# If you use electricity to heat your DHW, what does it cost you/month?



## muncybob (Jun 14, 2012)

I guess I never realized how much it costs us for domestic hot water. Now that I have the boiler shut down my electric bill is up about $28/month. We don't run a.c. and in the last 30 days there have only been a few days when we ran any fans, so the increase is solely due to the electric water heater. Of course there are a lot of variables such as number showers/baths per day...size of household, actual local market cost for power, etc. 

When I created a spreadsheet to determine the time period for break even point on the cost of converting to burning wood I missed this cost savings. So it runs us about $154(5.5 months) for hot water when the boiler is off. I wish we had solar.


----------



## mmudd (Jun 14, 2012)

I switched to solar/wood for my hot water a while bank and my bill went down  around $25 to $30/month


----------



## firebroad (Jun 14, 2012)

I heat my water with the oil boiler, so I feel your pain.  I pay probably an average of $30 per month, and most of that is from standby.  However, before you blame your water heater, check to make sure your electric supplier hasn't raised the price per Kwh.  They will do that in the warmer months sometimes.


----------



## woodsmaster (Jun 14, 2012)

It cost me around $75.00 / month. Family of five, three girls that take long full baths. It saves me almost $10.00
on electric for hot water each time I fire the boiler and charge storage.


----------



## Fred61 (Jun 14, 2012)

About a gallon of oil per day with my Peerless boiler and 40 gallon Superstore tank. Plus I can hear it run from upstairs!! .  I keep picturing in my mind "dollar bills" sprouting wings and flying up the chimney every time I hear that thing running.


----------



## Hansson (Jun 15, 2012)

http://www.e-logger.se/pub?hansson&p=6
The yellow in the diagram are the electricty. My electric water heater is after my storage. So when I heating with wood the water that runs to the electric water heater is hot.
No electric is used.When the storage is cold the water is heated in the electric water heater to 65 degress.


----------



## maple1 (Jun 15, 2012)

Fred61 said:


> About a gallon of oil per day with my Peerless boiler and 40 gallon Superstore tank. Plus I can hear it run from upstairs!! . I keep picturing in my mind "dollar bills" sprouting wings and flying up the chimney every time I hear that thing running.


 
That sounds exactly the same as me with my coil-in-boiler setup. Dollars going up the chimney just to keep the boiler at temp even if no hot water is being used.


----------



## Jack Straw (Jun 15, 2012)

I am a National Grid customer here in upstate NY. Our rate has really dropped lately, <.10 per kwh. It's just the 2 of us, our stove, water heater and dryer are all electric and our total monthly bill has been averaging $85, not bad compared to other bills we have. 

I am an Energy Specialist for 2 school districts, 1 has National Grid as their supplier and is paying .037 per kwh and the other locked into a long term agreement and is paying .087 per kwh. These are very small districts and the second 1 is paying on average $1600 a month more because they locked into the long term rate. These are just the supply charges not the delivery. National Grid also dropped their Peak Demand charge from $16 to $11, which is huge!


----------



## rkusek (Jun 15, 2012)

Even with the cheap rates here I bet that dhw still makes up at least $30-40 of bill especially with the higher summer rates.  Good opportunity for a solar setup, just need to find one that will work for me.


----------



## BoilerMan (Jun 16, 2012)

I usually quote people here in Maine (.16 per KWh delivered) at 80 cents per day per person showering.  Which usually holds pretty true with our high electric rate.  Most water heaters are in a cold basement in the summer, BAD, and no one ever turns them off when they leave for vacation.  However it is cheaper to use electric in the summer vs. an indirect with an oil boiler which I'd guess is around 40% efficient in the summer which is better than a domestic coil in the same oil boiler which I'd say is in the 20% range. 

A bit off topic, but,
If I had an oil boiler with a domestic coil......   I'd use a 50gal electric water heater with the water circulated through the coil via bronze pump in the winter with the electric elements turned off, and in the summer close ball valves to the boiler and use the electric elements to heat the water.   Best of both worlds oil in the winter and electric in the summer with the least investment in equiptment.


