Electricity Bill - How much is yours?

[craftsman]

Hi Reefers,

I just got my electricity bill, and was quite shocked. Having started in October, my electricity consumption has steadily increased.

My Tank Specs are:

Main tank - 4 ft x 2.5 x 2.5

Sump - 3 ft x 2 x 2

Chiller - Arctica 1/4 Hp

Consumption Stats:

- Sep - 410 kWh

- Oct - 385 kWh

- Nov - 402 kWh*

- Dec - 626 kWh

- Jan - 548 kWh* (equivalent to S$150)

- Feb - 919 kWh (equivalent to S$208)

* - denotes estimated reading.

From the chart, it looks like my chiller is the offending culprit. I don't have solid facts, but it can't be the pumps that caused such a significant increase. I've decided to change to a Mitsubishi Star Mex 1Hp Titanium coil chiller, which I'm pretty certain will bring down the consumption.

Wondering if reefers can share their electrical consumption, or how much they are paying per month.... I'm particularly interested in fellow reefers with 4 feet tanks. But of course, this would benefit reefers with other tank sizes as well, so please feel free to share.

Paul

[jackywongto]

Paul

There was a tariff increase in January. just FYI

The other food for thought is that does the sunlight gets to your tank?

It has been rather hot lately.

and you are using MH too right? or was it T5?

MH can be another culprit.

Heating up your water and your chiller has to cool it down in return.

Even T5 heats up the water quite a fair bit in an enclose hood.

But your Jan + Feb seemed to have jumped quite high.

rgds

Jacky

[Guest]

My average bill for my 6ft tank for the last 6 month is about 150.00 , it depends aslo the place which you staying as well as some places in singapore do experience hotter weather and so you chiller will need to run and work harder as well as the equipment you are using..

What lighting are you using? i feel the lighting play an important role in your overall electrical consumaption.

[craftsman]

Jacky, that's true. My MH could be the culprit too. It comes on 4 hours a day.

I didn't realize that was an increase in tariff! *doh*! all things being equal, I used to pay only $80 for electricity. Now, it's 208. More than $120 increase. Abit too high still, methinks.

Any one can share how much your paying for electricity? Pls also include the sizeof your tank, chiller, and also if u r using MH.

Thanks!

Paul

[craftsman]

My average bill for my 6ft tank for the last 6 month is about 150.00 , it depends aslo the place which you staying as well as some places in singapore do experience hotter weather and so you chiller will need to run and work harder as well as the equipment you are using..

What lighting are you using? i feel the lighting play an important role in your overall electrical consumaption.

hi harlequin, I'm using 240 watt MH, 4 hours a day. My chiller runs for a long time every time it kicks in.

[teebs]

Paul,

A few things to take note of:

1) What is the temperature your chiller is set at? A 1 degC difference can cause a big jump in electrical consumption of your chiller. For my 3x2x2 tank, when my chiller was set at 26degC, my average daily electrical consumption was abt 22-24 kwh. When I increased the chiller temp to 28 degC, my average daily electrical consumption decreased to between 16-20kwh.

2) Your average electrical consumption for the 5 months is 576 kwh. Average daily electrical consumption is around 18-19kwh which I think is quite reasonable.

3) I would suggest that you take the readings from your electric meter daily for the next 1 week to see how much the daily electrical usage is. To be frank, I think using a 1HP titanium coil chiller would use much more electricity than your current artica chiller.

[jackywongto]

more thoughts.

just went back to check your tank thread again (**instead of feeding my baby. Gotta get to it after this post)

- Is your hood covered. If yes, hot air will be trapped inside. I saw that your placed a plastic cover there.

- what time does your MH switch on? hopefully it is in the evening/ night.

- I have not done the maths but I am suspecting 1/4HP is kinda under powered for your tank. Especially an outdoor one.

- try monitoring how long it takes for your chiller to come on and cut off in the afternoon. I am suspecting it could be very very long. usually it should come on for about 10 - 15 mins only.

[craftsman]

Paul,

A few things to take note of:

1) What is the temperature your chiller is set at? A 1 degC difference can cause a big jump in electrical consumption of your chiller. For my 3x2x2 tank, when my chiller was set at 26degC, my average daily electrical consumption was abt 22-24 kwh. When I increased the chiller temp to 28 degC, my average daily electrical consumption decreased to between 16-20kwh.

2) Your average electrical consumption for the 5 months is 576 kwh. Average daily electrical consumption is around 18-19kwh which I think is quite reasonable.

