Ever Wonder What It Costs To Run A Reef Tank?

ppurcell · 03/12/2007, 07:06 PM

If you are like me, you are under constant pressure from the Chief Financial Officer because the electric bill is sky high.

Because of this pressure and to satisfy my own curiosity I have been wondering what I spend on a monthly basis to run my reef tank. Until I purchased and used the Kill A Watt I never really knew what each device that I rely on costs me to run per day, per month or year.

I pulled the cost per kilowatt hour from my electric bill (actually looked it up on the web) and built a simple spreadsheet which I exported to HTML to record the values mesured by the Kill-A-Watt.

I attached a link to the dynamic version of the spreadsheet below. If you would like a copy of the spreadsheet or would like to borrow the Kill-A-Watt meter, please PM me with your email address.

Dynamic Spreadsheet - Reef Tank Electricity Costs (only works with Internet Explorer w/SP1)

ostrow · 03/12/2007, 07:09 PM

Holy Calculations, Phil!

mhurley · 03/12/2007, 07:26 PM

Very well done!!!

I realized how little it actually cost me when I decided to go FOWLR and tear out my halides and reactors...I expected a huge drop in my electric bill. I had 4x400 halides...so they cost me $33 a month to run...No I have 216 watts of T5's instead, costing me $4.50...In the grand scheme of things, that $28 is meaningless in my large system.

If you're wanting this as a generic tool for everyone, might want to add a chiller to this sheet.

ppurcell · 03/12/2007, 07:30 PM

Thanks, Mike.

Actually, the spreadsheet is designed so you can put in any device you want. If you can measure the watts it consumes and make a reasonable estimate about the duration, then you can use it for what ever equipment happens to be installed in your system.

Like you, I pretty much implicitly believed that every pump and every light in my system was siphoning money out of my wallet faster than a 2" pipe would drain my tank. The truth is that while the monthly electric bill ain't cheap, it doesn't even account for a substantial percentage of the overall bill.

Another thing you will notice is that almost every device (except the heaters and lights) draw considerably fewer watts than the device is rated for.

jdhanover · 03/12/2007, 07:39 PM

Would like the spreadsheet but cannot open it (says i need some XP web components, but the download fails). Can you send it via e-mail? PM me and i'll let you know to where. Thanks!!!

VikeBron · 03/12/2007, 07:52 PM

How cool. Could you send it to me. Of course I will not show it to the wifey poo when finished but at least I will know.
Thanks

vikebron21@aol.com

PSam · 03/12/2007, 08:37 PM

PM sent.. nice work!

kimha · 03/12/2007, 10:02 PM

Oh my goodness.

I hope my wife would never see this spreadsheet. She has been wondering why our E-bill is so high. I told her Electric cost has gone up the roof just like gasoline price

Kmiec123 · 03/12/2007, 10:12 PM

Very cool, nice work P

ppurcell · 03/13/2007, 06:33 AM

Thanks guys, let me know if anyone wants to buy or borrow a kill-a-watt. I ended up with two after I misplaced one for a couple of weeks and bought a second one. Of course, I found the missing meter just as I was testing the last couple of devices on my list.

I'm finding the different responses about whether to show the wife or not almost as interesting as it was to do the spreadsheet.

The first thing I did after finishing this project (even before sharing it on RC) was to show my wife that my tank is only responsible for about $50 on the monthly electric bill. She was convinced that it was costing over $100-$125 per month. So the pressure is off now.

Hopefully, she will never try to figure out how much I spend at Starbucks... ($3.60x365=WHAT?)

ataylo13 · 03/13/2007, 09:03 AM

Excellent work!!

pscheel · 03/13/2007, 10:08 AM

Can you send me the spreadsheet? Thanks.

ppurcell · 03/13/2007, 10:10 AM

I'd be happy to, but I can't send it if you don't tell me where to...

pscheel · 03/13/2007, 10:12 AM

Oops. petescheel@sbcglobal.net.

mhurley · 03/13/2007, 10:34 AM

Ummm.....Did Phil's embedded JPG just freak out for anyone else?

ppurcell · 03/13/2007, 10:48 AM

Are the colors all blurred and the words all garbled? That has happened to me a couple of times on my Opera browser, doesn't seem to happen when I'm using the IE browser. I think it may be WideOpenWest having a problem though, so I put this copy on Photobucket to see if it is better:

mhurley · 03/13/2007, 10:53 AM

Here's what I'm seeing in Firefox (for Mac)...odd thing was that It worked originally yesterday when I was posting my comments to you, so I thought you may have inadvertently replaced the original JPG or something.

mhurley · 03/13/2007, 10:54 AM

BTW, that pic I posted is what I see of your first post...your latest one from photobucket looks fine.

ppurcell · 03/13/2007, 10:55 AM

What I get in Opera is similar to what you posted. The file hasn't changed. I'm pretty sure the problem is with my ISP or the browser.

