[ale] [OT] Load Control Switch

[Greg Freemyer]

On Wed, Apr 13, 2011 at 11:27 AM, David Hillman <hillmands at gmail.com> wrote:
<snip>
 My guess is there is some intelligent
> electronics inside that box that operates like a thermostat, expect the
> power company can take control of the system from their end.  They probably
> will send a relay signal to all the boxes in one area and the boxes will
> determine when and how long to turn off the A/C units to prevent damage.

Prevent damage?

AFAIK, they are only designed to reduce power usage at peak power times.

(The 2 or 3 three times a year that power company can't make enough.
Building plants that only run a couple hours a year is very expensive,
so the point is to lower those peaks.  But I think a far better
solution is a stored water system.  At low demand fill-up a lake.  At
peak drain it through a generator.  Only a couple hours power needs to
be stored this way.  I don't think Ga has anything like that do we?
>From what I understand, Great Britain has a 20 hour supply of energy
from stored water.  They use it to handle fluctuations in wind
energy.)

I think there are 10's of millions of smart meters deployed across the US.

Greg