Christmas lights v Patio heaters?

[Rheghead]

Both burn fuel up for virtually no good reason. Yet we seem to condemn patio heaters but relish in seeing a good garden xmas light show. Shouldn't we think of the fuel crisis (assuming there is one) and Global warming?

Are we being hypocritical?

[unicorn]

I voted wrong lol I thought it said both are wonderful. I do xmas lights for the kids and I have a chimnea in the garden that I use to burn wood and I have the occasional barbeque on.

[Ricco]

I voted for the lights as I think it lightens all our moods and, goodness, don't we need that. :roll:

Modern units are all low voltage (for safety reasons) and so should consume less power and therefore be less wasteful. However, patio heaters? Why on earth would anyone consider those to be Christmassy? Get a good coat on, wrap a nice scarf around your neck and go outside with a lovely hot toddy. That's what Christmassy is. :D

[JAWS]

It all boils down to the same thing whatever such matters are debated.
"The way I use energy is carefully considered and absolutely necessary. The way you use energy is just shameful waste and should be abolished! I don’t see a need for it so nobody else should be allowed to do it!"

It’s nothing more than typical human hypocrisy in order to display some form of “Superior” attitude for all to see.
Such people should be confined to one small section of the planet and cut off from the rest of us for the sake of all our sanity!

[obiron]

i dont mind christmas lights some folk have nice displays. heaters for outside to me thats a bit odd. if your cold why not go inside and get warmed up.

[sweetpea]

I wanted a pation heater but not allowed cause of the environment but when I thought about it probably right, they are unnecessary but a chiminea would be nice. I don't have any christmas lights other than on the tree and round front window. If I had my way I'd have them everywhere. I do care about the environment as much as I can, like recycling as much as possible and turning off lights but I'm a sucker for anything shiny.

[Samuri]

I SAY SAVE IT! But then again I like all the christmas light displays :confused not too bothered about the patio heater though as I dont have a patio. You just cant win can you.:Razz

[Bobinovich]

I don't have a patio either so I'll keep my allowance for our small (but perfectly formed, of course!) christmas lights.

IMHO our carbon fooprint is probably smaller than most anyway, and compared to the massive waste going on in elsewhere in the world, our is miniscule.

Anyway I don't feel individuals are the ones who should be worrying - industry is far more responsible for our current situation, along with the Government for not pursuing the nuclear option many years ago.

[Lolabelle]

I love fairy lights, to me they are for always. I use them when we have BBQ's and in winter we have a fire in the yard or my sister has a chiminea. We spend a lot of time out of doors and have a small house and a big yard and verandah that is like another living area. I guess the climate makes the difference.:Razz

[badger]

Anyway I don't feel individuals are the ones who should be worrying - industry is far more responsible for our current situation, along with the Government for not pursuing the nuclear option many years ago.

Of course individuals should be worrying. Every great movement has been started by a few, or even one, individual/s and Government is made up of individuals elected by us. We know they forget all their promises once they're in power but that's no reason to sit back and let them get on with it.

I have no problem with small Christmas light displays and actually think they're much more attractive than masses of coloured lights blinking away with huge illuminated Santas. Patio heaters are just nonsense.

Caithness is hopefully going to be a centre for renewable energy. Wouldn't it be great if it was also a centre for conserving energy? There's a good Scottish ad. running on tv just now and I do wonder what people who say "the children love it" will then say to their children's children in 10 or 20 years time when the lights have gone out and they ask "but why did you let it happen? why didn't you do something?" Every time I waste energy to please my child, a mother somewhere is watching her child die.

[squidge]

Hmm
isnt burning wood from renewable sources a neutral thing and environmentally ok? This means you could stiull have your chiminea thingie and be virtuous

[Rheghead]

I have a patio heater but I don't have any xmas lights. I used about a half bottle of gas on my patio heater over the summer which if spent in terms of CO2 emissions equates to about 90 miles in an average car. If I didn't spend that gas on the patio then my missus would have had the fire on:roll: and some lighting. Because I was boozed up on wine under the patio heater then requests for a chinese meal were answered with the fact that I can't drive so I saved some CO2 there. So I think patio heaters are environmentally friendly compared with xmas lights because we all know that xmas day is the most wasteful in terms of energy.:Razz

[Mr_Me19]

i dont mind christmas lights some folk have nice displays. heaters for outside to me thats a bit odd. if your cold why not go inside and get warmed up.

Yeah i agree with you obiron. Christmas lights look nice and give everyone a feeling of the christmas spirit (or for all you pc people out there the holiday lights and the holiday spirit), but patio heaters are completely pointless? It is much more like sense to go inside to warm up? Plus the heat isn't escaping straight away if you have a heater on inside. If your outside then all the heat just goes up, up and away....

[Bobbyian]

It all boils down to the same thing whatever such matters are debated.
"The way I use energy is carefully considered and absolutely necessary. The way you use energy is just shameful waste and should be abolished! I don’t see a need for it so nobody else should be allowed to do it!"

It’s nothing more than typical human hypocrisy in order to display some form of “Superior” attitude for all to see.
Such people should be confined to one small section of the planet and cut off from the rest of us for the sake of all our sanity!

I agree with you here....Jaws, all those people who make these "cheap" plasticy things should go with them all that energy wasted on something that won`t probably last until Newyear. I think we could save so much energy on moderateing what is being produced.

[Ricco]

I have a patio heater but I don't have any xmas lights. I used about a half bottle of gas on my patio heater over the summer which if spent in terms of CO2 emissions equates to about 90 miles in an average car. If I didn't spend that gas on the patio then my missus would have had the fire on and some lighting. Because I was boozed up on wine under the patio heater then requests for a chinese meal were answered with the fact that I can't drive so I saved some CO2 there. So I think patio heaters are environmentally friendly compared with xmas lights because we all know that xmas day is the most wasteful in terms of energy.

Rheghead - I love your logic. ROFL :lol:



By the way, how's the wife and bairn?

[Whitewater]

I voted that both were wasteful, but I do like Christmas lights. Patio heaters are just another thing that we don't need. As 'obiron' has said, "if it's cold go inside", Makes sense doesn't it, but I must confess that I have thought about buying a patio heater for these long summer nights after we have had a good BBQ and don't really want to go inside or end the night. Hmmm! still thinking about it, but they are wasteful, I wonder which part of me is going to win the argument in the spring time??

[Errogie]

How about a fairy light decorated windfarm or two on the Caithness landscape. A bit of direct community benefit from some of the power going down the line to the central belt power junkies.

Every year people drive for miles to see the Blackpool illuminations in the autumn because it is a major tourist attraction. We could really do it on a big scale and the potential for kalideascopic effects from an out of normal tourist season manmade northern light show could be endless. The Japanese fly in by the plane load to northern Canada to see the Aurorea Borealis and have mistakenly picked up on the idea that a child conceived in that location will be especially intelligent.

Well the potential for package deals to the far north for honeymoon couples visiting the Caithness seasonal light show could be a sure fire winner..... Take it away Caithness and Sutherland Enterprise!