes the average German home. https://www.alamy.com/stock-photo-winfried-kretschmann-front-m-stands-in-front-of-his-new-residence-58216117.html