3) I would suggest that you take the readings from your electric meter daily for the next 1 week to see how much the daily electrical usage is. To be frank, I think using a 1HP titanium coil chiller would use much more electricity than your current artica chiller.

hi Peter,

Thks for your input. Temperature current set for 26.5. It's a good suggestion to take daiy readings. Will do that. Should give me an indication.

I thought with. Larger Hp unit, the chilling decreases, and therefore translates to a lower electrical consumption? Any bros who moved from 1/4hp chiller to a 1Hp chiller and regreted changing?

[craftsman]

more thoughts.

just went back to check your tank thread again (**instead of feeding my baby. Gotta get to it after this post)

- Is your hood covered. If yes, hot air will be trapped inside. I saw that your placed a plastic cover there.

- what time does your MH switch on? hopefully it is in the evening/ night.

- I have not done the maths but I am suspecting 1/4HP is kinda under powered for your tank. Especially an outdoor one.

- try monitoring how long it takes for your chiller to come on and cut off in the afternoon. I am suspecting it could be very very long. usually it should come on for about 10 - 15 mins only.

dude, baby more important la. We're just talking about a chiller for crying out loud!

MH comes on only from 6:30pm through 10:30pm. I really think my chiller has problems. When it kicks in, it still stays on for 30 to 45 mins.

[Guest]

hi Peter,

Thks for your input. Temperature current set for 26.5. It's a good suggestion to take daiy readings. Will do that. Should give me an indication.

I thought with. Larger Hp unit, the chilling decreases, and therefore translates to a lower electrical consumption? Any bros who moved from 1/4hp chiller to a 1Hp chiller and regreted changing?

Are you keeping SPS ? If not, 28.00 degree should be sufficent for LPS..

[teebs]

hi Peter,

Thks for your input. Temperature current set for 26.5. It's a good suggestion to take daiy readings. Will do that. Should give me an indication.

I thought with. Larger Hp unit, the chilling decreases, and therefore translates to a lower electrical consumption? Any bros who moved from 1/4hp chiller to a 1Hp chiller and regreted changing?

If you move from a 1/4HP to a 1HP chiller, the effect is that the 1HP chiller will use 4x the electricity of the 1/4HP chiller assuming everything is the same.

So to get a savings in electricity usage, your 1HP chiller must kick in less than 1/4 of what your current chiller is doing. E.g if your current chiller kicks in for 20 mins and kicks out for 1hr each time, then the 1HP chiller must only kick in for 5 mins and kick out for 1hr in order to use the same amount of electricity.

You must also consider how much current is consumed by the artica and the 1HP chiller when it is on standby. This will also have an effect on your electrical consumption since your chiller should be on standby most of the time.

[craftsman]

Are you keeping SPS ? If not, 28.00 degree should be sufficent for LPS..

got SPS...

Actually, if consumption is normal, I'm ok. I just need to figure out if my bill is abnormal. Dun want to pay the power company more money than it's necessary.

[craftsman]

Good points Peter!

My chiller now stays on for too long. Takes approx 45 mins to cool the tank down.

[jackywongto]

Good points Peter!

My chiller now stays on for too long. Takes approx 45 mins to cool the tank down.

So either this chiller is faulty or its underpowered.

Have you called the servicing folks before?

Keep us posted on the verdict bro.

[jackywongto]

BTW bro, maybe time to explore about LEDs too

[craftsman]

Jacky, still unsure about Leds to be honest. Unless there are bros here who can share their success stories on Leds with SPS.

On the chiller, I've decided to go ahead and replace. The Arctica I have is a second hand one, and I've been so busy at work that it's difficult to arrange a good time for the service guy to come down. I figure it's probably good to get a brand new chiller anyways.

in any case, will give an update Ina few months on how the electricity bill works out after I get the new unit in this Saturday.

[arcanehacker]

Hi Reefers,

I just got my electricity bill, and was quite shocked. Having started in October, my electricity consumption has steadily increased.

My Tank Specs are:

Main tank - 4 ft x 2.5 x 2.5

Sump - 3 ft x 2 x 2

Chiller - Arctica 1/4 Hp

Consumption Stats:

- Sep - 410 kWh

- Oct - 385 kWh

- Nov - 402 kWh*

- Dec - 626 kWh

- Jan - 548 kWh* (equivalent to S$150)

- Feb - 919 kWh (equivalent to S$208)

* - denotes estimated reading.

From the chart, it looks like my chiller is the offending culprit. I don't have solid facts, but it can't be the pumps that caused such a significant increase. I've decided to change to a Mitsubishi Star Mex 1Hp Titanium coil chiller, which I'm pretty certain will bring down the consumption.

