which is cheaper? Gas or Electricity?

Reds-on-Sea · 9 July 2008 at 1:09PM

hiya,

Bit of a random query, but just one of those things that pops up from time to time and gets me thinking.

What is cheaper? Gas or Electricity?

It came up in conversation last night cooking dinner... OH uses the kettle to boil water for a pan of pasta, claiming that it's more economical. I found it very strange to begin with, it had never occurred to me to do that (probably because my mum had never done it), anyways, I agreed it makes sense as we had an electric hob, but we've recently bought a gas hob, and for some reason, I believe that heating the water on the hob is more economical...

can someone answer my problem? Or thoughts and opinions at least

I agree it takes a finite amount of energy to heat 1 litre of water, but which is cheaper, and is there that much loss of energy, say out of the sides of the saucepan etc?

thanks - we eat lots of pasta and over a life time this could potentially save me a lot of money hehe!

Tozer · 9 July 2008 at 1:14PM

Doesn't it depend on the application? Kettles are designed purely to boil water so are more efficient than a hob with a saucepan on it.

As for gas or electric hobs, really not sure which is more cost-effective for the job!

mech_2 · 9 July 2008 at 1:48PM

I have gas hobs. In winter I'd always use the hob, as gas is cheaper than electricity per kWh and any heat not going into the saucepan just helps warm the house a bit (which I heat with gas), so it's not really wasted.

In summer I use the kettle (if I remember to) as it's probably more efficient as the house doesn't need heating, so any waste heat really is wasted. Also, my kettle is faster and that clinches it for me.

samtheman1k · 9 July 2008 at 3:09PM

Gas is around 2-3 times cheaper per KwH, and thus, litre for litre, gas is cheaper to heat water. Thus, it all comes down to the heat losses from a kettle compared with a stove...

Tozer · 9 July 2008 at 7:01PM

samtheman1k wrote: »

Gas is around 2-3 times cheaper per KwH, and thus, litre for litre, gas is cheaper to heat water. Thus, it all comes down to the heat losses from a kettle compared with a stove...

Its more to do with efficiency than cost in my view. A kettle has a submersed element which has direct contact with the water. A hob wastes energy by heating the surrounding air and in respect of the metal saucepan (which will have a specific heat capacity).

How long does it take to boil a kettle compared to a saucepan?

Tozer · 9 July 2008 at 7:03PM

Oh just found this:

http://timesonline.typepad.com/eco_worrier/2006/10/kettle_versus_h.html

Kettle wins.

Reds-on-Sea · 9 July 2008 at 8:22PM

good one Tozer, that's the kind of in-depth explanation I like to see - with proof! hehe! If I could thank you twice, I would

Reds-on-Sea · 9 July 2008 at 8:24PM

hmmm.. it tell sme that the kettle wins on efficiency, but does it tell me which actually works out cheaper?

samtheman1k · 9 July 2008 at 9:15PM

The price is hidden in the figures, a kettle uses 0.061 kWh of electricity which will cost around 0.061*8p/kwh = 0.488p whereas the hob uses 0.200 kWh*3.5p/kwh = 0.7p (assuming electricity costs 8p/kwh and gas costs 3.5p/kwh), so the kettle wins!

Reds-on-Sea · 9 July 2008 at 9:23PM

damn, that means that my boyfriend totally wins that argument! :P

I shall boil my pasta water forever more!

Cardew · 9 July 2008 at 10:09PM

samtheman1k wrote: »

The price is hidden in the figures, a kettle uses 0.061 kWh of electricity which will cost around 0.061*8p/kwh = 0.488p whereas the hob uses 0.200 kWh*3.5p/kwh = 0.7p (assuming electricity costs 8p/kwh and gas costs 3.5p/kwh), so the kettle wins!

Sam,
I would suggest those prices are atypical for most of us. Electricity at 8p/kWh is cheaper than average and gas at 3.5p/kWh is more expensive than average.

The conclusion is that the difference would be considerably less than the 0.212pence you calculate!!

Even so, and taking your figures, the savings for the average household will be measured in pence per year.

which is cheaper? Gas or Electricity?

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