Midniteoyl
Elite Member
- Joined
- May 20, 2013
- Messages
- 4,886
- Location
- N. W. Indiana
- Tractor
- Kioti CK3510SE HST, Ford 3400, Gizmow ZTR, Simplicity 7016H
Mines a little higher than $600, but not much. Less than a tank of propane and $250 worth of wood (I get it >$100 a cord) plus electric for the fan/blower..My heating bill is $600 for the entire winter... This is in SE Michigan and I buy 4 cord of wood a year from a hardwood mill in the area... If I had a $3000+ heating bill every single year, I would be living in a custom built home with every passive solar trick and several solar collectors....
This solar collector Hurras Solar Water Heater Collector 30 Tube delivers 24-40k BTU per day for a cost of $745. So spending $3000 on solar collectors should get you 96-160k btu/day from the sun, provided you can position the collectors in a spot with proper solar exposure.
Of course that means you need a water based heating system, which unfortunately the majority of homes in the US do not. One would need a suitably sized insulated hot water storage tank which one would draw from all night as well as the circulating pumps, thermostats etc.
Its just that I would never be able to retire when facing these kinds of expenses (only going to rise in the future) in addition to property taxes, income taxes and all the other unavoidable things in our lives...
As for the 'rental fees', around here, its done as $1 a month, or 10 cent more per gallon, 250 gallon minimum fill.. I just pay my Co-Op the extra 10 cents and have to struggle to use 250 gallons. Even so, its the same price as the fellas who charge the $1 a month..