Archive for November, 2011
The World’s Most Inefficient Radiator?
Posted by Gareth Eynon in Energy on November 28, 2011
All I want to do this week is share a photograph with you: Whist plodding around a National Trust property at the weekend, I think I may have stumbled upon the world’s worst place to site a radiator. Have a look at this picture and see if you agree with me:
As we all know, windows are one of the places in a house that let out the most heat. Add to that the fact that this a Georgian era house and that these windows are no doubt old and drafty, and you have a top contender for the World’s Worst Place To Put a Radiator Competition (no that doesn’t really exist – imagine how boring that contest would be!)
Yes I agree that it’s very common to put radiators under the windows of houses, but this is simply a space-saving measure on the builder’s part. In terms of efficiency and heat retention, it’s probably the worst place that you can put them. I once heard an estate agent on TV claiming that radiators are put there to warm the cold air coming in from outside. Er, no. Hot air flows from hot to cold meaning that a radiator placed under a window, or indeed in front of a window, will simply bleed heat out into the cold exterior.
From the look of it, this radiator is Victorian/Edwardian. Now as much as I love Victorian architecture and innovation, this is just plain stupid. And if this isn’t enough; the window next to this one is exactly the same. That must be one cold room.
I think somebody needs to tell the National Trust about how radiators actually work. Or perhaps their subscription fees are so high that they have money to burn. Nah, just kidding; I think the National Trust is great value for money.
GR
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Tesco: Whatever Next?
Posted by Gareth Eynon in Just some nonsense on November 21, 2011
Everyone loves to hate Tesco don’t they? (Well, apart from the millions of people who shop there that is.) I will happily admit that I am a Tesco-hater myself. Nevertheless, this post isn’t about that. This post is looking at how what was essentially a grocery store has branched out into a mind-boggling array of other businesses and now has its chubby little fingers in more pies than one could possibly imagine.
I was doing some research for a post the other week on supermarket nappies and I was so amazed by what I found on Tesco’s website that I just had to share it with you.
I have to admit that this is a bit of a lazy post and that the entirety of my research was spent simply trawling through Tesco websites, but I really wanted to find out exactly how much can be accomplished through what we all still essentially think of as a supermarket.
So what do Tesco offer then?
As one would imagine, they still sell food and drink (although it would be very easy to miss that). In 1974 they became the first supermarket to sell petrol, which of course was soon copied by many other supermarkets. From here – also like many other supermarkets – Tesco have expanded into pharmaceuticals, books, music, clothes and electronics – all of which can be bought in store and all of which have left a trail of devastation amongst local businesses and high streets.
However, it’s since the 1990’s that they have really gone to town and now Tesco offer all of these extra services: a mobile phone network; flowers; photos; car insurance; home insurance; life insurance; health insurance: dental insurance; pet insurance; optician services; hotel accommodation; flights; car hire; travel insurance; personal loans; gas & electricity; credit cards; child trust funds; gold exchange; DVD rental: estate agency services; savings accounts; breakdown cover; music downloads; used cars; and finally, a whole catalogue of everything you could ever possibly want to buy in the entire world.
Of course if you’re a customer who owns a Tesco Clubcard (the loyalty award scheme) and also uses all of these services they provide, the points must really stack up. However, imagine all of the information about you this company then has access to. For example what groceries you buy, how often you fill your petrol tank, how much you home is worth, where you go on holiday, what your pets are called, etc, etc. Personally, I think that this is far too much information for a single private company to hold on one person. But then again – points make prizes.
Maybe I’m just living in the past, but to me the above just seems excessive and greedy. I understand that a business has to grow; but this is astounding. Why can’t Tesco just be content with being a supermarket? Or, perhaps, has the definition of a supermarket now changed to that of a company who can offer such a vast array of different services? For me, this just looks like the slippery slope down into “Tesco World” where independent business and freedom of choice is quashed by the few multinational corporations who can afford to do everything. That’s not the kind of world I want for my grand children and I can see why there are a number of different anti-Tesco groups out there, Tescopoly being the biggest. If you want a more damning look at Tesco, please go and visit them.
So where next for Tesco then? My guess would be they’ll branch out into broadband, mortgages and international arms selling.
I truly fear for the future with regard to companies like Tesco. It seems they are unstoppable in their march toward expansion and world domination. Every year they seem to take on another aspect to their business and every year the world of commerce gets just that little bit tighter. When will it stop?
GR
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Photo courtesy of Ceasefire Magazine and Tesco (obviously)
Good News! But It Was Well Hidden Amongst The Bad News
Posted by Gareth Eynon in Climate Change, News on November 14, 2011
You may have read an article in the Guardian this week (or elsewhere) telling us that greenhouse gas emissions are up to the levels predicted in only the IPCC’s worst-case scenarios. So despite the decades of warnings, it appears that we’re still ploughing headlong into self-destruction. Oh well, no surprise there.
Normally, I would relish writing a post on this and why it’s going to be the death of us all, and how the planet’s doomed, etc, etc. However, I am not feeling too good this week, and being in such a fragile state, I don’t actually want to linger on the bad news. Instead I want you to read a more uplifting paragraph from the same article. (Plus, I am using this as an excuse to be lazy and just settling for a little re-blogging).