Wondering if reefers can share their electrical consumption, or how much they are paying per month.... I'm particularly interested in fellow reefers with 4 feet tanks. But of course, this would benefit reefers with other tank sizes as well, so please feel free to share.

Paul

Its always the Chiller and the lights.. I'm still finding ways to reduce too but I can't install an external compressor.. haiz..

[pweesng]

IMHO, a more powerful chiller does not prevent the chiller from kicking in more or less often.

Chiller kicks in when the water gets hotter. Water getting hotter is not a function of the chiller, given that at once it reaches the preset temperature, the chiller woudl have stopped working already. Water turning hot is a function of the surrounding.

So i really won't be surprise if one change from a 1/4 hp to a 1 hp ans till find the chiller kicking in the same amoutn of time, if nothing else has changed inthe surrounding.

However, a 1hp chiller will definitely cool the water faster than a 1/4 hp chiller. The issue that one has to grasp is whether the speed (ie the consumption) time is going to result to significant savings.

In summary, what i'm trying to say is, if you find that your chiller is kicking in too often, it is not the chiller that you need to change. It is more the surrounding, ie lights, placement of the tank etc..etc..

However, if the duration of the chiller working each time when it kicks in is too long, then perhaps the chiller is underpowered.

[TayHongSiang]

If you move from a 1/4HP to a 1HP chiller, the effect is that the 1HP chiller will use 4x the electricity of the 1/4HP chiller assuming everything is the same.

So to get a savings in electricity usage, your 1HP chiller must kick in less than 1/4 of what your current chiller is doing. E.g if your current chiller kicks in for 20 mins and kicks out for 1hr each time, then the 1HP chiller must only kick in for 5 mins and kick out for 1hr in order to use the same amount of electricity.

You must also consider how much current is consumed by the artica and the 1HP chiller when it is on standby. This will also have an effect on your electrical consumption since your chiller should be on standby most of the time.

Yup..i agree...MH produces a lot of heat and 1/4 hp means yr chiller have to kick in every 45mins....quite xiong...either you change yr lightings to T5...min 6 tubes to maintain SPS...or to LED and supplement with 2 tubes of T5 or a bigger chiller capacity.

[craftsman]

Yup..i agree...MH produces a lot of heat and 1/4 hp means yr chiller have to kick in every 45mins....quite xiong...either you change yr lightings to T5...min 6 tubes to maintain SPS...or to LED and supplement with 2 tubes of T5 or a bigger chiller capacity.

it's definitely chiller problem. Kicking in every 15 to 20 mins for 45 to 60 mins.

[TayHongSiang]

it's definitely chiller problem. Kicking in every 15 to 20 mins for 45 to 60 mins.

wow!!!....no wonder...why dun u switch off yr MH and observe yr chiller...night time is the best time to observe...when temp is cooler.

[craftsman]

wow!!!....no wonder...why dun u switch off yr MH and observe yr chiller...night time is the best time to observe...when temp is cooler.

at night slightly better, but not much better.

[stevenkoh08]

My bill total come out to 120-130 with household without tank last time is bout 70-80

Tank 1 4x1.5x2

marine sources skimmer aquabee 2000/I

Rio10 chiller pump

Rio32 return pump

4ft DIY 4 tube t5 54w only 2 tube on most of the time at 6hr/ day

1/2hp DIY chiller

sun sun 12000L wavemaker

just decom Tank 2 3x1.5x2

Deltec T1250 skimmer

Healia HC-500

Rio20 return pump

aquamedic denitrator 400

2 sunsun 6000/L wavemaker

160w Led light set 9hr on time

algae scrubber lighting 24w x 2

BM FR

[TayHongSiang]

My bill total come out to 120-130 with household without tank last time is bout 70-80

Tank 1 4x1.5x2

marine sources skimmer aquabee 2000/I

Rio10 chiller pump

Rio32 return pump

4ft DIY 4 tube t5 54w only 2 tube on most of the time at 6hr/ day

1/2hp DIY chiller

sun sun 12000L wavemaker

just decom Tank 2 3x1.5x2

Deltec T1250 skimmer

Healia HC-500

Rio20 return pump

aquamedic denitrator 400

2 sunsun 6000/L wavemaker

160w Led light set 9hr on time

algae scrubber lighting 24w x 2

BM FR

you used Rio32 for 4ft for return...that's very powerful.

yr bill is very low....

[stevenkoh08]

you used Rio32 for 4ft for return...that's very powerful.

yr bill is very low....

ya that also amaze me when after mth to mths got the bill bout the same rate so it not very ex for my bill after all