Grumpy, are you staying warm?

[Chris216]

GG, looks like your electric bill might be higher than you think
https://www.newser.com/story/302727/it-j...gn=rss_top
Chris

[BobAin'tStoppin']

[/quote)]As for generation in Canada - hydro or nuclear. As far as I know there are no windmills and no coal plants.
[/quote]

Last time I went across Canada on the transcan it was continuous windmills. You could always see about 20 of the things.
[/quote]

[Ray]

....On the other hand Texas likes to tout that it is the "energy capital of the world" ... well after this it is the laughing stock of the world when it comes to energy...

Or as you say in Texas - "All hat, no Cattle."

[Grumpy Goat]

GG, looks like your electric bill might be higher than you think
https://www.newser.com/story/302727/it-j...gn=rss_top
Chris

Haha ... yes I saw that on the news. The funniest part of the Report was not the number ($202k) but the response from Centrepoint that customers “should not pay that amount” was hilarious.


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[Grumpy Goat]

Last time I went across Canada on the transcan it was continuous windmills. You could always see about 20 of the things.

Bob, I stand corrected. I should say based on my knowledge (after 20 years being in the US) East of Ontario has no windmills. I would bet that picture was probably Alberta or Saskatchewan, even Manitoba.


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[Olgry1]

Our home was built in 2016. We upgraded nearly everything to increase efficiency. We heat/cool about 3000 sq/ft.

We put a new furnace in 2007 and it was considered a high efficiency unit for the time.
The air conditioning unit was new a year before we bought the house in 1998.
Both units would be higher efficiency is we would replace them.
Our house is 1,100 sg/ft plus the basement so we heat and cool 2,200 sq/ft.

Our previous house was built in 1973 and it is 1200 sq feet on a crawl. We moved into our current house in 2008. The house was new in 2008 and is a 3000 sq feet ranch on a full unfinished basement.
The cost to heat and cool the new house was actually less than it was to heat and cool our previous house. More efficient heating and cooling equipment along with more efficient building material made the difference.

I have thought about adding a whole house generator but have not pursued it seriously at this point in time.

[Olgry1]

It is good to hear that you are doing ok Grumpy.

It seems like those in 'control' have a lot of explaining to do. Hopefully there will be a number of significant changes in the design of the systems, personnel and structure of systems that failed.

[MrVvrroomm]

It seems like those in 'control' have a lot of explaining to do. Hopefully there will be a number of significant changes in the design of the systems, personnel and structure of systems that failed.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021...rnment-out

Doubtful with leadership like this.

[Grumpy Goat]

It is good to hear that you are doing ok Grumpy.

It seems like those in 'control' have a lot of explaining to do. Hopefully there will be a number of significant changes in the design of the systems, personnel and structure of systems that failed.

Thanks John. Yes I have no issues at this time. Shut off all water to the house and drained all the pipes before going to bed last night, since there was a hard freeze between midnight and 9AM this morning. I also left cupboards doors under sinks open and all faucets wide open.

I turned the water back on this morning when the temp hit 32 at about 8:45 and all is fine. No new leaks. We no longer have to conserve energy as of 2 hours ago, but the boil water notice in Houston is in effect till Monday at the latest, even as they bring the pressure back up by today. May have one more night of a hard freeze and that should be it.

Yes I believe that those in control (ERCOT) has some explaining and there is an investigation in the offing. However, the root cause of this is not ERCOT, in my view. Real change will only come if there is political will and politicians are willing to do what it good for the people even if it means some investment for the people and a little less money in their pockets.

[Grumpy Goat]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021...rnment-out

Doubtful with leadership like this.

Or at least "influencers" like this. Needs truly smart people to balance the needs of the people and profit at the same time. Can't have one's cake and eat it too ...

[Olgry1]

Too often people are reactive and not proactive even after looking at the best case and worst case scenarios.

[Lee]

Shut off all water to the house and drained all the pipes before going to bed last night, since there was a hard freeze between midnight and 9AM this morning. I also left cupboards doors under sinks open and all faucets wide open.

Is that because of the exposed water line outside of the house?
How cold did it get inside the house?

[Grumpy Goat]

Is that because of the exposed water line outside of the house?
How cold did it get inside the house?

Not really, and there is no more any exposed water line outside the house since the plumber covered it for nearly $480!

I took that step largely because I wanted to test out the new (to me) strategy, especially when they were asking that we not drip our pipes due to the low water pressure. Our subdivision never saw low pressure but I still tried out the shut off / drain pipes approach. I can also tell you it is much more peace of mind with the water shut off and the pipes empty and the faucets wide open to not have a closed system.

