Posted on 12/25/2013 6:35:37 AM PST by rktman
The Obama administration is spending billions of dollars to modernize the nation’s power grid, with the goal of changing the way Americans use energy. Your electric bill will go way up, unless you allow the utility to control your energy load at times of peak demand.
“Smart grid” technology involves a wireless, two-way flow of information between individual homes and the power plant. This allows the utility to charge more for electricity, depending on when it is used; and it enables the utility to manage energy for the consumer, to reduce the impact on the grid.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnsnews.com ...
What’s so smart about that?
If the primary goal is to raise prices, why not just raise taxes and redistribute?
Does this include giving China our codes to shut it down
The “prog” liberals are taking us back to the Stone Age. Break out the torches and bonfires.
Well, that was the entire point of “smart” grids. And “smart” meters.
“You’re using too much electricity so we’re just going to help you adjust to lesser useage”.......and the lights and AC go out.
Nope. Not allowed. Too much CO2.
I think I heard a report of some folks in the NE part of the country working with candles and fireplaces (if not banned due to air quality indexes) until sometime this weekend. Smart grid is no match for ice storms.
Yeah, come to think of it we did have a flicker last night. Since we have family in for the holidays, there may have been an over-usage of electricity due to all the laptops, ipad, ipad minis, cell phone chargers, playstations etc all being used at the same time. Not looking forward to the elec/gas bill for this month. Might have to get a pt job to pay it.
Depends. Have they been bundling contributions lately?
Unintended consequences will come into play as a result. Looks like it’s time for folks to start generating their own electricity and heat. Not for the eco-nazi’s benefit, but as a way of reducing cost and increasing redundancy.
Christmas Lights? Electricity Price Index at All-Time High in U.S.
Saw that one but figured someone would have posted it before me. Thanks JH. Hope you have a nice Christmas.
> This allows the utility to charge more for electricity, depending on when it is used; and it enables the utility to manage energy for the consumer, to reduce the impact on the grid.
IOW, when some holier-than-thou jackass wants to charge up his or her electric car, they’d better do it at night, or, in California, do it during peak loading but on someone else’s dime.
Thanks rktman.
I wish I could look at that chart without obstructions when I click it. For some reason it is super huge.
But all of that is strictly between the customer and the power company without the government being involved. Publish the rates for various times of day and let me decide whether to pay it or not and whether it makes sense to do things like run solar because it is most productive during peak hours.
--and , btw, the utility from which my folk's farm received power fifty-odd years ago was already doing this --you were able to put the home water heater on a separate clock controlled circuit which only let it run off-peak--
So then what's the point of building appliances and AC that will be shut off during periods of high demand? Won't water heaters that don't heat water, AC units that don't cool houses, and dishwashers that refuse to start "interfere" with the way people live their lives?
And this by man who had the electricity up so high in the white house that people were sweating. His excuse? He was from Hawaii and felt the cold here.
It didn’t matter that he had been here many years and would have acclimated.
Ditto. I cannot believe how scientifically illiterate the folks in our country have become, and that includes a lot of Freepers.
When I was a kid we had one of those timed hot water heaters too. Cheaper rates for having it heat at night.
I wish everyone could spend some time in a peaking plant, as I did for over a year as an operator.
It was a small, 120 megawatt plant with 3 old 60 megawatt oil fired generators and a 20 megawatt jet turbine generator.
We didn't run a lot in the spring or fall, but as winter or summer approached, we would start going online at about 6AM as people took their showers and cooked breakfast.
That at round 9 or 10AM we would idle them down and sometimes even shut down some, or all , depending on demand.
At around 4 or 5 PM, it was back to full tilt for the evening, usually shutting down around 9 or 10PM for the night.
On cold days in the winter, or hot days in the summer, it was wide open with the building a constant roar to squeeze out every amp, trying to keep the voltage up.
I wish folks could experience the sheer power it takes to produce electricity.
As plants go, this was a small, antique one, with a 12 inch line for #6 bunker fuel for each 60 megawatt generator.
The fuel had to be heated to flow.
If everyone had their clothes dryer do its' duty in the middle of the night, and their hot water heated at night, it would make a huge difference.
In the summer, I heat our hot water with solar, and am working on upgrading the system to be year round.
In the spring and fall, we use electric, and in the winter, our System 2000 boiler.
I have now converted all but two of our light bulbs to LEDs.
The two not converted are seldom used 3-way bulbs.
My long term goal is to be able to take the house off grid.
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