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MN Renovator · 11-02-11, 08:08 PM

Trailing 12 months of energy.

325 therms of methane / 12 months = 27 therms a month or .89 therms per day.
Most companies provide a little over 100k BTU per CCF. Our HVOG is a little worse than average but my CCF and therms has come out to be on parity for all but I think one of the coldest months but my gas company bills by therms here so it is what I pay attention to. Base load in non-heating months is usually about 8 therms and as low as 4 therms if I take a long summer vacation for the month and don't bother to turn off the water heater. 8 therms is about $4.50. 80 therms is in the mid $60's. Almost 40% of my average bill on a yearly basis is taxes and fees. Total was in the low $300's for the year.

For comparison, the previous owners of this house used more gas in their two highest billing months of winter 2009 going 2010 than I did in a 12 month period. Window plastic, air sealing, removing the outdoor air intake from the furnaces return ductwork, and general conservation(not setting the thermostat to Tahiti) were huge energy moves. I've got about a half-ton of cellulose insulation to blow into the attic and I'm hoping I can get my air sealing of the attic penetrations finished off soon enough to where I can blow the insulation before its too cold to be up in the attic.

Electricity was about 2500kwh for the past 12 months. I made a mistake in the summer thinking that using a portal dehumidifier running 24/7 and letting it get a warmer would reduce the electric bill. Stupid idea, thing runs 750 watts and created a higher monthly bill than the same month the year before and there was slightly less comfort. Oh well, live and learn. 2500kwh/12=208 kwh per month or 6.85kwh/day.

I leave my laptop on 24/7, uses 25 watts from the outlet surfing the web with the built-in display on, a little less when its closed. A little less than 100 watts doing extreme graphics work and processing full bore while charging the battery. It's about the only thing I could probably change at this point to gain electrical efficiency outside of replacing my furnace, a/c, and refrigerator. Base load is 130kwh in non-heating or cooling months.

You can't really make a therm to BTU cross comparison because they are two entirely different types of energy and transported in two very different ways. Transmission losses with electricity, efficiencies of power plants, comparisons of going with a heat pump(and tons of COP factors) vs resistance heating versus going with a gas pipeline are just too different. I'd venture a guess that burning piped methane in my house is far more resource efficient and cleaner than going with an electric mix, even with a very efficient heat pump. In my case it would take geothermal to have a cheaper heating operating cost or lower resource usage due to the extreme cold winter climate here, I don't know of an ASHP that can pump even 20k BTU at design temp of -20f, which isn't enough to keep my house at 70. If I build a new house I might consider geothermal because it might be cost effective to do since they've got the excavation equipment out for the foundation already.

Summary
.89 therms/day 325 therms Low $300's for the year including fees/taxes.
6.85kwh/day 2500kwh $400 or so for the year including fees/taxes.

$252 or so for both utilities fees, franchise fees, french fry fees, etc for both, so about $450 for actual energy.

11-02-11, 08:08 PM	#40
MN Renovator Less usage=Cheaper bills Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Minneapolis, MN Posts: 939 Thanks: 41 Thanked 116 Times in 90 Posts	Trailing 12 months of energy. 325 therms of methane / 12 months = 27 therms a month or .89 therms per day. Most companies provide a little over 100k BTU per CCF. Our HVOG is a little worse than average but my CCF and therms has come out to be on parity for all but I think one of the coldest months but my gas company bills by therms here so it is what I pay attention to. Base load in non-heating months is usually about 8 therms and as low as 4 therms if I take a long summer vacation for the month and don't bother to turn off the water heater. 8 therms is about $4.50. 80 therms is in the mid $60's. Almost 40% of my average bill on a yearly basis is taxes and fees. Total was in the low $300's for the year. For comparison, the previous owners of this house used more gas in their two highest billing months of winter 2009 going 2010 than I did in a 12 month period. Window plastic, air sealing, removing the outdoor air intake from the furnaces return ductwork, and general conservation(not setting the thermostat to Tahiti) were huge energy moves. I've got about a half-ton of cellulose insulation to blow into the attic and I'm hoping I can get my air sealing of the attic penetrations finished off soon enough to where I can blow the insulation before its too cold to be up in the attic. Electricity was about 2500kwh for the past 12 months. I made a mistake in the summer thinking that using a portal dehumidifier running 24/7 and letting it get a warmer would reduce the electric bill. Stupid idea, thing runs 750 watts and created a higher monthly bill than the same month the year before and there was slightly less comfort. Oh well, live and learn. 2500kwh/12=208 kwh per month or 6.85kwh/day. I leave my laptop on 24/7, uses 25 watts from the outlet surfing the web with the built-in display on, a little less when its closed. A little less than 100 watts doing extreme graphics work and processing full bore while charging the battery. It's about the only thing I could probably change at this point to gain electrical efficiency outside of replacing my furnace, a/c, and refrigerator. Base load is 130kwh in non-heating or cooling months. You can't really make a therm to BTU cross comparison because they are two entirely different types of energy and transported in two very different ways. Transmission losses with electricity, efficiencies of power plants, comparisons of going with a heat pump(and tons of COP factors) vs resistance heating versus going with a gas pipeline are just too different. I'd venture a guess that burning piped methane in my house is far more resource efficient and cleaner than going with an electric mix, even with a very efficient heat pump. In my case it would take geothermal to have a cheaper heating operating cost or lower resource usage due to the extreme cold winter climate here, I don't know of an ASHP that can pump even 20k BTU at design temp of -20f, which isn't enough to keep my house at 70. If I build a new house I might consider geothermal because it might be cost effective to do since they've got the excavation equipment out for the foundation already. Summary .89 therms/day 325 therms Low $300's for the year including fees/taxes. 6.85kwh/day 2500kwh $400 or so for the year including fees/taxes. $252 or so for both utilities fees, franchise fees, french fry fees, etc for both, so about $450 for actual energy.