Blastfurnace 2023

[troph 25,259]

8 hours ago, gsoda3 said:

So you guys with solar are selling it back to the grid for $x,xxx?

It won’t keep up with house demand. We are pulling from the grid, but a (large) house full of windows and my bill was only $200 last month. 

[troph 25,259]

12 hours ago, Bozo_Casanova said:

Not to worry! @Trey3216 says 97% of this is just the concrete around Camp Mabry.

So much concrete! 
 

 

[atomheartbevo 90,686]

4 minutes ago, troph said:

So much concrete! 
 

 

I’ve camped there before, so this hits close to camp.

[Texzilla58 4,798]

For real, I have my AC at 74, a box fan running, one light on in the whole house, the TV, the fridge, and a few vampire power appliances going.  Meanwhile, every business in town isn't doing shit and every HEB is blasting their coolers and freezers.  I don't think I'm the problem.

To this point we’d be better off if government and large enterprises shut down to work from home if possible. Go back to having court on zoom. Shit down all these “hybrid” operations. If they can work from home on Monday and Friday then do it the rest of the week.

[South Austin 53,276]

24 minutes ago, troph said:

So much concrete! 
 

 

It's like Central fucking Park.

[Dahobbs 18,423]

9 hours ago, gsoda3 said:

So you guys with solar are selling it back to the grid for $x,xxx?

Yes for me, but for others it'll depend upon their the energy contract. Keep in mind, the thousand dollar prices are for mWh, not kWh. So you have to divide by 1,000. So far this month my system as exported about $200 worth of energy at an average price of $.80 per kWh. My two best days were the 10th and yesterday, which each generated about $50. 

N.B. This is with utilizing batteries to better time my export period to peak demand/prices. 

Edited August 18, 2023 by Dahobbs

[gsoda3 3,363]

4 minutes ago, Dahobbs said:

Yes for me, but for others it'll depend upon their the energy contract. Keep in mind, the thousand dollar prices are for mWh, not kWh. So you have to divide by 1,000. So far this month my system as exported about $200 worth of energy at an average price of $.80 per kWh. My two best days were the 10th and yesterday, which each generated about $50. 

N.B. This is with utilizing batteries to better time my export period to peak demand/prices. 

you can time when to export?  is it a hassle to do that?  i assume it's automated and you're not sitting by your computer screen spamming f5 and then hitting ENTER when it reaches a certain price?  can you export only the net amount of your usage minus kwh generated?  or are you exporting ALL of your generated kwh and that credit goes against the total amount you've used?

[Dahobbs 18,423]

1 minute ago, gsoda3 said:

you can time when to export?  is it a hassle to do that?  i assume it's automated and you're not sitting by your computer screen spamming f5 and then hitting ENTER when it reaches a certain price?  can you export only the net amount of your usage minus kwh generated?  or are you exporting ALL of your generated kwh and that credit goes against the total amount you've used?

I can sort of time it, and yes it is automated. Basically the Tesla Powerwall has a time of use function wherein I can identify periods and prices by "seasons" (any grouping of months that I want). Tesla has an algorithm that takes that information and decides when to discharge the battery or pull from the grid. For the summer months I've identified 4pm-8pm as the peak price period, with an average price significantly above my energy cost (last year that period averaged $.17 per kWh in comparison to $.115 per for my cost of use). The system then balances what it pulls from the grid vs powers by the panels so that the battery is fully charged by 4:00 pm. In practice this means that starting around noon the system directs all solar energy to the batteries rather than the house and pulls energy from the grid to the house. Then, starting at 4:00 pm the system will use the battery to power the house and export all energy from the solar panels to the grid.  

Outside of June, July, and August, my time of use settings should minimize export to the extent possibly since the average real time price of energy, even during peak times, is less than how much I'm charged. To the extent it has to export, it'll try and time it so that it is during the peak periods. 

My plan gives me a credit on my bill and then after the 12 month plan period, I have the option to cash out any credit on the account. 

If I were part of a Virtual Power Plant or in another area where it is allowed, the battery could actually fully discharge directly to the grid rather than just powering the house. But I don't have that option in Houston. It would be cool if I had a button on the app I could use to export energy from the battery whenever prices made it reasonable to do so, but alas I don't have that much control. 

[gofuckyourself 9,096]

16 hours ago, HOOKEM4 said:

I am starting to think the thermostats are wildly different. If I set mine to 75 I am cold. We live at 79-80 day and 77 at night. 70, I am wearing a jacket.