----------



## jebatty (Jun 17, 2012)

Average dhw electric is about $4.50/month (separate meter) for wife and I plus frequent family guests. Total electric is about $65.00/month. Except  for wood stove heat, house is all electric: stove top, oven, clothes dryer, etc. Our two sequenced electric hot water heaters are super insulated with 6"+ of fiberglass, including top and bottom. All dhw pipes also are insulated.


----------



## muncybob (Jun 18, 2012)

I guess I have nothing to complain about based on some prices stated. Our electric heater is barely 3 years old, we installed it just before taking out the old oil boiler w/coil to have hot water while the wood boiler was being installed. At that time I realized just how expensive it was to use the oil boiler for DHW...glad to not hear that monster run in the summer! We are also all electric with all hot water lines insulated and I thought about insulating the water heater but all surfaces are cool to the touch so I'm not sure I would gain anything?


----------



## ozzie88 (Jun 18, 2012)

Hello, here in maine something might interest you guys? Only 2 of us only thing ele. is dryer, Been running gasser for DHW. Anyways my ele. bill was $115-$135 a month.  When barefoot in basement I get small shock when touch copper drain or water pipe? Made lots calls had ele. company check out there end was no ground on transformer on pole and transformer was damage by lighting they said. Put new one on and grounded it my bill now is $75-$85  alot difference.  Had to replace all copper drain pipes also. filled with corrosion, this from electric also,[plumber said]  Said I was getting some kind of back feed to house from out by street?  If your bill seems high may want to do some checking?


Taylor Sutherland said:


> I usually quote people here in Maine (.16 per KWh delivered) at 80 cents per day per person showering. Which usually holds pretty true with our high electric rate. Most water heaters are in a cold basement in the summer, BAD, and no one ever turns them off when they leave for vacation. However it is cheaper to use electric in the summer vs. an indirect with an oil boiler which I'd guess is around 40% efficient in the summer which is better than a domestic coil in the same oil boiler which I'd say is in the 20% range.
> 
> A bit off topic, but,
> If I had an oil boiler with a domestic coil...... I'd use a 50gal electric water heater with the water circulated through the coil via bronze pump in the winter with the electric elements turned off, and in the summer close ball valves to the boiler and use the electric elements to heat the water. Best of both worlds oil in the winter and electric in the summer with the least investment in equiptment.


----------



## lampmfg (Jun 18, 2012)

Our electric bill is actually cheaper in the winter when he use the H2O coil on our Kuuma Vapor-Fire 100 for heating domestic water then in the summer when we aren't burning wood.


----------



## muncybob (Jun 18, 2012)

lampmfg said:


> Our electric bill is actually cheaper in the winter when he use the H2O coil on our Kuuma Vapor-Fire 100 for heating domestic water then in the summer when we aren't burning wood.


 
Yep. Same with us. Good thing too as I tend to take hotter & longer showers in the winter!


----------



## BoilerMan (Jun 18, 2012)

ozzie88 said:


> Hello, here in maine something might interest you guys? Only 2 of us only thing ele. is dryer, Been running gasser for DHW. Anyways my ele. bill was $115-$135 a month. When barefoot in basement I get small shock when touch copper drain or water pipe? Made lots calls had ele. company check out there end was no ground on transformer on pole and transformer was damage by lighting they said. Put new one on and grounded it my bill now is $75-$85 alot difference. Had to replace all copper drain pipes also. filled with corrosion, this from electric also,[plumber said] Said I was getting some kind of back feed to house from out by street? If your bill seems high may want to do some checking?


 
My electric bill has never been above $40, and is usually in the $25-30 range.  It is just my wife and I in our 3,200 square foot house.  We dry our clothes, and cook with gas.  2-100# cylinders last us over a year.  We have one of the highest electric rates in the country here, mostly due to the fact that our population dencity is very low and spread out over a large area. 

