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Electric razors really are better ...... discuss.

One man's opinion on why electric razors are better. Feel free to discuss the flaws in his argument.

http://gizmodo.com/5720395/electric-razors-really-are-better-for-the-environment

Does not take into account the following:
Impacts of manufacturing motors, molded housings, batteries, etc.
Battery disposal when the electric razor no longer works.

Remember, the real issue for the sales of all products is who makes profit and at what levels. All other issues including environmental will be used only to support the issues of sales from the seller's point of view.

My position on these matters boil down to:
1. Disclosure - Who are you supporting? What industry or methodolgy are you pushing? No hidden agendas.
2. Homework - Have you reviewed all the hidden costs including if the product is not as effective to the user?
3. Realization - No product manufactured by humans is perfect for everyone. Most manufacturers, and those who pick up causes to crusade, simply look for one of two things or both, profits and power. Once you realize this, you are better able to filter out what is dross from the gold.
 
I wonder if they factored in the manufacturing process of the electric razors, all of the broke ones going into the environment and such? Somehow bet they didn't. I find most of this "science" to be extremely biased and poorly done in the first place.

However, the link to looking at blades under a microscope is quite interesting.

Charlie
 
I have always liked the idea of an electric razor and have owned several different models. Sadly, all they ever did was give me a poor shave and cause mega irritation if used daily. You can't put a price on comfort.

Besides, I don't in carbon footprints but for the people who do, it seems that the major impact of a wet shave is the hot water. I often use cold water so :001_tt2:
 
I wonder if they factored in the manufacturing process of the electric razors, all of the broke ones going into the environment and such? Somehow bet they didn't. I find most of this "science" to be extremely biased and poorly done in the first place.

However, the link to looking at blades under a microscope is quite interesting.

Charlie

I saw that too. I thought that was a good second route to take after you read that pseudo science drivel.
 
The first and problem I see with his argument is that he assumes that you use NO energy to heat water if you're not using a manual razor. I'm not an expert on water heaters, but I believe the popular models are generally using energy all the time to keep the water inside at a constant temperature. I'm sure it uses quite a bit more when it needs to heat up cold water, but the 'normal' energy usage is not zero. I suppose it's possible that every Slate reader has one of the water heaters that heats water only as you use it.

The other problem is that he only goes as far as electric vs disposable. It occurs to me that they should at least investigate cartridge razors if they want to make a well-rounded argument. While I do know people who use disposables, I know far more who use a cartridge razor. Cart razors may potentially use less energy to manufacture.

Everybody else here is making good points as well.
 
Just what we need, more carbon footprint voodoo. If everyone stopped shaving tomorrow, would it make a difference? No. As for electric razors, I started shaving with one almost 50 years ago and have probably bought a new one every 10 to 20 years, usually out of boredom with carts. Electrics would get used maybe 5 times, then go into a closet until I forget how much I hate them and buy another to remind me. Now that I switched to DE, I don't think I'll make that mistake again. Besides, except for a layer of dust, my 15-20 year old Norelco still looks brand new.

Electric Shaver Negatives:
Lousy shaves/pulling (Shaving every day is irritating. Shaving every 2-3 days rips the hairs out.)
Pre-shave oil (I hate rubbing oil on my hands and face.)
Skin (I hate the way my skin feels after shaving with an electric. It feels crawly.)

Electric Shaver Positives:
Sideburn trimmer (Now moot since I keep my hair short with no sideburns.)
 
From a shaving perspective - I use to use an electric and I think it's easier on your skin than a cold steel blade but at the cost of a less than close shave. Not to mention that there is something to be said for a cold steel blade :thumbup1:

From an environmental standpoint - this is a lot of crap. :thumbdown I think I could argue that shaving with an old str8 off of EBay conserves more resources. Whether or not capping CO2 emissions will "save" the planet is debatable, in my opinion. There are a lot of more tangible environmental issues to be addressed.

Probably more of an answer than was required.
 
Wasn't this discussed here recently in another thread?

