$24.90 would be about 400 KWH here, and that could produce more than 1.2 million BTU.
Out of curiosity I checked the price for propane
17 pound bottle refills at Lowes, and it was $18, that is a lot more than $2.10 a gallon, isn't it.
But maybe in bulk it is cheaper.
The temperature here fell through -10 C during daylight here today, and that could mean life threatening temperatures without backup heat, regardless of what the fuel is, furnaces and anything else can fail even if there is plenty of fuel.
The high tech furnaces are a threat, even if they are supposed to be more efficient, fuel cost is not as important as avoiding unsafe temperatures.
For years the fuel of choice in a rural setting was propane. It was
70-90 cents/gal. Now it is 2.10/gal and btu for btu yielded you can heat with low-tech electric resistance heat for less money.
1 Million BTU Electricity = $24.90 (TN)
1 Million BTU Propane (80% Furnace)=$28.46
Paul, another poster stated the cost on NG is going up, and I assume, might even surpass electricso the HP is evenn more appealing. How does it cool in the rooms in the summer?
I don't think anyone can accurately predict the long-term cost of natural gas, but I tend to believe it will only go up... most likely, way up.
Canada now supplies 90 per cent of U.S. imports and most of that gas originates in Alberta. The bad news is that Alberta's fields are rapidly maturing and production will soon begin its inevitable decline.
But that's just part of the story. It takes 1,000 cubic feet of natural gas to process each barrel of oil made from Alberta's tar sands (add four barrels of fresh water to the mix while you're at it). By 2015, these oil sands are expected to produce two million barrels of oil per day. Now do the math.... multiple two million barrels by
1,000 cubic feet, then multiple by 365 days in a year. Anyone want to guess where a good chunk of that Canadian gas will soon be going?
I don't know about you, but I get that queasy feeling in the pit of my stomach. Oh, while we're at it, can anyone tell me where those eight million barrels of water (per day) will go once they finish processing all that oily, sticky tar? ... Someone? ... Anyone?
In regards to cooling, they work great. A heat pump with a SEER rating of 20 or 21 is likely to be two to two-and-a-half times more energy efficient than your current window units. I'm happy to say they cool just as well as they heat.
I pay Superior Propane $1.008 per litre. My bill includes a $6.00 "transportation fee" and an additional $3.95 "hazardous mat handling fee". My consumption during this billing period was 94.5 litres and my total bill, including tax, comes to $119.93.
There are approximately 24,200 BTUs per litre of propane (7.1 kWh). If I multiple 94.5 litres by 24,200 BTUs, the result is 2,286,900 BTUs.
That means one million BTUs cost me $52.44. That's the equivalent of buying electricity at $0.18 per kWh. Assuming an 80 per cent conversion efficiency, my actual cost per kWh(e) is just over $0.22.
The net result is that I pay more than twice as much for propane as I do electricty.
Paul, Thank you much for you useful comments. I will keep the group informed. Also, I've learned alot. Today I was talking some buddies about HPs. Apparently, they have improved quite a bit over the last few years.
Electric - BGE and Constellation Energy made very substanial profits even though the rates were frozen since 1999. BGE, when regulated produced reliable power and always paid dividends to its stock holders. It was a stock many conservative investors owned. Then Enron and others lobbied (bought) the local polictioans in Annapolis and after power producers were decoupled from the power transmitters and the rates were deregulated resulting in the maintenance of the grid going to pot and the rates are in a continuous upward spiral. The local power grids were not designed to import power from other areas thus they are overstressed and are facing premature failure. Of course there is no method to store electric so it is not a commodity that be stored 'til it's needed. In some areas transmissions costs are approaching electric rates in some deregulated markets. I don't know of anybody who has saved a nickel in rates when switching to deregulated electric power. Sorry I digress. It just really pisses me off. I'm a free market guy when it serves a purpose. BTW, A large energy intensive business just left Maryland and moved to state w/ regulated electric because it was no longer profitable using overpriced deregulated energy. Most states who had been moving to deregualtion no longer are because they're a seeing the profound impact it has.
I can appreciate your frustration. What I find funny is how major power consumers vigorously fought for deregulation, fully expecting electricity rates to go down. In most cases, that didn't happen (quite the opposite) and some of those same voices were screaming to have things put back as they once were.
We can bemoan high energy prices but at the end of the day we're no further ahead. What we need to do is look for intelligent ways to use less. For example, all of us might consider replacing the five incandescent bulbs we use most frequently with CFLs; at $2.00 to $3.00 each, there's really no reason why any of us should be using a bulb that consumes four times more energy than necessary.
When it comes time to replace that old refrigerator or dishwasher, select an Energy Star model. A twenty-five or thirty year old refrigerator could easily consume 2,000 or more kWhs per year; my current refrigerator uses less than one-quarter of that. How many old refrigerators sit in hot garages keeping one or two cases of beer cold?
If you put your mind to it, you'll find a dozen different ways to reduce your bill.
This Channel 4 presentation might help start the ball running. And who knows? You too might save a "packet of money".
Electric or electric controlled is fine for primary heat, but I keep two Gas Fired SPACE heaters just for when the electric is out. :-)
Actually, I have been lucky, power has not been off more than 8 hours at a time.
My baseboard heat isn't working as well as I hoped, even at 6 cents, it is expensive to heat just one room, small kitchen and bath. There really isn't much choice, it seems to be either heat pump or modern furnace, depending on electric rates and natural gas ups and downs.
My utility company offers free truck loads of mulch when they are trimming trees in the area, but I would need to build an incinerator type heating system for that.
The convenience of a modern heating system of any kind really spoils people, the thought of chopping wood seems like too much work, and it is too much for me to think about.
Gas SPACE heaters can be built to be just as efficient as the modern furnace, and I suppose I could put ductwork for flame air and a heat exchanger in the vent pipe, so I may need to do that next summer.
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.