Never heared of what your describing about drain pipes, there are 4 grounding electrodes that should be in place on all residential services: A ground rod at any utility pole with a transformer, TWO ground rods at the meter socket, and a water pipe if it's metallic.  Also, your neuteral/gound is connected to the neuteral on the pole which is grounded the same way at your neighbor's house and every 5th pole one all transmission lines.  There are alot of failsafes in the system, and the meter reads only KWh on the two 120v legs.  However, if you have copper drains your house is at least 40 years old, and the same meter may have been in place that long as well, they do loose their calibration, and you can legally ask your electric company to exchange your meter with a freshly calibratred one every year, but every ten years is what I recomend.  You may have been able to tell I am an electrician.

Taylor


----------



## woodsmaster (Jun 19, 2012)

Taylor Sutherland said:


> My electric bill has never been above $40, and is usually in the $25-30 range. It is just my wife and I in our 3,200 square foot house.
> Taylor


 
  My electric bill would be over $25 just for the privilage of being hooked up and having a meter with no elec. use.
Why such a big house for 2 people ?  Im calling BS on the under $40.00 bill


----------



## muncybob (Jun 19, 2012)

I dunno, we cook with electric and use electric clothes dryer(wife is a clean freak so this gets a lot of use!) and in the winter our bills average under $60. Without those 2 appliances I think we would be in the $40 range.


----------



## maple1 (Jun 19, 2012)

Kids in house = 4x consumption multiplier.


----------



## firebroad (Jun 19, 2012)

I use the coil in the oil boiler furnace for hot water, and electric is for everything else.  Have a clothes dryer, but only use it to fluff out the wrinkles in some things, then they are hung up to dry.  It is only me in a 1090 sqft rancher. My bill is average $65 per mo.


----------



## maple1 (Jun 19, 2012)

firebroad said:


> I use the coil in the oil boiler furnace for hot water, and electric is for everything else. Have a clothes dryer, but only use it to fluff out the wrinkles in some things, then they are hung up to dry. It is only me in a 1090 sqft rancher. My bill is average $65 per mo.


 
How much do you think you're at for oil/month?


----------



## firebroad (Jun 19, 2012)

As I stated before, probably about $30 per month.  Not a bargain.  I cut it back and mess with the Diff for summer, so it is lower then.


----------



## BoilerMan (Jun 19, 2012)

woodsmaster said:


> My electric bill would be over $25 just for the privilage of being hooked up and having a meter with no elec. use.
> Why such a big house for 2 people ? Im calling BS on the under $40.00 bill


 
Wow, I love to be told I'm not being honest by someone who has no idea...............

FYI the big house is for our future family which my wife is due with in October.

If you look at the history you'll see that there is no BS thank you.


----------



## woodsmaster (Jun 19, 2012)

My appolagies. I missed the gas dryer and cooking part. That is a very cheap bill. my last bill I used 920 KWH for a total of $91.12 ,but then they add a $29 distrubution fee, a $15.53 wholesale power cost adj and 4.28 tax for a $137.00 bill not to bad I guess since we use an elec clothes dryer, range, and often have the tv and dish on 24hr. a day. If I turned on the elec water it would be over $200.00 We get charged the $29 dist. fee weather we use any power or not.


----------



## maple1 (Jun 19, 2012)

Man, I can't get over the cheap electricity rates out there in places.


----------



## joecool85 (Jun 19, 2012)

woodsmaster said:


> My electric bill would be over $25 just for the privilage of being hooked up and having a meter with no elec. use.
> Why such a big house for 2 people ? Im calling BS on the under $40.00 bill


 
My bill is only $45/month and I live in Maine, just me, the wife and our newborn son.  Electric stove, oil boiler for heat (along with our wood stove), dhw off coil in boiler.


