If it's cold where you live, what are you heating with and what is it costing?

[5030]

I know we had a lot of incidents of meth makers stealing anhydrous ammonia about 10-15 years ago. Don't know what they put it into, but they'd end up leaving the leaking tanks on wheels out in the fields. Caused a lot of damage from what I recall. Haven't heard much about it lately.

Probably on the wane because of the amount of drugs coming in at the southern border today. Used to be a Meth house down the road until it burned down.

 

[5030]

Others have mentioned it, but no smoke and mirrors.

Dont confuse efficiencies of various heating methods with cost.

Wood, propane, and fuel oils are never 100% because they exhaust. That exhaust is wasted heat.

Electric resistance is no waste. Dont matter if its ceramic, quartz, infared, your oven, a blow dryer, or a light bulb. With electricity, one watt produces 3.414 btu's of heat.

With refrigerant and a compressor, we can generate 9 or 10 btu's of heat for watt of input. So hence 300% eff. Its a simple way of saying its can produce 3x the heat on the same electric usage (or the same heat on 1/3 the usage).

The issue with that is, your electricity rates keep going up so the higher they go, the more it costs to glean those BTU's. Both of my biomass stoves are 85% efficient. I'm good with that and our new Bryant condensing furnace is rated at 95% efficient.

 

[5030]

Technically, I'm a farmer.

I was always under the impression that you were a thread pruner and thread remover...

 

[ddbackhoe]

When I am mowing pasture it is worth a lot, when am shoveling manure 2x a day it is worth very little.

I get stares from the horses and a cold shoulder to cry on from doing ours. Isnt that enough motivation?

 

[MossRoad]

I was always under the impression that you were a thread pruner and thread remover...

 

[LD1]

The issue with that is, your electricity rates keep going up so the higher they go, the more it costs to glean those BTU's. Both of my biomass stoves are 85% efficient. I'm good with that and our new Bryant condensing furnace is rated at 95% efficient.

The cost of everything goes up so its a moot point. 10 years ago my electric rates were ~$0.10/kwh. 20 years ago they were about $0.08/kwh.
20 years ago firewood was $100/cord. 10 years ago it was ~$160-180/cord. Now its $200-$250/cord.

I dont track the prices of pellets or biomass. But given the cost to produce, and fuel to transport, I'd assume long term there will be a similar rate of increase

 

[LD1]

Processed wood pellets and dried corn is much less expensive per realized BTU than propane or NG and especially less expensive than electric heating,

Your first post you make this claim.

Maybe you are right? But as deep into this thread as we are I aint gonna go dig back through....did you ever give numbers?

How much does a bag/ton/etc of your fuel cost you? And how many btu's is it giving you? That is the only true number.

Prices are different everywhere....but it seems the larges price variations are electric.
IE: propane, HHO, pellets, etc all seem to be about the same or similar cost through out the country. But electric....ive seen people say they pay less than $0.10 and others pay over $0.30

With my geo and $0.14/kwh I cannot justify paying MORE for a different heating source

 

[4570Man]

Your first post you make this claim.

Maybe you are right? But as deep into this thread as we are I aint gonna go dig back through....did you ever give numbers?

How much does a bag/ton/etc of your fuel cost you? And how many btu's is it giving you? That is the only true number.

Prices are different everywhere....but it seems the larges price variations are electric.
IE: propane, HHO, pellets, etc all seem to be about the same or similar cost through out the country. But electric....ive seen people say they pay less than $0.10 and others pay over $0.30

With my geo and $0.14/kwh I cannot justify paying MORE for a different heating source

I’d like to see a btu cost breakdown with that as well. In my experience if natural gas is available you should burn it because it’s typically the cheapest bought fuel.

 

[ddbackhoe]

With the current admin not wanting us using any fossil fuels..
How much are we really willing to pay to swapout all of the fossil fired furnaces? Especially with a shortage of goods and workers?

We may be happy to pay x amount before the dust settles on this.

 

[LD1]

I’d like to see a btu cost breakdown with that as well. In my experience if natural gas is available you should burn it because it’s typically the cheapest bought fuel.

I agree with the natural gas.

Dont know current pricing....so dont know if its still holds true.....but in my area NG has always been the cheapest energy. And that anyone with it available, usually had NG heat, as well as stove, water heater, and dryer.

Where as propane.....is real close to electric in terms of cost per BTU if you average it out over a decade or so. Some years is cheaper, some years its more. Like just a few years ago when propane was ~$1/gal......and now its like $4. But thats where a electric heatpump/furnace with propane backup is the best "labor free" heat if you dont have nat gas. Then on the years when propane is dirt cheap like a few years ago....just switch the t-stat to emergency heat and dont let the electric run. On years when propane is high....let the electric do all it can.

But regardless of wood, pellets, natural gas, or anything else.....its VERY hard to beat the efficency (cost per BTU) of a heat pump. And that dont matter if its geo or air source.

And whats mind blowing to me, is I know people who build a house, and either set it up for propane or wood heat....but still install an air conditioner. IF you are already installing an air conditioner....I dont understand the logic to NOT go ahead and make it a heat pump. The cost difference is very minimal. And at temps above 40°, I dont think there is any cheaper way to heat (as long as your in an area that has reasonable electricity rates)