The Average Cost of Electric Devices – A Calculated Wonder

Have you always wondered about the average cost of electric devices in your home? This is your answer – There are different electric rates around the world, so we will use the average United States rate of eleven cents per kilowatt-hour to measure it.

Cooling: Usually, air conditioning at your home requires more electricity than any other device at 16% of the total electricity used. In warmer areas, air conditioning can run 60-70% of your summer electric bill.

Air conditioning units in the windows consume anywhere between 500 and 1440 watts, while a 2.5-ton central air conditioning unit uses two to seven times that at about 3500 watts. In terms of money, a window unit used 24 hours a day cost an average of $78 per month while the central air conditioning system costs around $282 per month.  Even if you don’t runt he unit 24 hours per day, the average cost of electrical devises in your home is big.  And, this one is a whopper!

Heating: Using radiant heaters is the most efficient and inexpensive way to heat your home. Radiant heat solutions includes devices such as ceiling panels, space heaters, wall panels and radiators that heat only the space you occupy.

It is a well-known fact that centralized heating or forced-air is more expensive than heating only the area you are using. The centralized system sucks air into a furnace, warms it up, and then propels it back into the rooms through the registers in the ceiling or floors. The average cost of electrical forced air heat used 24 hours a day is about $644 per month.

Lighting: Are you looking to save money with your lighting? The easiest and the most common first approach is to change all your light bulbs to compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs). Immediately, save 70% of the energy over traditional incandescent bulbs. CFLs last almost ten times longer, meaning the average cost of electrical devices that provide light continues to save month over month.

Here is the calculation – If you are using say, 15 bulbs in your house and the lights are on for about 4 hours a day, your 75-watt incandescent bulbs cost about $16 per month while the CFLs will cost about $4 per month. Therefore, annually you will save about $150 on your lighting bill.

Refrigerators: In an average household, refrigerators used to be the second biggest energy consumer. Since it is not practical to save energy and money by switching your refrigerator on and off, considering efficiency is the next alternative. New refrigerators are exponentially more efficient than the older ones.  A refrigerator with model years 1976-1986 uses 1400 kWh equaling about $112 annually; while post-2001 models consume about 500 kWh per year, costing $40 annually.  It is plain to see that when it comes to the average cost of electrical devices in your kitchen paying close attention to the energy rating of your refrigerator will pay dividends.

Washing Machines: A washing machine uses around 0.256 kWh per load, at the average US rate of 11¢/kWh, this is $0.03 per load. Change the water setting on that same load to “hot” and the electric water heater kicks in driving the cost to about $0.50 per load.

Clothes Dryers: This one is a straightforward.  The average cost works out to $0.36 per load.

Water Heaters: The average cost of electrical devices like this varies, depending on the type you have.  You can choose between tank and tankless water heaters. An electric tank water heater will cost you $48 per month while tankless water heaters are closer to $37 per month. A gas powered tankless water heater is the most electrically efficient, but you do have to consider the cost of natural gas.