gas vs electricity

macman

If you have mains gas, it's a no-brainer.

redkoatz

so whats these heat pumps you say? they would mean i can heat cheaper than radiators powered by gas? if electricity running a heat pump is 200% efficient, wouldn't that mean at 15 p kwh I would actually be paying the equivelant of 7.5. well gas is still cheaper as its just under 5 kwh? also i would have to buy the heat pump too. It seems to me that still radiators running on gas would be cheaper, or am I missing something? Although I have to say I see where you are coming from to a point. I can get a slow cooker, which is powered by electricity, not gas. And going by the wattage of these and the length of time you have to run them for, it seems that you are still paying a third of the amount of money as you would for an electric oven, i'm not too sure how a slow cooker compares to a gas oven though, but I do see your point.

macman

Forget how you cook: what matters is how you heat and hot water the property, because that's where maybe 80% of the expenditure goes.

Pincher

James May, do a BBC 2 /Open University program on this, PLEASE.

redkoatz

macman wrote: »

Forget how you cook: what matters is how you heat and hot water the property, because that's where maybe 80% of the expenditure goes.

really?
I read somewhere that the electric oven is the single largest energy user in the home.
Also I live in an apartment block high up, that receives a large amount of heat from all the apartments underneath me, plus I never feel cold anyway, I am used to working out doors in the winter and have no difficulty in the cold. There's like 1-2 months a year where I actually use heating. Seriously.
but I cook 12 months a year.

pvt

redkoatz wrote: »

so whats these heat pumps you say?

Googling "heat pump boiler" yields a veritable cornucopia of information.

For example here's Worcester Bosch's offerings, but there's many many more.

http://www.worcester-bosch.co.uk/homeowner/heat-pumps/air-to-water-heat-pumps

Their 9.5kW pump will apparently give you 9.5kW output for about 3kW input.

From the description of where you live, for heating a standard air-to-air heatpump might be simpler. And these usually have the benefit of being reversible to use for air-conditioning in the summer - though if you're looking to save money, that's probably not a helpful observation.

Cardew

pvt wrote: »

Their 9.5kW pump will apparently give you 9.5kW output for about 3kW input.

.

My car apparently will do 52 mpg!


There is a mass of information even on MSE about Heat pumps and you need to read the trials in the Energy Saving Trust.


Oh yes and be prepared to pay up to £10,000 for a system with absolutely no guarantee of performance.

Chipesh

redkoatz wrote: »

really?
I read somewhere that the electric oven is the single largest energy user in the home.
Also I live in an apartment block high up, that receives a large amount of heat from all the apartments underneath me, plus I never feel cold anyway, I am used to working out doors in the winter and have no difficulty in the cold. There's like 1-2 months a year where I actually use heating. Seriously.
but I cook 12 months a year.

In terms of power electric cookers and electric showers are the big users, that's why they need fatter cables !

But energy use paid for is power by time, hence kilowatt-hour.

A high power shower doesn't cost much if you're only in a few minutes.

For most homes heating is the big cost. That's why actual energy use falls in summer.
( there are other thing like water being warmer as well so washers, showers and even kettles use less!)

That for typical use.

Bob

macman

Heating and hot water account for the vast majority of energy consumption in the home.
Not TV's, routers or hair straighteners, as is often believed on here.

redkoatz

Well 10 k for installation is very expensive and the information on output seems a bit sketchy. This might sound daft, but if these heaters work by extracting heat from the air (or ground) I imagine if everyone had one, when you entered a city there would just be an awesome chill to the air, or in the case of the ground which would be cold and the plants are dying LOL Might be on to something here though for directly combating the symptoms of global warming, instead of the cause.