dexxl Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 anyone with a 8ft tank have an estimate on cost increase from heating? my calcs are at 22.576c/kWh with a 300Watt heater running full time, it'd be roughly $50/mth sound about right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve6610 Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 did you allow for the fact that the heater will only work sometimes and not every hour, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan013 Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 This might sound stupid. But does a 300 watt heater really chew 300 watts of electricity? Thats like 5 and a half fx5's you could run.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuffy_rana Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 yeah that costing is a lil off. i used to run 30 plus 300w heaters with 4 big screens a clothes dryer and a large split cycle aircon and numerous games machines and a couple computer with 1000w power supplies and the power bill never exceeded $1200 a quarter. HTH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuffy_rana Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 This might sound stupid. But does a 300 watt heater really chew 300 watts of electricity? Thats like 5 and a half fx5's you could run.. no 300w is the power output not the comsumption Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syndicate Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 also off peak is alot less, you sure about that tuffy? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Syndicate Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 had to check 300watt = power consumption not output Products Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuffy_rana Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 also off peak is alot less, you sure about that tuffy? yes.....the wattage listed say 300w in this example is an absolute maximum usage type deal. i wish i could word it better but im not that large a nerd essentially if you put a 300w heater on 32 degrees and put it in a 10000 litre pond it could use 300w of energy.....make sense ? hope it does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clayton31 Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 dont know not to fussed ..i run my 8x2x2 with 2x 300w heaters .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan013 Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 So basically because a 300 watt heater will never heat 10,000L It will be on forever constantly trying to heat it thats where it will be using 300w.. But a 300 watt heater on 26 Degrees for example Would be a heat it would easily reach depending on the size of your tank, So it will not be on constantly and turn off once that temperatures reached. It will then be on standby mode still using electricty as its plugged in but not chewing as much as when its on which shouldn't be the full 300w anyway because the waters close to the max temperature set... Winner? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuffy_rana Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 So basically because a 300 watt heater will never heat 10,000L It will be on forever constantly trying to heat it thats where it will be using 300w..But a 300 watt heater on 26 Degrees for example Would be a heat it would easily reach depending on the size of your tank, So it will not be on constantly and turn off once that temperatures reached. It will then be on standby mode still using electricty as its plugged in but not chewing as much as when its on which shouldn't be the full 300w anyway because the waters close to the max temperature set... Winner? sir you are the hammer. got that nail good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liljohn_83 Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 mate it's sutch a variable question i would sugest counculateing it by 3 x mnth's say at 18 hours per day at whateva it's max consumption is so 300watt and your kw cost and bet on it costing a little les than the anser the reason behind my anser is simple the weather will controle atleast half of your question ,, if that makes anny sense at all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keegan013 Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 sir you are the hammer. Got that nail good i r smart. C: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dexxl Posted December 24, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 (edited) as subject, tank is a 8ft tank = 9000l of water. so a 300w heater will probably be running constantly to try and cope with the lack of residual heat, especially with surface movement causing evaporation (cooling). not talking about the summer months, it's the other 8 months of the year that I'm concerned with. if i drop a 300w heater into 200l of water, yes i agree it wouldn't be running full time or at full capacity. so if i was going to rephrase my original question, it would be: is a 300w heater going to have to run full time during the cooler months in 9000l of water. from the replies i'm reading, it's looking like a yes.. btw, off peak power is only off peak when the socket the heater is plugged into is hard wired into an ancillary meter in your meter box eg. same plug that your hot water and pool might be. if it's not, than you're still charged the full rate regardless of time. sooooo,... i take it my calcs are pretty close than... oh, and merry Xmas everyone! Edited December 24, 2011 by dexxl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
warwick Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 I don't know about your calcs mate. 9000 litres of water for an 8 foot tank? WTH, is it 8x2x20? LxHxD[front to back] in cms, divided by 1000, will give full capacity. An 8x2x2, completely full with no substrate, rocks or anything else, is 864 litres. You must have one hell of a tank LOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barmy Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 as subject, tank is a 8ft tank = 9000l of water. so a 300w heater will probably be running constantly to try and cope with the lack of residual heat, especially with surface movement causing evaporation (cooling). Water holds in heat surprisingly well, in fact the larger the body of water the better it will hold its temperature. If your tank has lids, then you won't actually be suffering too badly from evaporation. Obviously your lids aren't totally air tight, but when I take the lids off my 6x2x2 in winter (heated by a 300w heater) there's a rush of warm air and a lot of condensation on the underside of the glass. I've never actually monitored my heater to see how often it comes on during winter, but I know it definitely isn't on all the time. Once the temperature in the tank reaches the desired levels the heater only needs to keep the temperature from falling (as opposed to actually heating the water up) which is much easier and takes far less time and power. I'd wager that the heater might be on for 20 minutes every hour at most (but don't quote me on that: like I said, I don't actually monitor it). Either way you're definitely not looking at anything close to a 24/7, 300w expense. edit: Also yeah, as said above, an 8 foot tank is NOWHERE close to 9000 litres. Your calculations are wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dexxl Posted December 24, 2011 Author Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 lol oops, 1 too many zeros .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
