November numbers are in

[Tommy Thompson]

as most of you know I've been doing a lot of research on solar and wind and energy in general. In October I purchased an oil filled heater from Home Depot at $37. This heater runs at 600, 900 or 1500 watts compared to our electric furnace at 15,000 watts. We put this heater in our kitchen living room combination about 10 feet away from the thermostat. It is on all the time but a thermostat control on it cuts it on and off according to the setting...medium.
We live in a trailer aka manufactured home about the size of Jerry's. I retrieved the history of our power consumption from Alabama Power which showed that last November we used 2250 kwh for the month. I read our meter every day and recorded the usage and learned that most of our power consumption is in the evening and during the night....when it's colder and when we cook supper. This November's usage came out to be 1619 kwh or a difference of 631 kwh or in money terms about $71. in savings.
Any good scientific research requires to consider all factors and in this case the daily temperatures are of great importance. Checking the weather history and comparing last Nov and this Nov shows that 2008 was slightly colder but not by much....3 degrees average mean temperature. However the coldest days of last Nov were AFTER the monthly reading of the meter which in effect brings the temperatures from the power meter cycle for November very close in temperatures from 2008 and 2009.
So basically I'm coming to the conclusion that these little oil filled space heaters actually do save on the power bill.
Now on to December.
Tommy

[jerry]

Oil-filled heaters are merely hot-wire heaters with an efficient radiating surface. Their real value lies in the fact that, unlike central heat, you can put more warmth in the rooms you use most. A given number of kilowatts will generate the same amount of heat regardless of how you burn it.

I use a small 3-brick propane wall heater for the same purpose during the day, then central heat at night for safety. One brick is usually enough to keep my living room and office very comfortable.

Heat pumps are slightly more efficent when it's not very cold outside, but cost you more when the hot-rods kick in during real cold weather. They are actually two-way air conditioners that heat by trying to cool off the great outdoors, dumping the small amount of heat extracted from outside air into your home. Of course in summer they work in the right direction and pump the heat outdoors.

See this story for more about AC:
stclaircountyal.com/wordpress/index.php/2009/08/31/phunky-physics-xi-cooling-it/

[Tommy Thompson]

you're right Jerry. One good thing about the radiant heater though is that ALL the heat it creates stays inside the house where the central unit looses a lot of heat under the crawl space through the inefficient ductwork system.
another thing I like about the radiant heater is that being oil filled, it always stays warm unlike a burner that drops to room temperature as soon as you turn it off. Tommy

[jerry]

another thing I like about the radiant heater is that being oil filled, it always stays warm unlike a burner that drops to room temperature as soon as you turn it off. Tommy

Exactly. That way it doesn't cycle on & off so much. Constant heat costs less than heat that varies a lot because you can set the stat lower and still not get cold or sweaty.

[scoutmom]

I'm passing this thread along to Marlin. Very good info, thanks for sharing.

[H Abiff]

Try the glass tube radiant heater, they are even better. They tend to heat things instead of air. That is what the Eden system is based on. I use one in the truck in winter, works great.