ERCOT Urging For Energy Conservation

[Js1 85,262]

41 minutes ago, drt said:

Yes, cellulose insulation is treated with a flame retardant that also makes it less palatable to bugs.

You mean flame regardant.  Geez.

[drt 638]

2 minutes ago, Js1 said:

You mean flame regardant.  Geez.

I mean, I got chastised the other day for using cripple instead of Jack stud, and master instead of primary bedroom, so I suppose it's a fair point.

[HiggyBaby 2,529]

[crash_davis 23,096]

36 minutes ago, drt said:

Yes, people used to use them that way.  Stanco was proposing modern day upgrades to another poster (adding blown in cellulose, which is cheap and relatively easy).  Someone thought recycled paper was a bad idea from a fire standpoint.  My point was that modern cellulose added to homes is treated to mitigate that danger.

so hang fat people in the walls?

[Trey3216 15,343]

12 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

so hang fat people in the walls?

It's pretty expensive to feed them these days, but it's an option for the short run.  

[drt 638]

If you treat them with boric acid, sure...

[utee94 15,801]

3 hours ago, Nice Guy Eddie said:

I don't know if it will make a material difference with electricity costs but I've recently replaced the door seals in my house. FYI, this is the foam/vinyl seal around external doors. Watch a video on youtube if you want to replace but its not difficult. The only tool I used was a flat head screwdriver to help loosen the current seal and push in the new one.

No idea if this is helping but I can tell the door is sealed tighter.

Next on my list is to address the seal on the slightly warped attic door.

Weather-strip it, WEATHER-STRIP IT!

 

[Gatorubet 30,184]

21 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

so hang fat people in the walls?

Try Owens-Corning Thunder Thighs.  

R-30?

[Anastasis 23,457]

 

 

 

Edited July 12, 2022 by Anastasis

[Js1 85,262]

You should post that again, we've never seen anything from 2 days ago. 

[elfenix 34,221]

2 hours ago, HiggyBaby said:

i guess i just don't understand why some of y'all wear sweaters in the summer in texas. 

[Guest]

1 minute ago, elfenix said:

i guess i just don't understand why some of y'all wear sweaters in the summer in texas. 

This. It's 108 degrees outside. I don't need to be cold, just cooler than outside. If I needed to be 65 degrees, I would have moved a long time ago. 

[Anastasis 23,457]

9 minutes ago, Js1 said:

You should post that again, we've never seen anything from 2 days ago. 

You seem grumpy.  Perhaps should turn down your thermostat a few before your brain bakes off. 

[Johnny Sack 8,397]

5 hours ago, TexasEd said:

 

I rented a house built in the 40s in Arlington Virginia and it had old copies of the Washington Post as insulation in the attic.  This was not "cellulose insulation" it was newspapers.

My house was built in the 50s.  It is mostly brick but there is some siding in the back side (which is where the sun hits in the afternoon).  I had all the siding torn out and replaced with Hardie board.  There was no insulation in the walls.  Just sheetrock, air, and siding.  I had my guys insulate it and put new windows in.  The energy usage has plummeted.

[Captainant 27,625]

1 hour ago, Johnny Sack said:

My house was built in the 50s.  It is mostly brick but there is some siding in the back side (which is where the sun hits in the afternoon).  I had all the siding torn out and replaced with Hardie board.  There was no insulation in the walls.  Just sheetrock, air, and siding.  I had my guys insulate it and put new windows in.  The energy usage has plummeted.

It's been a pretty common trend in building to use the least amount of insulation and shittiest windows possible because of the low low cost to install. As a result, we've got a real problem with inefficient housing in the US and no incentive to improve it. 

If homes were better insulated, they'd need less electricity to stay cool. That's a way better target for public investment than subsidies for bitcoin farms, IMO.

Edited July 12, 2022 by Captainant

[Js1 85,262]

9 minutes ago, Captainant said:

It's been a pretty common trend in building to use the least amount of insulation and shittiest windows possible because of the low low cost to install. As a result, we've got a real problem with inefficient housing in the US and no incentive to improve it. 

If homes were better insulated, they'd need less electricity to stay cool. That's a way better target for public investment investment than subsidies for bitcoin farms, IMO.

But lower cost to build = bigger profits!  This is all that matters. 

