Timers are expensive!

1/3W used for 24 hours a day -> per day = 8W
used 30 days a month = 240Wh (Watt hours)

1kWh (=1000Wh) = 15 cents here = ~4 cents to run the timer the whole month.

I think there might be a little error in your calculation
 
I don't understand. My timer control - which runs multiple lights - uses 2.5 watts. Running constantly, 2.5 W x 24 hours per day = 60 watt-hours per day x 30 days per month = 1800 watt-hours per month or 1.8 kilowatt hours per month. Our total electrical cost is $0.067 per kilowatt-hour x 1.8 kilowatt hours for the controller = $0.1206 or just over 12 cents a month. You power may be higher than ours, but I find it hard to believe that it is 100 times more expensive. Could you have miscalculated?
 
RTR said:
I don't understand. My timer control - which runs multiple lights - uses 2.5 watts. Running constantly, 2.5 W x 24 hours per day = 60 watt-hours per day x 30 days per month = 1800 watt-hours per month or 1.8 kilowatt hours per month. Our total electrical cost is $0.067 per kilowatt-hour x 1.8 kilowatt hours for the controller = $0.1206 or just over 12 cents a month. You power may be higher than ours, but I find it hard to believe that it is 100 times more expensive. Could you have miscalculated?
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What type of timer do you have? Is it a digital one? I was at the store today and I looked at 3 different types. They all had 1/3 hp motors. None of the digital ones had ratings for how much power they use.
 
joephys said:
oops, Its not a 1/3 watt, its 1/3 hp which is 250 watts

.25 KW x 24 hr x 30 days x $.086 /kwh = $15
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:eek: 250 watts for a timer!!! :thud: I think you should check into a new one if it's using that much energy. I have one(not digital), I haven't measured how much energy it's using, but I doubt it adds up to $15 a month!
 
What sort of timer did you buy? I didn't know it was possible for a timer to use that much energy (at least the type of timers I assume we are talking about). I've never paid attention to how much electricity mine use, since it is pretty insignificant.
 
Every single one I have looked at uses that much power. They are the timers that have the little wheels with a 24 hour clock that turn around and turn on and off at the set times.

I was supprised too. Some don't list the power that they use but all the ones that do have been 1/3 hp. I would be willing to bet that everyone elses uses the same amount of power too.
 
1/3 hp...not possible (well, actually, anything is possible with a short circuit, said purely tongue-in-cheek).

Digital timers are tops. No real energy consumption until they kick over the switching to turn the plugged-in equipment on or off. Most use AA or AAA batteries (singly) for backup power, and they can run a long time on just that.

The new GE Grasslin timers use a NiMH integrated cell for backup power.

I think you are way off on your electricity costs. It's not as bad as you think it is!

If your timer truly is using 250W just to run itself w/ no load, you would know it intuitively...it would be uncomfortably hot to the touch, and would have deformed or melted plastic parts (i.e., it would be malfunctioning).

If it is really hot to the touch, you need to get unplug it and get rid of it...it's a fire hazard.

v/r, N-A
 
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