this post was submitted on 23 Mar 2026
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I thought this article was going to shit on the practice but was happily surprised that it does not. It's a good way to not only save on your bill, but it also reduces grid strain, in turn (theoretically) lowering maintenance costs for infrastructure.
Of course, it mainly only works if people are able to override (because then they wouldn't sign up at all) and it doesn't do much against huge data centers. Luckily in my area, there aren't any, but I'm sure I'm still paying part of their cost somewhere else.
A lot of people who live in WA just won't be affected. Plenty of the housing here still uses baseboard heaters and doesn't have AC.
I wouldn't be surprised at all if this affects the more wealthy who can afford newly constructed/newly renovated/upgraded homes because they are the ones who have HVAC systems with smart thermostats.
It definitely won't affect everyone.
They do make smart baseboard thermostats now, although I've not used them. One of the first upgrades to my house was replacing the 1950's oil furnace with a heat pump. It's probably already paid for itself, especially with how expensive diesel is these days.