Photosensors, anyone?

Well, at least they put in compact fluorescents. Now their bill for this pair of lights is a quarter of what it was. Obviously a photosensor would cut that down to an eighth or so. Say the original pair of 75w incandescents cost 150w x 24 hours x 365 days = 1314 kwh, x .15 $/kwh = $197 per year to run (based on PG&E’s Tier 2 pricing). Now they pay about $50 for the compact fluorescents, though it would be only $25 if they were on photosensors.

Isn’t this a no-brainer?  Well, consider it would cost $260 for a pair of inexpensive replacement fixtures with built-in photosensors. That means the cost of the fixtures would take $260 / $25 = 10.4 years for the new fixtures to pay for themselves, and that’s not even including the electrician’s labor. Ten years is not a payback rate the average absentee landlord would consider. Or maybe he’s negligent, apathetic, or has got higher priorities elsewhere on the property.

We cannot realistically expect a nation-wide drop in energy consumption if even going after low-hanging fruit like having the lights shut off during daytime doesn’t make economic sense. Change will only come from higher energy bills, cheaper equipment costs, new legislation, or incentives like PACE bonds.