Solar John took a poll: "Because of rapidly rising gasoline prices it's likely that we'll soon be driving electric cars. As a result of battery issues some car companies plan to lease batteries instead of selling them with the car. How do you feel about that?" The results were:
I prefer to lease the car and lease the batteries. | 0% (0) |
I prefer to buy the car and lease the batteries. | 38% (8) |
I prefer to buy the car and buy the batteries. | 61% (13) |
Starting at the end of August 2008 I asked: "How much are you spending or have you spent on conservation/insulation for this winter (in the Northern Hemisphere)?" and received the initial 15 responses in the first day, mainly from people already very interested in generating their own power, etc, and then an equal and maybe more typical response over the next fortnight:
Answer | Initial Wave (15, first 24h) | Full (31, after 2 weeks) |
---|---|---|
Nothing: I can't be bothered. | 0% (0) | 3% (1) |
Nothing: I have no money. | 0% (0) | 3% (1) |
Nothing: I rent and/or don't pay bills. | 13% (2) | 10% (3) |
Less than my annual electricity+heating bills. | 27% (4) | 45% (14) |
As much or more than my annual electricity+heating bills. | 53% (8) | 39% (12) |
Over April 2008 I asked "Are you reducing GHG/CO2 emissions for your home and/or business this year?" and received the following (30) responses:
Yes, I intend to reduce. | 13% (4) |
Yes, I have already reduced. | 70% (21) |
I'd like to do more but I'm short of cash. | 3% (1) |
I'd like to do more but I don't know what. | 3% (1) |
No, I think that I can't make a difference. | 0% (0) |
No, I think global warming and GHG-worry is a waste of time. | 7% (2) |
Other | 3% (1) |
Early 2008 research from the Co-op Bank suggested that the UK public plans to spend more than £13b to make their homes greener in 2008 (an average of £550 per house per year). Two-thirds claimed that they had reduced their carbon footprint in the past year.
An informal on-line poll of usage per month, in a blog read by a worldwide audience including the UK and US, indicated as of 2008-02-04 that the modal monthly kWh (mains) electricity use is around 500 to 600:
How much electricity do you use each month? | |
---|---|
Less than 300kWh | 18 |
300 to 600kWh | 26 |
600 to 900kWh | 18 |
900 to 1200kWh | 8 |
1200 to 1500kWh | 12 |
1500 to 1800kWh | 2 |
More than 1800kWh | 11 |