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Re:Two-thirds of North America at risk of energy shortages d... by londons_explore on Saturday May 27, 2023 @04:46PM (#36098134)
I want to see electricity meters configurable with a "max I am happy to pay per day" setting. When that limit is near, they beep/alert you. When you hit the cap, they turn off the whole house.

You could adjust the limit as you please, with a default of perhaps $100 - but they spare you from million dollar bills, even with uncapped dynamic pricing.

If a reasonable number of these were deployed, the prices would never spike super high, because there would always be someone else willing to turn off their tumble dryer to save 50 bucks.

Re:Two-thirds of North America at risk of energy shortages d... by bushbaba on Saturday May 27, 2023 @05:31PM (#36098540)
There’s circuit breakers with wifi connectivity that lets you turn off load through an api. Could code this up or use their apps for energy management.

Consumer demand just isn’t there for this type of product yet

Re:Two-thirds of North America at risk of energy shortages d... by ipaddr on Saturday May 27, 2023 @08:22PM (#36099870)
It's easier to use and get cutoff later
Re:Two-thirds of North America at risk of energy shortages d... by blacksmith_tb on Saturday May 27, 2023 @07:57PM (#36099697)
Just hoping that everything in fridge doesn't spoil until billing resets at midnight? That doesn't sound like a gamble most people would be willing to make, especially on a regular basis. I would imagine that at least for the (shrinking) middle class and above that widespread instability in the grid will drive the sale of a lot of PV systems and battery storage.
Re:Two-thirds of North America at risk of energy shortages d... by WalterBright on Saturday May 27, 2023 @09:04PM (#36100096)
From my experience with regular power outages in the Seattle metropolitan area, your fridge will last 24 hours after the power goes out, if you don't open the door.

Your water heater will provide water hot enough for a quick shower for a couple days.

Re:Two-thirds of North America at risk of energy shortages d... by blacksmith_tb on Saturday May 27, 2023 @11:08PM (#36100797)
Sure, that doesn't sound like a stretch, though most people would find that not being able to open the fridge for many hours would cramp their style...
Re:Two-thirds of North America at risk of energy shortages d... by WalterBright on Sunday May 28, 2023 @12:34AM (#36101166)
Oh the humanity!
Re:Two-thirds of North America at risk of energy shortages d... by fragmede on Saturday May 27, 2023 @07:58PM (#36099700)
That's a neat idea and all but what do you do when it's -20° out? Everyone around you simultaneously needs heating but no one's trying tumble dry anything.

but you've hit your daily limit? It's one thing to charge your Tesla later, it's anything

Re:Two-thirds of North America at risk of energy shortages d... by WalterBright on Saturday May 27, 2023 @09:09PM (#36100126)
If you live in an area that can drop to -20, you should be prepared for HVAC failure.

Just like when I lived in Iowa, the car always had blankets in the trunk. When I lived in Arizona, there was always a gallon of drinking water in the trunk (it works in the radiator, too!).

Just common sense.

Re:Two-thirds of North America at risk of energy shortages d... by jonhohle on Saturday May 27, 2023 @11:46PM (#36100950)
While I completely agree with you (and still carry blankets in my trunk in AZ!) the freeze in Texas was an anomaly that may nor may not have been reasonable to plan for:

> Texas experienced temperatures over 50 °F [28 °C] below normal. Records more than a century old were broken

How many people have planned and can execute plans for once in a century events that happen at scale?

I’d consider myself more prepared than most, but if a large chunk of Phoenix lost power in the middle of the summer for more than 24 hours, I think the result would be even worse. There was a study from a few days ago that predicted >12k deaths during a heat wave+power outage. That makes me reconsider not getting whole house batteries ;-)

Re:Two-thirds of North America at risk of energy shortages d... by WalterBright on Saturday May 27, 2023 @09:02PM (#36100081)
Exactly, a market based solution!