While the Bitcoin network resets the difficulty associated with finding new blocks roughly every two weeks via the difficulty adjustment algorithm, sharp declines or increases in the network hashrate over shorter periods of time can cause the network to stray from its ten-minute target. “I would like to see all [bitcoin mining] become controllable load resources,” ERCOT COO Woody Rickerson told the Texas Senate in 2024. A 2023 report from energy data research group Wood Mackenzie found that bitcoin mining operations in Texas had increased electricity bills by 4.7% for non-mining customers. Notably, some hobbyists are also keeping themselves warm this winter by integrating bitcoin mining equipment into their home heating systems. There are now also commercial ventures related to this phenomenon, as startups are using bitcoin mining to offset costs associated with everything from water heaters to heating systems for greenhouses or entire homes.