Electricity Supply and Distribution

[teeceetx]

Here we are ... 2025 ... and we still have continual weather related power outages.

Electricity has been in existence since 1878, and 147 years later, we still can't keep the power on!!!

I'd have to say that our government and it's related power companies have done a horrific job with all this.

We still string power lines through trees, that guarantee a downed branch will mean a downed power line.

We have power plants that are continually affected by adverse weather, and substations that are poorly built and prone to outages.

Nearly a century and a half, and we are still playing this game.

I suspect that home generators are going to be the wave of the future, given the sad state of our electrical grids, and the utter inability for our leaders to ensure this most basic of services is reliable.

When is someone going to address this?

 

[Amish Heart]

It's been addressed, it's just that the people in power don't want to put the money into it.
Make sure that you have your own power at home.

 

[Supervisor42]

Here we are ... 2025 ... and we still have continual weather related power outages.
Electricity has been in existence since 1878, and 147 years later, we still can't keep the power on!!!
I'd have to say that our government and it's related power companies have done a horrific job with all this.
We still string power lines through trees, that guarantee a downed branch will mean a downed power line.
We have power plants that are continually affected by adverse weather, and substations that are poorly built and prone to outages.
Nearly a century and a half, and we are still playing this game.
I suspect that home generators are going to be the wave of the future, given the sad state of our electrical grids, and the utter inability for our leaders to ensure this most basic of services is reliable.
When is someone going to address this?

They fixed ours 'for good' down here decades ago by putting it in-ground.
You should put together a group of people to petition their company meetings.
It will only happen if a bunch of angry customers show up and demand it.
Be sure to mention that every customer is fine with a surcharge on their bill for a couple years to cover the cost...
They always pay attention to any reason to increase prices.
If they want to know how to do it, have them call us down here in 'hurricane-land'.

 

[teeceetx]

They fixed ours 'for good' down here decades ago by putting it in-ground.
You should put together a group of people to petition their company meetings.
It will only happen if a bunch of angry customers show up and demand it.
Be sure to mention that every customer is fine with a surcharge on their bill for a couple years to cover the cost...
They always pay attention to any reason to increase prices.
If they want to know how to do it, have them call us down here in 'hurricane-land'.

My town is mostly underground already.

However, that hasn't stopped outages caused by areas not underground or outside the town!!!!

 

[OldSchool]

The problem is at the source. But it's cool local municipalities help on their end, even when the consumer pays the price.

It's my water bill that's pissing me off...the price of improvements passed-on to the consumer. Off-Grid... even in town just might be a good idea.

 

[Supervisor42]

My town is mostly underground already.

However, that hasn't stopped outages caused by areas not underground or outside the town!!!!

Circuit-breakers work.
When a tree takes down an overhead line going to a rural area here, it trips, and all the people upstream only see a blink.
They need to get their act together over there.
This isn't rocket science.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Here we are ... 2025 ... and we still have continual weather related power outages.

Electricity has been in existence since 1878, and 147 years later, we still can't keep the power on!!!

I'd have to say that our government and it's related power companies have done a horrific job with all this.

We still string power lines through trees, that guarantee a downed branch will mean a downed power line.

We have power plants that are continually affected by adverse weather, and substations that are poorly built and prone to outages.

Nearly a century and a half, and we are still playing this game.

I suspect that home generators are going to be the wave of the future, given the sad state of our electrical grids, and the utter inability for our leaders to ensure this most basic of services is reliable.

When is someone going to address this?

Do you really want to pay the price of making it infallible? The only way would be to run the lines under ground. Just imagine what that would cost. The rate payers will pay for it in much higher utility bills. If I lived in an area that experiences significant power outages, I'd have a backup generator.

 

[Tirediron]

Do you really want to pay the price of making it infallible? The only way would be to run the lines under ground. Just imagine what that would cost. The rate payers will pay for it in much higher utility bills. If I lived in an area that experiences significant power outages, I'd have a backup generator.

they run gas lines and waterlines underground all the time, it would prolly be cheaper in most soil conditions to run electricity under ground too, but logic has no place in decisions

 

[Neb]

they run gas lines and waterlines underground all the time, it would prolly be cheaper in most soil conditions to run electricity under ground too, but logic has no place in decisions

All of the new developments around here are underground utilities. Makes for a cleaner look to the neighborhood.

But my place is 110 years old so telephone poles are the norm. I have a pole no more than 20' from where I sit that has electric, phone, cable, internet, and a street light. It would cost a fortune to move it underground.

