power curves
The Jevons Paradox
And yet, ever since we gathered two weeks ago with the installers and the electric company guy in the ritual of turning them on and watching the meter run backward, I have been obsessed with turning off lights, rather than willing to leave them on.
I am a living anti-Jevons anecdote.
Did you have a solar-friendly arborist come out and ensure your trees aren’t in the way? I’m writing a book about it if there aren’t any in your area…
;o)
Best,
D
Trees are good. Tell me more about the book!
Sounds like you’re more like an economist, using less when it becomes “more expensive” (opportunity cost 🙂
Jevons paradox is greatly over rated.
Eli observes that Jevons made his observation at a time when coal was getting cheaper and more was being found as well as increasing manufacturing and mining efficiencies. That is not the case today, either with coal or oil, in fact, increasing fuel economy standards are coming at a time when the costs of extracting petroleum and refining the lower grades that are being extracted are rising. Thus one should on simple grounds expect much less of a rebound.
As long as you are not getting the last Watt out of your solar, you have a reason to turn out the lights.