Posted on 04/27/2014 1:50:38 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Experts warn of a growing fragility as coal-fired plants are shut down, nuclear power is reduced and consumers switch to renewable energy.
As temperatures plunged to 16 below zero in Chicago in early January and set record lows across the eastern U.S., electrical system managers implored the public to turn off stoves, dryers and even lights or risk blackouts.
A fifth of all power-generating capacity in a grid serving 60 million people went suddenly offline, as coal piles froze, sensitive electrical equipment went haywire and utility operators had trouble finding enough natural gas to keep power plants running. The wholesale price of electricity skyrocketed to nearly $2 per kilowatt hour, more than 40 times the normal rate. The price hikes cascaded quickly down to consumers. Robert Thompson, who lives in the suburbs of Allentown, Pa., got a $1,250 bill for January.
"I thought, how am I going to pay this?" he recalled. "This was going to put us in the poorhouse."(continued)
(Excerpt) Read more at latimes.com ...
They might make pretty good feedstock for biodiesel.
Obama’s energy policy is working as planned. His word was “skyrocket”.
... and he kisses Americans to sleep with the higher costs....making industry more uncompetitive on a global basis, destroying more jobs and industry. Why dosn’t he bankrupt the chinese who are happy with coal and its emissions.
Like he’s going to stop them, India, Brazil and all the developing turd world.
He sure is! At America’s expense!!!
“...utility operators had trouble finding enough natural gas to keep power plants running...”
Some conservatives think we should start exporting natural gas for the purpose of hurting Russia. I’m sure when grandma’s heat gets shut off, the American people will understand.
This is by design.
Liberals want to make life expensive. This has nothing to do with protecting the environment.
If you don’t like it, you can turn off the lights. They’re ok with that, too.
The story says $2.00 per kilowatt hour....could that be right?
https://www.pplelectric.com/at-your-service/electric-rates-and-rules/rate-calculator.aspx
What is “General Service With Demand” and why is it so much more expensive than Residential Standard Rate or Residential Thermal Storage?
Would use solar and rechargeable batteries for light and battery fans in summer.
I think this could happen, that the price will be so high, we can't use electricity except for fridge and electric cook stove and TV and internet so can get news. No central air conditioning - that is what drives up cost in Texas in summer. I grew up without it, we just had fans. Would hate to go back to that, but we may have to.
I tell u, the people doing this are nuts
And they want us all driving electric (coal-powered) cars?!!!!!! We are really on the brink, this country. Every time I see one of those f-ing o’nazi bumper stickers I want to run them off the road.
No
The plants will be permanently disabled so that the company can take them off their property tax bill.
Shiver in the dark, peasant!
nuts?
No, not nuts.... EVIL.
I grew up with swamp coolers in our windows. Humidity or a little over 100 degrees and they kind of quit working. We had to go back to that. About 9 years ago we put 2 on our house to help keep our electric bill down when it was $600 because of running the air conditioner. Electric prices have gone up considerably since then and our bill is right at $600 using the swamp coolers.
Guess the next thing is to as you say....just turn everything off and die.
I wouldn't die - I'd use my solar panel and recharger and use rechargeable batteries to run battery fans which I have, and flashlight lanterns which I have, and battery run portable TV and radios and a short wave receiver. When I became a prepper, I decided the worst thing that could happen was to lose power for a very long time and I started prepping to replace what I could that power would take away.
What about a heat pump? How would the cost of the heat pump for cooling compare? I don’t know how well a heat pump cools in really hot weather, though.
All any fan (let alone battery fans) do in 114 heat is blow that hot air in your face. Know the feeling on your face when you open a hot oven? That is what walking outside feels like here in the summer.
“All any fan (let alone battery fans) do in 114 heat is blow that hot air in your face. Know the feeling on your face when you open a hot oven? That is what walking outside feels like here in the summer.”
I have used them in hot Texas August/September after hurricanes which took away power for days. With the regular battery fans, I used a wet cloth to wet my face, neck and arms and turned on the fan. That reduces the ambient air heat a number of degrees and cools me. I also have battery misting fan bottles that sprays the water with the fan going on the bottle and that cools me.
Days is different than 3 months. Besides, we don’t live in a third world country! Why should we have to live like we do? I have been in Mexico where they had holes in the roof to let the cooking fire smoke out too. Why do I have to live that way?
I am not a prepper. I have about 1 mnths worth of food and toilet paper stored. I figure after that we are all totally screwed anyway. Preppers are starting to remind me of sanctimonious Prius drivers with their ‘I can survive anything’. Why the heck should we have to?!?
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