ENERGY MYTHS

Ian
You mentioned recently about leaving fluorescent lights on to save energy as the starters use more than the light being on all day. This is a myth. The starting power of fluorescent lights is about twice the running power for 1-2 seconds; therefore starting the light only uses up about four seconds of equivalent energy. . There are lots of other myths to choose from about the use of energy too, such as solar energy not being efficient for the Irish weather. Ireland gets slightly more solar radiation than most areas. Solar energy works on light, not heat so we are well equipped to run our houses on solar energy. Regards. H.K by e-mail

Reply.I stand corrected! There is an interesting article about this in the Local Planet newspaper written by Peter Schneider. Peter comments on these myths in greater detail. The Local Planet newspaper deals with environmental issues around Ireland and strives for a sustainable future. It was first published last year and it is growing in popularity. Initially the print run was about every four months but now it is bi-monthly. Buy a copy at the newsagent, supermarket or health shop or go online to http://www.localplanet.ie/ to see what it’s all about (have a dictionary handy as some articles are a bit in-depth).

Environmental.