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I've been adding some steam engines around my large base running off coal. Everything about it doesn't use power, but creates it with burner miners, burner inserters, and the offshore water pump(which for some reason doesn't require electricity).

Anyone triggered by the wrong boiler:steam engine ratio?

steinio wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 04, 2019 7:19 pm

Anyone triggered by the wrong boiler:steam engine ratio?

The smoke obscured it enough that I didn't first notice, but now?

When I transition to solar in the mid game I put my initial steam plant on backup. That works well during that period. The problem is that as you ramp up solar and nuclear you need gigantic steam setups or the power they can add is completely insignificant. It's easier to just build more nuclear.

steinio wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 04, 2019 7:19 pm

Anyone triggered by the wrong boiler:steam engine ratio?

Ratio is ok for backup. He just need add storage tanks. So hot steam is ready when night comes.

gGeorg wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 05, 2019 10:16 pm

steinio wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 04, 2019 7:19 pm

Anyone triggered by the wrong boiler:steam engine ratio?

Ratio is ok for backup. He just need add storage tanks. So hot steam is ready when night comes.

To be honest this is supplement for the power my nuclear can't handle. I've had a couple of times where I've dipped into my 1 TJ of accumulator storage and I'm trying to makes sure that only happens if the biters isolate some part of the map from the rest. Researching artillery range now, 8.1 million science packs. So pretty much every assembler is running.

herkalurk wrote: ↑

Tue Aug 06, 2019 4:19 am

gGeorg wrote: ↑

Mon Aug 05, 2019 10:16 pm

steinio wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 04, 2019 7:19 pm

Anyone triggered by the wrong boiler:steam engine ratio?

Ratio is ok for backup. He just need add storage tanks. So hot steam is ready when night comes.

To be honest this is supplement for the power my nuclear can't handle. I've had a couple of times where I've dipped into my 1 TJ of accumulator storage and I'm trying to makes sure that only happens if the biters isolate some part of the map from the rest. Researching artillery range now, 8.1 million science packs. So pretty much every assembler is running.

Sure.
Thing is, one boiler can continuously feed two steam engines.
However, in case coal grid operates as backup for peaks, is ok to use ratio 1:6. But you need to add steam storage to cover peaks.
I hope you use a combinator control for backup power.

Why have steam engines as emergency power when you can just have another nuclear power plant that comes online when cap is low?

You'll know you need to add more when the last plant starts coming on line too often.

Rakshasa wrote: ↑

Thu Aug 29, 2019 6:50 am

Why have steam engines as emergency power when you can just have another nuclear power plant that comes online when cap is low?

You'll know you need to add more when the last plant starts coming on line too often.

In case your sulfuric acid runs out, your uranium mine is depleted, your nukes eat all your u-235, because what else will you do with the steam engines you already have?

mrvn wrote: ↑

Thu Aug 29, 2019 11:55 am

... what else will you do with the steam engines you already have?

And I had thought that's what the nukes are good for.

mrvn wrote: ↑

Thu Aug 29, 2019 11:55 am

In case your sulfuric acid runs out, your uranium mine is depleted, your nukes eat all your u-235, because what else will you do with the steam engines you already have?

Who doesn't have a strategic nuclear fuel reserve?

Rakshasa wrote: ↑

Fri Aug 30, 2019 10:47 am

mrvn wrote: ↑

Thu Aug 29, 2019 11:55 am

In case your sulfuric acid runs out, your uranium mine is depleted, your nukes eat all your u-235, because what else will you do with the steam engines you already have?

Who doesn't have a strategic nuclear fuel reserve?

Everyone, at least once. Seriously, though, a backup power source built on some other generation technology is very useful for when something goes wrong. Biters are a great source of that particular issue, taking out that one apparently critical single point of failure, while your attention is distracted.

Priority-based disconnection of assembly modules until I don't have a power shortage. :p

Rakshasa wrote: ↑

Thu Aug 29, 2019 6:50 am

Why have steam engines as emergency power when you can just have another nuclear power plant that comes online when cap is low?

Because the steam plant has already been built.
The most efficient way to transition from one power source to another is to build the new power plant while keeping the old as a backup.
Building a new steam power plant for backup purposes indeed makes no sense.

I normally handle power shortages by building more power production. My defense does not rely on beeing powered all the time and i prioritize fixing power if inserters start slowing down (that is how i detect power issues).

I simply keep a stockpile of spare fuel, and if it comes time to use that spare fuel, you better have a plan to get out of debt...

Oktokolo wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 31, 2019 6:31 pm

I normally handle power shortages by building more power production. My defense does not rely on beeing powered all the time and i prioritize fixing power if inserters start slowing down (that is how i detect power issues).

Sounds not optimal, I have various nuclear power plants that come online as the cap reaches various levels and once they're online they stay online until the cap reaches almost full.

This means that I detect power production issues if the last couple of power plants go online, and it creates a cycle where the caps get recharged completely.

Rakshasa wrote: ↑

Mon Sep 02, 2019 3:51 pm

Oktokolo wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 31, 2019 6:31 pm

I normally handle power shortages by building more power production. My defense does not rely on beeing powered all the time and i prioritize fixing power if inserters start slowing down (that is how i detect power issues).

Sounds not optimal, I have various nuclear power plants that come online as the cap reaches various levels and once they're online they stay online until the cap reaches almost full.

I once rushed solar and had the whole factory just go offline at night until i got enough accumulators. It worked fine and reduced the pollution cloud a lot. The only non-optimal thing was the annoying blinking of the not-enough-power icon.