BTW, nice job on capturing my post count there. Too bad there aren't any devilish smileys on RC.

Kmiec123 · 03/13/2007, 03:41 PM

"Take them to the Iron Maiden." "Excellent!"

ppurcell · 03/13/2007, 06:39 PM

Here is a link to an on-line version of the file which you can use to update with your own settings or download a version that nobody else is modifying!

Thanks to mnestroy for the pointer to Google Docs

Reef Electric Cost Calculator

ppurcell · 03/13/2007, 06:46 PM

deleted. posted to wrong thread.

03/12/2007, 07:06 PM	#1
ppurcell Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Naperville, IL Posts: 2,911	Ever Wonder What It Costs To Run A Reef Tank? If you are like me, you are under constant pressure from the Chief Financial Officer because the electric bill is sky high. Because of this pressure and to satisfy my own curiosity I have been wondering what I spend on a monthly basis to run my reef tank. Until I purchased and used the Kill A Watt I never really knew what each device that I rely on costs me to run per day, per month or year. I pulled the cost per kilowatt hour from my electric bill (actually looked it up on the web) and built a simple spreadsheet which I exported to HTML to record the values mesured by the Kill-A-Watt. I attached a link to the dynamic version of the spreadsheet below. If you would like a copy of the spreadsheet or would like to borrow the Kill-A-Watt meter, please PM me with your email address. Dynamic Spreadsheet - Reef Tank Electricity Costs (only works with Internet Explorer w/SP1) Last edited by ppurcell; 03/12/2007 at 07:42 PM.

03/12/2007, 07:09 PM	#2
ostrow It's Dr. Goodluck Himself Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Oak Park, IL Posts: 11,654	Holy Calculations, Phil! __________________ It's the return of Dr. Goodluck Himself. fml! Current Tank Info: 156G "brick", 150 sump and 75 fuge replaces Fire, Destruction, Sad :(

03/12/2007, 07:26 PM	#3
mhurley RC Staff Join Date: Oct 1999 Location: Illinois'ish Posts: 38,805	Very well done!!! I realized how little it actually cost me when I decided to go FOWLR and tear out my halides and reactors...I expected a huge drop in my electric bill. I had 4x400 halides...so they cost me $33 a month to run...No I have 216 watts of T5's instead, costing me $4.50...In the grand scheme of things, that $28 is meaningless in my large system. If you're wanting this as a generic tool for everyone, might want to add a chiller to this sheet. __________________ Mike Current Tank Info: 60G Cube

03/12/2007, 07:30 PM	#4
ppurcell Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Naperville, IL Posts: 2,911	Thanks, Mike. Actually, the spreadsheet is designed so you can put in any device you want. If you can measure the watts it consumes and make a reasonable estimate about the duration, then you can use it for what ever equipment happens to be installed in your system. Like you, I pretty much implicitly believed that every pump and every light in my system was siphoning money out of my wallet faster than a 2" pipe would drain my tank. The truth is that while the monthly electric bill ain't cheap, it doesn't even account for a substantial percentage of the overall bill. Another thing you will notice is that almost every device (except the heaters and lights) draw considerably fewer watts than the device is rated for. Last edited by ppurcell; 03/12/2007 at 07:38 PM.

03/12/2007, 07:39 PM	#5
jdhanover Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Chicago Suburbs North Posts: 805	Would like the spreadsheet but cannot open it (says i need some XP web components, but the download fails). Can you send it via e-mail? PM me and i'll let you know to where. Thanks!!! __________________ Regards, Jon Current Tank Info: JBJ Nano 28g for sale along with other stuff

03/12/2007, 07:52 PM	#6
VikeBron Premium Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1,826	How cool. Could you send it to me. Of course I will not show it to the wifey poo when finished but at least I will know. Thanks vikebron21@aol.com __________________ Steve "BETTER TO BE JUDGED BY 12 THAN CARRIED BY 6" Current Tank Info: 180 Cube, 65 Red Sea Max

03/12/2007, 08:37 PM	#7
PSam Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Chicago Posts: 3,036	PM sent.. nice work! __________________ ..no vemos las cosas como son las vemos como somos nosotros...

