They need to cut power to this condo complex for six hours, starting at 8am. 'Why can't they bring a generator?' Maiyuu grumbled last night.
Our household will be without power all day. That means, no electricity for cooking, watching TV, listening to music, and perhaps most importantly for a tropical climate such as this one, no power for running a fan, either.
I saw signs left on the doors of both buildings as I went to work last night, advising tenants that their power would be cut.
For all I know, all other buildings in the complex are affected, too.
What to do? 'The condo pool might have to be my close friend today,' I told Maiyuu. I might not be able to leave its side much if the weather really does get hot.
Alternatively, we could go to a department store, which has air conditioning - the way oldies like to do.
'What can we do there? We can't walk around a department store all day,' said Maiyuu.
Cutting a basic amenity such as power for a full 12 hours sounds primitive and barbaric.
11 comments:
ReplyDeleteLino12 June 2009 at 19:24
One reason for not using a generator is that you have to accommodate the "T" -transient inrush factor.
Incandescent lamps draw 10 times their rated current for a fraction of a second when they are first turned-on, AC and refrigeration compressors do similar for a slightly longer duration.
Unless you can organize tenants to an orderly floor by floor turn-on, you'll likely trip and possibly damage the sorts of generators they have available.
Bangkok's utility situation is bizarre..I have never seen such laden and messy delivery systems.
Have you seen the almost comical utility poles in Siam Sq? Some are so loaded with telcom and utility cables that they partially obscure the store sighs.
There does not seem to be a proper grid structure over there so that power can be fed by more than one route. I may be wrong about this but that is what I have seen.
Near "my' place over there, whenever we see pole workers we cross our fingers that nothing will get knocked out and no one fried.
I am told that cost and water table are prime reasons for not building an underground infrastructure but, really it stands as example of putting up a front of modernity without doing the necessary prep work and planning.
When you tire of shopping there is always a movie theater.
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neil12 June 2009 at 20:59
No TV, No Martha, No Cooking, No Internet, poor little Maiyuu will feel like Helen Keller.
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Asia in Australia12 June 2009 at 22:10
BKKdreamer, I suffered the same problem in the library yesterday. It gets so hot!!! And really nothing works. The laptop has no power, the internet doesnt work, there's no light.
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Wilko13 June 2009 at 00:21
Do you get compensation for the loss of utilities.
We were without a telephone line for three days and got nothing!!
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BODYholic13 June 2009 at 00:39
That will give me a good and valid reason to visit s*a*u*n*a. :)
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Bkkdreamer13 June 2009 at 00:46
Lino:
'Have you seen the almost comical utility poles in Siam Sq?'
That strange phenomenon is not confined to Siam Sq, but can be found elsewhere in town too.
BB: It did get hot, but thankfully the men from the power company worked fast, and power was restored soon after lunch.
BODYholic: A visit to the sauna? That would make me even hotter.
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Jun13 June 2009 at 03:07
Whenever in Bangkok I spend every afternoon inside Mahboonkrong to avoid the heat outside. The movie theathers are especially cool (or better freezing cold!)
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Anonymous13 June 2009 at 04:53
ReplyDeleteMan survived for thousands of years without aircon.
More importantly, why confine yourself to the airconditioned flat all day?
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Bkkdreamer13 June 2009 at 07:24
I didn't mention air con. I run that only at night, and fans during the day.
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Anonymous13 June 2009 at 09:59
C'mon, 6 hours without electricity? It's not like a national emergency. Your apartment will take a few hours to cool down- then by 10am or so you can go out to a late brunch, see a movie, and by the time you get back I'm sure things will be working again. On the other hand, you could even plan a trip to a park, temple, or garden a little further away and make a day trip of it. Or go to the beach. This is Thailand, you know.
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Bkkdreamer13 June 2009 at 18:13
Another humourless reader. I am cursed with them.
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