Re:Storage ‘not fundamentally needed’ for future power grid,...
by Retric on Tuesday June 20, 2017 @04:54PM
(#14598523)
If a washing machine waits up to say 30 minutes unless you click the fast button, that's still quite a bit of time shifting in aggregate. Same for home heating/cooling, you might be willing to shift an extra 1-2 degrees if it will save a few dollars a month and you don't need to pay attention. However, if your willing to spend a few extra dollars a month that directly pays for grid storage.
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Re:Storage ‘not fundamentally needed’ for future power grid,...
by thisrod on Tuesday June 20, 2017 @07:09PM
(#14599327)
Yes. This only matters for half an hour, once a year, when there isn't enough wind or sunlight to generate electricity. It's OK for a washer to just say no if you try to switch it on in that half hour, and maybe that makes more sense than buying a large battery that only gets used once a year. The timing can be forecast, and the news would warn you the night before.
Re:Storage ‘not fundamentally needed’ for future power grid,...
by Retric on Tuesday June 20, 2017 @07:17PM
(#14599358)
The US grid already has a lot of storage in hydropower systems. So, I doubt a washing machine would ever need to say no.
Further the once a year useage is going to be drawing a lot of batteries slightly lower at the cost of slightly shorter lifespans not a single bank that's only used once. Plus some emergency back up generators that flip on and use some minimal amount of fuel at hospitals and data centers etc.
PS: One interesting outgrowth from high wind solar production is likely to be fairly accurate models for electricity costs over the next few hours. So, you may be using power sooner if the prediction is a coming price increase.