Ben

 

[teeceetx]

Do you really want to pay the price of making it infallible? The only way would be to run the lines under ground. Just imagine what that would cost. The rate payers will pay for it in much higher utility bills. If I lived in an area that experiences significant power outages, I'd have a backup generator.

They've had a hundred years to bury the lines!

 

[Mountain trapper]

They've had a hundred years to bury the lines!

It just isn't feasible in many areas. Or cost effective. The cost-benefit must be taken in to account. Should the tax payers be forced to foot the bill, or just the rate payer? This would most likely bankrupt many smaller utility companies.

 

[Amish Heart]

We have poles. Have one on our farm property. Not a whole lot of us have electricity, so I don't know how that would work if everyone got taxed to have them underground. I'm pretty sure a cable company put some underground tho. I know in doing so, they broke the amish guys drainage piping he had just put in across from us.

 

[Pearl]

Here we are ... 2025 ... and we still have continual weather related power outages.

Electricity has been in existence since 1878, and 147 years later, we still can't keep the power on!!!

I'd have to say that our government and it's related power companies have done a horrific job with all this.

We still string power lines through trees, that guarantee a downed branch will mean a downed power line.

We have power plants that are continually affected by adverse weather, and substations that are poorly built and prone to outages.

Nearly a century and a half, and we are still playing this game.

I suspect that home generators are going to be the wave of the future, given the sad state of our electrical grids, and the utter inability for our leaders to ensure this most basic of services is reliable.

When is someone going to address this?

It's WHERE YOU LIVE! It's ONCOR ELECTRIC! Out west here we are on a co op, never lost power during the deadly 2021 ice storm!! No rotating outages! I swear it can rain and the whole DFW area has no power!!

 

[Supervisor42]

they run gas lines and waterlines underground all the time, it would prolly be cheaper in most soil conditions to run electricity under ground too, but logic has no place in decisions

I think the likelihood/chance of overhead lines and poles being damaged by wind, trees, etc plays a big part in their 'logic'.
Why waste tons of money on something that would make little/no difference in the long run?
If they only have to put a couple posts back up every year, it only costs pennies.

 

[lonewolf]

we have overhead lines and pylons strung across the country, not enough power stations to keep the lights on without buying extra supplies from Europe mostly Norway and France, EDF a French company is building a new power station in Somerset but it hugely over budget and late.

 

[DrHenley]

Circuit-breakers work.
When a tree takes down an overhead line going to a rural area here, it trips, and all the people upstream only see a blink.
They need to get their act together over there.
This isn't rocket science.

A blink here means an outage will soon follow. One blink, then a few longer blinks, then lights out.
I think it's called "cascading failures".

 

[UrbanHunter]

Here we have gas, water, and sewer underground, electricity is on poles, cable/internet is a mixed bag. The water and sewer have been issues as pipes freeze or break leading to water outages or contamination, we have seen 2 or 3 of these a year for the last 10 years. Outages usually last 1 to 2 days, followed by a week of boil orders. We have seen problems with gas leaks too. As for the power, we see a power outage every time the wind blows. We see lots of small "blips" every week, those little 1 or 2 minute outages that freak out the clock on appliances. Seems like we get one of @DrHenley 's blinky failures every weekend... We usually see 4 or 5 outages lasting longer than 8 hours per year. I agree with @Amish Heart that you need to be ready to cover your needs yourself. I have battery backups on as many devices as reasonably feasible. I also have lots for things for those 2 to 4 hour power outages that seem to come on a monthly basis. I am getting a used larger portable generator that a friend of mine who does small engine repair found for me, I let him know what I was looking for (6-9Kwatts) and poof he found one, at a price I could afford.

 

[poltiregist]

ground zero plan _ prepare for life without electricity forever . Solar systems eventually have inverters or batteries succumb to not working . fuel for fuel powered generators are dependent on a transportation working society , and should be viewed as a temporary solution .

 

[Tirediron]

ground zero plan _ prepare for life without electricity forever . Solar systems eventually have inverters or batteries succumb to not working . fuel for fuel powered generators are dependent on a transportation working society , and should be viewed as a temporary solution .

That is the truth, people lived for centuries (if history is to be believed) without electricity, It's introduction and drug pusher like "need" is by design.
Like a lot of things changes won't be even looked for until after a disaster. Or warnings will get pooh poohed until things get real difficult.
Simple things like giant super insulated Ice boxes can store cold for a very long time, but whatever happens don't look outside what society has adopted as "normal"