efc Posted December 24, 2011 Report Share Posted December 24, 2011 if your worried about power consumption its time to give the hobby away and take up lawn bowls! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noyakfat Posted December 26, 2011 Report Share Posted December 26, 2011 Also depends on the location of your tank and the species you intend to keep. My 8x2x2 is inside my insulated house (on the Sunshine Coast where we have relatively mild weather). Prior to installing the insulation, the coldest my tank water got to in the middle of winter was 18 degrees. An 8x2x2 keeps a large enough volume of water to maintain a fairly stable temperature. Cheers, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gollys Posted December 26, 2011 Report Share Posted December 26, 2011 (edited) I would use 2 heaters in a tank that large anyway - one each end to help keep the one heater from switching on all the time, and also the heat will then distribute better around the tank - so one end of the tank wont be colder than the other in the winter. Just my opinion. I run 2 x Jagers in my 6 foot - one either end and they hardly come on at all even in winter. My temps are around 28 degrees and is consistent. As the other member said, once your tank temp is correct, the heaters only turn on for short bursts to keep the temp stable. I just found with two heaters it was better as the one heater did not have to work so hard and there are no cold spots in the tank. That is just my own personal observation, of course everyone has their own thoughts and nobody is ever totally right or wrong - everyones tank is different, but two work better for me than relying on just one in a larger tank. Edited December 26, 2011 by gollys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bidkev Posted December 26, 2011 Report Share Posted December 26, 2011 I would use 2 heaters in a tank that large anyway - one each end to help keep the one heater from switching on all the time, and also the heat will then distribute better around the tank - so one end of the tank wont be colder than the other in the winter. Just my opinion. I run 2 x Jagers in my 6 foot - one either end and they hardly come on at all even in winter. My temps are around 28 degrees and is consistent. As the other member said, once your tank temp is correct, the heaters only turn on for short bursts to keep the temp stable. I just found with two heaters it was better as the one heater did not have to work so hard and there are no cold spots in the tank. That is just my own personal observation, of course everyone has their own thoughts and nobody is ever totally right or wrong - everyones tank is different, but two work better for me than relying on just one in a larger tank. There's no guaranteee that one heater won't be doing all the work anyway. I've tried two heaters in the same tank on several occasions and only ever saw the same one come on. There was plenty of circulation in the tanks so having one end warmer than the other is really a non-issue. Unless you're extrememly lucky (even with a Jager) calibrating one to exactly the same as another heater is nigh on impossible. The only way to guarantee that two heaters will share a load equally is to have them attached to the same thermostat. In the "old days" it was never a problem because the majorits of heaters had external separate thermostats and you could wire two heaters to one thermo. Just based on my opinion, based on hrs of plssing arond with 300w jagers attempting to calibrate 'em the same. My 8x2x2 and 6x3x2 both run on one heater and as a previous poster alluded to, I observed that they only come on for about 10 minutes in every half hour in the middle of winter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gollys Posted December 26, 2011 Report Share Posted December 26, 2011 I have seen both come on in my own tank - I have a slower current in my tank though as it is heavily planted - so maybe that is why. As I said, it depends on your own set-up and what works for you. I do admit one comes on more than the other though - the one closest to the uptake to the filter (basket end) comes on more than the spray bar end at the opposite end of my tank, but that is to be expected I guess as the warmed water passes through the filter. I especially notice both come on on Water Change day though - as my temps drop in the tank then by 2 degrees, so both kick in, and I am happy coz it is getting warmed both ends quickly as I am adding cold water from my hose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tuffy_rana Posted December 26, 2011 Report Share Posted December 26, 2011 one jager 300 w will do 1000 litres on an insulated or inside a house ibc. just place a powerhead or filter pick up near the heater to evenly dispurse the heated water through the tank. this allways for a more constant temp for a start. like has been stated......JMHO Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simmo2302 Posted December 26, 2011 Report Share Posted December 26, 2011 I observed that they only come on for about 10 minutes in every half hour in the middle of winter based on that, 10 mins in every 30 min period = 8hrs of use over a 24hr period. 300watts consumption for 8hrs a day @ 23c per KwH (thats what i pay) = Cost Per Hour: $0.069000 Cost Per Day: $0.552000 Cost Per Week: $3.864 Cost Per Month: $15.46 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G_G Posted December 26, 2011 Report Share Posted December 26, 2011 We have a 8x2.5x2.5 and my last 2 bills have been $1300 each. My bills before setting the tank up were no more than $600 a quarter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
