1st Electric Bill

[rldcpa]

Well, I finally got my first full month electric bill and it was not pretty. I thought the increase would be $35-50 more per month, but it turned out to be $100 more. I am hoping that replacing my 2 300 watt heaters, that were running constantly and not keeping up, with 1 800 watt heater may bring down the bill next month. We will see.

My tank is not that large so I am wondering what some of you other large tank owners are paying per month.

It is winter here in Michigan so I am hoping that the non-winter months may result in a bit smaller electric bill as the heater should run less as I keep my house between 63-68 degrees in the winter and summers 68-74 degrees.

Who said this hobby was expensive...

 

[C Dog]

Ouch! I live in S FL and the biggest bill I have had was $220 during the summer.I only have a 50g rimless. Thats with running the A/C at 76 during the day and 73 at night.

 

[triggerfreak]

yeah thats about right for your size tank in michigan.When i got rid of my 210 and my 90 at the same time my bill dropped about 100 or so per month.

 

[jdpiii3]

I pay less then $40 a month to run my 400

 

[cubsare1]

yep, sounds about right. I'm in wisconsin and winter is about $100 more per month for electric

 

[rldcpa]

I think the heater is the main cause of the high cost. My Apex shows that I use about 1.6 amps when heater is off and 6.6 when the heater is on. The LED's are the next highest. Not much I can do about the heaters except wait for summer.

 

[Adam G]

I live in Mnnesota and have experienced the $240 dollar electric bills, $120 of which was my tank. On my latest build I decided to go as energy efficient as possible. Moved the sump out of the basement to under the tank, went to LEDs for lighting, Tunze returns and Red Dragon pump for the skimmer, and keep the house at 70 degrees in the winter instead of $68. My system is 200g and my overall electric bill has been around $100, $35 of which I figure is the tank.

 

[Giovanni]

I had two heaters on my system which is 400+ gallons total volume. My tank is in house and sump in garage about 20 feet away so my plumbing runs under the house. The two heaters were a 200 and a 300 and would barley keep up. I changed to a pair of 500 Ti heaters and with apex set one to come on before the other but both to go off at the same temp. The fist one only runs 6.5hr a day instead of the near 24 hours the other two did. Also the apex says the current pull is 2/3 what the two were.

So I guess buying a good heater can pay off quickly!

 

[oxx155]

LOL, welcome to the hobby, sorry for the sticker shock. I have a 1500 gallon system and probably ranges from $120-$150 per month. Better since switching to LED.