In a development that is good for national security, consumers’ wallets, and tree-huggers’ consciences, the latest projections from the US Department of Energy expect our production of energy to grow faster than our consumption. EIA projections show U.S. energy production growing faster than consumption through 2040 Kent McDonaldKent works at RealPage and helps apartment firms…
Category: Electricity
Water, wind, and sun: helping to power America
The forces of nature are among the “green and clean” sources of electric power generation. While the United States is a world leader in terms of total KWH generated via renewable sources, it produces only about 13% of our total power. Many hope to see the renewable portion increase in the future for reasons of…
Should we be worried? America’s power infrastructure is getting older
You may have heard that many water utilities around the country are increasing their rates in order to help offset their rising capital costs to maintain and upgrade their aging infrastructure. But do these same concerns relate to electric utilities? How old are U.S. power plants? Kent McDonaldKent works at RealPage and helps apartment firms…
How to compare electricity, natural gas, and other energy uses with a common unit of measure
Rental properties use electricity, natural gas, and other forms of energy. These commodities do not have a common unit of measure by default. NWP’s Consumption Smart and other tools help to make these conversions, but sometimes you have a need to understand and make the conversions on your own. How can we compare or add…
Green Button Promising to Give Millions of Americans Better Handle on Energy Costs
In September 2011, former White House Chief Technology Officer Aneesh Chopra challenged the utility industry to make energy data more available to their customers, using one standard all providers could agree upon. A standard has been developed and is called Green Button. It provides millions of utility customers with easy access to a downloadable copy…
How Net metering policies impact you
Net metering is the name of state and local policies that allow consumers to sell power back to the grid. For communities that are considering generating power on site, knowing the local regulations on net metering might make a big impact on your ROI. For more info, see: Policies for compensating behind-the-meter generation vary by…
Emerging green tech: a new form of water power
In prior articles, I discussed multiple ways how water has been used to generate electricity. But now that most large-scale hydro electric power that can be built already has been built, are there any other ways we might be able to generate electricity from water? Why, yes. Enter: Hydro-kinetic power. For more info, see: Regulators…
Water and electricity do mix after all
When we were growing up, we were told that water and electricity are a deadly combination. But under the right circumstances, they can work together for great benefit to society and the planet. Image courtesy of adamr / FreeDigitalPhotos.net Hydroelectric power is the use of falling water to turn a propeller-like piece called a turbine,…
Smart Grid: new technology can improve power reliability and efficiency
In prior articles, I discussed what the Smart Grid is and how it is finally getting smarter in the middle of the grid. For further developments in this area, read on below. The main impact to the multi-family housing industry is that as the electricity grid becomes more efficient with less waste, it has the…
Emerging green tech: Pumped-storage hydroelectricity. What was old is new again.
Hydroelectric power is the use of falling water to generate electricity. One form of this technology is Pumped-storage hydroelectricity (PSH). “In a pumped storage facility, water is pumped during off-peak demand periods from a reservoir at a lower elevation for storage in a reservoir at a higher elevation. Electricity is then generated during peak demand…