The house probably didn't get very cold since it is on a programmable thermostat where while we are sleeping I have it programmed to go down to 65 deg.F (I think) between 11 PM and 5 AM after which it rises to the normal 68 deg.F. In summer it is 75 deg.F during the day and 78 deg.F during those same overnight period. The thermostat also automatically controls both the AC and the furnace, so I pretty much no longer know how it works ... it just does its thing for years.

The one day (Wednesday) when we had no power during the day for 11 hours it got as low as 53 deg.F but it was not nearly as bad as some of the other people we see on TV. There was and continues to be a lot of suffering in Texas. The most vulnerable continue to fare the worst.

[Lee]

The one day (Wednesday) when we had no power during the day for 11 hours it got as low as 53 deg.F but it was not nearly as bad as some of the other people we see on TV. There was and continues to be a lot of suffering in Texas. The most vulnerable continue to fare the worst.

I was afraid the house temp was in the low 30s.
Not sure how I could drain our pipes other than turning off the main shutoff, opening the faucets and flushing the toilets.
I should talk to a plumber sometime.

[Duckbubbles]

I live in NE Austin, Texas, and I lost power about 2am on Monday the 15th. Spent Monday night alone in the cold and dark- you can only sleep so much. Used the flashlight to see what time it was and to check the temp inside the house.
Another night like that and I'm glad I don't have a gun. On Tuesday morning I started the car to charge the phone and was listening to the local radio. They were saying the power outage might last through the weekend!
My sister in Bellville (about halfway to Houston to the east) had light and heat so I packed up the car and trekked to the East. The trip of 100 miles took about 2 1/2 hours and the road conditions improved greatly the further away from Austin I got.
Called my neighbor on Thursday afternoon and he said power came on that morning. So Friday morning I trekked back not knowing what I would find at my house.
Turned out I was fine- no gushing water and lights on.
I was in this house in 1989 when the last huge winter storm hit and didn't have any problems then because the power stayed on.
I hope everyone is ok and can commence digging out of this.

Frank

[Lee]

We heard back from our friends near Blanco Tx yesterday. They did not have cell service for a couple days.
They got their power back on Thursday and got the water collection system going again.
They got 4" of snow, then ice, then two more inches of wet snow.
He's a retired lineman so he was heading out to help a few neighbors get the power back on.
They live in the country.

[Lee]

How deep are the waterlines that come to the house down there?
One time when I was working out of Mandeville Louisiana one of the guys at the project office said their water line was barely below the surface and had froze a couple times in the past.

[Grumpy Goat]

[quote='Grumpy Goat' pid='5248' dateline='1613780028']
Not sure how I could drain our pipes other than turning off the main shutoff, opening the faucets and flushing the toilets.
I should talk to a plumber sometime.

That would not hurt, but as an RV owner I do have some insight. Also, I did watch a plumber on TV this week describing how it should be done.

After the main shutoff servicing the property (in my house it is in the front lawn in a covered dry well adjacent to the gauge the meter reader reads) is closed, locate and close off any secondary shutoff valve you may have. I have such a shutoff in my garage behind a cover that is screwed on to the drywall.

Draining involves opening all the internal faucets to a 50-50 blend of hot and cold water. Also, don't forget to open the outside spigots (hose bibs). After about 10 minutes all should be quiet. That's it. No need to flush the toilets - save the one flush you already have.

Although the plumber did not say it, and recognizing that the valve in the front lawn is the lowest point meaning that there is still water in my system at its lowest points, I leave all faucets / bibs open. This way any undrainable water that freezes will expand upwards and not exert any transverse (hoop stress) on the pipes.

In RVs, there are "low point drains" which when opened results in a complete drain of the system so that there is only air inside. No such luck with a house.

[Grumpy Goat]

I live in NE Austin, Texas, and I lost power about 2am on Monday the 15th.
...
Called my neighbor on Thursday afternoon and he said power came on that morning. So Friday morning I trekked back not knowing what I would find at my house.
Turned out I was fine- no gushing water and lights on.

Frank, good to hear that you suffered no loss and are safe and warm again. Yes I did see that Austin was also suffering like Houston. After all it is typically cooler than Houston for a start.

[Duckbubbles]

How deep are the waterlines that come to the house down there?
One time when I was working out of Mandeville Louisiana one of the guys at the project office said their water line was barely below the surface and had froze a couple times in the past.

From what I have witnessed at my house (Leaking pipe on MY side of the meter during the summer) they are at least a foot under the surface. Austin, Texas.
The issue (as you are well aware of) is mainly where they come out of the ground and are on outside walls of a house.

Frank