Edited July 12, 2022 by Js1

[atomheartbevo 89,621]

42 minutes ago, Captainant said:

It's been a pretty common trend in building to use the least amount of insulation and shittiest windows possible because of the low low cost to install. As a result, we've got a real problem with inefficient housing in the US and no incentive to improve it. 

I have a cousin who works for a large developer (and his wife is in sales), and they absolutely go cheap on windows and insulation (among everything else, including AC).  They do offer window and insulation upgrades (and AC, etc.), and they even tell buyers how much they can save, how much it will approximately cost if they decide to replace the windows later on or try to improve the insulation, etc. and they can show that it’ll be cheaper in the long term, particularly with the windows, than paying high bills.  And they overcharge for the upgrades, because those are profitable as hell.

His wife says a shitload of people are fixated on the magic number of 3,000 square feet and/or larger lots, and a lot of buyers will skimp on the windows and insulation and a lot of other must-haves to hit the square feet or the large lot (or both), along with buying cosmetic upgrades, with the idea they can do upgrades later on, but they can’t add to their lots or houses.  They are trying to get the maximum house for the loan, even if their monthly bills run high.  

We’ve toured some developments they’ve done, and what’s crazy is that a lot of square feet is wasted and useless, and those folks would be saving a lot of money with getting in a 2,500 sq door home with better windows, etc., and still have the same amount of actual usable living space.  

Edited July 12, 2022 by atomheartbevo

[tokamak 6,391]

33 minutes ago, atomheartbevo said:

I have a cousin who works for a large developer (and his wife is in sales), and they absolutely go cheap on windows and insulation (among everything else, including AC).  They do offer window and insulation upgrades (and AC, etc.), and they even tell buyers how much they can save, how much it will approximately cost if they decide to replace the windows later on or try to improve the insulation, etc. and they can show that it’ll be cheaper in the long term, particularly with the windows, than paying high bills.  And they overcharge for the upgrades, because those are profitable as hell.

His wife says a shitload of people are fixated on the magic number of 3,000 square feet and/or larger lots, and a lot of buyers will skimp on the windows and insulation and a lot of other must-haves to hit the square feet or the large lot (or both), along with buying cosmetic upgrades, with the idea they can do upgrades later on, but they can’t add to their lots or houses.  They are trying to get the maximum house for the loan, even if their monthly bills run high.  

We’ve toured some developments they’ve done, and what’s crazy is that a lot of square feet is wasted and useless, and those folks would be saving a lot of money with getting in a 2,500 sq door home with better windows, etc., and still have the same amount of actual usable living space.  

Wife and I poked around in burbs of Houston a few years back thinking about moving and it became pretty clear that the average buyer would rather have a 4000sf shitbox than 2800sf of quality. Basically the goal at every price point was max square footage. 

[Biff Tannen 45,661]

4 hours ago, tokamak said:

Wife and I poked around in burbs of Houston a few years back thinking about moving and it became pretty clear that the average buyer would rather have a 4000sf shitbox than 2800sf of quality. Basically the goal at every price point was max square footage. 

It’s because these people are broken humans. Must have large house to project success. 

[52-80 19,142]

9 hours ago, atomheartbevo said:

I have a cousin who works for a large developer (and his wife is in sales), and they absolutely go cheap on windows and insulation (among everything else, including AC).  They do offer window and insulation upgrades (and AC, etc.), and they even tell buyers how much they can save, how much it will approximately cost if they decide to replace the windows later on or try to improve the insulation, etc. and they can show that it’ll be cheaper in the long term, particularly with the windows, than paying high bills.  And they overcharge for the upgrades, because those are profitable as hell.

His wife says a shitload of people are fixated on the magic number of 3,000 square feet and/or larger lots, and a lot of buyers will skimp on the windows and insulation and a lot of other must-haves to hit the square feet or the large lot (or both), along with buying cosmetic upgrades, with the idea they can do upgrades later on, but they can’t add to their lots or houses.  They are trying to get the maximum house for the loan, even if their monthly bills run high.  

We’ve toured some developments they’ve done, and what’s crazy is that a lot of square feet is wasted and useless, and those folks would be saving a lot of money with getting in a 2,500 sq door home with better windows, etc., and still have the same amount of actual usable living space.  

agreed it's very dumb, but thats the markets measure for unit economics.  first order price determinant is /sqft, everything else is tertiary. 

even if you dont subscribe to it for yourself, if you need to sell the house later on, thats what buyers will pay you.  same for car & mileage.