We live in a brand new home, energy efficient, radiant blah blah and all that.

I bought thermometers to measure room temps because everyone is unhappy with it. One person is always hot and the other always cold. We're the damn three bears from Goldilocks. 

The temps range +- 5 degrees. Master bedroom is 5 degrees warmer due to a "jutted out" location which has fewer adjoining walls than interior rooms. Thermostat is even just outside the main bedroom. Doesn't matter.

TLDR; Extreme weather temps suck ass.

[sidis 10,020]

god damnit...the amount of concrete around mabry is about to become the new deconstructed doral burger isn't it.

also, fuck everything.

[HenryJames 67,474]

2 minutes ago, sidis said:

god damnit...the amount of concrete around mabry is about to become the new deconstructed doral burger isn't it.

also, fuck everything.

 

[Storm the Field 5,367]

Jesus, just checked the most current forecast and am now depressed.

Latest models all have that gulf system heading towards Corpus

We ain't getting shit for relief. Forecast for next week, apart from maybe some slightly lower highs Monday-Wednesday, is just hot as shit again Thursday through next Sunday. Nothing to get excited about through September 1st.

[kevwun 16,449]

You should also check your thermostats to make sure their temp is calibrated correctly.  We stayed in an airbnb once where we couldn't figure out why the ac sucked so bad.  Finally I dug in to the settings and with a thermapen we had along I figured out the thermostat was like 10 degrees off.

[texasdago 7,772]

13 minutes ago, gofuckyourself said:

The temps range +- 5 degrees. Master bedroom is 5 degrees warmer due to a "jutted out" location which has fewer adjoining walls than interior rooms. Thermostat is even just outside the main bedroom. Doesn't matter.

Dude... I never even thought of that. Our master bedroom has a window that juts out like that... sort of like a seating area/bench. That factors into it?

[gofuckyourself 9,096]

6 minutes ago, texasdago said:

Dude... I never even thought of that. Our master bedroom has a window that juts out like that... sort of like a seating area/bench. That factors into it?

Could be.

Ours definitely does. 75% of the room juts out from the rest of the house, and is on the west side to add insult to injury.

So by the evening that room is baking with only that one other interior side.

Our thermostats are accurate because the thermometer read correctly when placed next to them.

 

[Jiggy-Z 3,510]

19 minutes ago, Storm the Field said:

Jesus, just checked the most current forecast and am now depressed.

Latest models all have that gulf system heading towards Corpus

We ain't getting shit for relief. Forecast for next week, apart from maybe some slightly lower highs Monday-Wednesday, is just hot as shit again Thursday through next Sunday. Nothing to get excited about through September 1st.

User name does not check out.

[InkaUtexas 26,980]

8 minutes ago, texasdago said:

Dude... I never even thought of that. Our master bedroom has a window that juts out like that... sort of like a seating area/bench. That factors into it?

Put up a shade cloth outside if that bad. Long term plant a tree. Had something like that in the Middle East. Was the hottest part of the house. Of course, my ex wanted to put my beer fridge there. 

[texasdago 7,772]

3 minutes ago, InkaUtexas said:

Put up a shade cloth outside if that bad. Long term plant a tree. Had something like that in the Middle East. Was the hottest part of the house. Of course, my ex wanted to put my beer fridge there. 

We have shade over that section... a little less shade due to the ice storm but still plenty

 

[BabaYaga 15,632]

Black out curtains help some.  I'm looking to get one of those heating/chilling pads for the bed with dual zones for two sleepers.  I could set mine much colder and my wife can warm up her side without taxing the AC as much.  

[Kel Varnsen 8,749]

1 minute ago, texasdago said:

We have shade over that section... a little less shade due to the ice storm but still plenty

 

We have 5 or 6 large mature oaks that used to shade our entire house. Icemageddon took down so many limbs that we get full sun blast most of the day now. This fucking timeline can suck a fat cock.

[Biff Tannen 46,208]

2 hours ago, Texzilla58 said:

To this point we’d be better off if government and large enterprises shut down to work from home if possible. Go back to having court on zoom. Shit down all these “hybrid” operations. If they can work from home on Monday and Friday then do it the rest of the week.

Well, you see, we can't do that because dumbfuck corporations have commercial leases on huge buildings!  And the economy!  Or something.

Reality:  CORPORATE CONTROL OF THE PEASANTS

[InkaUtexas 26,980]

10 minutes ago, texasdago said:

We have shade over that section... a little less shade due to the ice storm but still plenty

 

Check out temporary shade cloths. Got one up over my bathroom window and it helps. That bathroom is a sauna all year. They absorb heat. 

