CobyRupert
Super Member
Anybody know what the typical (if there is such a thing) block heater draws?
Anybody know what the typical (if there is such a thing) block heater draws?
I guess it all depends on your electric rates. In the winter months I always well into third tier pricing which is $0.05/KWh. Using your example that would cost less than $18/month. I have mine on a 12 hour timer cycle, so cut that in half... less than $9/month or about $0.60/day. Now I further cut down on that by watching the forecast and only plugging when I will likely need the tractor and temp warrants the use of the block heater. Peanuts in the grand scheme of things.Pretty sure mine is 500W. Bigger the coolant capacity, the higher the wattage. Think the 4x20 series jumps to a 750W heater. I just wish mine was thermostat controlled like my livestock water heaters (on @35Foff@45F). Because having a 500W block heater plugged in 24/7 adds an extra 12kw/day to the electric bill. Over the period of a month, it bumps your electric bill by 360kw. So I bought a 24 hour timer switch, and set it to turn on my heater for 60 minutes every 8 hours. If you have a cab, keep the heater control full on. Conduction then helps circulate warm water a little bit every 8 hours. that way - after starting the engine - it doesn't take as long to get usable heat to the cab.
//greg//