58 replies to this topic

[posiedon]

Ok i have a few small tanks a main 4fter and a couple of smaller 2fts for breeding, and my power bill rised quite considerably... I average around 25 units a day now i see theres alot of people here who have tonnes of tanks and much bigger than 4ft. How the hell do you afford it?

I've looked into solar panels but for what i can afford it wouldnt make a dent in my consumption. I really would like to have alot more tanks. Marine, Tankbuster/exotics, Planted but just yeh....

Whats your secret?

[werdna]

The secret is not to look at the power bill!

[bubblesbaby]

How much are your power bills guys,as we havent had a bill yet since getting heaps more tanks,so seriously starting to worry!!! we just got an 8 ft too,

[keenas]

I agree with Andrew Close your eyes and hope it goes away.

I guess we all can look forward to summer tho and saving some $$$$$

[posiedon]

But i want more tanks

Wanna get a nice 8x2x3 or 6x2x3 and breed exotics.........And power is only set to rise:(

[Scat]

I spend $70 per week on my power consumption.

Cheers
Craig

[Fox]

Pay your bills off!!!

I pay $35 a week and when the bill comes I'm always in front. Or its only around $50 I have to pay.
I run 2 6ft's and a shed full of tanks and it costs me around $250.

[Angelo]

If I have any $$ left after my weekly expenses I transfer those funds to my power bill account, synergy encourages this method aswell and it works for me.

[dazzabozza]

I've been sitting around $600 per billing cycle (60 days) this time of year.

[Cawdor]

29 units per day. $370 last bill for 2 months.
I run 6 tanks: 8 canisters, 1 large airpump, 6 heaters. Got one computer running 24/7. I do have gas so hot water, cooking and heating is using gas.

[Ricksta]

i live on a farm so any power i consume is payed for by the farm

[scottyhooton]

run sponges, heaps of em on 1 or 2 large air pumps (instead of power filters ect ) insulate your tanks , plus bigger tanks stay warmer longer - lights are a big one too- try putting low watt tubes in ( i find the fish dont care and they preffer a dimmer light) ....... i could go on but in the end your bill will still be high . I have wonderd about the possabilty of putting a solar panel on the shed roof just to run the tanks, surely it wouldn't have to b a big one .. any how something for those who run alot of tanks to think about .

Any input guys ?

Scott

[Sazabi]

Ways to save on your bills:

1) Switch off any appliances that have a stand-by mode at the wall socket - save $164 per year
2) Replace the 10 most used down-lights or incandescent globes with energy-efficient alternatives - save $53 per year
3) Install window furnishings to improve efficiency of heating or cooling - save $26 per year
4) Limit showering to 4 minutes - save $41 per year
5) Upgrade car to fuel efficient vehicle - save $585 per year
6)Replace the old electric or gas storage hot water heater with a solar hot water system - save $260 per year
7) Install at least 1kW of solar electricity panels on your house - save $161 per year
8) Downsize and upgrade your house to a more affordable and sustainable option - save $1556 per year
9) Avoid one international or interstate trip - save $600 a year
10) Increase the use of natural light and turn lights off when not needed - save $46 per year

more info on www.daysofchange.org

[bubblesbaby]

great points,thx

[Mike]

I average around 20- 25 units a day. Remember 1 unit is 1kw/h. I managed to reduce it from 40 units just by changing a few usage habits. Still want it to come down more. During Summer my average was 35 units a day , thats with a 14kw reverse cycle air con and a 6000ltr swim spa heated to 37c every daywith a 4kw heater and 2x 2kw pumps driving it for about 2 hrs a night.

Scott you could do it just for the tanks. Run all tanks on 12v or 24v systems (heaters, lights, filters etc) off a battery bank. 240v would require an inverter of some sort, maybe a car inverter. Wont be very efficient though. Takes a lot of 12/24v power to convert to 240v. You would have to add up all of the things you are hooking up to get an idea on how much you are consuming, eg 300w heater, 35w cannister, 100w of lights etc. Normally 1 solar panel has a max output of 170w, which it will rarely achieve due to cloud, sun position, heat among other things.

Or bite the bullet and get them on the house do it can do the whole lot. You can pick em up pretty cheap now. Just watch out for the chinese stuff. It is not as efficient as the Euro or Aussie stuff out there. If you do get something make sure its around 1.5kw to make it worthwhile. More if you can afford it.