[gofuckyourself 9,096]

16 minutes ago, InkaUtexas said:

Put up a shade cloth outside if that bad. Long term plant a tree. Had something like that in the Middle East. Was the hottest part of the house. Of course, my ex wanted to put my beer fridge there. 

It seems she fucked around ... and the rest is history.

[closetohumping 17,831]

3 hours ago, Texzilla58 said:

So what. It’s a fucked up dead planet. We give it ten good years. It can remember those days after we go find another.

Universe is infinite.  Another planet will be available.

[texasdago 7,772]

16 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

Black out curtains help some.  I'm looking to get one of those heating/chilling pads for the bed with dual zones for two sleepers.  I could set mine much colder and my wife can warm up her side without taxing the AC as much.  

Yeah, my wife needs to close those curtains during the day.  We have big ass windows in the main living room... over two stories.  We're working on some kind of a shade solution.  I have ideas.  My wife and I are not totally on the same page.  That's another story.  

[ztejas 44,290]

The solution is obvious.

[kevwun 16,449]

Sunsetter makes some neat retractable awnings.  They even have wind sensors to automatically retract themselves if the wind kicks up.

[Fudge Nuggets 19,483]

The previous two mornings were a nice change.  Today is sucking shit through a straw already.

[Hpara759 1,792]

spent a lot of money "dark tinting" all the windows in my house (except for windows covered by front and back porch...had those medium tinted), I honestly believe it has paid for itself in 5 years.

[Guest]

1 hour ago, gofuckyourself said:

We live in a brand new home, energy efficient, radiant blah blah and all that.

I bought thermometers to measure room temps because everyone is unhappy with it. One person is always hot and the other always cold. We're the damn three bears from Goldilocks. 

The temps range +- 5 degrees. Master bedroom is 5 degrees warmer due to a "jutted out" location which has fewer adjoining walls than interior rooms. Thermostat is even just outside the main bedroom. Doesn't matter.

TLDR; Extreme weather temps suck ass.

No offense, but you couldn't tell a 5-degree difference just by walking into a room? 

Our bedroom has the same thing, but it's a 2-3 degree difference. Closets in all the bedrooms stay closed and when you do walk into them, it's a solid 5-7 degree difference since they don't get conditioned air.

[Storm the Field 5,367]

You wanna get really ticked off, go to the monthly forecast and see what the weather "should" be. 

103/80 today. Average is 95/76. Forecast for next Sunday is 103/80 again. Average is 94/74. 

Gonna be real fun in mid-September when we're still having 100/80 days that should be 90/72. 

[Foosters 18,287]

44 minutes ago, texasdago said:

Yeah, my wife needs to close those curtains during the day.  We have big ass windows in the main living room... over two stories.  We're working on some kind of a shade solution.  I have ideas.  My wife and I are not totally on the same page.  That's another story.  

I just got a quote on having every East and South facing window tinted with this stuff. 

https://aswf.com/product/daydream/

Strongly considering it

 

[txduck87 1,021]

Black out curtains help some.  I'm looking to get one of those heating/chilling pads for the bed with dual zones for two sleepers.  I could set mine much colder and my wife can warm up her side without taxing the AC as much.  

Blackout curtains make a huge difference in our house . #noracist

[Storm the Field 5,367]

Furnace Creek, CA (in the middle of Death Valley National Park) is going to end up getting more rainfall than Houston for the month of August. 

Seriously, this place:

[Nueces River Rat 5,800]

1 hour ago, Storm the Field said:

Jesus, just checked the most current forecast and am now depressed.

Latest models all have that gulf system heading towards Corpus

We ain't getting shit for relief. Forecast for next week, apart from maybe some slightly lower highs Monday-Wednesday, is just hot as shit again Thursday through next Sunday. Nothing to get excited about through September 1st.

It will hit Houston.  Trust me as a resident in the Corpus area for now 30 years.   These models week out show us getting rain or direct hits from a coastal system and they almost always shift north.   If the models would've been correct a week out.   We should've been a direct hit by Ike in 2008 and Rita in 2005.      I fully expect nothing next week down here.   I'd gladly run around naked in the my back yard in the wind driven  rain if I'm wrong.  

Edited August 18, 2023 by Nueces River Rat

[texasdago 7,772]

10 minutes ago, Foosters said:

I just got a quote on having every East and South facing window tinted with this stuff. 

https://aswf.com/product/daydream/

Strongly considering it

 

Cost?

