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Heat pumps in cold climates Heat pumps are one of the most efficient ways to heat and cool a home. But can a heat pump system work in the winter when the temperature drops below 20 degrees? Contrary to popular belief, modern cold-climate heat pumps can heat a home efficiently even when the temperature drops […]
As many readers of this newsletter know, one of the most important things we can do to prevent catastrophic climate change is rip out the fossil fuel appliances in our homes and replace them with renewable-powered electric alternatives. And no appliances are more important to electrify than home heating systems. In fact, the furnaces, boilers, and other
First off, I want to welcome the ~500 of you that signed up for the Carbon Switch newsletter over the last few days. I’m Michael and every week-ish I write a story about climate solutions. The theme of this newsletter is what I call “both/and climate action.” I believe that in order to prevent a
Two months ago I wrote a story asking the question, “How bad is my gas stove?” I admitted that I was initially skeptical of the panic over gas cooking given that stoves are responsible for such a small fraction of carbon emissions (0.12%). At that time, I feared that by attacking gas stoves — an
It’s December. And you know what that means. Companies, nonprofits, and newsletter-writers like me gaze deep into their navel and recap what they did over the last 12 months. In the spirit of that tradition, I thought I’d give an update on how things are going at Carbon Switch and what’s ahead in 2022. But
A few weeks ago I wrote a guest post on the My Climate Journey newsletter. I tried to make my best argument for why climate tech entrepreneurs and investors should support climate non-profits and why everyone should chip in at least something to help organizations focused on climate advocacy. In the post I shared my own story of how
If you’ve read any of these newsletters or the Carbon Switch guides, you know that I’m a sucker for boring climate solutions. Carbon-free steel, electric trucks that can charge your home, and long term energy storage is cool and all. But what really gets me excited is the boring stuff: heat pumps, hybrid water heaters, insulation — the low-hanging
LED lighting: The lowest hanging fruit in climate Read More »
I know. Coal. It’s the dirtiest of fossil fuels. Responsible for millions of premature deaths per year. Emitter of more carbon than any other energy source. Climate enemy #1. And I’ve been dishing out loans to the companies that enable all of this for years. Unfortunately it’s not just coal companies, either. I’ve loaned money
This is a part of a series about gas stoves and indoor air quality. You can read Part Two here. In the last year there have been dozens of high profile media stories about the negative health effects of natural gas cooking. The Atlantic published a story titled, “Kill Your Gas Stove.” David Roberts wrote this
Last week I shared the bad news about the Clean Electricity Payment Program (CEPP). After months of debate, Sen. Manchin finally announced he wouldn’t vote for it. Immediately the climate community — myself included — went into a collective state of mourning. The NY Times, and just about every other media outlet, announced that we
CEPP is dead. But it was never the most important climate policy. Read More »
