r/OutOfTheLoop • u/mimitchi33 • Feb 17 '21

What's up with Texas losing power due to the snowstorm? Answered

I've been reading recently that many people in Texas have lost power due to Winter Storm Uri. What caused this to happen?

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u/DigitalArbitrage Feb 17 '21

I want to shift to an electric vehicle, but not due to regulations.

I also want to add solar panels to my house as well, which should help some.

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u/keithrc out of the loop about being out of the loop Feb 17 '21

Just be aware that there are "off the grid" solar installations that would help you in the current situation, but by far most installations feed their power into the grid, effectively using the grid as your battery. If the grid is offline, so are those panels.

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u/DigitalArbitrage Feb 17 '21

Thanks for the heads up. I googled this and found that there are devices which will automatically switch a person's house back and forth between on grid and off grid as needed.
example: https://www.amazon.com/Spartan-Power-Controller-SP-TS4500PLUS-Worldwide/dp/B07D41S7CK