That is actually how we are piped. There is a hose-bib right after the main. If you shutoff the water and then open every water faucet and hose-bib, you'll drain the system. But you also have to turn off the hot water heaters and drain those lines and those tanks.

^^^This is something you and I and fellow Pelicans would do but so many of the problems I see in the news are in condos or apartments that were built years ago. Those people are hosed (so to speak).

This is how my house is plumbed too - - and the waterline enters exposed on the outside of the house - - very typical in Houston. My water heater is gas, and located in the attic (which isn't mt favorite from a risk standpoint). When we had water pressure last week, I would run hot water to all the faucets to put heat in the pipes.in hopes that would help.

In the future, for an extended freeze, I'll plan on filling the tubs, shutting off the water and draining my pipes. Will also rig up the generator backfeed and run the furnace.

Just thinking that it might be a good idea for any of us who live in cold climates to have a couple gallons of RV antifreeze on hand to treat drains and toilets if faced with a shut down of utilities.

Also thought that a guy should rig up an adapter going from an air fitting to a water fitting so you could blow out plumbing better- make sure you have a tank full of air before any storm or cold snap just in case power goes out.

My co-ops (Coserve) provider, Brazos Electric, is filling Chapter 11.

They incurred a $2.1 Billion, that's with a B, bill over 7 days.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2021/03/01/texas-winter-storm-power-outage-brazos-bankruptcy-chapter-11/6868188002/

Listening to the news today, there are so many lawsuits against ERCOT and the local utilities. A $2B charge may be nothing.

Interesting. I got an email from our coop saying that they are trying to spread the bill over 10 years or something like that. The theory is that if it is approved, that we'd likely only see a 10% increase.

I suspected Coserv were looking into financing as well while hoping quietly for something that might bail them out all together.

I’ve been reading the Brazos Electric Coop bankruptcy filing and it’s pretty damning for ERCOT.

Essentially ERCOT charged the max wholesale power price allowed and even more for ancillary services (I just learned this today) through this mess. The idea is higher rates will encourage everyone to generate more power but everyone was doing all they could so it just turns into a financial mess for no benefit.

Oklahoma alligator "snorkeling " at Red Slough Wildlife Management Area. A type of hibernation. Yes, alligators are native to SE Oklahoma.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1614653549.jpg

Actually from what I saw a week ago, PUC ordered ERCOT to raise the price tier.

As much as TX State leadership tries to spin this all roads lead back to them.

That’s what the bankruptcy filing says too. I see no way out of this but for ERCOT to lower all invoices by 90% at least. Or at least down to the amount that covers the fuel bills. Of course those will be discussed too and might be lowered. Either way, the system did not work and some stupid people didn’t figure that out for days.

Still haven't got this retirement thing figured out.

I'd like to take credit for fixing stuff down there but all I did was "observe" for an underwriter.
Don't say anything, don't do anything, just observe was what I was told.
$16k+exp for 11 days, good work when you can find it.

Wow, nice. What are your qualifications for that, and how do you find that sort of gig?

The saying goes that it's a big industry but a small world.

How to find:
Basically, you retire and then sit on your butt and do nothing until the phone rings.
Didn't expect it, didn't look for it, they found me.
Musta been desperate ;)

Truth be told, all they needed was an SME who knows large mechanical equipment and certain manufacturing processes. I was just there to keep honest peoples honest.

It sounds like a good break in the monotony with a little bonus dinero.

You just can't quit quitting :D.

I have the gift of quit ;).

Ron White - "There's a lot of quit in that boy!"

Our retired turbine specialists come back to support outages and get paid a pretty penny. On the mechanic/machinist side, it's getting harder and harder to entice young folks to work with their hands for $100K+ a year.

David, you have any older GE equipment with MK I through MK IV+ controls?