----------



## velvetfoot (Jun 19, 2012)

Taylor Sutherland said:


> View attachment 68918
> 
> 
> Wow, I love to be told I'm not being honest by someone who has no idea...............
> ...




Great numbers!  I'm at a tad under 300 kwh/mo, with dhw by indirect oil, electric range.
I've been trying to get it lower but can't seem to.
I think the TV/DVR are on too much.

Electricity Usage History    
Read
Date Read
Type kwh 
5/30/2012 NYSEG 278     
4/26/2012 CUSTOMER 287     
3/29/2012 NYSEG 315     
2/28/2012 ESTIMATED 327     
1/26/2012 NYSEG 358     
12/24/2011 CUSTOMER 266     
11/28/2011 NYSEG 332     
10/27/2011 CUSTOMER 264     
9/27/2011 NYSEG 265     
8/29/2011 CUSTOMER 268     
7/29/2011 NYSEG 303     
6/24/2011 CUSTOMER 250     
5/26/2011 ESTIMATED 252     
4/27/2011 CUSTOMER 297     
3/30/2011 NYSEG 343     
2/24/2011 CUSTOMER 292     
1/27/2011 ESTIMATED 397     
12/23/2010 CUSTOMER 247     
12/1/2010 NYSEG 379     
10/27/2010 CUSTOMER 277     
9/29/2010 NYSEG 300     
8/26/2010 CUSTOMER 204     
7/30/2010 NYSEG 265


----------



## BoilerMan (Jun 19, 2012)

What is everyone elese's electric rate?  Correction, our rate is $0.1457, calculated by  $23.18 / 159KWh used.  Our rate and delivery charges are included in this number.  Our rate has dropped to this $0.1457 from $0.16   As an electrician, I am militant about cutting power to anything (including our TV and computer) when not in use.  I wire in switched recepticles that the computer plugs into for this purpose, just flip the switch and no draw, and no threat of power surges either. 

We have an $8.25 minimum charge, but if you use more than 57KWh this charge is simply paying for those watts used. 

I installed a Harmon PB 105 pellet boiler for a family member with an indirect water heater.  He had an electric prior, and his bill dropped by $80, he says he uses a 40# bag every four days.........  So I'm not convinced he should be burning all summer, but he likes it so what can I say. 

Taylor


----------



## velvetfoot (Jun 19, 2012)

Mine works out to 13.4 per kwh.
I have to do something about my oil useage.
It looks like I'm still doing 380 gal/ year even with about 4 -5 cords burned.


----------



## Fred61 (Jun 19, 2012)

My DVR from Dish runs all the time. Even when it is switched to the off position. The only way I can keep it from humming is to unplug it. Someone had told me before I installed it that it's like having another refridgerator.


----------



## rkshed (Jun 19, 2012)

*Our electric costs us about $120/month but I have 2 ladies that love baths so our electric DHW tank runs a bunch! I figure 50.00 each month*


----------



## firebroad (Jun 20, 2012)

Fred61 said:


> My DVR from Dish runs all the time. Even when it is switched to the off position. The only way I can keep it from humming is to unplug it. Someone had told me before I installed it that it's like having another refridgerator.


Wow.  I know TV's use a lot of power, and the DVR is basically a TV tuner.  Something to look into.


----------



## muncybob (Jun 20, 2012)

With DirectTV, if I cut power to the DVR upon start up again it will take several minutes to locate the signal, etc. I rely too much on it's recording of different shows to do this plus the start up time is a bit of a PITA. Cutting power to the TV and the sub and dvd player in my surround sound system is something I should do though.


----------



## maple1 (Jun 20, 2012)

Computers is another one. I rely heavily on mine for work. It sometimes gets quirky after a shutdown - so I leave it on almost all the time. I think I also read that repeated off/on cycles can take their toll on components. Also, DVRs have hard drives in them - which likely contributes to the high power consumption. We here too need to be trying harder to reduce our power bill - everyone finds turning stuff like power bars off & on to be too much bother.


