KRSW

It's funny you mention this -- I just thought the same thing this weekend whilst staying at a Courtyard. I noticed that I used quite a bit more soap/shampoo from the wall-mounted dispensers than I do from the small bottles. This is basic human behavior -- when we think something is in short supply, we conserve.

Eh...have you had to use the new ultra-low-flow showerheads being installed at some of the newer properties? I've stayed at a few where the sink had better flow than the shower. Maintenance confirmed this was functioning as designed.

Even worse is when these hand sanitizers appear in hospitals. I was visiting a relative in the hospital. They had "infection control protocols" in effect for their case, requiring masks & gowns/gloves for all visitors/staff. Did any of the staff wash their hands? NOPE. Instead they just spritzed some hand sanitizer. Some of them didn't even bother using gloves. I rang up their head of nursing and asked if they had a problem with C.difficile at their facility. Yes. Gee, I wonder why. (C.diff is a sporulating bacterium, thus is completely unfazed by the hand sanitizers.)

I'd love to bring my own stuff, but the TSA says I have no choice.

Depends on how they're installed. One of the worst stays I had with these was at a Hilton where the motion sensor was attached in-line with the thermostat. No logic at all other than a timer. After an hour of no motion it'd kill power to the thermostat. After the first miserable night and the property insisting there was no override, I popped the cover on it and shorted the wires.

Fortunately the Marriott properties I've stayed with HVAC motion sensors have some logic in them and door sensors. IF the door opens AND motion is detected later, room = occupied. IF door opens AND NO motion is detected, room = unoccupied. Also quite fortunate -- these are easy to bypass by using the VIP mode or just simply removing the batteries from the door sensor. I noticed someone beat me to the door sensor at the Courtyard this weekend, which was fantastic -- a nice, dry, cool room when the rest of the property was on the damp side. As an aside, all of these "energy saving" HVAC systems fail to account for humidity, which is absolutely key to human comfort. Whether in Florida or the Pacific NW, the unoccupied mode of these systems makes room absolutely disgustingly humid when the guest returns. So what does the guest do? Turn down the thermostat even lower. So much for the energy savings. Maybe it works better in other climates.

I also have encountered the lighting/outlet motion sensors and really disliked how they were implemented -- auto on / off. Nothing like you or your partner getting out of bed in the middle of the night and having the hallway & bathroom lights come on full blast. Equally fun when you find your mobile devices didn't charge because the outlets were automatically turned off.

Or actually cause more problems than they solve. The building department required motion sensors on all light switches in one of our new offices. Guess what? Those motion sensors use almost as much electricity as the LED lights do, and do so 24/7. The USA's EPA is the reason the engine in my current car only gets 32-40MPG instead of the 85MPG engine I wanted to put in it. Paper straws are just as bad, if not worse, for the environment than plastic straws.

Yep. As the map shows, the USA's use and proper disposal of plastic means it doesn't make a hill of beans difference compared to what other countries in the world do.