Smarter Electric Grid Could Be Key To Saving Power

[rootbear75]

http://www.myfoxdc.com/myfox/pages/News/De...mp;pageId=3.9.1

 

interesting O.o

 

MILTON, Ontario -- The glowing amber dot on a light switch in the entryway of George Tsapoitis' house offers a clue about the future of electricity.

 

A few times this summer, when millions of air conditioners strain the Toronto region's power grid, that pencil-tip-sized amber dot will blink. It will be asking Tsapoitis to turn the switch off -- unless he's already programmed his house to make that move for him.

 

This is the beginning of a new way of thinking about electricity, and the biggest change in how we get power since wires began veining the landscape a century ago.

 

For all the engineering genius behind the electric grid, that vast network ferrying energy from power plants through transmission lines isn't particularly smart when it meets our homes. We flip a switch or plug something in and generally get as much power as we're willing to pay for.

 

But these days the environmental consequences and unfriendly economics of energy appear unsustainable. As a result, power providers and technology companies are making the electric grid smarter.

 

It will stop being merely a passive supplier of juice. Instead, power companies will be able to cue us, like those amber lights in Tsapoitis' house, to make choices about when and how we consume power. And most likely, we'll have our computers and appliances carry out those decisions for us.

[Confess]

I dont like this idea, at all. All they are trying to do is tell us when and when not we can use our power, which is absurd! I pay for my electricity - all of it. I dont pay for them to ration out my energy - I want it constant, able to use whatever I want when I want. This is nothing short of communism.

[Dr Brain]

We would have had smart grids at least a decade ago if it weren't for the US Government. The utility companies aren't allowed to do any sort of improvement without legislation. They spend millions of dollars in getting changes pushed through. Millions that they have to p!@#$%^&* on to us as consumers.

 

Confess, you're already paying for it. You just don't see it on your statement. You could be paying a lot less if you used the power when it's cheaper if the companies were allowed to make billing happen more than monthly (like every 5 minutes). It costs a !@#$%^&* of a lot more to produce kWhs when there's heavy load on the grid. That's because resistive losses go up with the square of the current, which is proportional to the power and energy on a constant voltage system.

 

I'm an electrical engineer, btw.

[Confess]

True, however - I'd rather make my own choices, thanks though. I dont need a company, or person, or government telling me what to do and how to do it.

[rootbear75]

so if your gone, and there is a spike in power, you are saying !@#$%^&* everyone else, dont turn my temp up/down 3 degrees?

 

selfish...

Edited May 6, 2008 by rootbear75

[X`terrania]

so if your gone, and there is a spike in power, you are saying !@#$%^&* everyone else, dont turn my temp up/down 3 degrees?

 

selfish...

 

Lol, why the !@#$%^&* would he leave his air conditioning on when he's gone for three days?

 

also, i'm native and I don't pay for my electric where I live, but I still don't turn on something electric unless I need it, !@#$%^&*, I prefer candles and lanterns over actual houselights and !@#$%^&* like that.

Edited May 6, 2008 by X`terrania

[rootbear75]

so if your gone, and there is a spike in power, you are saying !@#$%^&* everyone else, dont turn my temp up/down 3 degrees?

 

selfish...

 

Lol, why the !@#$%^&* would he leave his air conditioning on when he's gone for three days?

b/c most people have thermostats they set once and forget, so when they leave, the air conditioner acts as if you are there.

having the power plant raise/lower the temp a few degrees saves a LOT of power

Edited May 6, 2008 by rootbear75

[X`terrania]

so if your gone, and there is a spike in power, you are saying !@#$%^&* everyone else, dont turn my temp up/down 3 degrees?

 

selfish...

 

Lol, why the !@#$%^&* would he leave his air conditioning on when he's gone for three days?

b/c most people have thermostats they set once and forget, so when they leave, the air conditioner acts as if you are there.

having the power plant raise/lower the temp a few degrees saves a LOT of power

 

did u even shut your power off during that 1 hour deal cause i still saw u logged in when they did it

[rootbear75]

so if your gone, and there is a spike in power, you are saying !@#$%^&* everyone else, dont turn my temp up/down 3 degrees?

 

selfish...

 

Lol, why the !@#$%^&* would he leave his air conditioning on when he's gone for three days?

b/c most people have thermostats they set once and forget, so when they leave, the air conditioner acts as if you are there.

having the power plant raise/lower the temp a few degrees saves a LOT of power

 

did u even shut your power off during that 1 hour deal cause i still saw u logged in when they did it

i cant shut my power off, cause i live in a dorm.