----------



## BoilerMan (Jun 20, 2012)

Cut the power or pay the price......... it's my motto. 
My wife calls me the _*Energy Nazi *_
Don't know if that is good or not.


Buy or borrow a Kill-a-watt meter from someone and you'd be suprised at what it costs to run things, unfortunatly they don't make one for 240V loads like a dryer or the water heater. CFLs and LED lights do pay for themselves.

Taylor


----------



## Bob Rohr (Jun 20, 2012)

Taylor Sutherland said:


> Cut the power or pay the price......... it's my motto.
> My wife calls me the _*Energy Nazi *_
> Don't know if that is good or not.
> 
> ...


 

www.ekmmetering.com has in expensive 240V meters, and some nice smart meters to view online.  GEO installers around here add them to their systems to show consumption at the heat pump.

hr


----------



## BoilerMan (Jun 21, 2012)

Actually I have used those with great results, put them on solar PV and on a wind system. 
I was talking about something that one wouldn't need an electrician to install. But seeing numbers real time makes people realize where their money is going. There are alot of people with a HUGE Kwh numbers on their bill. Just keeping stuff on that serves no benifit.

Taylor


----------



## muncybob (Jun 22, 2012)

now here's an electric bill that should "shock" you!


----------



## WES999 (Jun 24, 2012)

This has been discussed in the green room previously, but here is is again.
3 years ago I realized how much I was paying for DHW, about $100/mo ( tankless coil on oil furnace) .
I found a nice used 80 gal electric and installed it. I estimated it would cost about $25/mo to run.
When I installed the new water heater I hooked up an hour meter that runs when the water heater is on.


Over the last 3 years the water heater has run on average 20hr/month. This comes out to about $13.50/mo.
Now I do have a DIY 4x8 solar panel preheating the water into the heater, that is why the cost is on the low side.


----------



## Gasifier (Jun 24, 2012)

I am still burning wood to heat the DHW. I am burning once a day now after making a few adjustments. I need to get my buffer tank insulated a little better. I don't know what it is costing me in electricity, but the wood I am burning for this time of year was real cheap! I have to run a box fan in the boiler room to throw the heat out the basement window. It is a little work each day. But I really like not using any oil.


----------



## velvetfoot (Sep 1, 2012)

Taylor Sutherland said:


> I usually quote people here in Maine (.16 per KWh delivered) at 80 cents per day per person showering.  Which usually holds pretty true with our high electric rate.  Most water heaters are in a cold basement in the summer, BAD, and no one ever turns them off when they leave for vacation.  However it is cheaper to use electric in the summer vs. an indirect with an oil boiler which I'd guess is around 40% efficient in the summer which is better than a domestic coil in the same oil boiler which I'd say is in the 20% range.



I have been thinking about adding a electric tank water heater instead of using indirect off a cold start oil boiler.  How can I figure out the summer efficiency (and in my case, winter, since I don't run it that much with the wood insert)?  I've read that oil water heaters are 50-60% efficient, but that's a direct fired oil boiler, so I can see 40% as a possibility.  How can this be number be firmed up a bit?  My electric is .15 /kw-hr delivered and oil is around 3.90 /gal.  Or, is it a total non-brainer: go with electric.  (I don't know if a heat pump wh would work well for me.)


----------



## Redbarn (Sep 1, 2012)

velvetfoot said:


> I have been thinking about adding a electric tank water heater instead of using indirect off a cold start oil boiler.  How can I figure out the summer efficiency (and in my case, winter, since I don't run it that much with the wood insert)?  I've read that oil water heaters are 50-60% efficient, but that's a direct fired oil boiler, so I can see 40% as a possibility.  How can this be number be firmed up a bit?  My electric is .15 /kw-hr delivered and oil is around 3.90 /gal.  Or, is it a total non-brainer: go with electric.  (I don't know if a heat pump wh would work well for me.)




