[NTLUG:Discuss] OT: Hz

[Steve Baker]

Well, there are at least four things wrong with this ridiculous conspiracy
theory.

1) The variation is not even close to +/- 10Hz it's more like +/- 0.05Hz. 
If your theory were even remotely true, it might maybe make a penny
difference to your bill each month.

2) Smart meters are not in fact affected by frequency.  They measure the
total amp-hours - which is independent of line frequency.  So your theory
is bogus anyway.

3) Smart meters measure exactly the same thing as dumb meters - they just
report consumption rates back to headquarters more often than the dumb
kind so that generation rates can be more accurately matched to
consumption.

4) The savings result from not having to continually adjust the frequency
of the power that they generate to keep it within the tight limits needed
to ensure that old-fashioned electromechanical clocks keep good time. 
Since we all now have clocks that get time from a crystal oscillator, the
cellphone network or the Internet - there is really no need to keep the
line frequency so spectacularly stable - and money can be saved by not
doing so.

So, no - every single thing you wrote below was (a) wrong and (b)
ill-researched.  Did you fact-check a single word of it or did you just
guess?

  -- Steve


Mike Hart wrote:
> My .00002 cents worth on the frequency issue:
>
>
> Follow the money:
>
>
> Smart meters are affected by frequency (I surmise, but from what I
> understand about power metering this is a true statement), so the issue
> with a relaxation of regulations is about revenue generation and not about
> costs.
>
> IE if (during the summer) they seek to meet 60.000 hz by running at 70hz
> during the day and 52 hz during the night, the hours 10am - 5pm
> effectively have 70 minutes in them, while the nights only have 52
> minutes. Obviously this is an exaggeration in the variability being
> considered, but it serves to illustrate the reasoning behind a big $$$$
> lobby on the issue. 
>
>
> If you do the math on this issue, you'll see that it adds up to Billions
> in revenue for TXU to spin their turbines faster during peak loads,
> especially with the variable rates based on time of day.
>
>
> In order to even consider this
> relaxation viable, considerable infrastructure has to be invested to
> monitor the line and attempt to match the rate. That is, when you have
> half  your turbines set to output at 60hz, and half set to output 50hz,
> you get wild swings in line voltage. In order to prevent disruptive cycle
> issues, a lot of technology has to go into synchronizing the grid to a
> variable cycle, where before the
> target was ALWAYS 60hz.
>
> ------------
>
> My thoughts on the symptoms described:
>
> Other things to look for:  At work we had wacky happenings that were
> eventually traced to voltage on the ground circuit (540volts in that case,
> so it was pretty serious, and lucky that noone died.)  It's easy to test
> with a voltage meter, but not so easy to track down if it exists. The
> culprit could be anywhere in the loop, but from what you've described
> could be from a miswired repair on the dryer the first time.  That is, a
> different problem, poorly fixed caused further issues.
> _______________________________________________
> http://www.ntlug.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss
>


 -- Steve