Does not take into account the following:
Impacts of manufacturing motors, molded housings, batteries, etc.
Battery disposal when the electric razor no longer works.
Read the original article (not the Gizmodo summary). They don't obtain actual figures but determine a rough estimate for manufacture. I'm not entirely convinced that the estimate is all that accurate and it doesn't really address DE's, SE's or straights IIRC. I don't think they address disposal but I don't recall off the top of my head.

I wonder if they factored in the manufacturing process of the electric razors, all of the broke ones going into the environment and such? Somehow bet they didn't. I find most of this "science" to be extremely biased and poorly done in the first place.
Again, read the original article. Most "science" isn't science. Actual science is subject to peer review and scrutiny to root out bias.


Just what we need, more carbon footprint voodoo. If everyone stopped shaving tomorrow, would it make a difference?
Again, read the original article (quite a recurring theme to this thread!). For the lazy (emphasis added):
After a healthy bit of conjecture, the electric shaver beats the more eco-friendly disposables by a margin of 14.9 pounds of carbon dioxide. So what does that annual difference represent? Driving your car for about 16 miles or running a compact fluorescent light bulb for 47 minutes. It would take more than 350 years of shaving with a disposable instead of an electric to account for the annual greenhouse gas emissions of a single cow. In other words, don't sweat it.

...and I'm not sold on the notion that just because misinformation is presented in a given field that the entire field should be debunked. There's plenty of misinformation on shaving and yet we persist despite it. Carbon dioxide is a concern. Our contributions and its impact may be in question still but utterly dismissing it seems short sighted. We do need to properly pick our battles though. Apparently, this isn't one of them if the article is correct.

The first and problem I see with his argument is that he assumes that you use NO energy to heat water if you're not using a manual razor.
I think the assumption is that hot water isn't needed in general with an electric razor. I know I never used water to shave with my electric. I guess it's a YMMV matter as there are waterproof electrics as well.

The scope of the article is shaving, specifically. It's understood that anything but an on-demand water heater frequently uses energy for heating water in the tank of the heater. If you don't water for shaving then why would you count the energy used to heat the water?
 
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There must be some perspective or ratio that can be applied here. I remember seeing the monthly PG&E electric bill for a semiconductor factory I used to work for in the Bay area. IIRC, it was around $23,000.

I live in an all electric house, so I figure that one month of electric usage pays for over a decade of my house usage.

I know that there are millions of folks who consume electric power in small bits, but that was the bill for one small semiconductor factory.

I'm not too concerned about my carbon footprint when it comes to heating water in the home.

-jim
 
Hmm.. I dont think that when the polar ice caps melt or the world implodes that we will be blaming cartridge shaving... I heard a rumour that cars and power plants could be ever so slightly more responsible... Perhaps...
 

ouch

Stjynnkii membörd dummpsjterd
Does not take into account the following:
Impacts of manufacturing motors, molded housings, batteries, etc.
Battery disposal when the electric razor no longer works.

Remember, the real issue for the sales of all products is who makes profit and at what levels. All other issues including environmental will be used only to support the issues of sales from the seller's point of view.

My position on these matters boil down to:
1. Disclosure - Who are you supporting? What industry or methodolgy are you pushing? No hidden agendas.
2. Homework - Have you reviewed all the hidden costs including if the product is not as effective to the user?
3. Realization - No product manufactured by humans is perfect for everyone. Most manufacturers, and those who pick up causes to crusade, simply look for one of two things or both, profits and power. Once you realize this, you are better able to filter out what is dross from the gold.

:thumbup1:
 
I'd be unhappy to shave with an electric razor (yes, I've tried them), which biases me from the start against an argument that they're better for the environment. If I'm aware that I'm biased, it's a reason to be cautious. Still, you'd have to convince me that my SEs and injectors were causing some serious environmental mayhem before I even considered giving them up. In my past experiments, I even preferred my old Atra 'n goo to an electric.

That said, it's interesting to consider all the ways we impact our surroundings. It's somewhat counterintuitive to think that our way of shaving might be more destructive than electrics, but it's not inconceivable. Fortunately, as takeshi pointed out above, the article doesn't seem to think that it's that big a deal.
 
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