We switched from oil DHW heat (1 gall oil /day) to the Geyser HPWH. Big cost saving, from circa $110/ month in oil to $15/month in electricity (0.14/kw-hr).

We have a basement that is fully underground in Limestone bedrock and the temperature does not go below 55 deg. So we can ran the Geyser for DHW all winter too. It runs longer but still heats the water OK. 

Kept the oil DHW burner + tank intact and just added the Geyser in parallel. Use the oil DHW syatem as backup if we get a full house.


----------



## avc8130 (Sep 1, 2012)

I am currently monitoring my oil burner for run time to supply my indirect hot water after reading this thread.  So far, with 2 people showering once daily, it looks like the oil burner runs ~.3 hours/day.  That is with a 1.25 gph nozzle.  3/8 gallon/day.  We will see if the dishwasher makes a difference soon.

ac


----------



## Seasoned Oak (Sep 1, 2012)

I have no idea what im using as far as cost. But i do know it went up a lot since i boosted the temp up a bit. Have to get some sort of meter to let me know how much im using. Anyone have a source for them?


----------



## velvetfoot (Sep 1, 2012)

I had been thinking about that.  Just because you know how much oil you use to heat your hot water you don't know what the efficiency is.  You'd have to know how much of those BTU's actually got to the Boilermate indirect tank.  I kinda think the Boilermate could use a little more insulation as well since it does feel a little warm, to keep the standby losses on par with an efficient electric resistance tank heater.

PS:  3/8 so far seems a lot less than some in other threads who use 1 gal/day.
More quiet and no use of oil from a philosophical sense are pluses for me, but it'd have to be close economically for me to do it.


----------



## velvetfoot (Sep 1, 2012)

Well, I just went down to the basement and measured the top of the boilermate and the exterior of the outlet piping where it seemed warm.  It the tank was 86*F and the outlet was 96.  Perhaps the first thing to do is insulate.  Maybe also something for siphoning, not sure.


----------



## avc8130 (Sep 1, 2012)

velvetfoot said:


> Well, I just went down to the basement and measured the top of the boilermate and the exterior of the outlet piping where it seemed warm. It the tank was 86*F and the outlet was 96. Perhaps the first thing to do is insulate. Maybe also something for siphoning, not sure.


 
My basement is noticeably WARM from the oil burner being at 120+ all the time.  I assume they don't insulate boilers much since the idea is that they are providing HEAT in their primary use so the extra "spillage" into the area isn't a terrible thing in the winter.  

I think the average boilermate is rated at <1F/hour standby loss.  So in 10 hours it will call for heat if there is no hot water use, assuming their internal aquastat is set for 10F differential.  

The overall efficiency of the system is quite good when you are running the boiler for heat anyways.  Efficiency drops a bit when you go to "standby" for just the summer.

Honestly, at 3/8 gallon per day I am looking at ~$50/month during the non-heating months for DHW.  An electric would probably pay for itself in ~10 months, or 2 years assuming $20/month operating cost.

ac


----------



## waterwizard (Sep 1, 2012)

lampmfg said:


> Our electric bill is actually cheaper in the winter when he use the H2O coil on our Kuuma Vapor-Fire 100 for heating domestic water then in the summer when we aren't burning wood.


 hello i have used a longwood forced air wood burner for 20yrs i built a cabin in woods last yr i put 6 300ft zones of 5/8 pex i heated this cabin with 80 gal elect hot water heater i bought another longwood want to convert the heat chamber to heat 50ft of copper coil then go to HWH was wondering if your kuuma is used to heat water for radiant heat in concrete slab thanks for any information


