What are you doing to cut down on your use of electricity to avoid black or brown outs?

Question

I sit in the dark all day and don't turn on any lights, except for a nightlight. I close the blinds to keep this unbearable heat out. However, due to a medical condition, I do need to use the air conditioner. Cut back on using the stove for anything by eating sandwiches and such. How about you?

Lliam · Accepted Answer

When we built our house here in California, 20 years ago, I installed a grid-tied solar voltaic system. Our stove, water heater, furnace and clothes drier use propane.

We've always avoided unnecessary electrical usage, mainly to keep the bill down. We don't use that much for the house. I insure that the power strip for our TV and other electronics is turned off when not in use so as to prevent phantom power usage. We don't use lights necessarily. We don't have a home AC system. Instead, we cool our living area with a swamp cooler and/or fan. We have a window AC unit in our bedroom for evenings that are too warm.

We even hang laundry on a line on our back deck. Although, once it's dry, we put it in the drier for a short time to fluff it up.

My solar-voltaic system probably generates a surplus during the day. But what I can't control is the pump for our well. It's very powerful because it has to pump the water a long distance - maybe 1500' distance and 700' elevation from the pump to the 2500 gal water tank on the hill above our house that gravity feeds all of our water down to the house and garden.
There is a float in the water tank that tells the pump when to turn on and off. When the pump is running, it uses a lot of electricity.

Our well engineered septic system only has one small pump that kicks on when necessary.

We renew, reuse and recycle as much as possible because production and transportation of products is energy intensive.

So there's not much more we can do to cut down on electrical usage.

I'm not going to be getting an electric car, that's for sure. LOL

The thing is, the elites who impose austerity on us commoners aren't conserving. They have extravagant homes, cars, limos, yachts and private planes with every electronic luxury imaginable. All the while, they manufacture excuses for commoners to cut back on luxuries and even necessities. So I have a fuck you attitude toward them and their disingenuous environmental narrative.

I do what I can voluntarily because it's the right thing for my pocketbook and for the environment (I've been an environmentalist forever). But I also try to be as self sufficient as possible in order to cushion the impact of globalist efforts to subjugate me and my fellow humans.

HighValue · Accepted Answer

Don't bother. The liberal elites that want you to use less are in their huge mansions blasting the air conditioner, just like when they fly in their private jets and tell you not to pollute. Plus, people with those large two story houses of 2,500+ sq. ft. use a lot more energy than people in regular sized houses.

by the way, your lights and stuff uses much less electricity than an air conditioner so don't bother turning them off, especially since most lights are energy saving or LED lights now anyways.

CarolineW · Accepted Answer

I bought an air fryer. It can roast, bake or fry pretty much anything and uses about a third of the energy of a conventional stove

Midgetmcwidget · Accepted Answer

I’m not doing anything, I have a few mirrors and will probably place them to make the light travel further.

OlderAndWiser · Answer

We don't have that problem in Florida.

BCRanger10 · Answer

My wife and I rarely use lights and when we do, they are the smallest ones that use the least amount of energy; personally I'd like for us to use candles more often, particularly when we're doing our evening prayers. We also turn off the air conditioning when no one is home. And I don't know if this has any impact, but we try to turn off all power strips and unplug all electronics that we can.

Massageman · Answer

Keep unused lights off.
Use motion sensor lights in several areas.
Work in the basement in the summer.
Use solar lights in the garden.
Switched most lights to LEDs.
Keep drapes drawn.
Open windows on the shady side of the house to aid in keeping a cooling airflow.
Open connecting door to garage in the morning to admit (relatively) cold garage air.
Bought a gasoline-powered car.
FYI- We have a main fridge, an extra freezer, an office fridge in our guest room, a hot tub and central AC and STILL come up lower than our "thrifty" neighbors on the mailers from our electricity supplier.

ShadezMcgee · Answer

I don't use much as it is and there are no restrictions here, but the east and west coast will be the ones using most of it. Most red states don't hold the majority of the population and won't require as much of it to be used compared to the seaboard because they have more rural areas. So the great plains and heartland be fine for the most part.

BeMuse · Answer

Why can't you use your AC? What did you install one of those SMART thermostats and they turned you off remotely? If so, why not just unscrew it from the wall and bypass the switch? AC thermostats are 12v. It's not like you're going to get fried... The AC compressor is Red + Yellow twisted together. Air Handler fan is Red + Green. So if you take the red wire, yellow wire, and green wire and twist them together with a wire nut, then your AC should be on until you disconnect the wires.

DarkWinterNights · Answer

We don’t have any shortages or issues here. We’re exploring supplemental sources for renewables, but we aren’t shutting anything down. We source all of our natural gas locally. Heating prices are likely to climb depending on how cold this winter gets and our fuel costs are high though.

TheVigilantOne · Answer

You sit in the dark all day? Erm who has the light on all day when it’s light out?

