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CrossP t1_itngxtj wrote

Reply to comment by larsattacks94 in eli5: how long would power stay on if the power company abandoned their post? by larsattacks94

It probably depends a bit on the kind of plant. Like if it's coal, it has to keep being moved into the furnaces. Not necessarily daily, but they get deliveries and refill the setup from storage pretty regularly. Something without fuel like wind, hydro, or solar would probably go until some piece of maintenance isn't performed.

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tarkinlarson t1_itnjw37 wrote

I heard thag nuclear would autoshutdown, but something like hoover damn would carry on until the turbines physically broke, so could be decades before a cstestrophic failure.

There are a few documentaries on it like if humans suddenly disappeared.

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CrossP t1_itnlbuv wrote

The turbines in a hydroelectric dam station would probably go for a long time, but the connection to the actual grid may not be so robust. Wires. Transformers. Lubes. Coolants. Connectors. There's always something that can break or run out. The systems are usually made to make this work simple, but there still has to be someone who checks the readings, and replace stuff or some critical bit will stop the electricity from working correctly.

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685327594 t1_itnl2b7 wrote

That's wrong on multiple levels. First off the units WOULD trip offline and second if they didn't they would physically break as soon as the grid went down because there would be no load on the generators.

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immibis t1_ito4cvu wrote

Wouldn't there be a control system that would reduce the water flow to prevent the turbines going faster than normal?

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soniclettuce t1_itoanwk wrote

There's been previous reddit threads where nuclear operators have said that current plants are generally not "walk-away safe". They claimed you'd have about a week before they'd be in danger of meltdown.

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