How I kept cool with NYC's free battery program for window AC units
Bonus: Every Electric’s batteries are beloved by household cats.
Bonus: Every Electric’s batteries are beloved by household cats.
The short version
- My family has spent four summers participating in demand response programs whereby utility companies pay customers to reduce energy use on the hottest summer days.
- Most summers have involved carefully precooling our New York City apartment before switching off the air conditioners and sweating it out during the designated demand response periods.
- But this year, we kept our window air conditioners running throughout a heat dome event that drove daytime temperatures into the triple digits and made the nights oppressively hot.
What happened
The difference was that we powered the air conditioners through two household batteries tucked away unobtrusively in the corners of our living room and bedroom. “Being able to make air conditioners drop off the grid without actually impacting the comfort of residents was really awesome to see,” said Andrew Wang , co-founder and CEO of Every Electric, in an interview with Ars.
Why it matters
Wang and cofounder Richard May first met while working together as postdoctoral researchers at the Columbia Electrochemical Energy Center at Columbia University in New York City.
Summary by Nerd News Network. Read the full article at Ars Technica via the links above and below.