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I also advocate for retrofitting, despite the clear advantages of buildings that can be designed for energy efficiency from the ground up. I'm thinking about Maine's having some of the oldest housing stock in the country, and of course the economic realities of most Mainers when it comes to adapting to new energy realities. There are some great designs for very technically simple Hot Air and Hot Water systems, and I hope to create both for my own family, and for working people in general some designs (and maybe products) that would make it as simple and cheap as possible to suck in a bit of the heat raining down on us, and keep it inside..
re: NYC
I would be interested in seeing a comparison of Heat energy required for the average NYC 6-floor walkup, PER Person, as opposed to single-family dwellings, which don't share any heat between families. I think there are some huge advantages in the Cities that should be measured in terms of peoples' energy footprints. (Plus Walkability, Transit, etc)
Your best investment might be insulating and sealing rather than any kind of energy production or capture. Is your building brick or frame? What you can do depends on what you've got; if you can blow expanding foam into the walls of a balloon-framed structure, it's going to be a lot simpler than trying to slap something on the inside of brick walls.
Seals and better insulation started on day one, along with window replacements, insulated window 'quilts' that cover the glass at night, redirecting dryer exhaust INTO the basement in the wintertime, and other mods.
I don't think it's one OR the other.. I see it as akin to money.. you have to make what you can, and also limit your expenses, save. I hear the advice of economizing first, then adding generative capacity, but I am always looking at both sides of the equation. I also hear how people have added a little generation, and it has further inspired them to take measures necessary to see that none of it is ever thrown away again. I think it's actually sometimes the reverse of the common wisdom of waiting till later to get some generation/heating started.. just like I decided the adage about NYC being 'a nice place to visit, but you wouldn't want to live there' was also backwards to my experience.. I love living there, when I have a place to get home to and shut the door and chill, but I'm always more jumpy and unsettled when I'm visiting, due for the bus home, time is short and no chance to do all the things you want to do..
As far as the bike ideas above, by the way..
I've built an outdoor Bike-Garage onto our house, so the tenants and we can access our bikes easily, without dragging them up stairs, scratching walls and doors, and fighting with them for living space. Can't wait to expand it, and get a proper Trailer for my bike to do some errands and jobs from.
Why go anywhere without a bike? My folder fits into a large suitcase and so I can check it onto a plane with no fee and no fuss. Many busses in the Twin Cities have accommodations for bikes, and I daresay other places do this on certain routes.
Lots of people take their bikes by air. HOWEVER, that is expensive and inconvenient, because you have to partially disassemble the bike (usually) and fit it into a special and expensive carton, which is then probably thrown away and burned at point of destination. BTW, when I travel I do not take my laptop or other nonessentials. I usually take with me a few liters of good tap water (in carry-on luggage) and also a few pounds of food. This is a good allocation for when one is stranded in an airport overnight.
Once again, I question: Why go anywhere without a bike?
I've always thought that obese people should pay more on planes.
Thermal storage is great for any time of year, but especially when the wood stove is roaring away and tending to overheat things.
Old buildings can be done over green. Look at the Friends Committee on National Legislation (fcnl.org). bldg right across the street from the senate office building in DC. They did a great job, but spent some big gobs of money, some of it mine, to do it. Now I am hoping those senators will take a look when they are not dodging all those terrorists behind the lamp posts.
Situations differ. Why keep an unoccupied room comfortable ? Sure, enough to not freeze the pipes, but beyond that ?
I come in, turn on my window a/c (SEER 11 heat pump), strip quickly, perhaps take a quick "unheated" water shower (my NG is off and will stay off till October) and it is acceptable within a few minutes close to the a/c. I keep the door closed to the front room so as not cool it.
More thermal mass just slows the process and keeps me uncomfortable longer. And the temperature delta between inside & out shrinks when I am away with low internal thermal mass.
That's only true of environs so far south (and with very shallow water mains), though. And if you were cooling by e.g. passively radiating heat to the sky at night, thermal mass would be the only way you could enjoy the benefits during the day.
But there are places in the US where the daily temp goes up and down like a yo-yo, and thermal mass can be used to great effect if you have the equivalent of a Maxwell demon working the in and out valves. fortunately, yu can buy maxwell demons at radio shack these days.
Not much overnight cooling !