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Power outage BS


mack_turtle
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Same here. We've had absolutely zero interruption of any utilities throughout this mess. Feel lucky but at the same time kind of guilty given what others have had to deal with. My biggest dilemma right now is finding milk! Had to resort to Almond Milk - so will see how well that goes with my cereal in the morning.  
#gridprivilege

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  • 1 month later...

Anyone get raped on their utilities? I wasn't worried about electricity (COA has fixed rates and my furnace is gas). I literally lost some sleep over the upcoming gas bill  (Texas Gas Service) after they sent out a warning on how the price has increased substantially and stressed over and over how they don't mark it up and just pass it along, but the price was only minimally higher and barely noticeable. I just got my water bill and wasn't too worried about an astronomical bill, but even trying to conserve I did have faucets dripping for several days there. I was still within the same 1000 gallon increment as the previous month so another sigh of relief.

The winterization and capacity issues that need to be addressed will likely cause some serious cost increases over time though. Certainly worth it to prevent people from dying in their homes though. ☹️ 

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I was shocked at how low my gas bill was. I was expecting much higher because of the cold, but also that I had just installed a gas log, that got a lot of use. Amazing how cheap gas is. 

Water bill was lower than normal too. Having it off for four days will do that I guess! 

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While working in the yard this weekend, I noticed a soft, muddy spot under a bush. I ignored it at first, when I saw how soggy it was the following day, I started digging. a few inches under the surface is this pipe that goes to a garden hose bib that we never use, but it was spurting water. I don't know if that happened during the freeze, but it might have yikes! there's a crack in the 45°elbow.

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My work certainly won't impress any plumbers, but a few bucks in parts and tools and more than one trip to Home depot solved it, for now.

1188826422_ScreenShot2021-03-31at9_05_47AM.thumb.png.47295bf17c24d65b0ed4e32ce7f9ba04.png

 

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2 minutes ago, Barry said:

Good work. 

Of the things I hate about plumbing, this one is the worst. You never get everything you need the second time. 

or the third, in my case. I now know that I need to buy three times what I think I need and keep receipts so I can return most of it.

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6 minutes ago, mack_turtle said:

I now know that I need to buy three times what I think I need and keep receipts so I can return most of it.

That's the ticket right there.  Get more than you think you need, all the elbows and elbow angles and couplers, etc.  I have stuff I've returned years later.  Home Depot is pretty good about that.  Worst case you get a store credit card.  

With experience you'll also have a better feel as to what to get.  Especially with PVC stuff, it's cheap enough that I will keep extras or stuff I didn't use.  A lefotver used 1/2" copper plug from my tub surround and faucet change project saved me this time around and it's still in use to plug the pipe that had been feeding the part (that also happened to feed the sprinkler system) that froze and burst.  Once plumbers catch-up I'll have them come by and properly hook up the sprinkler system.  Having it fed from a house line with no backflow preventer is a big no-no.  I guess the previous owner or whomever they hired was a hack!

 

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I got stupid lucky and my back flow preventer (why the hell is it above ground) had a split pipe on the outflow side. Just turned the inflow valve off and I’ll deal with it when it gets hotter and I need to start watering. Amazing how much water that bigger line can lose in under an hour! Neighbor knocked on my door and it was shooting 10’ up and had a creek down the side of the house. Water bill was within $20 of prior month so got lucky IMO. So glad a hose bib didn’t burst but one faucet drips when on so guessing it needs new gaskets inside.


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13 hours ago, Chongo Loco said:

back flow preventer (why the hell is it above ground) 

Oooh Oooh I know!  Only because i've been researching this.  My only break was on a kluge the previous owner (or whomever they hired) did to connect the sprinkler system to the water supply.  There is no backflow preventer at all.   With the way the water comes into my property and with a 16ft elevation change, I can see maybe why they didn't use a regular backflow preventer:  they must be installed higher than the highest sprinkler head.

What I'll have to get installed once the plumbing situation goes back to normal is a reduced pressure backflow preventer.  These don't need to be above ground.  They are a lot more expensive.

I've also had a geyser in my front yard in the past.  Somehow someone used a super thin PVC tube between my pressure regulator and the feed into the house.  A pressure pulse exploded it.

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TIL winter storm Uri will probably be the most expensive disaster in American history. $200–300 billion. that's more expensive than Harvey. let that sink in. who's paying the bill for that? "customers" like all of us. it's not even a natural disaster in that the main reasons it was so bad was a (intensional and profitable, for some) lack of preparation.

maybe this belongs in the "projects" thread, but anyone want to help me find good plans for building a guillotine?

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Edited by mack_turtle
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I saw a great statement: ERCOT needs to have a live stream of their office thermostat. 

There is no way that they are keeping their office at 78F.

If you asked me 2 years ago if I was going to live in Austin for the rest of my life the answer would have been  "most likely" and now that answer, because of Texas' inability to manage its power grid. 

I can deal with the religious fanatics and other crazies up to a point by living in my little Travis county bubble, but when you start telling me you can't even deliver power to the state, I get edgy.

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These are the same clowns promising to "build a wall" this election season.  With our fucking money and land of course.

Problem is they are still comfortable showing their faces in public. Until they experience the humiliation of being shouted out of every restaurant and public space from all of us pleebs, things will never change. 

That goes for Austin city government too. 

Edited by ATXZJ
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I see a big brain drain coming to Texas. it will take time, but people of means are fed up with the insane politics and lack of reliable infrastructure. people are going to move here and start businesses for several years, but can you imagine trying to, let's say, build electric cars, or create crypto currency in a place where the power goes out? I will not be surprised if the people who can pay for it will have power to conduct business while the rest of us freeze or boil alive in our homes, and heaven forbid prisoners are spared living in buildings that reach 150° inside because the for-profit prison system that thrives here would have to provide AC.

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