[Nivek 16,916]

Wife and I poked around in burbs of Houston a few years back thinking about moving and it became pretty clear that the average buyer would rather have a 4000sf shitbox than 2800sf of quality. Basically the goal at every price point was max square footage. 

A few years back we were looking to build and toured a lot of houses. The wasted space was apparent to me throughout the design including the absurdly oversized bedrooms.

I don’t need the capability of stuffing 2 cal king beds side by side in a single room.

[midtown 3,345]

8 hours ago, Biff Tannen said:

It’s because these people are broken humans. Must have large house to project success. 

100% this.  I will never ever understand Americans desires for houses.  

[Anastasis 23,457]

4 minutes ago, midtown said:

100% this.  I will never ever understand Americans desires for houses.  

Keeps me from being the subject of one the threads complaining about the drunk homeless everywhere.

[irishtexan 11,511]

14 hours ago, atomheartbevo said:

I have a cousin who works for a large developer (and his wife is in sales), and they absolutely go cheap on windows and insulation (among everything else, including AC).  They do offer window and insulation upgrades (and AC, etc.), and they even tell buyers how much they can save, how much it will approximately cost if they decide to replace the windows later on or try to improve the insulation, etc. and they can show that it’ll be cheaper in the long term, particularly with the windows, than paying high bills.  And they overcharge for the upgrades, because those are profitable as hell.

His wife says a shitload of people are fixated on the magic number of 3,000 square feet and/or larger lots, and a lot of buyers will skimp on the windows and insulation and a lot of other must-haves to hit the square feet or the large lot (or both), along with buying cosmetic upgrades, with the idea they can do upgrades later on, but they can’t add to their lots or houses.  They are trying to get the maximum house for the loan, even if their monthly bills run high.  

We’ve toured some developments they’ve done, and what’s crazy is that a lot of square feet is wasted and useless, and those folks would be saving a lot of money with getting in a 2,500 sq door home with better windows, etc., and still have the same amount of actual usable living space.  

Perhaps the reason people aren't opting for the upgrades is because they can google how much it should cost and they find out they're getting ripped off? 

[Biff Tannen 45,661]

18 minutes ago, Nivek said:

I don’t need the capability of stuffing 2 cal king beds side by side in a single room.

Guess who's not getting invited to the next orgy.

[CleverNickname 1,308]

Just read Mesquite might increase min house size from 1500 to 2000. Lol. My austin burbs 4 bedroom is 1490 and it's fine.

[Nice Guy Eddie 13,507]

SIAP. The new ERCOT CEO had a short Q&A with the Chronicle. One of his answers was that ERCOT has changed the criteria on when they ask for conservation from Texans. It used to only be when ERCOT identified that we were in emergency situation. Now it's when we are in danger of entering said emergency situation. The logic being that we need to avoid emergency situations altogether.

The point being is that we should have more alerts from now on.

[Captainant 27,625]

ERCOT projecting another close one today and issuing a conservation notice

[crash_davis 23,096]

Fucking lulz. This summer is a extraordinary shit show but it's only a decade + 1 year removed from the last colossal shitshow. These shitshows will soon be called summer. So basically rationing AC will be a new normal to support freedom. I CANNOT wait to get the fuck out of this state. Retirement cannot come soon enough.

[dcar00 14,149]

7 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

Fucking lulz. This summer is a extraordinary shit show but it's only a decade + 1 year removed from the last colossal shitshow. These shitshows will soon be called summer. So basically rationing AC will be a new normal to support freedom. I CANNOT wait to get the fuck out of this state. Retirement cannot come soon enough.

apparently you can wait...why not just get a job somewhere you want to retire?

[crash_davis 23,096]

5 minutes ago, dcar00 said:

apparently you can wait...why not just get a job somewhere you want to retire?

my job pays me really well to remotely surf surly all day. i'm riding this job until retirement. plus the wife has a great job which requires her to be in Austin. just biding time until the last one graduates from UT in 2 years and then a few more years until we can retire at 56-57. that will leave us a few years of obamacare until medicare eligibility.

[dcar00 14,149]

1 minute ago, crash_davis said:

my job pays me really well to remotely surf surly all day. i'm riding this job until retirement. plus the wife has a great job which requires her to be in Austin. just biding time until the last one graduates from UT in 2 years and then a few more years until we can retire at 56-57. that will leave us a few years of obamacare until medicare eligibility.

what a shitty state.