So... tinted windows, shade, blackout curtains... all literally go out the door when my family can't F'ing close a door and all the glorious air cooled goodness flows outside.  

[4th&Five 42,027]

Over 100 before 11am. Fuck this. 

[texasdago 7,772]

1 minute ago, 4th&Five said:

Over 100 before 11am. Fuck this. 

...and the A/C is not on in our house since we're sitting relatively comfortably right now which is why I get pissed off about the doors being left open.  If we can keep from turning it on yet, let's not.  

I'm going to get some shades for the back patio to roll down because I think that will help with some of the "later in the day" western sun.

[Post Oak 20,592]

57 minutes ago, Hpara759 said:

spent a lot of money "dark tinting" all the windows in my house (except for windows covered by front and back porch...had those medium tinted), I honestly believe it has paid for itself in 5 years.

Looking into this.  We have 2 large windows that face west.  Was this ceramic tint?

[Foosters 18,287]

16 minutes ago, texasdago said:

Cost?

So... tinted windows, shade, blackout curtains... all literally go out the door when my family can't F'ing close a door and all the glorious air cooled goodness flows outside.  

For 10+ windows (three of which are huge) total cost, including tax, labor, etc., Was around $750. 

But, I'm also considering ordering this

https://suntekfilms.com/na/en/architectural-window-film/

And doing the install myself.

Still in the early stages of research though 

[texasdago 7,772]

6 minutes ago, Foosters said:

For 10+ windows (three of which are huge) total cost, including tax, labor, etc., Was around $750. 

But, I'm also considering ordering this

https://suntekfilms.com/na/en/architectural-window-film/

And doing the install myself.

Still in the early stages of research though 

That's not bad, honestly.  That company local to ATX?

[drt 647]

Just our electricity was $320 from Austin Electric for the period between Mid July to Mid August.  June to July was 270, and our temperate months are in the $70-90 range.  Fuck.

[Foosters 18,287]

6 minutes ago, texasdago said:

That's not bad, honestly.  That company local to ATX?

No, in California. 

I've been trying to solve this issue for awhile. Our house was built in 1902 and has over 20 original Box sash windows. They were in such bad shape that you could stand next to them on a windy day and feel drafts leaking through the cracks. Last year, I paid a small fortune to have them all restored which helped seal them up, but there's still a shit load of single pane glass staring at the sun all day. Hoping the tint/film solution will help.

I'd note that I have read some negative thing about AWSF's quality over time. My understanding is that the ceramic tint from 3M is the gold standard, but that's going to cost you.

[Armybrat 41,454]

16 minutes ago, drt said:

Just our electricity was $320 from Austin Electric for the period between Mid July to Mid August.  June to July was 270, and our temperate months are in the $70-90 range.  Fuck.

About the same here (2,000 sq/ft house….no tree shade).

[Texzilla58 4,798]

I read yeti is making an ice chest you can cover your house with.

[Guest]

That tint would mess with me. We had some in an office and in the middle of summer some days, I'd think -- wow, it looks dark out there, are we going to get rain? No, the tint just makes it have that dark look. 

[Born to Run 6,601]

That tint would mess with me. We had some in an office and in the middle of summer some days, I'd think -- wow, it looks dark out there, are we going to get rain? No, the tint just makes it have that dark look. 

My office faces west and gets absolutely blasted. Tint didn't do much at all. Blackout shades made a significant difference.

Spray foam insulation in your attic is very much worth the investment unless you have a gas furnace and water heater.

[Post Oak 20,592]

18 minutes ago, Texzilla58 said:

I read yeti is making an ice chest you can cover your house with.

Yes. The good news is it will cost less than their cast iron skillet 

[MissingInAction 25,606]

1 hour ago, Foosters said:

For 10+ windows (three of which are huge) total cost, including tax, labor, etc., Was around $750. 

But, I'm also considering ordering this

https://suntekfilms.com/na/en/architectural-window-film/

And doing the install myself.

Still in the early stages of research though 

As a former commercial tint installer I recommend against this. 1/4 of my jobs were strip and re-tint because the facility maintenance crew tried to do it themselves.

[Hate 20,269]

14 hours ago, closetohumping said:

Wind and rain for 48 hours.  Not fun

I had a blast during Harvey when it rained 41 inches at my house in 3.5 days. You just have to make sure you make a trip to your local dispensaries and liquor store before the storm hits.