----------



## BoilerMan (Sep 1, 2012)

Ok, I've caught up on this thread brought back from the DEAD! Since we have no idea how many gallons/day we use for hot water there is no real way to know how many BTUs from oil made it to the water. All we can do is fill the tank in the spring _AFTER_ the heating season is over and again in the fall _BEFORE_ we start heating. Now we can divide the days and gallons to find a /day number. without knowing gallons of hot water used we can estimate time in the shower by say 2.5gpm, well that number of hot water is say 2gpm hot and .5 cold mixed. A dishwasher load is in the neighborhood of 7 gallons depending on if you use to pots&pans setting. If we can get a total cost per day for oil. I still maintain 70-80 cents per day per person for electric average (asuming a 12-14 cent/ Kw cost), and I've installed quite a few and follow up on bill increaces. Electric resistence ~ $400 equiptment cost vs. electric heatpump ~$1200. The HPWH does de-humidify the space it's in, so there is a consideration as well if you run a de-humidifier well now you won't have to. Also if you put your wood in the basement with a HPWH it seems like it would help it dry to some degree as a fringe benifit, not shore to what extent though.

*HOWEVER* I"ve seen oil boilers not do so well turned off in a humid basement all summer. They scale up something awful, I know of one persom who has a coal/oil combo unit and he runs the oil at 110F all summer just to keep the condensation off the boiler. He said he shut it down one summer (and ran a direct fired oil water heater) and the combustion chaimber was so rusted that fall he'd pay to keep it warm all summer..... Doing nothing... Ouch

Conclusion:
Some expierementation needs to be done to determine if your oil boiler will surrvive a cold summer. Another reason why I don't care for basements, some are good some not so much.
My $.06

TS


----------



## velvetfoot (Sep 1, 2012)

So, Taylor, in your experience, a lot of people in Maine are switching over to electric to heat their water?


----------



## nate379 (Sep 2, 2012)

My house is all gas and I generally use 400-500 kw/hr of electric in a month. Works out to around $50-70/month... usually a bit higher in winter since the lights are on longer and plugging in block heaters, etc.

Only have passed thru Mapleton, but I grew up in Keegan. My folks are still there, sister in Eagle Lake, brother in Houlton.




Taylor Sutherland said:


> View attachment 68918
> 
> 
> Wow, I love to be told I'm not being honest by someone who has no idea...............
> ...


 


I heat my DHW with an indirect fired water heater, fed off a natural gas boiler. My gas bill is around $30 in the summer. That's for the hot water, kitchen stove and clothes dryer though. Not sure how much of that is just for heating water.

Winter my gas bill goes up to around $60 or so. I heat the house with wood but my garage still uses the boiler (slab heat). Like to keep it at 55-60* so I can work in there without being cold.


----------



## BoilerMan (Sep 2, 2012)

It is a small world out there Nate. What is your cost for NG/therm or however they measure it? Here in the county, it's always rumored we will get NG, but I don't think it'll happen for a LONG time. Too low of a poplulation density to make the infrastructure worth it. Right now propane is dirt cheap at $1.25/gal and smart people are flocking to it.... Who knows what will happen to that in the future.

There are alot of people here who use electric to heat water, as the electric range (cooking stove) rate is almost 100% and the electric clothes dryer is 100%. I'd never seen a gas dryer until I lived in Mass for college. I own one now.

For the majority of people around here, if they have a boiler, they have a "tankless coil" the WORST way to heat DHW in the summer and argueably winter too. We are catching up with the times though, there are some good heating guys around installing some not so conventional hardware now, indirects, gasification, pellet boilers, coal boilers, storage, and some solar. It's just hard to get people away from "scorched air" furnaces, smoke dragon boilers and stoves, and that maple kept in their musty basement sucking up water like no tomorrow. Oh and one of my favorites, the "self cleaning chimney brush" the one with a pully on the top of the chimney with cable running down to the basement to combat the smoke dragon down there.

There are pellet stoves GALORE though everyone and their brother has one, blackened vinyl siding and all, roof vent those things!

TS


----------



## velvetfoot (Sep 2, 2012)

Around here propane is $2.98 a gallon!


----------



## BoilerMan (Sep 2, 2012)

Most people I know who burn LP have large accounts and get it for less than $2/gal.

TS


----------

