I am all the time seeing talk about using power "off peak", such as the thread below about the VOLT. Seeing talk about peak and off peak power and really thinking about it makes me question the whole idea. It's kind of like the old question/saying "If you expect the unexpected does it then make the unexpected expected?"
If everyone decided tomorrow to start driving electric vehicles then everyone would also have to charge them. Nowdays there is usually a "peak" power demand midday when it's hottest, and I can tell you there is another one around 5:30 to 6 or so, when people start getting home from work. I used to notice this when welding and would have to give the welder a boost around that time. Anyway if all these people all of a sudden start plugging in their cars and charging them at say midnight, which would most likely be considered 'off peak' nowdays, wouldn't that do nothing but create yet another new peak that doesn't currently exist?
Not to mention if the power companies should happen to realize that they would then have people even more under their power than they currently do (like the oil companies do when it comes to gas) who out there can't see electricity prices starting to rise....if for no other reason than to build power plants needed to meet the new demands, especially when I've read in numerous trade magazines that the current system is already too small to properly handle todays demand.
If everyone decided tomorrow to start driving electric vehicles then everyone would also have to charge them. Nowdays there is usually a "peak" power demand midday when it's hottest, and I can tell you there is another one around 5:30 to 6 or so, when people start getting home from work. I used to notice this when welding and would have to give the welder a boost around that time. Anyway if all these people all of a sudden start plugging in their cars and charging them at say midnight, which would most likely be considered 'off peak' nowdays, wouldn't that do nothing but create yet another new peak that doesn't currently exist?
Not to mention if the power companies should happen to realize that they would then have people even more under their power than they currently do (like the oil companies do when it comes to gas) who out there can't see electricity prices starting to rise....if for no other reason than to build power plants needed to meet the new demands, especially when I've read in numerous trade magazines that the current system is already too small to properly handle todays demand.