Don't touch the thermostat!

thcri · Jan 20, 2004

Re: Don\'t touch the thermostat!

( Hi
Which cost more Gas or Electric? We have always lived in an all Electric home because of the danger of Gas. Last year our total for the year was approx 1400 dollars. How does that compare to someone using gas and electric in the home for a year?

Charlie.
)

Charlie, that is a pretty tough one. Every house is different due to size and our own personal lifestyles. If you give me a rough idea of size of your house and style I can give you some idea, but not an exact. Also utility rates change from area to area. Example here where I live we pay about.07 cents per KW. Out in the East you will see as high as 12 cents per kw.

murph

Bird · Jan 20, 2004

Re: Don\'t touch the thermostat!

( Which cost more Gas or Electric? )

I think that depends on whether you ask the gas company or the electric company, doesn't it? /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif All three site built houses we've lived in had gas heat, water heater, and cooking; electric cooling, clothes dryer, etc. We've lived in two total electric mobile homes and one with gas (LPG) cooking and heating. And we've lived in total electric apartments. I have a slight preference for total electric, but even after all these years, I don't know whether one would save money over the other or not.

herbenus · Jan 20, 2004

Re: Don\'t touch the thermostat!

Mine is set at 4 degrees also. The manual recommended bringing temperature up in 2 degree increments. That way coild stays off and you save electricity. Easier said then done but I do try to only jerk it up 1-4 degrees at a time. Not being digital, it takes a light finger.

Lazy · Jan 20, 2004

Re: Don\'t touch the thermostat!

Bird I'm with you I have compared our yearly cost to friends with same type and size homes and it was about 50/50 which was cheaper. 1500 sq ft. ranch style 3 bedroom 1 car garage.

Charlie.

Docsknotinn · Jan 20, 2004

Re: Don\'t touch the thermostat!

Every time I complain my slippers show up. I complain a lot /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif Dave

Junkman · Jan 20, 2004

Re: Don\'t touch the thermostat!

There are a lot of variables that haven't been considered. How long does it take once you turn the thermostat down to reach that lower temperature? This will give you an idea of how well your insulation is working. Also closing the drapes will help to conserve the heat. Your windows are a hole in the wall that allows heat to escape. I believe that it is best to remove all the places that heat escapes and that will help to conserve the heat in the home. Where a thermostat is located can also make a big difference in your heating costs. If it is on an outside wall, it will be calling for heat more often than if placed on an inside wall. Ceiling fans also help to circulate the heat for more comfort.
We have to turn the heat down in the bedroom, because of the 1 large radiator, 1 small radiator, and one dwarf radiator that are in the bedroom.... 1 60# Weimeraner, 1 Mini Dachshund, 1- 15 week old Mini Dachshund puppy... Between the three of them, they keep the bedroom quite warm. If the Weimeraner gets up on the bed in the middle of the night, you have to remove either her or the covers!!!

Junkman · Jan 20, 2004

Re: Don\'t touch the thermostat!

( Hi
Which cost more Gas or Electric? We have always lived in an all Electric home because of the danger of Gas. Last year our total for the year was approx 1400 dollars. How does that compare to someone using gas and electric in the home for a year?

Charlie. )

If you are afraid of gas, consider changing to oil heat. Personally, I think that all the fuels are safe and that the incident of an explosion is not very great. That doesn't help if it is you home that blows up, but properly maintained furnaces have safety valves on them to prevent these problems. You can also install gas detection devices near the appliance to detect and warn if there is a problem. They cost about the same as a smoke detector. I have also heard of electric homes burning as a result of a defective electrical device. Nothing is 100% safe, but there are risks to everything and you have to determine the risk factor that you are willing to live with.
We also supplement the oil heat with a pellet stove because my wife prefers the living room to be warmer than the rest of the home. This one pellet stove burning one 40# bag of pellets ($4.00) will keep our 3500 square foot home warm without any oil backup as long as the outside temperature is above 34 degrees and there is no wind.

thcri · Jan 20, 2004

Re: Don\'t touch the thermostat!

Charlie,

Around here with Electric you would pay about the $1400.00 like you said. With Natural Gas you should get by with less than $1,000.00 per year. Our gas rates are fairly cheap. My own personal house, 5000 square foot rambler with finished lower level, heating 3 car garage and I have ice melt on the front stoop I pay around $1400.00 per year for natural gas.
I would never think of going electric on my house unless I went with Geo-thermal and based on the experience I am seeing with that I would say not even then.
murph

Lazy · Jan 20, 2004

Re: Don\'t touch the thermostat!

Well I can work on and maintain my electric furnace and I don't have to worry about it blowing up or carbon monoxide poison or maintaining all the safety devices you speak of. Electric is much cleaner also. And even if I could heat for less than a 1000 dollars using gas I would still have to pay maybe 500 dollars for the electric so I wouldn’t be saving any money. I wouldn’t use an oil furnace if the oil were free; those things are nasty we had one when I was a kid. In the past 30 years I have had maybe 2 problems with the furnace and none with the radiant heat installed in the ceiling plaster we have in one of our houses all I have to do is change a filter in the furnace.

thcri · Jan 20, 2004

Re: Don\'t touch the thermostat!

Charlie,

There is no doubt electricity is safer and maintenance is cheaper. But being in the business I am not afraid of the natural gas at all. Very seldom do I hear of problems with gas anymore. My comment as far as electrical was the expense in our area to use it. Electricity became big around her in the mid 70's because of oil and gas prices going up. For the most part they all have been taken out due to operating expense. My house would be well over $2500.00 to operate on electric.

But don't feel like I was knocking you for electric. There is areas where it is actually cheaper than gas or oil.

murph