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goldfaux t1_ixq4854 wrote

A single mid sized corporation typically uses as much power or more then a small town. Better stop creating new businesses.

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ymo t1_ixqfz75 wrote

Each new town also uses as much energy as a small town. Are we done building new towns?

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sighbourbon t1_ixq64yj wrote

Sounds accurate, great reply. But I’d still love to see a source

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RockinRobin-69 t1_ixqbf42 wrote

Can confirm. I worked at a chemical plant. We had a 2500 hp motor. It used more electricity than a small town. The power company had conditions for turning it on, but they were more than happy to supply us with, and charge us for, power.

Edit; hour to hp

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patrickstarpenishead t1_ixry03f wrote

That’s like 12 normal sized cars worth of power…

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Canadian_Infidel t1_ixs2f22 wrote

Going full throttle. 2500 hp is very large for an electric motor. We had a 5000 hp one where I worked and it was a 10k bill PER START plus running energy.

Also cars are very powerful. Your home uses maybe 10-12 hp, max. With the dryer and stove going. Absolute max.

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patrickstarpenishead t1_ixs6fe7 wrote

Oh I completely understand. A single car is far more power hungry than a house as well. When we’re talking town scale though 2500hp isn’t that impressive. You have to notify the power company only because it’s a large sudden spike that could damage other devices outside the building due to voltage drops.

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RockinRobin-69 t1_ixsa9ga wrote

We had a separate building for the variable frequency drive. We weren’t allowed to start it across the line. It would have browned out the city.

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patrickstarpenishead t1_ixsamqw wrote

I’ve been present for a 10000hp motor startup as Siemens. It was incredible. The whole building shook and they had a lot of steps just to get it going.

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RockinRobin-69 t1_ixssyad wrote

I was mostly just curious so I did some quick math. There seem to be some pretty knowledgeable folks here. If I get something wrong, just tell me and I’ll correct. 2500hp X 0.746kw/hp X 24hr X 365 =16 million kwhr. An average house is about 10,000 kwhr per year. That motor was worth 1600 houses.

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patrickstarpenishead t1_ixsw8w1 wrote

Sounds about right. When you’re talking an entire town though that’s not that significant. And it’s not just houses it’s homes. Which could mean a reasonably sized apartment. Not hard to fit 400 units into a single apartment building.

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RockinRobin-69 t1_ixt1xtu wrote

I get your point. That was a single piece of equipment in a massive plant. The utilities had no problem supplying us.

Having charging stations use the power of a small town is actually not that big of a deal right now. Having many of them in 13 years is not that big of a deal.

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Lil-Wayne-Brady t1_ixr1i99 wrote

From the article, “By 2035, a larger installation serving both passenger cars and trucks could need to provide 19 megawatts of peak power, National Grid projects, roughly what a small town uses. In 2045, that kind of truck stop may require 30 megawatts of capacity, approaching the peak usage of a large industrial plant.”

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Touchtom t1_ixwgszo wrote

Work at a very large plant. We have 3 pumps alone that draw more energy than the whole town around us...and it's not a small town. We have to generate our own power from waste gas and steam to supplement what the grid cannot provide.

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Canadian_Infidel t1_ixs2aty wrote

They mean each charging station.

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SkySchemer t1_ixuwoor wrote

My level 2 charger uses as much energy as my clothes dryer. Better stop building new dryers?

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Canadian_Infidel t1_ixvaovq wrote

Your dryer is the most power hungry thing in your home. Homes run them a few hours a week, maybe. Now it will be 8 hours a day or more.

The lines that feed the neighborhood are based on how much power will be likely used for all the homes at any time. It isnt sized so every house could use max power at all times.

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SkySchemer t1_ixvgq6m wrote

I know exactly how power hungry it is. Yet we have been powering them at home for decades.

But 8 hours a day or more of charging? Where are you getting your math from? Or what are you smoking so I can have some? According to my charger stats, I charge roughly twice a week for maybe 4 hours at most each session. That's less than 8 hours a week.

8 hours of charging nets me about 200 miles of range. Who regularly drives 200 miles a day? I am sure someone does, but they aren't the average car owner by any stretch.

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