Electric bill scyrockets!!!

[AndThenSome09]

Looking over my electric bills over the past year they have actually DOUBLED since I got my 3D Printer!! I didn't think it would be that noticeable but wow it is! Granted it has been colder and we have pulled out the electric heater as well so it can't be all just the 3d printer now that I think about it but still it is a lot! Has anyone else noticed a big change in their electric bill since they got their Max built? Could anything be done to lower the printers consumption? I was quite shocked when I opened the bill.

Thanks guys! Happy Printing!!

[Eaglezsoar]

I have also noticed an increase in the electric bill. You asked what can be done to lower the printers consumption and there can only be one answer, don't use it as much.
I know that you didn't want to hear that but it is the only way.

[Christian79]

LOL its not your printer……
1) Assuming you have the 450W power supply which is .450kW
2) Assuming you ran the printer balls to the wall full speed with the heat at 100% consuming the full .450kW (which you are not doing, I promise!)
3) Assuming you ran the printer 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year (8760 hours)…….
4) Finally assuming that you pay around $.10/kWh for your electricity which is a bit high in the states….

You have………. .450 * 8760 * .10 = $394.2/year to run the printer balls out……..

It is NOT your printer causing your bill to double……. However if you are like most of us I bet you are now in the room with the printer with several lights turned on to watch it along with at least one if not two computers….. now that can start to add up….

[Eric]

Not 450 watts. But it is probably somewhere in the 120-200 watt range, or an extra 3-5 kW per day if run 24/7. In my case, my normal usage is only 8 kW/day (gas appliances, so that's mainly refrigerator/computers/lights), so that would be easy to notice. Yes, I know I'm not a typical household...just me, and the only old-school bulbs still in use are over the bathroom sink. For a larger household, especially one that uses electric heat, it's a drop in the bucket.

[Woolf]

My profession is electrician and I have the right instrument to measure the actual watt range. After the dinner ( maybe I drink a coffee but this is 10minutes ) I go to my car and i take the instrument then I make a measure with 90° heated bet and 220° Hotend and printing.

[Woolf]

so and here the result, measure with a 3000$ instrument

idle
17.50 watt

Heating UP ( HotEnd and bed )
182 watt

hold the temperature
70 watt

printing

from 50 watt to 120 watt.

the printer has a really good power consumption.

[geneb]

There's a thread around here somewhere where I posted photos of my Kill-a-Watt showing the consumption of the machine. Chances are your desktop machine draws more power than the printer does when running. (Especially when gaming.)

g.

[Eaglezsoar]

LOL its not your printer……
1) Assuming you have the 450W power supply which is .450kW
2) Assuming you ran the printer balls to the wall full speed with the heat at 100% consuming the full .450kW (which you are not doing, I promise!)
3) Assuming you ran the printer 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year (8760 hours)…….
4) Finally assuming that you pay around $.10/kWh for your electricity which is a bit high in the states….

You have………. .450 * 8760 * .10 = $394.2/year to run the printer balls out……..

It is NOT your printer causing your bill to double……. However if you are like most of us I bet you are now in the room with the printer with several lights turned on to watch it along with at least one if not two computers….. now that can start to add up….

I think Christian79 has the best answer. You are not in a room with just a printer, as he states you have the lights on, maybe a second printer, computers, etc.
I must live in the wrong part of the country, I pay .14/kwh in Columbiana, Ohio because they buy the electricity wholesale and resell it to the community at a profit. One of the highest
electric rates in the country but I still use my printers.

[nathanstenzel]

I have also noticed an increase in the electric bill. You asked what can be done to lower the printers consumption and there can only be one answer, don't use it as much.
I know that you didn't want to hear that but it is the only way.

I may be wrong, but I imagine that using an enclosure can actually decrease the amount of electricity used. It will not be much of a difference for the electric bill, but it should make a bigger difference in print quality.

I really want to try out the encloser that I saw seemecnc repost on facebook. I don't remember who did it and it is not a perfect enclosure, but it is surely better than my less than 1 foot of aluminum foil around the base of my rostock max.

[Eaglezsoar]

I have also noticed an increase in the electric bill. You asked what can be done to lower the printers consumption and there can only be one answer, don't use it as much.
I know that you didn't want to hear that but it is the only way.

I may be wrong, but I imagine that using an enclosure can actually decrease the amount of electricity used. It will not be much of a difference for the electric bill, but it should make a bigger difference in print quality.

I really want to try out the encloser that I saw seemecnc repost on facebook. I don't remember who did it and it is not a perfect enclosure, but it is surely better than my less than 1 foot of aluminum foil around the base of my rostock max.

That enclosure was done by bubbasnow and is here: http://forum.seemecnc.com/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=3885" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[bubbasnow]

my design wasent to keep heat in, but instead to keep cold air out. you could always do something similar and use http://www.lowes.com/pd_15358-46086-451 ... facetInfo= insted of the plexiglass

[AndThenSome09]

Yeah, well it looks like it is time for me to investigate my light bill further because there is no reason my bill should go from like 550 kw or whatever it is to well over a thousand in one month! Something is drawing way more power than it is supposed to I suspect. Its probably the space heater with the broken knob where you would be able to choose low, med, or high. Ill probably never figure it out though, lol. I know my computer with three monitors draws a lot of power but that has always been on all the time so it has to be something that we have just started using. oh well, good to know how much power my Max actually draws though.

[Eaglezsoar]

Yeah, well it looks like it is time for me to investigate my light bill further because there is no reason my bill should go from like 550 kw or whatever it is to well over a thousand in one month! Something is drawing way more power than it is supposed to I suspect. Its probably the space heater with the broken knob where you would be able to choose low, med, or high. Ill probably never figure it out though, lol. I know my computer with three monitors draws a lot of power but that has always been on all the time so it has to be something that we have just started using. oh well, good to know how much power my Max actually draws though.

If you use that space heater a lot, that could be a significant part of the increased kwh on your bill. Those things can really increase your electric usage if used a lot.

[barry99705]

I used to work in an office that had half a dozen of those electrical house incinerators running. The breaker box actually got warm in the winter with them running. We had the heat up to 74 on the cold days, but the chicks all were too cold. I had to replace the front desk computer because her heater blew directly into the front of it. The front thermostat for the office was behind her, so she couldn't turn it around, or it actually got cold in there. It would probably be cheaper to just kick the heat up a couple degrees.

[Eaglezsoar]

I used to work in an office that had half a dozen of those electrical house incinerators running. The breaker box actually got warm in the winter with them running. We had the heat up to 74 on the cold days, but the chicks all were too cold. I had to replace the front desk computer because her heater blew directly into the front of it. The front thermostat for the office was behind her, so she couldn't turn it around, or it actually got cold in there. It would probably be cheaper to just kick the heat up a couple degrees.

Every place I've ever worked the women in the office were always cold and they had those little space heaters. One office must have had 20 space heaters all going at once, I'm glad I didn't have to pay that electric bill.

[barry99705]

I used to work in an office that had half a dozen of those electrical house incinerators running. The breaker box actually got warm in the winter with them running. We had the heat up to 74 on the cold days, but the chicks all were too cold. I had to replace the front desk computer because her heater blew directly into the front of it. The front thermostat for the office was behind her, so she couldn't turn it around, or it actually got cold in there. It would probably be cheaper to just kick the heat up a couple degrees.

Every place I've ever worked the women in the office were always cold and they had those little space heaters. One office must have had 20 space heaters all going at once, I'm glad I didn't have to pay that electric bill.

Yea, that sounds about right. HR frowns on you calling them wussies too.