 

and why would you make the !@#$%^&*umption that since i'm logged in my power isn't off. Its called a "laptop" maybe you have heard of it. usually they have batteries that last longer than an hour.

Edited May 6, 2008 by rootbear75

[X`terrania]

so if your gone, and there is a spike in power, you are saying !@#$%^&* everyone else, dont turn my temp up/down 3 degrees?

 

selfish...

 

Lol, why the !@#$%^&* would he leave his air conditioning on when he's gone for three days?

b/c most people have thermostats they set once and forget, so when they leave, the air conditioner acts as if you are there.

having the power plant raise/lower the temp a few degrees saves a LOT of power

 

did u even shut your power off during that 1 hour deal cause i still saw u logged in when they did it

i cant shut my power off, cause i live in a dorm.

 

disgraceful.. altho i didnt shut mine off because i only had my bedroom light & computer going

[rootbear75]

disgraceful.. altho i didnt shut mine off because i only had my bedroom light & computer going

disgraceful?! wtf? dude, do you know how re!@#$%^&*ed your logic is? "Oh, he's a !@#$%^&*ing disgrace since he cant turn off the power for a building he doesnt even own"

 

seriously, grow a !@#$%^&*ing brain

[X`terrania]

disgraceful.. altho i didnt shut mine off because i only had my bedroom light & computer going

disgraceful?! wtf? dude, do you know how re!@#$%^&*ed your logic is? "Oh, he's a !@#$%^&*ing disgrace since he cant turn off the power for a building he doesnt even own"

 

seriously, grow a !@#$%^&*ing brain

 

way to overreact, flamer

[rootbear75]

way to overreact, flamer

stop trying to prokove !@#$%^&* and i wont flame you, simple as that

[X`terrania]

way to overreact, flamer

stop trying to prokove !@#$%^&* and i wont flame you, simple as that

 

ur flames do not effect me little boy.. HAHAHAHA. sorry lynx.

 

I'm just saying.. man you really need to lighten up, you're so tense !!!

[Incomplete]

Shut up.

[Cancer+]

Yeah, move back to the actual topic or its getting closed.

[★ doc flabby]

America would save far more power if they had decided to use 230V instead of 110V

[K-c-B]

I used to be an energy waster. Guilty as charged. When I was in the military, I lived in government housing on base and they paid for everything: electricity, water, housing upkeep, etc, etc. So I'd leave my AC on 68 all the time, no matter if I was there or not. In fact, I wouldn't even shut off my TV or any of the lights before I left the house. Now since I'm out of the military and paying for it, I'm a lot thriftier. Edited May 6, 2008 by K-c-B

[JDS]

LOL at this thread.

[Dr Brain]

America would save far more power if they had decided to use 230V instead of 110V

 

The resistive losses at the house level (where you find 110V) is negligible. The reason for using higher voltages is that you can get away with thinner wires within the home, and in several cases it's actually safer.

[rootbear75]

i thought houses were 120V, and europe/other countries were 240V

[JDS]

We here in bc, near the coast more are switching to wind power, which we make enough of to sell some to the UsA, sweet, go natural power

[★ doc flabby]

The resistive losses at the house level (where you find 110V) is negligible. The reason for using higher voltages is that you can get away with thinner wires within the home, and in several cases it's actually safer.

Negliaglbe on the house scale yes, But on the country scale it makes a difference of a few power plants

[Dr Brain]

The resistive losses at the house level (where you find 110V) is negligible. The reason for using higher voltages is that you can get away with thinner wires within the home, and in several cases it's actually safer.

Negliaglbe on the house scale yes, But on the country scale it makes a difference of a few power plants

 

That's why they don't run the power plans, transmission lines or distribution networks anywhere near 110V. They use transformers to step the voltage down periodically.

[darkhosis]

We here in bc, near the coast more are switching to wind power, which we make enough of to sell some to the UsA, sweet, go natural power

there was some big ruckus about building a wind farm here in SE texas. something about killing migratory birds. i hope not too many birds are suffering in canada due to canadian excessive wind power generation.

 

as for this smart grid thingamabob, well, some light can go on, but i aint turning !@#$%^&* off (or down or up) if i dont want to, charge me more ok. i guess it would conserve some power, since some ppl would care about it though. so hey, go for it