First of all, just to keep you up to speed, here is the crux of the original story: The latest figures that show the levels of greenhouse gases humanity is chucking into the atmosphere are way up there with the worst case scenarios forecast in all the climate models and predictions. In other words… we’re buggered. But like I said; I can’t be bothered with that right about now.
The good news I wanted to share with you is this:
“The developed countries that ratified the 1997 Kyoto Protocol greenhouse gas limiting treaty have reduced their emissions overall since then and have achieved their goals of cutting emissions to about 8% below 1990 levels”. (I personally think this should be front-page news, but the media doesn’t do happy stories, does it?)
So you see? We can do it. There is a ray of hope. Enough said. That’s it for this post… I’m off now to suffer in the throws of my man-flu. Peace.
GR
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Photo courtesy of Max Blain
Eco-Lie#5: Eco Nappies? Not When They’re Disposable
Posted by Gareth Eynon in Eco-Lie on November 7, 2011
It’s been while since the Eco-Lie outbreak began, and it appears that humanity still has no cure in sight. The sights of today’s post are set on Sainsbury’s and their Little Ones Eco Nappy range.
For me, to put the word ‘eco’ on a disposable nappy is wrong. Let’s face it, the only true eco nappy would be one that doesn’t exist at all – but we can all imagine the consequences of that! The fact of the matter is that to stop new parents being swamped in a deluge of nasty stuff, we need nappies.
Having had two children myself, I’m a bit of an authority on nappies, but I’m also no eco-angel: I’ve used the lot: reusable nappies, ‘natural’ disposable nappies, huggies (once) pampers (twice) and even a tea towel fastened with a safety pin (a one-off emergency measure). And yes; I’ve also used my fair share of Sainsbury’s Little Ones nappies (hangs head in shame). The huggies and pampers are horrible, plastic, chemical filled things that I only used because a friend lent me them when I was caught short. I used washable cloth nappies for my first child (lift head in pride), but just didn’t have the time or space to do the same with the second (re-hang head in shame).
I’m not going to get into the ‘which nappy is best’ debate. Suffice it to say that plenty of research has been done and the results show that reusable nappies are, by far, the most planet-friendly and wallet-friendly option. Plus, the more children you have, the better value they become. You can read a different article I wrote on the subject here.
Disposable nappies, though, are a menace to the environment: they use up valuable resources to manufacture, can take up to 200 years to decompose and 90% of them end up in landfill. Does this sound eco to you? Now I’m sure these Little Ones nappies are an improvement on the above, but not so much that they merit being called ‘eco’.
Sainsbury’s say their eco nappies use a minimum of 60% plant-based material, but I’m sorry, they shouldn’t be going anywhere near the word ‘eco’ until that’s up to at least 99.7%. I do know of a brand of nappies that come in compostable packaging, but do these ones? Nope. It’s polyethylene all the way on this eco-friendly product.
Are they alone?
Just so Sainsbury’s don’t feel hard done by, I thought I’d have a look at the other supermarkets and see what name they give their own range of eco nappies. Do they try and fool us too?
Asda: Yep, just as I suspected, they’ve pulled a fast one and called them Adsa Eco Nappies. They’ve had to recall them though due to a complaint about the materials used – very eco, well done Asda.
Tesco: They don’t have their own eco brand of nappies. I did notice, though, that next to the description of its Value disposable nappy, Tesco inform us about the nappy’s carbon footprint. Now I hate to sound snobbish here, but I’m going to anyway: do you really think that the people who buy Tesco Value nappies care about the environment? No, I don’t think so…
Morrisons: Not sure, as they don’t have an online shop (how last decade) and I couldn’t be bothered to go in a store to have a look.
So then, it’s not only Sainsbury’s who try and fob off the environmentally conscious (but very busy) parent, with a disposable eco nappy, Asda do it too.
Staying on the subject of Asda for a minute: one other thing that came up during my eco nappy hunt was the Asda Little Angels Eco Nappy Sacks… What?!!! Eco nappy sacks? You have got to be joking! There’s no need for nappy sacks at all: it’s a complete waste of resources to use an individual plastic bag for each nappy that you end up putting into that giant plastic bag… called a bin. Here’s what Asda say, “We have added a special ingredient which helps this product degrade 30 times faster than a normal nappy sack, protecting the planet for your little angel.” Oh, so that’s just 33 years for these eco nappy bags to degrade then, well that’s fine – what a wonderful eco-friendly product.
In summary then…
I’m aware that Sainsbury’s aren’t the only company to stock eco disposables, but they are the ones who I’m picking on today (Asda just happened to get in the firing line). While I do applaud any attempt to make a product less damaging to the environment, this doesn’t detract from the validity of the statement that eco disposables are an oxymoron. Nothing that’s used in such massive numbers as nappies and is also disposable can be at one with the ecosystem. Again, this is a blatant attempt by the marketing men to sell more products on the back of our guilt over killing the planet.
There’s nothing really wrong with using these nappies, as they are a better option than some. But please, please don’t be fooled into thinking they are good for the environment, they are not. You can find much better alternatives out there.
GR
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