Comments on: Electrify Your Night http://onelittlething.org/today/2007/02/22/electrify-your-night/ adding up the little things that make a big difference Fri, 25 May 2012 04:06:01 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.2 by: jeff http://onelittlething.org/today/2007/02/22/electrify-your-night/#comment-21 Tue, 06 Mar 2007 05:10:58 +0000 http://onelittlething.org/today/2007/02/22/electrify-your-night/#comment-21 Jon, I think you nailed the real advantage of the electric mattress pad there: "my wife is much happier now." Jon, I think you nailed the real advantage of the electric mattress pad there: “my wife is much happier now.”

]]> by: jmhunt http://onelittlething.org/today/2007/02/22/electrify-your-night/#comment-20 Mon, 05 Mar 2007 21:16:34 +0000 http://onelittlething.org/today/2007/02/22/electrify-your-night/#comment-20 I plugged in our <a href="http://www.p3international.com/products/special/P4400/P4400-CE.html" rel="nofollow">Kill a Watt</a> to measure the actual usage of electricity over a week of nights. After 5 nights, we had used 0.77 kWh, so about 0.154 kWh per night. The estimates from the electric matress pad manufactures is that you can save 10-15% on your heating bill by using these devices at night which is probably not too far off. Since we have twin 2 year olds that we can't rely on to turn down or up such a device on their own, we do not lower our own house temperature as much as someone who doesn't have kids in the house could. With the kids bundled up, we have the house temperature down 2 degrees at night and use the electric matress pad. So how do these compare. Several sources indicate that you can save upwards of <a href="http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/consumptionbriefs/recs/thermostat_settings/thermostat.html" rel="nofollow">5%</a> of your heating bill per degree you lower your thermostat in the winter. I've seen one site that says <a href="http://www.southwestgas.com/energysavingtips/index.php" rel="nofollow">2%</a> so I'll include that as a low end estimate. If you lower your themostat by 10 degree for 8 hours a night you could save 6.7%. <a href="http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/natural_gas/analysis_publications/natbro/gasprices.htm" rel="nofollow">Average consumption and prices for the midwest</a> are 708 Therms at $1.55 for the October to March timeframe when we typically heat our houses. A 6.7% savings over that would be just over $70 per year. That compares to the electricity usage using the electric matress pad during the same time period (my actual measurements included using it for more like 9 hours a night and they have automatic shutoffs after 10 hours) of around $4.50 (0.154 kWh X 182.5 days X $0.16/kWh). Even at max power (122 W) for 10 hours a night, this would only be about $35 and that is a LOT of heat in the bed. Even for the modest at night decrease of 2 degrees we do and using the actual gas usage (761 Therms) and price ($1.91/Therm) we had for last year, our estimated savings were over $40. And my wife is much happier now with the electric matress pad when her preferred heat source (me) is late going to bed. The thermo dynamic comparison of heating even just the bedroom with gas versus the bed with electric will have to wait for someone more ambitious, but I'm sure it will point in the same direction. Using an electric matress pad or blanket to heat the bed is far more efficient and money saving than heating the room with any form of energy (well except maybe radiant floor heat fed by a solar hot water system). I plugged in our Kill a Watt to measure the actual usage of electricity over a week of nights. After 5 nights, we had used 0.77 kWh, so about 0.154 kWh per night.

The estimates from the electric matress pad manufactures is that you can save 10-15% on your heating bill by using these devices at night which is probably not too far off.

Since we have twin 2 year olds that we can’t rely on to turn down or up such a device on their own, we do not lower our own house temperature as much as someone who doesn’t have kids in the house could. With the kids bundled up, we have the house temperature down 2 degrees at night and use the electric matress pad.

So how do these compare. Several sources indicate that you can save upwards of 5% of your heating bill per degree you lower your thermostat in the winter. I’ve seen one site that says 2% so I’ll include that as a low end estimate.

If you lower your themostat by 10 degree for 8 hours a night you could save 6.7%. Average consumption and prices for the midwest are 708 Therms at $1.55 for the October to March timeframe when we typically heat our houses. A 6.7% savings over that would be just over $70 per year.

That compares to the electricity usage using the electric matress pad during the same time period (my actual measurements included using it for more like 9 hours a night and they have automatic shutoffs after 10 hours) of around $4.50 (0.154 kWh X 182.5 days X $0.16/kWh). Even at max power (122 W) for 10 hours a night, this would only be about $35 and that is a LOT of heat in the bed.

Even for the modest at night decrease of 2 degrees we do and using the actual gas usage (761 Therms) and price ($1.91/Therm) we had for last year, our estimated savings were over $40. And my wife is much happier now with the electric matress pad when her preferred heat source (me) is late going to bed.

The thermo dynamic comparison of heating even just the bedroom with gas versus the bed with electric will have to wait for someone more ambitious, but I’m sure it will point in the same direction. Using an electric matress pad or blanket to heat the bed is far more efficient and money saving than heating the room with any form of energy (well except maybe radiant floor heat fed by a solar hot water system).

]]> by: iggyaa http://onelittlething.org/today/2007/02/22/electrify-your-night/#comment-15 Fri, 23 Feb 2007 14:50:18 +0000 http://onelittlething.org/today/2007/02/22/electrify-your-night/#comment-15 Next week we'll plug our voltmeter thing into our electric blanket so we can say how much electricity it is using during the night. Not sure how you'd convert that to energy used by heating the house, but it's a start. It also definitely depends on how high you set the blanket. We tend to keep it on low, and I sometimes even turn it off during the night, once I'm warm enough. Next week we’ll plug our voltmeter thing into our electric blanket so we can say how much electricity it is using during the night. Not sure how you’d convert that to energy used by heating the house, but it’s a start. It also definitely depends on how high you set the blanket. We tend to keep it on low, and I sometimes even turn it off during the night, once I’m warm enough.

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