Are Power Outages Becoming More Common?

With an aging power grid and climate change causing erratic weather conditions, should you be concerned about a growing frequency of power outages?

Aging Power Grid Conditions

With high temperatures across the country and an aging power grid many states are struggling to maintain power for homeowners. Part of the issue here is that the grids are in desperate need of upgrades, but the other part is that demand for power has been increasing in the average household across the country. More technology and electrical devices and appliances means more power is required. The relatively new introduction of electric cars on a mass scale is also a considerable strain on the grid.

The concerns surrounding climate change, both in the form of temperature changes and less predictable weather, are also likely to be a continuing factor. Major grid disasters across the country are still in recent memory for many and seem to be particularly hard hitting in more southern states. A snow storm in Texas brought the grid to a near full halt, while large demand and rising temperatures nearly caused rolling blackouts in California.

Worsening Storms and Weather

People who live in certain parts of New York, like the North Country or the Southern Tier, are pretty familiar with seasonal storms and power outages, particularly in the late fall and winter. High winds, rain, snow accumulation and more can cause both brief and prolonged power outages. The condition of our grid and power lines across the entirety of Upstate New York requires pretty constant upkeep and attention, a demand that’s difficult to keep up with even when things aren’t going sideways.

Anything that has the potential to damage the grid or bring down a line has the potential to cause homeowners power outages. Depending on your location, a downed power line getting fixed could be as short as a few hours or as long as several days. Recent storms in the North Country and Capital Region have left some of our customers without power for 3-5 consecutive days.

Labor Shortages

It’s no secret among those in the power industry that keeping employment numbers strong has been difficult. Large providers like National Grid and others have been struggling to retain their labor force and keep up with demand. Manufacturers of goods used in home improvement projects have had to constantly push delivery windows. Even many propane companies are struggling to meet the demand for tanks and installments. All of these factors add to a delay in response time and maintenance costs.

As home contractors who specialize in home generator projects, we’re very familiar with managing power outages, electric and gas work, as well as working with utilities. We’ve got all the relevant experience with sorts of projects and we’re able to put that experience to use all across New York State. Most of our expert technicians have been in the field for over 10 years and all of them have observed a consistent increase in demand across the region.

 
If you’re a resident of Upstate New York and are looking for more information about home generators feel free to contact us directly here on our website. We can also be easily reached at our email info@hurricanehomesolutions.com or you can call us directly at our office in Rochester: (585) 244-0099