Sazabi makes a good point. Doing them will save $$$. Changing you habits on power can decrease the bill considerably.

https://www.synergy....tion_tips.xhtml
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https://www.synergy....ppliances.xhtml

Add up your tanks power consumption, it costs bugger all to run them. The heater isnt on all the time. May only cycle a few times an hour for a few mins, then its off.

As I said in another thread, I have a 1.5kw system on my roof. Have seen a vast improvement in my bill already. Once the feed in tarrif increases on July 1st I will save even more.

HTH

[werdna]

If I have any $$ left after my weekly expenses I transfer those funds to my power bill account, synergy encourages this method aswell and it works for me.

I encourage this method as well, so if I send you my bsb and acc no can you transfer your left over money into my account instead?

[Cawdor]

One thing I noticed that made a difference is changing the time the aquarium lights are on.
I have one timer for all aquarium lights that turns them on when I come home from work and turns them off when I go to bed. On weekends they come on about lunch time.

Before that they all used to come on in the morning, every day.

[angelbaby]

Thank god I was given this thread thanks Cawdor.
I am totally freaking out about my latest power bill at over $700.
I have 15 tanks running mostly 300w heaters.
I have to sell some tanks!

I have done almost all of those suggestions and have been heavily persuing information on solar panels.
The only way it would do any denting is if its a 5kw system, then power feeding back into the grid will actually be an income.
Have to try and get a loan for one though. Shame i didnt know while Garrett had the interest free green loan, just a matter of working out if the repayments on a 20 grand system per month as well as the mortgage repayments now the bloody interest rises. will be a saving or just more money to try and find. if it knocks out the energy bill all together, then it would be a saving. The energy bill is adding up to around $4000 a year!!!!! and i may have to sell my motorcycle.
I am leaving more than half my tanks lights off now.

I am wondering...now this I would REALLY like to know...
If you heated your house with the rev cyc air con at 23C -20C day and night , and turned all the tank heaters down- they wont be on as much if the outside air is warmer right? would that be cheaper? I dont think the air con uses as much as the tank heaters. I have tanks all over the house!
Anyone know?

I think it would be best (if i had a shed) to get 3 tiered setups and run one heater and one pump.
I am about to do this in the theatre room and will be needing to sell about 3 tanks and unfortunately some fish, which sucks cos im addicted and am always seeking more tanks. people who visit, freak.. if you saw my living room, we ran out of wall space and had to put them into the middle as well.lol

I will need help in setting up my 3 tier tank piping and sump situation...if anyone can. Never done one before and the tanks are V shape, the stand is made, just finishing it off now to put tanks in, cos i need them...I have angels! bloody unsociable lot, always needing their own tank.
Thanks

and doesnt it suck? I would love to live off solar power and not worry. This kills us unemployed!

[Cawdor]

If you heated your house with the rev cyc air con at 23C -20C day and night , and turned all the tank heaters down- they wont be on as much if the outside air is warmer right? would that be cheaper? I dont think the air con uses as much as the tank heaters. I have tanks all over the house!

It really depends on the power consumption of your AC and the location of your tanks.

If they were mostly in one spot, you could just heat that room with reverse cycle AC. But if they are all over the place, I would assume that using the AC to heat the house up would be costlier than using heaters in tanks. My reasoning:

- water retains heat longer than air. Once heated up to a certain temp, the tanks will remain at that temp longer than the room without the need for heating
- with the AC you are heating your entire house, even in areas that do not have tanks

little things to save energy would be to use lids on tanks to stop heat escaping, switching off lights on tanks. Actually I think lighting uses more energy than heating, because when you think about it, the heaters do not run constantly, only on and off. Whereas lights are on constantly and use power accordingly.

[angelbaby]

I have tanks in every room. I have a dual zone AC night and day. If I took all the tanks out of the bedrooms, or sold them and just heated the 3 living areas. That would be 10-11 tanks being heated. I have plants in tanks, so I would only light those 3 tanks, and maybe reduce the time to 4 hours. Perhaps the fish could acclimatize to a 2 degree reduction? by turning heaters down?
I've turned the spa off.
replaced all the 30w downlights with none or 15w. bedroom halogen type lights changed to power savers.
Alot of windows in house, so have put curtains up and the blinds as well.
Our water heating is gas, so the 700 bill is not including showers etc.

I am testing things today, i have the air con on 22c, and ive noticed most of the tank heater lights are off, that is very encouraging as the red light is often on usually.(cold house, lots of tiles)

and im selling all my small tanks minus a medic tank. keeping the 6ft, 5 ft, and 3 tier setup. along with a 230l and 2 x 310l.