PORT ANGELES — The city is seeking volunteers for a Bonneville Power Administration pilot program to judge how effective wind power can be for heating water for homes.
Ten volunteers will be signed up to have special equipment installed that will allow the wind to warm the water heater as well as a ceramic heater, said Larry Dunbar, city power resources deputy director.
When the weather at the BPA wind farms is windy and extra energy is being produced — but unable to be stored — the energy will warm the water in the water heaters and the ceramic heaters.
The heat will be stored there until the times when the household needs it, Dunbar said.
The program aims to discover if storage of the heat in water and the ceramics can ensure that BPA’s wind farms can provide hot water on demand.
Several other public utilities in the state are signed up to participate, but Dunbar didn’t know specifically which ones.
The times a household needs hot water or heat are not always when the wind is blowing — and thus producing energy, Dunbar said.
The funds for the program are not being given directly to the city of Port Angeles.
The equipment will be purchased directly by Bonneville and shipped to Port Angeles, he said.
“The thermal storage systems, similar to space heaters, and water heaters will be purchased by Bonneville, who will eventually ship it to us,” said Dunbar, adding that he didn’t know the cost of the special equipment.
The city has had homeowners express interest but had not registered any volunteers as of Thursday, Dunbar said.
“We’ve had a strong interest this past day,” Dunbar said.
Volunteers must be vetted to see if their homes are conducive to the installation of the equipment, which can take up a large space.
The devices will signal electric water and room heaters to fire up when there is surplus wind power that would otherwise go to waste, the city said in a prepared statement.
Ultimately, it could lessen the burden on the electric grid during high-demand times while also saving people money, since the electricity would be used during lower-demand times, Dunbar said.
He said consumers shouldn’t notice a difference in how their water heaters or space heaters work.
“However, this is a pilot program, so there could be some kinks to work out,” he said.
“We just won’t know until we start the experiment.”
The equipment will be granted to the city at the end of the experiment, Dunbar said.
“At that point, we expect to grant them to the homeowners where they are installed,” he said.
According to the city, those interested in volunteering must:
• Be city electric utility customers.
• Have broadband Internet access.
• Have an open room area of from 800 to 1,000 square feet with a water heater that holds a minimum of 50 gallons.
• Not use a heat pump as the primary heating source.
Volunteers meeting these conditions will be selected on a first-come, first-served basis, the city has said.
To volunteer, contact the city’s demand response team at drpower@cityofpa.us or phone public works at 360-417-4800.
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Reporter Paige Dickerson can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at paige.dickerson@peninsuladailynews.com.