I'm not doing anything I'm still the same as I always am, if they put up my bill I’ll just get on to Stepchange and then tell my energy provider I can’t pay it and they’ll have to go whistle. I’m not starving myself and sitting in the dark and cold for anyone.

driven159 · Answer

Texas had big issues last winter and California this summer blue and red states it's the power companies that will not invest into the infrastructure all the profits go to stockholders not back into the company to make better service to customers

noohair · Answer

When you vote for things that are technologically impossible, this is what you get. It has been 40 years since we started converting from coal to natural gas or other fossil fuels to generate electricity and we are not done yet. Only an idiot thinks that net zero can be achieved in less than 100 years. When you elect a moron, you get sh! t.

cth96190 · Answer

I went off grid years ago, after it became obvious that the global elite were engineering the collapse of civilisation.
Buy solar panels, batteries, food, rifles and a lot of ammunition.
You are going to need all of it.

Anonymous · Answer

Some Californians had no choice but to do what their government says. Like they were prevented from turning their AC down too low (i hear 78 degrees is the lowest they can go) on the electronic AC thermostats.

South Carolina is not having this issue (at least I don't have an electronic thermostat) as last time I checked, it's not run by a totalitarian.

josephinelcajon · Answer

I live in San Deigo and I am doing nothing out of the ordinary. I do not believe we have a energy criss

RiseofArtemis · Answer

LOL you think that people can help it somehow. The large companies will just increase their energy usage if they see there is more room.

Thepumpkinhead · Answer

I simple don't use lights in the morning. I use solar lights instead

888theGreat · Answer

Why do you put up with it? Why don't you move? No way I would stay in a state that treats its people like animals. I bet dogs at shelters have it better than people. Going all electric is not working.

BlueScorpio · Answer

I keep the lights off during the day and just use sunlight.

Sandeeppingping · Answer

Brown outs? What you people got race into electricity as well

Illumimati453 · Answer

I set the air on 68 instead of 67 during business hours

TroyDT · Answer

My solar panels often produce more that I use, so I really have not changed anything. I never use air conditioning in my house because with my windows open I get a nice cross breeze

AviatorTom · Answer

We replaced all of the lights in our house with LEDs... much lower energy usage.

exitseven · Answer

I switched out all my fluorescent lights with LEDs.

Sixgunsound · Answer

Gas stove, gas dryer, gas heat. Moving to a red state once I graduate university.

Sargentcaptain · Answer

I don't live in a third world shithole, so not a damn thing.

bolverk · Answer

I'll be doing nothing beyond what I already do, I have no air conditioner, all the lights in my flat are LED's and the heating is never over 17 C.

Chaser3232 · Answer

Single room cooling, solar panels, late night appliances used, full load washing, dishwashing! Lights off when living the room.

Fireguy17 · Answer

We don't have those in our state. More than ample power plants.

Anonymous · Answer

In the mean time... some of the rich people have buildings with 10 thousand light bulbs they use to ferment their own wine...

Light909090 · Answer

Get yourself a Fan your Too old to be Living without Good air flow

Jamie05rhs · Answer

I try to save electricity simply because I don't want a high electric bill. But otherwise it's not an issue here.

worldscolide · Answer

We've never had to conserve energy. I love in a very red state.

Anonymous · Answer

Nothing at the moment come winter I'm not sure about running the heating, might update the system, scrap the copper and brass then drop the rest at the slum landlords offices for fun

Andres77 · Answer

77 degrees in the house. Shorts and tshirt, drink cold water

cloud9vortex1234 · Answer

I don't have that problem. I would conserve more electricity if the utility made a point to ask the public.

maximumpower · Answer

Water heater on a timer for an hour per night only. AC no lower than 80 during day. Heat no higher than 65.

Iron_Man · Answer

That just looks like our air conditioning meter

Anonymous · Answer

Jack squat. I left California because of this stuff.

OddBeMe · Answer

How dare you call them black and brown outs! Why can't they be white outs?

Twalli · Answer

I don't do anything because that's not a risk here.

OnTheLevel · Answer

There are no restrictions on electricity use where I live.

Pterodon · Answer

Not a fucking thing. I don’t have that problem in my ultra red state

CubaPirate · Answer

Stop working from home 🏡. And let the employers pay for the heating etc

jimmy2 · Answer

I leave my ac on. 75 degree and windows block out with stove light on

ManOnFire · Answer

I'm assuming you live in CA?

Jennz6 · Answer

I have solar panels on the roof.

FunkyMonkee · Answer

I don't worry about it!

Dingsbums · Answer

R u from California

es20490446e · Answer

I lowered the water heater to 40ºC.

joeldalton · Answer

Nothing, I live in a red state, lol.

Wise4myage · Answer

Our ac is cut off daily for like four hours.

nawtee_me · Answer

we don't have them here...

Anonymous · Answer

keep lights off ac off

MrTaboo · Answer

Vote Republican

In_Trance · Answer

Absolutely nothing

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