Colorado utility company locks people out of their thermostats

[JoeHam]

Wow :

Colorado utility company locks 22,000 thermostats in 90 degree weather due to 'energy emergency'

A Colorado utility company was slammed on social media after customers were locked out of their smart thermostats as temperatures rose past 90 degrees.

www.foxbusiness.com

I know this is a voluntary program but……. Wow

 

[Solar Guppy]

Wow :

Colorado utility company locks 22,000 thermostats in 90 degree weather due to 'energy emergency'

A Colorado utility company was slammed on social media after customers were locked out of their smart thermostats as temperatures rose past 90 degrees.

www.foxbusiness.com

I know this is a voluntary program but……. Wow

Very common that utilities offer customers a monthly discount for a customer having a remote high load disconnect the utility can control. Can't have your cake and eat it too ....

 

[Danke]

Turn it on at furnace, put a switch on thermostat or a lamp underneath it.

I get 15% off total electric bill for having one of those “smart switches” on central air conditioner. If it gets too warm, a window AC can pick up the load…

 

[robby]

Turn it on at furnace, put a switch on thermostat or a lamp underneath it.

I get 15% off total electric bill for having one of those “smart switches” on central air conditioner. If it gets too warm, a window AC can pick up the load…

If ideas like that start to go Viral then in a few months time everyone will be putting a small heat source below their thermostat.
The end result is the Grid fails and they discontinue the program. We keep on wondering why we cannot play with nice stuff, it's because we cannot abide by the rules. We just want the benefits without upholding our end of the bargain.

 

[HighTechLab]

at your own risk, forcefully turn on the cooling:

Pull the T-stat off the wall. Use alligator clip jumpers to connect "R" to "G" (turns on fan) then connect "R" to "Y" (sometimes also Y1). Do note, that you are now the temperature controller.

Note: does not work for super fancy thermostats like the ones for the Lennox variable speed units, but does work for the remaining 90% of systems out there.

 

[Danke]

Or they could just start building nuclear power plants again and we all could have cheap and abundant electricity.

 

[A.Justice]

Or they could just start building nuclear power plants again and we all could have cheap and abundant electricity.

Yeah, but that might actually fix the problem ?. It's much harder to price gouge for an abundant resource. De beers uses the same concept for diamonds that PG&e uses for electricity. Regardless of the real reason for the shortages, they exist, and energy is quite a bit more expensive in CA under PG&e than it is in the rest of the country.

 

[Rennit]

If you ever see a house all by itself on top of a mountain and solar panels with a big "FU go away" flag on said mountain surrounded by a mote full of sharks with laser beams attached to their head.. it's probably me, for reasons mentioned in this thread.

 

[Ampster]

I signed up for a program called Grid Savvy where I was paid $5 per month to let them turn off my EV charger when the grid was stressed. Typically the grid is stressed from 5PM until 9PM when rates are the highest so there was no way I was going to be charging during those hours anyway. It was a great deal and I might just make an extra plug and plug in that EVSE and sign up again. $60 per year could be worth an extra breaker that I will probably never use.

 

[Pancakes]

Or they could just start building nuclear power plants again and we all could have cheap and abundant electricity.

I thought that too, but I watched this which honestly I can't argue with

I personally still like nuclear, but valid points all round

 

[JRH]

If you ever see a house all by itself on top of a mountain and solar panels with a big "FU go away" flag on said mountain surrounded by a mote full of sharks with laser beams attached to their head.. it's probably me, for reasons mentioned in this thread.

I want one of those places ……. I don’t even need the sharks… a lot of Hungry snapping turtles will be fine…I like turtles…yea , I like turtles..

 

[Weldman]

If you ever see a house all by itself on top of a mountain and solar panels with a big "FU go away" flag on said mountain surrounded by a mote full of sharks with laser beams attached to their head.. it's probably me, for reasons mentioned in this thread.

You won't find my house cause it's buried mostly except the southern windows, but the pole barn roof will have that painted on in the next few days before cold weather hits so all those maps programs can blur out my place.

 

[JRH]

You won't find my house cause it's buried mostly except the southern windows, but the pole barn roof will have that painted on in the next few days before cold weather hits so all those maps programs can blur out my place.

I love it ,but don’t tell nobody…for all we should know , you live in A high rise condo…I thought he lived in a condo … I really did.

 

[400bird]

I signed up for a program called Grid Savvy where I was paid $5 per month to let them turn off my EV charger when the grid was stressed.

Is that local/specific to your power company? I looked it up and the only results lead to a single provider.

I signed up for Ohmconnect (I believe they only cover Texas, CA and NY). They pay me and turn off the AC and some smart plugs and save electricity.l.
I also crank up the battery inverter and export 6kwh to the grid, make about $10 each time.

Best part? If it gets to hot, I've still got control of the thermostat.
Normally the events are only an hour, so the house only goes up like 2 degrees.
Last night was 2 hours, the house went up 5 degrees inside. I kicked on the ceiling fan and I'll take my $20, thank you.

 

[RV10flyer]

Buy 20+ kW of PV, then tell your power company to go pound sand. I have 6.25 tons. I set them all between 66-72F!?

 

[JRH]

Buy 20+ kW of PV, then tell your power company to gp pound sand. I have 6.25 tons. I set them all between 66-72F!?

In the summer I run my ac on high in my RV sometimes so it’s freezing …then I can huddle in front of my electric fires place at night and Sit on the floor and play guitar and drink beer by the firelight…
hey … It’s America OK… at this point we’re still free…freedom it’s a thing we do here…

 

[32 volt boater]

The $1 billion Comanche 3 coal-burning power plant has been down , and the utility has revealed some details about what's being done to fix it.

Colorado’s last standing coal plant? - Mountain Town News

What will be Colorado's last standing coal plant? Xcel Energy wants it to be Comanche 3. Can the company persuade state regulators it should operate to 2040?

mountaintownnews.net

 

[400bird]

Individual freedom (to do stupid and selfish things) at the expense of the good for the rest of us.
Oh boy, I hope the neighbors enjoy your freedom.

 

[time2roll]

I am on a similar program where the compressor can be shut off by the utility. Rarely happens. And usually the event occurs maybe 5pm to 9pm when I generally keep my A/C off due to high TOU rates. Close to $120 bill credit each year.

If these "outraged" people don't like it.... just drop out of the program already.

 

[JRH]

Individual freedom (to do stupid and selfish things) at the expense of the good for the rest of us.
Oh boy, I hope the neighbors enjoy your freedom.

To each his own…But ,.what’s Ironic is that If you had been invited and been there , you would NOT be be squawking about a thing… BUT instead telling me thanks , and it was fun.

So me Spending about 90 extra cents that day for electricity , drinking some beer and having fun with friends for a couple of hours is now considered “selfish and stupid..”..
hmmmmmm I see…that is some serious new age thinking ya got going on…
but whatever… !!
Well, Cheerio…. Have a wild and crazy Labor Day weekend…we will ,at the lake ,partying , cooking out ,and killing a few cases of brew…( ya know , being selfish and stupid)
.jim out.