Pellet stove and electric usage?

[John Fortier]

I agree with Former Farmer... they may have under-estimated your usage for the previous months and made up for it this month.

Thinking possibly..big difference still. Don't use the oil furnace which I believe would burn a lot more electric than the stove.

 

[TradEddie]

Something else is happening, possibly just a correction to the two estimated readings, but when something like that happened to me, I eventually discovered that my well pipe had cracked so the well pump was running 24/7!
Go out a look at the meter, see what you've used since the last bill reading, if that's back to normal, don't worry. Also, prices may have gone up in the new year, compare kwh, not $.

TE

 

[SwineFlue]

Don't use the oil furnace which I believe would burn a lot more electric than the stove

Good point. My stove uses no more power than one circulator pump on the oil boiler.

 

[BrianN]

We just got our electric bill today and were floored. With the problems we had with the stove it ran 24/7 for 3 weeks. Our bill went to $238.00 when normally around $110.00. Oil furnace is only on to exercise it when cleaning for maybe 20 mins. Nothing else has changed as far as what we run. I find it very hard to believe a pellet stove can burn that much electric and pray the electric company messed up..What does your stove cost in electric?

Last year, Oct. 25 - Dec. 24, my electric bill was just under $400 (3891 kW.h) using my pellet stove, burning 24/7 and barely keeping the house warm.
This year, Oct. 25 - Dec. 24, my electric bill was $153 (1700 kW.h).
The huge difference between this year and last, is that this year, we installed a wood stove, and only used the pellet stove a few days, on the coldest days.
So, I'd have to say that the pellet stove is a huge energy eater, in our home anyways.
Will be interesting to see what our bill is for the past two months (bill will be in within the next couple days). It is estimated at around $150, where last year it was $361.

 

[SwineFlue]

Were either of you using extra fans to move the heat from the pellet stoves?

Last year, Oct. 25 - Dec. 24, my electric bill was just under $400 (3891 kW.h) using my pellet stove, burning 24/7 and barely keeping the house warm.
This year, Oct. 25 - Dec. 24, my electric bill was $153 (1700 kW.h).

That's something like an extra 1400 Watts, running 24/7

 

[wsar10]

Were either of you using extra fans to move the heat from the pellet stoves?




That's something like an extra 1400 Watts, running 24/7

Sounds like a heating element to me !!
I would be looking into that hot water heater, start with the thermostat.
I think if an electric motor someplace was dissipating 1400W you would know it.... probably by means of a fire extiguasher !

 

[SwineFlue]

Sounds like a heating element to me !!
I would be looking into that hot water heater, start with the thermostat.
I think if an electric motor someplace was dissipating 1400W you would know it.... probably by means of a fire extiguasher !

My post may have mis-lead you... he is using that much less electricity this season! But I agree, I don't see how an Accentra could have drawn 1400 Watts last year.

 

[wsar10]

My post may have mis-lead you... he is using that much less electricity this season! But I agree, I don't see how an Accentra could have drawn 1400 Watts last year.

O I C,
My mistake.......

 

[mrjoshuanyc]

There is NO WAY that you can blame ONE huge electric bill on a pellet stove, period! You could run ALL the motors continuously and not have that kind of increase. And to say that the pellet stove is costing more than oil is ludicrous.

Honestly I dont know what to make of it. I did go away last month and left my mother in law in the house with the kids so I am not sure what she did but that was the highest bill during the winter I have had yet. Ill see what this month brings.

 

[IHATEPROPANE]

Last year, Oct. 25 - Dec. 24, my electric bill was just under $400 (3891 kW.h) using my pellet stove, burning 24/7 and barely keeping the house warm.
This year, Oct. 25 - Dec. 24, my electric bill was $153 (1700 kW.h).
The huge difference between this year and last, is that this year, we installed a wood stove, and only used the pellet stove a few days, on the coldest days.
So, I'd have to say that the pellet stove is a huge energy eater, in our home anyways.
Will be interesting to see what our bill is for the past two months (bill will be in within the next couple days). It is estimated at around $150, where last year it was $361.

There is zero chance your pellet stove used that much difference in electricity.

 

[chken]

We just got our electric bill today and were floored. With the problems we had with the stove it ran 24/7 for 3 weeks. Our bill went to $238.00 when normally around $110.00. Oil furnace is only on to exercise it when cleaning for maybe 20 mins. Nothing else has changed as far as what we run. I find it very hard to believe a pellet stove can burn that much electric and pray the electric company messed up..What does your stove cost in electric?

Maybe posting your bill will help others interpret it.

 

[Harvey Schneider]

We just got our electric bill today and were floored. With the problems we had with the stove it ran 24/7 for 3 weeks. Our bill went to $238.00 when normally around $110.00. Oil furnace is only on to exercise it when cleaning for maybe 20 mins. Nothing else has changed as far as what we run. I find it very hard to believe a pellet stove can burn that much electric and pray the electric company messed up..What does your stove cost in electric?

You really can't go by the dollar amount of you bill because rates and fees can change. You really have to compare kWh's consumed for the period. Also, as pointed out by Former Farmer, if adjacent months were estimated you don't have a real number for the consumed energy for that month.

