math: stock tank heaters, tack room heaters and KwHs

[pintopiaffe]

Power is .086 cents per KwH.

Stock tank heater is 1500 watts.

How much per month?

Thinking of getting one of those oil-filled radiators for the tack room/grain shed for the kitties and to help keep stuff from freezing... It too is 1500 watts, but continuous... I suspect the stock tank heater self-regulates somewhat? I dunno. It's the red topped kind that floats... :uhoh:

I am so NOT all about math. I tried to do it and it came out something like $200/mo for one 1500 watt item used continuously. That CAN'T be right, can it? :eek:

[sk_pacer]

no, it certainly won't be 200.00 more a month...good grief, that is what I spend a month in winter because I have electric heat in the house and of course yard lights and the heat lamp for the cats. Also in that amount is at least one vehicle tethered to the house by its block heater. You are probably looking at another 30.00 per month. Hopefully someone good at figuring this stuff out will come along.......

[Lauruffian]

Math teacher here (granted, just 6th grade math), and while I do not specially deal with kwh (can you imagine teaching this to an 11yro? their eyes cross just talking about converting pints to quarts), I can Wiki like no other. :)

1 kilowatt hour = 1000 watts consumed in a 1-hour period

If the heater truly is using 1500 watts every hour, then you are consuming energy at a rate of 1.5kWh per hour.

Used continuously, this means 1.5kWh x 0.086 cents per hour = $0.129 cents per hour.

$0.129 cents per hour x 24 hours a day = $3.096 per day

$3.096 per day x 31 days in a calendar month = $95.976 per month

I showed my work in case in my over-tired state I gaffed. I nag my students like mad to show their work--if you make a mistake, you can trace the error. Hopefully I didn't just embarrass myself. ;)

[sk_pacer]

I knew someoe would come along and sort it out.......at least for the max it would cost......problem is one has to sit and babysit each appliance to figure things out properly. STock tank heater is thermostatically controled and so would the heater be. If the tack room is insulated it will shut off and not run all day and all night

[armandh]

also an electric water heater lights etc the barn meter is rarely over $45 per month.

[snkstacres]

Same here, I have several stock tank heaters running, lights, electric fencer, and a heater in both feed rooms.

Very seldomly is my power bill over $40. If I look, I dont think it ever has been.

[DairyQueen2049]

And the math is based on the heater running 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. In CA that may not be the case - in MI it IS the case!!!

[WaningMoon]

no, it certainly won't be 200.00 more a month...good grief, that is what I spend a month in winter because I have electric heat in the house and of course yard lights and the heat lamp for the cats. Also in that amount is at least one vehicle tethered to the house by its block heater. You are probably looking at another 30.00 per month. Hopefully someone good at figuring this stuff out will come along.......

Wow, wish I could have electricity that cheap. I have been seriously wondering if I could have a stock tank heater. Now I see i will just have to keep lugging water. Our light bill is a bit over $200 a month. Don't have electric hot water heater, no yard lights,no electric heat, not even a microwave. And that was the summer rate, haven't yet gotten a bill herre on their winter rate which is much higher. At least we are paying less herre than before we moved. I'd love to pay $45 a month. Don''t move to northern vermont.

[cherham]

Look around before you buy. I just purchased one of those oil filled heaters for our lounge and it has 3 settings, 500, 1000 and 1500 watts. It also has a thermostat and timer.

So I set it for the temp I want (usually about 65 C)...its cold up here in Canada these days and leave it alone. Works beautifully and cost $69.00 on special last week at Home Depot.

[Frank B]

...(usually about 65 C)... :eek:

The tack room should only need to be set a little above freezing, say 45 F or so. Much higher and you'll probably find things (like leather) drying out pretty quickly. It wouldn't be a bad idea to have a hygrometer (humidity meter) hung on the wall just to be sure.

Here's the average electric rates by state: http://www.neo.ne.gov/statshtml/115.htm

[FoxChaser]

I know you didn't ask for input on your potential choice in space heater, but I had an oil-filled radiator-type heater catch fire in my apartment a couple of years ago while I was sleeping. Maybe they're safer now, but this one had the tip over shut off switch and everything. Being awakened at 3 a.m. by fire shooting out of the thing in my bedroom and the smoke alarm going off made quite an impression! I wouldn't use one in my barn FWIW.

[sk_pacer]

Wow, wish I could have electricity that cheap. I have been seriously wondering if I could have a stock tank heater. Now I see i will just have to keep lugging water. Our light bill is a bit over $200 a month. Don't have electric hot water heater, no yard lights,no electric heat, not even a microwave. And that was the summer rate, haven't yet gotten a bill herre on their winter rate which is much higher. At least we are paying less herre than before we moved. I'd love to pay $45 a month. Don''t move to northern vermont.

I am on farm rate which is somewhat less than urban rates. My last bill for 6 months was just over 700.00, but it goes up in winter to around 200 a month. I did knock it down a huge amount by changing every incandescent lightbulb in the house over to the fluorescent mini bulbs and the only places I don't have those is the mudroom, and the barn and shop because they really don't like cold. I also keep the house down around 65° and the bedroom even cooler. The two power hogs here are the pressure system and the water heater - there is no natural gas here, would cost me 20K or better to bring it from town. BTW, Saskatchewan is a damned sight colder than Vermont could imagine in it's wildest dreams.

[shakeytails]

I just checked the electric rates by state- WOW, I'm glad I moved to KY from NY! I rarely have a bill over $100 including the house and everything is electric. Granted, the house is a tiny 1 BR attached to the barn, but it does have electric heat. Spring and fall (not using heat or AC), the bill runs about $50, and $8 of that is a security light.

[pintopiaffe]

Hm, the radiator does NOT have a themostat. Add another $30-50 to the price for one that does... (just googled. Paid $30 for mine, about $70 for timer/thermostat ones. Probably worth the extra)

Stock tank heater might self regulate... I'll grant that, but I honestly don't see how, it's a very simple item...

I use the radiators in the house too, when it's Arctic, to keep pipes from freezing. While ANY electric heater can fail, they are one of the safest. :sigh:

Thanks for showing me how to figure it out. It appears I was right--around $200 for just those two things. (obviously folks are saying the tank heater isn't 1500 watts continuously.. STILL... the math was right.) :cry:

[trubandloki]

I just checked the electric rates by state- WOW, I'm glad I moved to KY from NY!

I think the way things are going in NY that pretty much everyone wishes they could follow you.

[poltroon]

We have two of those radiators that we use in the house when we are having an exceptional cold snap, and they can easily add $200 to our monthly electric bill. Both have thermostats.

The one thing on the math is: .086 cents per kWH? or $.086 per kWH? I think it's actually the second, which makes Lauruffian's calculation correct.

Sadly, our rates are considerably higher.

[pintopiaffe]

Oh--definitely. I didn't catch that. It's $.086

:dead:

That is the rate for electric heat. It is higher if you don't use electric heat.

[ReSomething]

I did all the math and my post got eaten, but I wanted to add that taxes and surcharges can add up pretty quickly too. I calculated it out and adding the fuel surcharge that my coop adds on, plus the environmental surcharge of 3.2% and the school tax of 3% would raise those numbers (at $.086) by about $7 per month per appliance.