Electricity Bill?

[chris stevens]

I'm a college student who is going to be moving into an Apartment late this summer, so I am very budget minded. I am concerned about my tank adding a lot to my electricity bill....is this a serious issue? I am going to be running Coralife Lunar Aqualights (192W), a Maxijet 1200 powerhead, an Ebo Jager heater (250W), and an Aquac Remora skimmer w/Maxijet 1200 powerhead. Location is Lowell, MA. Any advice appreciated. Thanks.

[fishyrican]

P3 International makes a device called Kill A Watt http://www.p3international.com/produ.../P4400-CE.html

Never used it, but it's supposed to give you an idea of the energy use of any appliance plugged in to it. Of course, this only works after you're knee deep in aquarium equipment, so it does little good in the planning stages.

[malkore]

Primarily the 192w of light and the 250w heater are your biggest power users. The heater won't run all the time, especially in the warmer summer months.

Just to throw a number out there, I'd say maybe $10 a month for the power...but that's going off a rough guess and Nebraska's power rates.

[mp3z24]

just think of it in terms of light bulbs....

your lighting fixture is 192 watts.... if you have 5 x 40 watt regular light bulbs bulbs turned on, that is 200 watts... i dont think you are going to blow a budget over 5 light bulbs turned on.

all in all, the real money is is running a metal halide system or a large recirculation pump... i hardly notice the power cost of running my tank... see my description in my signature. i have 3 maxijet 900s running, a maxijet 1200 on the skimmer, two 150 watt heaters, and a 4x65 watt light....

you should be fine... after all, your in college now, and you can survive on ramen noodles

~mike

[fishfreek]

We have an electricty cost calculator on this site. Use it to plug in the wattage of your various aquarium components as well as the amount of time per day that they are one. Then enter the cost per killowatt for your electricty to see what the aquarium adds to your monthly bill.

[badfish]

Originally Posted by mp3z24

you should be fine... after all, your in college now, and you can survive on ramen noodles

seems like it was just yesterday.

[ellisz]

Boy, I would hate to plug my stuff into that calculator. 5 PH's, 3 pumps, 3 heaters, MH's, oh my!! 8O

[Phyl]

Hmmm... you may want to consider FW. Saltwater is a tremendously expensive hobby and I wouldn't recommend it for anyone shy in the wallet. Being frugal in saltwater can only end in tears.

You can figure spending 30-50$ per GALLON of water in your tank to get it running and then you need to maintain it. I shudder to think of how much money is swimming in my living room!