Rolling blackouts

[beenthere]

Rolling blackouts because of the "cold". This area is blacked out for 30 minutes every 3 hours. Temp in central Texas this morning is a warm 16 degrees. Wood burning stove is keeping the house warm.

They are just setting you all up for a rate increase. :mur:

 

[ronjhall]

If the Federal Government would spend its money building a national electrical grid instead of stimulus bills that don't stimulate anything, Texas could have had all the spare electricity from the PNW. It's sunny and mild here, and we have several gigawatts of wind power in the Columbia Gorge that could power lots of Texas houses. You just can't get the power from here to there.

TX has more wind power than any other state.
Wind Power in TX.

 

[Larry Caldwell]

TX has more wind power than any other state.
Wind Power in TX.

Texas wind power capacity doesn't help if the wind isn't blowing. The reason we need national distribution to make wind power practical is that the wind is always blowing somewhere. They actually shut down a bunch of the (Columbia Gorge) Stateline wind turbines a while back because the transmission lines to California couldn't take any more power. Obviously, Texas could have used some this week, since they were holding rolling blackouts.

 

[tommu56]

My wife was crazy enough to ask me to go to the grocery store this morning and I was dumb enough to do it. Our residential street is the clearest street in the area. There were some cars going more than 30 mph on I-35E, but most were doing about 20-25, but the service roads were pretty much solid ice as were parking lots and a lot of other streets. Very bad, but I did get there and back OK.

I bet you got eggs, milk, and bread right.

French toast is on the menu?

tom

 

[johnrex62]

I'm with Bluebonnet Coop also. ?? When the power first went off at 6A.M. yesterday they had a recording on their power outage phone line that because of ERCOT they are doing rolling blackouts. We had 3-4 blackouts and Giddings was having them well into the afternoon. We have not had one since yesterday afternoon. Maybe your circuit line is somehow connected to one of their exempt facilities. (nursing homes, hospitals, public safety offices, etc...)

Ercot told the news that they are thinking about implementing them this morning till 9A.M. After 9A.M. Texas should be OK.

I don't know how that could be, I am a long way from any commercial or municipal buildings. Closest things to me is a volunteer fire department building a half mile away and a honky tonk 3/4 mile away. Lots of small farms and hay fields around me. Wonder if Bluebonnet is worried about the cows freezing around here?

I am on a contract that lets me work from home and I have been working graveyard shift (7pm - 7am) for the last few months, so I was up and about between 6pm the day before through 3pm the day of the emergency. I would definitely known if my power had gone off due to the screaming of my customer! Glad I was the lucky one that kept power. The Navy doesn't accept excuses even if they are valid reasons.

 

[Bird]

My wife was crazy enough to ask me to go to the grocery store this morning and I was dumb enough to do it. Our residential street is the clearest street in the area. There were some cars going more than 30 mph on I-35E, but most were doing about 20-25, but the service roads were pretty much solid ice as were parking lots and a lot of other streets. Very bad, but I did get there and back OK.
__________________
Bird

I bet you got eggs, milk, and bread right.

French toast is on the menu?

tom

No, that would be too logical.:laughing: We already had plenty of those things, but my wife eats a banana every morning for breakfast, then later in the day she snacks on those little white cake type donuts and sometimes chips and salsa. We're well stocked on the chips, but she was out of the donuts and salsa.

And very shortly after I posted the above about going to the store, I was still here at the computer when my wife came in to tell me the young lady next door wanted to know if I'd drive her to the store. Nice young couple next door with a 7 year old son and nearly 4 year old twins (one of each), but he left Saturday on a 19 hour trip to visit his elderly grandfather; be back Sunday. And she failed to stock up Monday, so just HAD to go to the grocery store and was afraid to drive on the ice. She already had their Ford Expedition running to warm up, so I figured it would have more weight on the drive wheels than either of our vehicles, so I drove her to Walmart in their Expedition while my wife kept the 3 little ones.:laughing:

And it's been snowing here since shortly after midnight; very light snow and still dark outside so I don't know how much we've gotten; only that it's too much whatever it is.:laughing:

 

[weldingisfun]

If the Federal Government would spend its money building a national electrical grid instead of stimulus bills that don't stimulate anything, Texas could have had all the spare electricity from the PNW. It's sunny and mild here, and we have several gigawatts of wind power in the Columbia Gorge that could power lots of Texas houses. You just can't get the power from here to there.

How about power generation plants? Anyone remember when the last one was built in this country?

Electrical grids are important, but we need something creating the electricity to put on the grid. That is what we are not doing. Wind is fine, but we know that coal, gas and nuclear work as well. What is wrong with making use of all of it?

 

[ronjhall]

No, that would be too logical.:laughing: We already had plenty of those things, but my wife eats a banana every morning for breakfast, then later in the day she snacks on those little white cake type donuts and sometimes chips and salsa. We're well stocked on the chips, but she was out of the donuts and salsa.

And very shortly after I posted the above about going to the store, I was still here at the computer when my wife came in to tell me the young lady next door wanted to know if I'd drive her to the store. Nice young couple next door with a 7 year old son and nearly 4 year old twins (one of each), but he left Saturday on a 19 hour trip to visit his elderly grandfather; be back Sunday. And she failed to stock up Monday, so just HAD to go to the grocery store and was afraid to drive on the ice. She already had their Ford Expedition running to warm up, so I figured it would have more weight on the drive wheels than either of our vehicles, so I drove her to Walmart in their Expedition while my wife kept the 3 little ones.:laughing:

And it's been snowing here since shortly after midnight; very light snow and still dark outside so I don't know how much we've gotten; only that it's too much whatever it is.:laughing:

Nothing but Ice and Snow down here in the RGV. The whole area is shut down. Cannot even get out of the country into Mexico. Bridges are closed because of ice until later today.
Still better than back home with 10 degrees over night and a high of 23 today. At home I could be out getting some seat time. Instead of my neighbor having a big grin on his face. While plowing out the neighborhood with my tractor.

 

[jinman]

19 degrees here this morning and snow falling. . . It's coming down pretty steady. They said we would get a dusting or maybe 1". They lied! I've had about 3" of powder and it seems to not let up. I'm sure we will have at least another 4" of powder on top of the hardened base from the first event. We had planned to go to the store today, but we may be forced to hold off. There's no way I want to drive 20 miles round trip in this much snow if I don't have to. Tomorrow it is supposed to be in the 40s and Sunday the 50s. My daughter and family are coming for a Super Bowl party if everything is clear. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

I've attached some pictures. The first is me plowing/pushing snow yesterday. I had my driveway cleared pretty good before this last snow. The 2nd picture is looking out my window to the area in front of the car this morning. All that plowing was for nothing. Now I know how you northern TBNers feel.

The next picture is looking out toward my driveway and up to the county road. Yes, there is a driveway in there somewhere. The rest of the pictures are just the general area and the birds that have emptied our feeder of sunflower seed is less than 24 hours.

EDIT: Right this minute, snow is falling and the sun is shining. How does it do that?:confused3::confused2:

 

[Bird]

For the last hour and a half or so, we had a pretty heavy snowfall. I think it's over now. I don't know how the "official" measurement of snowfall is taken, but my 5" capacity rain gauge is full.