Doors Open-Global Warming Activated

I live on the sixth floor...a walk-up no less. It gets really hot up there but we try not to keep the air conditioner running. We do keep a fan on to keep the air circulating for ourselves and Bailey, our dog.

One day it was particularly hot and I walked into our kitchen to find John standing in front of the fridge, door open.

“What are you doing?” I screamed.

“Uh…I'm just cooling off for a minute.”

“With the door open? Do you know how much energy you’re wasting?!”

The door was already shut before I had gotten the sentence out. But I continued with my lecture:

“Every time you open the fridge, the cool air that keeps our food cold seeps out, while the warm air from the room seeps into the fridge, warming our food and causing the fridge to work harder, which in turn uses more energy.”

His face began to lose color.

“Now, because the fridge is working harder to cool off the warm air we just let in, the coils in the back of the fridge heat up, causing the room to get warmer, therefore requiring us to turn on our A/C."

He looked like he wouldn’t open the fridge again, ever, even for some food.

“Forget about our electric bill,” I added. “According to the Department of Energy, heating and cooling systems emit tons of carbon dioxide into the air each year contributing to global warming."

I haven’t seen him do this since.

But he wasn’t the biggest problem.

I was in LA recently, attending the LA Shorts Film Fest. I was in a film, Go Fish, that opened the festival (a little plug!).

I visited The Grove while I was there. The Grove is an outdoor shopping mall with a trolley, dancing fountains and a farmer’s market. I love it.

As I was walking around, enjoying the warm sun, I suddenly felt a cold breeze as I walked by one of the stores. I turned to look and realized that its doors were open. I looked around. Most of the shops had their doors open. One store had an entire glass wall that was open! And each one also had its A/C going full blast.

The Grove had turned into a giant refrigerator with its door wide open! (And the role of John was being played by the Governator).

I walked into the store and asked the salesgirl why they had the A/C on with the doors open. She stared at me blankly. I went into a couple of other stores, but nobody could answer my question. I continued on my way, back to my car...seething.

When I got back home, I Googled “leaving A/C on while keeping doors open.” Stores actually do this deliberately to lure customers in from the heat, in the hopes that they will then stay in the store and spend money.

I was surprised to learn that New York City has a law against this. The store gets a warning, then a $200 fine if they repeat the violation. The bad part is that the store must be at least 4000 sq. ft. and must be a chain with 5 stores or more. Oh well, it’s a start.

I’ve since written a letter to The Grove stating my concerns (I've posted the letter and response in a separate post in case you're interested). I’m not sure how much good it will do but it’s a start. Who knows? Maybe the next time I’m there I’ll get to do my rant for Arnold . . .