 

[Cleetussnow]

Honestly I dont know what to make of it. I did go away last month and left my mother in law in the house with the kids so I am not sure what she did but that was the highest bill during the winter I have had yet. Ill see what this month brings.

If you had con edison, your electric rates have nearly doubled in the last year. I got the highest electric bill i have ever seen at over 300, and according to my bill, it was one of the lowest usage months i have had in the last year.
Electricity rates are going up everywhere due to regulation. Regulations by uncle sam are reducing the amount of electricity produced, so we get higher bills since there is less of it. Higher bills are coming to everyone, in particular in the northeast.

My rate was .20 per kilowatt hour. Its the highest rate i have ever heard of so i switched carriers, apparently offering me A third of that rate. We will see.

 

[Harvey Schneider]

apparently offering me A third of that rate. We will see.

I hope you read the fine print. I accepted a low rate discount last year and at the end of a short period the rate skyrocketed. My usage in kWh was down 27% and my cost in dollars was up 20%. WTF?
I have now switched to a fixed rate, green (wind) supplier. It's not the lowest rate offered, but it is fixed for 12 months.

 

[IHATEPROPANE]

If you had con edison, your electric rates have nearly doubled in the last year. I got the highest electric bill i have ever seen at over 300, and according to my bill, it was one of the lowest usage months i have had in the last year.
Electricity rates are going up everywhere due to regulation. Regulations by uncle sam are reducing the amount of electricity produced, so we get higher bills since there is less of it. Higher bills are coming to everyone, in particular in the northeast.

My rate was .20 per kilowatt hour. Its the highest rate i have ever heard of so i switched carriers, apparently offering me A third of that rate. We will see.

My rate went from about .14 per kwh to .20. I was outta my mind mad when I noticed my bill went from 150 to 220. Imagine if you heat with electric????

 

[tjnamtiw]

Honestly I dont know what to make of it. I did go away last month and left my mother in law in the house with the kids so I am not sure what she did but that was the highest bill during the winter I have had yet. Ill see what this month brings.

That answers that question!! Mother in law = thermostat to the max = mucho $$$

 

[tjnamtiw]

My rate went from about .14 per kwh to .20. I was outta my mind mad when I noticed my bill went from 150 to 220. Imagine if you heat with electric????

"Your electrical costs will necessarily skyrocket"............... WAS NO ONE LISTENING???????????

 

[tjnamtiw]

Last year, Oct. 25 - Dec. 24, my electric bill was just under $400 (3891 kW.h) using my pellet stove, burning 24/7 and barely keeping the house warm.
This year, Oct. 25 - Dec. 24, my electric bill was $153 (1700 kW.h).
The huge difference between this year and last, is that this year, we installed a wood stove, and only used the pellet stove a few days, on the coldest days.
So, I'd have to say that the pellet stove is a huge energy eater, in our home anyways.
Will be interesting to see what our bill is for the past two months (bill will be in within the next couple days). It is estimated at around $150, where last year it was $361.

No way was this caused by a pellet stove - period! I think we are on a witch hunt and don't know what a witch looks like!

 

[Tonyray]

Our Electric is always around 80.00 month. just the 2 of us here.
wife hangs clothes outside, cook on the grill 4 nites a week etc..
got a pellet stove in November and now bill is around 102.00 month..

 

[tjnamtiw]

Our Electric is always around 80.00 month. just the 2 of us here.
wife hangs clothes outside, cook on the grill 4 nites a week etc..
got a pellet stove in November and now bill is around 102.00 month..

Bucks County, Pennsylvania........

 

[IHATEPROPANE]

Bucks County, Pennsylvania........

Yeah, they are fortunate enough to not be in the Northeast......

If I understand correctly if New York would lift the fracking ban then the northeast would be loaded with Natural Gas. Maybe if enough people get fed up with the high costs things will change.

 

[wsar10]

Yeah, they are fortunate enough to not be in the Northeast......

If I understand correctly if New York would lift the fracking ban then the northeast would be loaded with Natural Gas. Maybe if enough people get fed up with the high costs things will change.

The treehugers are not going anyplace anytime soon in NY
I can promise you that

And trust me after we loose Tom Corbett (unfortunately) here in PA we will have our own fracking bans, and NG will shoot through the roof (compared to what it has been).

 

[IHATEPROPANE]

The treehugers are not going anyplace anytime soon in NY
I can promise you that

And trust me after we loose Tom Corbett (unfortunately) here in PA we will have our own fracking bans, and NG will shoot through the roof (compared to what it has been).

Well hopefully they can be educated to the fact that fracking today is not what it was yesterday.

Not to get too political here but I think Obama backing Nat Gas as a bridge fuel until the other energy technologies can become economically viable could potentially be one of the biggest boosts to our economy in our recent history. I look forward to seeing what happens.

 

[Lake Girl]

Our electric bill goes up when pellet stove is in use but I was getting far higher bills with the forced air heat. Same with pellets vs. oil - have to pay to heat your home but it still is far less than what it used to be...

 

[DBCOOPER]

People, it's KWH not dollars that you need to compare when you try to figure out usage...