Please Conserve, PG&E Urges

PG&EPress release from PG&E:

California’s grid operator has called a statewide Flex Alert for [today] and Wednesday, and Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) urges its customers to conserve energy as triple-digit heat will impact much of the company’s service area.

The California Independent System Operator (ISO) issued a Flex Alert, a call for voluntary electricity conservation, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday (July 24) and Wednesday (July 25). The ISO and PG&E are asking consumers to conserve electricity especially during the late afternoon when customers typically crank up their air conditioners.

CAISO says high temperatures across the Western United States, forecast increased demand, the lack of additional generation, tight gas supplies and high-fire risk were the factors prompting the Flex Alert.

PG&E meteorologists forecast that temperatures will reach near 110 degrees in the hottest locations in the Central Valley, driving up energy demand and especially air conditioner use.

PG&E is prepared and, based on forecasts, doesn’t anticipate any issues meeting the increased demand for power.

CAISO forecasts customer demand for energy will reach 48,179 megawatts (MW) on Tuesday. Peak load in the 20-year history of CAISO is 50,270 MW on July 24, 2006.

PG&E also urges customers to stay safe during this heat wave. The company funds cooling centers throughout its service area to help customers escape the heat and cool off. To find a center near you click here or call 1-877-474-3266.

PG&E has 425,000 residential and business customers enrolled in five Demand Response programs and collectively have the ability to reduce their consumption at a level that would prevent the need to utilize a gas-fired power plant.

Small behavioral changes also can make a big difference in reducing demand on the power grid during periods of extreme heat and help customers save money all summer long.

Set your air conditioner thermostat to 78 degrees or higher when you’re at home, health permitting, and 85 degrees when you’re away.

Setting your AC thermostat 5 degrees higher will save about 10 percent on cooling costs.
If you turn your ceiling fan on when using the air conditioner, you can raise your thermostat about 4°F to save energy with no reduction in comfort.
Shut windows and draw the shades to keep in pre-cooled air from the night and early morning.
Have your central cooling duct system checked for leaks. Up to 20 percent of cooled air can be lost through leaky or poorly insulated ducts.
Buy an ENERGY STAR® air conditioner if your air conditioner is ready to be replaced. It can reduce energy usage by up to 10 percent.
Avoid using an electric oven on hot days. Instead, cook on the stove, use a microwave oven, or grill outside.

For more tips on how to save this summer, visit www.pge.com/summer.

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Pharmstheproblem
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Pharmstheproblem
5 years ago

So what’s going to happen when most of the cars and transportation is electric?

TJ
Guest
TJ
5 years ago

thats part of the reason for the Tesla Power wall, and some of the features around it. So you can decentralize battery systems. So that you both minimize losses and lower evening/peak hour usage on centralized power generation.

There vision is that you should be able to use both the power wall and your tesla or other capable electric cars for your home power if needed.

laura cooskey
Guest
laura cooskey
5 years ago

Why would you set your AC to 85 when you’re away? Do walls just spontaneously combust if they get to 90 or more? Why would you have it on at all when you’re away (if “you” means you and your pets)?
People have gotten so incredibly weak, and so convinced they need electricity all the time. I guess they are so weak, they think their houses are too, and feel sorry for them… or ?

Connie Dobbs
Guest
Connie Dobbs
5 years ago
Reply to  laura cooskey

Because when you get home it’s more energy-efficient to cool a house down from 85 than from 100+ degrees. It saves wear and tear on the weak, pathetic refrigerator, too.

laura cooskey
Guest
laura cooskey
5 years ago
Reply to  Connie Dobbs

I suppose that’s the reasoning. But it would all depend upon how long you’re gone. Running down to the store for some ice cream, yeah, keep it cool. Going away for a week, i’d turn it off, get home and open the windows overnight, and start the AC in the morning from a temp somewhere in the 70s or 80s.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  laura cooskey

The rush of automated products needing electricity to do what humans used to do for themselves is accelerating. From motorized window shades to virtual assistants, things that used to need a human to spend small amounts of energy are being eliminated. Even turning a key in a lock is disappearing. Each of these things may only use a tiny bit of power but the accumulated total must be a drain.

Then of course the human is exhorted to do constructed exercise with electronic indivdual monitoring to keep healthy.

laura cooskey
Guest
laura cooskey
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

It’s kind of like H.G. Wells’ “The Time Machine.” The kids’ show “Wishbone” had a sweet little half-hour version of that i won’t forget. Everyone lazing around unable to lift a finger, from generations of humanity/technology-induced handicaps to brain and body. The only thing off about that (and the song, “In the Year 2525,” and the movie “The Idiocracy,” etc.) is that they foresee all these changes many centuries into the future. Did they forget that time, in a human life as in a civilization, runs like a roll of toilet paper–the closer you get to the end, the shorter each cycle?

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  laura cooskey

What a lovely analogy. Toilet paper roll to accelerating technology. Applies to many other things too. I’m going to definitely steal it.

hmm
Guest
hmm
5 years ago

What are you talking about?