Electric appliances

[justoffal]

I recently signed with a third party supplier for 14 cents per KWH....the delivery fees almost shadow the KWH so it is effectively 38 cents per KWH.
My family enjoys their comfort in the hot weather so we have the Window AC's, I still haven't decided to let the Heat Pump guys drill holes in my walls
but I'm getting closer with each new electric bill.

In any case I KILL-A-WATTED (Amazon.com) the AC's to find that they
Averaged about 75 Bucks each per month to run them. These are the one ton units. Also have high velocity fans running.....I was quite surprised to see that they pulled about 30 Bucks each per month.
I'm not going tell you what horror show comes in the mail but let me tell you with Electric Stove, Dryer and numerous TV sets....it's a whopper.

Sooooo I'm probably going to go ahead to do the mini split thing as much as I don't like the way they look outside the house. I have heard lots of good things about them from those that have them despite the fact that some of the installations are just FUGLY......but money talks.

 

[excalibur]

Yeah, a good installation of one of the new really high efficiency models (pay a little more for that efficiency as electric costs are likely to keep rising - depending on a Blue or Red State).

Plus, variable speeds (make sure yours is variable speed - most if not all new models are), meaning they run more often but keep it more comfortable at a reduced cost and noise from those AC's you now have.

Do you need heat in the winter? They have models that can heat reliably down to -10º F, some claim even lower.

 

[progressive hunter]

I recently signed with a third party supplier for 14 cents per KWH....the delivery fees almost shadow the KWH so it is effectively 38 cents per KWH.
My family enjoys their comfort in the hot weather so we have the Window AC's, I still haven't decided to let the Heat Pump guys drill holes in my walls
but I'm getting closer with each new electric bill.

In any case I KILL-A-WATTED (Amazon.com) the AC's to find that they
Averaged about 75 Bucks each per month to run them. These are the one ton units. Also have high velocity fans running.....I was quite surprised to see that they pulled about 30 Bucks each per month.
I'm not going tell you what horror show comes in the mail but let me tell you with Electric Stove, Dryer and numerous TV sets....it's a whopper.

Sooooo I'm probably going to go ahead to do the mini split thing as much as I don't like the way they look outside the house. I have heard lots of good things about them from those that have them despite the fact that some of the installations are just FUGLY......but money talks.

how is this 3rd party supplier delivering your electricity??

do you have another set of wires coming from the street or what??

 

[sparky]

The smaller resi mini's use gas circulated via 'lectricity, usually 20A240V units, the bigger units can take 50A or more, because they've electric heating elements , and may take 2-3 units for the average home. In the great white north that demand load calc's to 3-400Amps on the average home. @ $.13KWH it's more than one's mortgage in February

~S~

 

[excalibur]

how is this 3rd party supplier delivering your electricity??

do you have another set of wires coming from the street or what??

Not how it works, same wires, the local utility still maintains them.

This is how it works in New York State.

How to Shop for Utility Services

What You Should Know Before Choosing an Electricity or Natural Gas Supplier

dps.ny.gov

 

[excalibur]

The smaller resi mini's use gas circulated via 'lectricity, usually 20A240V units, the bigger units can take 50A or more, because they've electric heating elements , and may take 2-3 units for the average home. In the great white north that demand load calc's to 3-400Amps on the average home. @ $.13KWH it's more than one's mortgage in February

~S~

Not completely correct.

The electric heating element for heat is only in case it gets too cold, and the system cannot provide enough heat for what the thermostat is calling for. Many new systems can provide heat without using the heating element down to -10º F and some lower than that, some now claiming -20º F though the efficiency does go down the colder it gets below -5º F.

These are heat pumps, after all, and can provide both cooling and heating.

So unless you live in a zone where it gets to -15º F and lower for any significant hours a season, these are economically the best choice for many.

 

[justoffal]

Yeah, a good installation of one of the new really high efficiency models (pay a little more for that efficiency as electric costs are likely to keep rising - depending on a Blue or Red State).

Plus, variable speeds (make sure yours is variable speed - most if not all new models are), meaning they run more often but keep it more comfortable at a reduced cost and noise from those AC's you now have.

Do you need heat in the winter? They have models that can heat reliably down to -10º F, some claim even lower.

Yeah I'm going with the dual.

 

[justoffal]

Not completely correct.

The electric heating element for heat is only in case it gets too cold, and the system cannot provide enough heat for what the thermostat is calling for. Many new systems can provide heat without using the heating element down to -10º F and some lower than that, some now claiming -20º F though the efficiency does go down the colder it gets below -5º F.

These are heat pumps, after all, and can provide both cooling and heating.

So unless you live in a zone where it gets to -15º F and lower for any significant hours a season, these are economically the best choice for many.

I don't want any with resistance coils in them.... I'll just use the main heating system in that case.

 

[justoffal]

how is this 3rd party supplier delivering your electricity??

do you have another set of wires coming from the street or what??

Yeah I know it's a farce..... Like somehow somebody could microscopically mark each electron to identify where it came from.

 

[progressive hunter]

Yeah I know it's a farce..... Like somehow somebody could microscopically mark each electron to identify where it came from.

the only thing I can come up with is its a completely different power plant feeding the system at a different rate than other plants,

if true it opens competition in the energy sector.

 

[justoffal]

the only thing I can come up with is its a completely different power plant feeding the system at a different rate than other plants,

if true it opens competition in the energy sector.

Each region has a hub.... It's not a single location but a central grid usually about 118,000 volts.
ISO New England Is the gatekeeper of this particular hub.

If I contract with an out of state supplier basically the only thing that happens is they bundle my estimated usage with hundreds of others and turn on another gas turbine or increase the load on an already running steam turbine that's connected to the hub.

It's probably very inefficient but right now that's how they do it.