Why can't Texas keep the lights on when neighboring states can?

[Pawz4me]

1 hour ago, Bootsie said:

Are the colder tiles on the floor an insulation issue or are they because of the way that homes are heated?  In Texas our heat blows warm air through the vents in the ceiling, providing a lot of warmth at the ceiling, and usually enough warmth for a Texas home.  Yes, the floors are much cooler than the ceilings (which is great in a Texas summer).  When I have been in places that have heated floors, floor heating vents, or radiators near floor level, the floors in those homes are much warmer.  

We are so lucky that we have not had power or heat problems in our home with this storm.  We did have problems in a rental home a few years ago.  We had dripped the faucets in the house, but there was freezing at the water meter which we had no control over, so we didn't have water for several days.  

 

I'm in NC and our heat vents are in the ceiling. Now take this FWIW because I'm always hot, but . . our floors are never freezing. They're cool but not uncomfortably so. DH stays cold all the time due to some medication he's on, but he runs around in his socks and never mentions the floors being cold. We do have ceiling fans in most rooms (although not the bathrooms) and adjust them seasonally, so those push a lot of the hot air down in the winter, but I doubt they make all that much difference. I grew up in a home (just a few miles from where I live now) with oil heat and vents in the floor. The floor was toasty warm when the heat was actively running, but a few minutes after it shut off the temperature would even out as all that hot air rose upward.

[Carol in Cal.]

1 hour ago, Bootsie said:

Are the colder tiles on the floor an insulation issue or are they because of the way that homes are heated?  In Texas our heat blows warm air through the vents in the ceiling, providing a lot of warmth at the ceiling, and usually enough warmth for a Texas home.  Yes, the floors are much cooler than the ceilings (which is great in a Texas summer).  When I have been in places that have heated floors, floor heating vents, or radiators near floor level, the floors in those homes are much warmer.  

We are so lucky that we have not had power or heat problems in our home with this storm.  We did have problems in a rental home a few years ago.  We had dripped the faucets in the house, but there was freezing at the water meter which we had no control over, so we didn't have water for several days.  

 

They are an issue for a third reason as well--heat rises.

So if hot air is being formed at the floor or at the ceiling, it's trying to rise and leave that floor.  If you don't explicitly heat from underneath the tiles, they tend to be in cooler air than the rest of the room, with temperature gradients as you measure higher and higher. 

Also, they are not a highly insulating substance themselves, so when you touch them you don't warm them up quickly or get a sensation of immediate warmth from them like you would when touching a more insulating surface.  Think about how styrofoam feels warmer to the touch than glass even if they are in the same room at the same temperature for a demo  of that second effect. 

[Bootsie]

And today.. less than a week later, we are having gorgeous weather and everyone is outdoors in shorts and t-shirts.  I just went out in a long sleeve shirt to walk the dog and came back in sweating.  So, those of us lucky enough to own cold-weather clothing got less than week's worth of wear--and as far as flipping those ceiling fan switches, we are ready for them to be back for helping to cool.  

[Halftime Hope]

5 hours ago, Plateau Mama said:

Umm, I think we are saying the same thing.  In WA my house was built to withstand colder temperatures.  Our summer temps average in the 70's so we do not need to worry about the few days we hit 90.  And no, I did not have a custom home in WA, and yes, the spray foam was required.  The year we built our home they had just started requiring it for fire purposes.  Here in TX you do not build for long term sub zero temps, therefore the insulation requirements are not the same and that is why I can feel the cold seeping through my walls.  I don't expect TX to get below zero for days on and and I do not want to pay to have my house built like it will.  I will just suck it up for the few cold days we get.  I will be the first to admit that we got lucky, very lucky not having any damage.  On the other hand, part of that was I had knowledge of what to do in cold weather that most Texans do not.  I opened cabinets, dripped faucets, closed blinds and doors to rooms etc, long before the news started telling people to do it.  

For a relatively small portion of the TX population, there was also the problem of having zero power for days on end. It's pretty hard to surmount those conditions unless you have an off-grid power source. 

Nice chatting with you.  :-)