[Brisketexan 105,050]

A few years back we were looking to build and toured a lot of houses. The wasted space was apparent to me throughout the design including the absurdly oversized bedrooms.

I don’t need the capability of stuffing 2 cal king beds side by side in a single room.

Weird way to tell us you don’t own a sex swing, but ok.

[South Austin 52,442]

2 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

my job pays me really well to remotely surf surly all day.

You a lawyer too?

[crash_davis 23,096]

1 minute ago, South Austin said:

You a lawyer too?

Nope, lead a Data and Analytics team managing a bunch of overachieving Data Scientists PHDs who love to do everything. 

[hookem17 485]

Grid condition switched to yellow and Ercot’s graph appears to show demand exceeding supply. 

[South Austin 52,442]

[Hermanator 7,032]

23 minutes ago, hookem17 said:

Grid condition switched to yellow and Ercot’s graph appears to show demand exceeding supply. 

If they want people to take this seriously they need to mandate all large venues/buildings not in use turn off all lighting and AC, and all commercial buildings must set their AC to 78 during the 2 to 9 window. 

Just those two things alone if enforced would have us just fine. But no of course no solution that makes sense by eliminating waste from corporate America can ever get done. 

[GreenspointTexas 9,598]

Blackouts happening around houston

[South Austin 52,442]

I honestly don't recall experiencing a summer rolling blackout since I've lived in Texas.  How long are these supposed to last?  An hour?  More?

[Moby Ric 2,058]

6 hours ago, midtown said:

100% this.  I will never ever understand Americans desires for houses.  

 

15 hours ago, Biff Tannen said:

It’s because these people are broken humans. Must have large house to project success. 

Narrarator:

And they both went on with life, never to love or know success.  They grew old while living in section 10 of their condo complex in Sun City.  They fussed at the young, the successful, the wealthy as if they were owed something.  That something never came and they both later died of syphillis.

[StruggleBus 3,922]

5 minutes ago, GreenspointTexas said:

Blackouts happening around houston

Fuck Houston. My wife stayed there one night this week and her Tahoe got stolen. 

[bluto 4,912]

5 hours ago, CleverNickname said:

Just read Mesquite might increase min house size from 1500 to 2000. Lol. My austin burbs 4 bedroom is 1490 and it's fine.

This is their way of trying to keep “undesirables” out through code/zoning. Issue is they missed the boat by at least 25 years. 

[Biff Tannen 45,661]

2 minutes ago, Moby Ric said:

 

Narrarator:

And they both went on with life, never to love or know success.  They grew old while living in section 10 of their condo complex in Sun City.  They fussed at the young, the successful, the wealthy as if they were owed something.  That something never came and they both later died of syphillis.

Now just hold the fucking phone right there.  Sun City?  I think not.

[Trey3216 15,343]

1 hour ago, crash_davis said:

Fucking lulz. This summer is a extraordinary shit show but it's only a decade + 1 year removed from the last colossal shitshow. These shitshows will soon be called summer. So basically rationing AC will be a new normal to support freedom. I CANNOT wait to get the fuck out of this state. Retirement cannot come soon enough.

[Humble Beast 258]

 

[Captainant 27,625]

Huh, I thought it was the renewables that were unpredictable and unreliable??

[closetojumping 62,512]

Wind went to a low of like 700 MWs this past hour. That's basically no wind. Without the wind, with this heat, it is super fucking tight. Tomorrow and Friday are cooler in Houston and even Austin, and that's a good thing, because the wind is projected to be absolute shit those days as well. Things pick up from the wind perspective next week and as long as that is blowing, even with temps in the high 90's in Houston and what they are now elsewhere, we don't have the issue we faced Monday and right now.

[crash_davis 23,096]

Phd: weather

Ctj : Ercot 

 

[closetojumping 62,512]

1 minute ago, Captainant said:

Huh, I thought it was the renewables that were unpredictable and unreliable??

I know you guys on both ends have to politicize stuff, but the reality is that the wind isn't blowing and there are some unplanned outages because things have been running so hot for so long. It's all legitimate and, frankly, silly to view as a political thing. The grid needs the FF resources and will continue to for our lifetimes, and the renewables are also great too, but they're not a replacement for FF any time soon. Need it all to work together. Heading towards 90 days of overwhelming above average heat will predictably knock some of the FF gen offline.