The last winter season plagued many states with electricity blackouts. Texas was hardest hit in February of 2021. More than 4 million people across Texas were without power on February 15, reported the Houston Chronicle. While Texas was the worst hit this past winter, blackouts are possible anywhere. Today’s energy grid is simply unsustainable, as our energy demand has outpaced the advancements in grid technology.
Fortunately, solutions are available. Energy tech like the Curb energy management system helps shift energy demand so when emergency situations occur, the energy used can be spread out more evenly, avoiding peaks or sudden surges. For example, in the Texas blackout, people could use this technology to keep the heat on for millions of homes.
“If we could have powered just a few critical electrical appliances in each home, we could have kept the heat on to millions of homes across Texas and lives would have been saved. The technology for controlling power at this granularity and below a set threshold has existed for decades in commercial buildings, now is the time to bring it to homes,” said Erik Norwood, CTO of Elevation Home Energy Solutions and Founder of Curb.
No one wants to live without power or water. Unfortunately, however, the energy grid is under increasing strain as our energy demands increase, and the electrification of everything is pushing the grids to their breaking point. The good news is that you can have an impact by taking small steps within your home.
Help prevent electricity blackouts in the future by actively reducing energy use during peak periods. Shifting demand for electricity to different times of the day can help avoid detrimental blackout situations.
Embrace new technology to change how you use energy. Technology has afforded us major advances in how we consume and manage our electricity.
Increase the efficiency of your home. Small changes in your home can have a major impact on your home’s energy use.
Actively Reduce Your Energy During Peak Periods
You can help avoid overloading the grid by shifting the energy you use in your home to off-peak hours. Here are three simple steps to shift your energy usage:
Contact your local utility provider to understand which times of day are considered the “peak” hours for your local area.
Discover which appliances and devices consume the most energy in your home. Energy monitoring devices, like Curb, can help you track and monitor your home’s energy usage in real-time so you can identify the biggest energy consumers and see the impact of your changes.
Use those large, energy-consuming devices and appliances during off-peak hours. If your largest energy consumer is your air conditioning or heating units, then try pre-cooling or pre-heating your home during the off-peak hours to a temperature that is just a bit cooler (or warmer, in the case of heat) than usual, then shift it off during those peak hours.
Increase the Efficiency of Your Home Energy
We can take part in helping to reduce electricity blackouts with small changes that improve the energy efficiency in our homes. Here are just a few ways you can make a difference:
Retrofit your home with smart devices, sensors and thermostats. Smart technology, like Emerson’s Sensi Smart Thermostat, can help you automate and better manage your home’s energy consumption.
Use an energy audit to find and address “leaks” where you lose excess heat or cooling. So you can better insulate to prevent those issues.
Swap light bulbs for more energy-efficient LED light bulbs.
Consider using an energy monitoring device like Curb to track how you use energy and make smarter choices about how you can conserve your home’s energy. If you don’t see one available, call your utility to ask what solutions they are providing to help manage peak energy usage.
Be Part of the Solution to Reduce Electricity Blackouts
Electricity blackouts have become a bigger part of our reality, and we each have the power to take action. Our goal at Elevation is to help prevent catastrophes like the one we saw in Texas this past February.
The solution lies in smart technology that can help us all better manage our own energy usage. Contact us at Elevation to get more information about how we can help give more power to you.
How You Can Help Prevent Electricity Blackouts
The last winter season plagued many states with electricity blackouts. Texas was hardest hit in February of 2021. More than 4 million people across Texas were without power on February 15, reported the Houston Chronicle. While Texas was the worst hit this past winter, blackouts are possible anywhere. Today’s energy grid is simply unsustainable, as our energy demand has outpaced the advancements in grid technology.
Fortunately, solutions are available. Energy tech like the Curb energy management system helps shift energy demand so when emergency situations occur, the energy used can be spread out more evenly, avoiding peaks or sudden surges. For example, in the Texas blackout, people could use this technology to keep the heat on for millions of homes.
“If we could have powered just a few critical electrical appliances in each home, we could have kept the heat on to millions of homes across Texas and lives would have been saved. The technology for controlling power at this granularity and below a set threshold has existed for decades in commercial buildings, now is the time to bring it to homes,” said Erik Norwood, CTO of Elevation Home Energy Solutions and Founder of Curb.
No one wants to live without power or water. Unfortunately, however, the energy grid is under increasing strain as our energy demands increase, and the electrification of everything is pushing the grids to their breaking point. The good news is that you can have an impact by taking small steps within your home.
Help prevent electricity blackouts in the future by actively reducing energy use during peak periods. Shifting demand for electricity to different times of the day can help avoid detrimental blackout situations.
Embrace new technology to change how you use energy. Technology has afforded us major advances in how we consume and manage our electricity.
Increase the efficiency of your home. Small changes in your home can have a major impact on your home’s energy use.
Actively Reduce Your Energy During Peak Periods
You can help avoid overloading the grid by shifting the energy you use in your home to off-peak hours. Here are three simple steps to shift your energy usage:
Increase the Efficiency of Your Home Energy
We can take part in helping to reduce electricity blackouts with small changes that improve the energy efficiency in our homes. Here are just a few ways you can make a difference:
Retrofit your home with smart devices, sensors and thermostats. Smart technology, like Emerson’s Sensi Smart Thermostat, can help you automate and better manage your home’s energy consumption.
Use an energy audit to find and address “leaks” where you lose excess heat or cooling. So you can better insulate to prevent those issues.
Swap light bulbs for more energy-efficient LED light bulbs.
Consider using an energy monitoring device like Curb to track how you use energy and make smarter choices about how you can conserve your home’s energy. If you don’t see one available, call your utility to ask what solutions they are providing to help manage peak energy usage.
Be Part of the Solution to Reduce Electricity Blackouts
Electricity blackouts have become a bigger part of our reality, and we each have the power to take action. Our goal at Elevation is to help prevent catastrophes like the one we saw in Texas this past February.
The solution lies in smart technology that can help us all better manage our own energy usage. Contact us at Elevation to get more information about how we can help give more power to you.
CATEGORIES
Recent Blogs