Ask an Expert about Electricity & Natural Gas

 

Have you ever wondered why shoes hanging on a power line don’t get fried? Or why natural gas flames are blue? Now you can get answers to these and all your energy-related questions. Just Ask an Expert!

The Expert answers new questions regularly, so check back to see if YOUR
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Click on a question below to see the answer:

NEW! What percent of electricity provided by CPS is from solar and wind power?
—Emily

Answer: Glad you asked, Emily! CPS Energy, through power purchase agreements with operators from across the country, has 13 solar farms generating 497 megawatts of renewable solar power – the most in Texas. These solar farms are located in and around the San Antonio area, and regionally in communities like Uvalde and Brackettville. Solar energy makes up 7.4% of our generating capacity.

Additionally, we are among the largest municipal wind buyers in the nation. Through power purchase agreements, we currently have 1066 megawatts (MW) of wind-generated electricity in commercial operation. Wind energy makes up 14.5% of our generating capacity. Most of our wind power comes from a number of wind farms in West Texas and along the Texas coast. Together, these wind farms are capable of generating electricity for roughly 213,200 homes.

What temp should I keep my heater at during the winter to save on my bill and stay warm?
—Victoria

Answer: For best energy savings during cold weather, set your thermostat between 68 and 70 degrees when you’re at home, and much lower at night and when you are away. If you are chilly around the house, wear more layers. And for best energy savings, use a programmable thermostat.

Do you have a list of recommended solar power providers?
—Mike

Answer: Mike, thanks for your inquiry! To see the most recent listing of solar contractors who have registered with CPS Energy under the guidelines of our Solar Rebate program, click here.

I once saw a pair of shoes hanging from a power line. Why didn’t the shoes get burned up by the electricity in the line?
—Will

Answer: Shoes hanging on a power line don’t get burned for the same reason that birds standing on a power line don’t get shocked: they don’t give electricity a path to the ground, so electricity stays in the line and does not go through them. But if the shoes were to touch a power line and a power pole at the same time, they would provide a path to the ground and would get blasted with electric current. It wouldn’t be pretty!

By the way, if you ever see someone throwing shoes up onto a line, tell them to stop! The shoes can damage the power line, or someone trying to get the shoes down could be seriously shocked or even killed.

Why does the flame on my stove burners look blue, but the flame of a campfire is yellow?
—Evan

Answer: A natural gas flame burns hotter than a campfire. In general, cooler flames appear yellow, orange, or red, while hotter flames look blue or white. (Flecks of orange in your gas flames are OK, but if the flame is yellow, large, and flickering, the appliance may need a safety adjustment by a qualified repair person.)

Do electric eels really create electricity?
—Elena

Answer: Yes! An electric eel uses chemicals in its body to manufacture electricity. A large electric eel can produce a charge of up to 650 volts, which is more than five times the shocking power of a household outlet.

Who discovered natural gas?
—Sela

Answer: The ancient Chinese were the first to discover underground deposits of natural gas. In 600 BC, Confucius wrote of wells 100 feet deep yielding water and natural gas along the Tibetan border. The Chinese piped the gas to where it was needed through long, hollow bamboo stalks.

How much energy is in a bolt of lightning?
—Sophie

Answer: One lightning strike can carry up to 30 million volts—as much electricity as 2.5 million car batteries.

When a circuit is open, do electrons go backwards, or do they just stop?
—Alex

Answer: Neither! In the wires of an electrical circuit, the electrons are always jiggling around. When a circuit is closed to run an appliance or a light bulb, the electrons jiggle a lot and travel through the wire. When the circuit is open, all the electrons just jiggle where they are—kind of like running in place.

Why didn’t Ben Franklin get electrocuted when he tied a metal key to a kite string and flew the kite in a thunderstorm?
—Tyler

Answer: Ben Franklin probably did not do his famous kite experiment the way it is usually portrayed. (Franklin never wrote about it himself, and the only description we have of it was written by another scholar, Joseph Priestley, 15 years later.) Franklin believed lightning was a flow of electricity taking place in nature. He knew of electricity’s dangers, and would probably not have risked being struck by lightning by flying his kite during a storm. It is more likely that Franklin flew his kite before the storm occurred, and that his famous key gave off an electric spark by drawing small electrical charges from the air.