For persons looking for an option to heat small spaces in their house, the question is often: How much electricity does a space heater use? Electric space heaters can be an efficient option if utilized within the limits of the unit and with appropriate attention to safety.
Crunching the Numbers
The monthly costs of operating a space heater are also an issue, depending on how many hours the unit will be utilized per day. How much electricity does a space heater use, then? Fortunately the answer can be calculated with a simple formula, plus one bit of information typically available from your electricity bill.
The heater’s wattage rating. This figure represents the amount of electricity expressed in watts that the heater uses per hour. It’s usually shown on a label or is available from the unit’s owner’s manual. A typical residential space heater is rated for 1,500 watts (or 1.5 kilowatts per hour), so we’ll use that figure for our example.
The local cost of electricity. Your monthly electric bill will show how much the utility charges per kilowatt of electricity. In this part of Oklahoma, residential electricity costs an average of about 9 cents per kilowatt per hour.
To answer “how much electricity does a space heater use?”, we’ll also need to decide on an average amount of time the heater runs per day. Six hours is a good average during cold weather, so we’ll plug that into the calculation.
So How Much Electricity Does a Space Heater Use?
1,500 watts (space heater rating) x 6 (average daily hours) = 9,000 watts or 9 kilowatts of electricity daily.
9 kilowatts x 9 cents per kilowatt = 81 cents per day.
On a monthly basis, the cost of running a typical household space heater six hours per day is, therefore, $24.30.
For more answers to heating questions like how much electricity does a space heater use?, contact the professionals at Air Assurance.
No matter whether you live in Broken Arrow, Tulsa or any other town or city across the state of Oklahoma, when you’re A/C system isn’t operating at top capacity, you certainly feel it. And when your equipment has passed the 10-year mark in age, it’s time to seriously look at replacing the system you have now with a high-efficiency air conditioning unit.When embarking on this adventure, you should be aware of the SEER (Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio) rating of the unit you will purchase. Cost-efficiency is important in these days of rising energy costs.What is SEER?The Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio is the rating of an air conditioning unit, measuring the cooling output against the amount of energy (watt-hours) used over the course of a season of cooling. But what you really need to know is this: it measures how effectively a unit will cool your home. Think of it as Miles Per Gallon on a car.The higher the rating, the more energy efficient it is, and the less you will pay in cooling costs. Remember:
Older air conditioners usually have a lower SEER rating of perhaps 5 or 6.
More efficient models have a rating of at least 14 and can extend to 21+. Geothermal units can go as high as 27!
Save Money with Efficient Energy UseResidential air conditioners are currently required to be manufactured with a minimum rating of 13. But when you decide to replace your A/C system, you should look at getting a SEER rating of 14 on your unit, which qualifies it as an Energy Star air conditioner. Energy Star labels tell you you're getting energy-efficient equipment. Typically, these units also qualify for additional utility company rebates which can often offset the cost of the upgrade.When you have a long cooling season and high electricity costs, it is quite justified to spend a little more upfront for a high-efficiency A/C unit because you'll save more over time.To review your options thoroughly, it’s best to get a professional HVAC contractor to go over them with you. At Air Assurance, we are happy to answer any questions and give you our expert advice.Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information, click here. Air Assurance services Tulsa, Broken Arrow and the surrounding areas. To get started, check out our website or see our current promotions.