03/12/2007, 10:02 PM	#8
kimha Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Aliso Viejo, CA Posts: 787	Oh my goodness. I hope my wife would never see this spreadsheet. She has been wondering why our E-bill is so high. I told her Electric cost has gone up the roof just like gasoline price

03/12/2007, 10:12 PM	#9
Kmiec123 Actual CMAS Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: NW Side Chicago Posts: 2,743 Blog Entries: 1	Very cool, nice work P __________________ Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground. Current Tank Info: All-Glass 120 Gal #12348 W/ Dual overflow 48x24x24. Dual 400w MH with VHO atintic. Rod's sump design with old Euro reef skimmer Wife's tank 55 Gal w/cylone Bio-filter #cy194 w/ Sendra 3500 on Skimmer. Korella's for flow.

03/13/2007, 06:33 AM	#10
ppurcell Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Naperville, IL Posts: 2,911	Thanks guys, let me know if anyone wants to buy or borrow a kill-a-watt. I ended up with two after I misplaced one for a couple of weeks and bought a second one. Of course, I found the missing meter just as I was testing the last couple of devices on my list. I'm finding the different responses about whether to show the wife or not almost as interesting as it was to do the spreadsheet. The first thing I did after finishing this project (even before sharing it on RC) was to show my wife that my tank is only responsible for about $50 on the monthly electric bill. She was convinced that it was costing over $100-$125 per month. So the pressure is off now. Hopefully, she will never try to figure out how much I spend at Starbucks... ($3.60x365=WHAT?)

03/13/2007, 09:03 AM	#11
ataylo13 habitual line stepper Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 1,041	Excellent work!!

03/13/2007, 10:08 AM	#12
pscheel Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2000 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 889	Can you send me the spreadsheet? Thanks. __________________ Pete Current Tank Info: 90 Gallon

03/13/2007, 10:10 AM	#13
ppurcell Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Naperville, IL Posts: 2,911	I'd be happy to, but I can't send it if you don't tell me where to...

03/13/2007, 10:12 AM	#14
pscheel Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2000 Location: Chicago, IL Posts: 889	Oops. petescheel@sbcglobal.net. __________________ Pete Current Tank Info: 90 Gallon

03/13/2007, 10:34 AM	#15
mhurley RC Staff Join Date: Oct 1999 Location: Illinois'ish Posts: 38,805	Ummm.....Did Phil's embedded JPG just freak out for anyone else? __________________ Mike Current Tank Info: 60G Cube

03/13/2007, 10:48 AM	#16
ppurcell Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Naperville, IL Posts: 2,911	Are the colors all blurred and the words all garbled? That has happened to me a couple of times on my Opera browser, doesn't seem to happen when I'm using the IE browser. I think it may be WideOpenWest having a problem though, so I put this copy on Photobucket to see if it is better:

03/13/2007, 10:53 AM	#17
mhurley RC Staff Join Date: Oct 1999 Location: Illinois'ish Posts: 38,805	Here's what I'm seeing in Firefox (for Mac)...odd thing was that It worked originally yesterday when I was posting my comments to you, so I thought you may have inadvertently replaced the original JPG or something. __________________ Mike Current Tank Info: 60G Cube

03/13/2007, 10:54 AM	#18
mhurley RC Staff Join Date: Oct 1999 Location: Illinois'ish Posts: 38,805	BTW, that pic I posted is what I see of your first post...your latest one from photobucket looks fine. __________________ Mike Current Tank Info: 60G Cube

03/13/2007, 10:55 AM	#19
ppurcell Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Naperville, IL Posts: 2,911	What I get in Opera is similar to what you posted. The file hasn't changed. I'm pretty sure the problem is with my ISP or the browser. BTW, nice job on capturing my post count there. Too bad there aren't any devilish smileys on RC. Last edited by ppurcell; 03/13/2007 at 11:00 AM.

03/13/2007, 03:41 PM	#20
Kmiec123 Actual CMAS Member Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: NW Side Chicago Posts: 2,743 Blog Entries: 1	"Take them to the Iron Maiden." "Excellent!" __________________ Today's mighty oak is just yesterday's nut that held its ground. Current Tank Info: All-Glass 120 Gal #12348 W/ Dual overflow 48x24x24. Dual 400w MH with VHO atintic. Rod's sump design with old Euro reef skimmer Wife's tank 55 Gal w/cylone Bio-filter #cy194 w/ Sendra 3500 on Skimmer. Korella's for flow.

03/13/2007, 06:39 PM	#21
ppurcell Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Naperville, IL Posts: 2,911	Here is a link to an on-line version of the file which you can use to update with your own settings or download a version that nobody else is modifying! Thanks to mnestroy for the pointer to Google Docs Reef Electric Cost Calculator

03/13/2007, 06:46 PM	#22
ppurcell Registered Member Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Naperville, IL Posts: 2,911	deleted. posted to wrong thread.