Romeo Posted August 24, 2008 Report Share Posted August 24, 2008 Gidday, My GF's got a couple of goldfish and a few snails in a 30*20*20 tank with about 10 litres in it. We recently setup a MasterPet 50w heater in there to keep the fish a little bit more active and happy. The water's at a constant 15/16°c and it runs 24/7. So far it's worked a treat... BUT, at what cost! How much power do you estimate this is using monthly? If it's higher then we think, how can we save power? Cheers , Romeo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Insect Direct Posted August 24, 2008 Report Share Posted August 24, 2008 save power - turn heater off maybe as goldfish shouldnt need it. otheriwse cant imagine it to be much of an expence mybe 20 per month but i have no idea, hopefully sum1 else can be more informative :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vindy500 Posted August 24, 2008 Report Share Posted August 24, 2008 20 a month.... that would mean a lightbulb would cost about 40 a month if you left it on half the day.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Romeo Posted August 24, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 24, 2008 Normally I wouldn't use a heater for goldfish, but it's sad to see them just sit on the bottom of the tank all day doing nothing. With it on they're happy as larry, following each other around, annoying the snails and just being awesome. Without the heater it's 7-9°c average - which is pretty chilly! If we insulate the tank, will it use less power since it's not running so hard? If it's set to 16°c will it use less power since it wont be running so hard? Cheers, Romeo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Insect Direct Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 20 a month.... that would mean a lightbulb would cost about 40 a month if you left it on half the day.... thats why u use the energy saver bulbs and turn lights off :lol: but yea over exagerated maybe, thats why i said i have no idea :oops: Romeo - thats pretty cold for an indoor setup, insulating will help and setting the heater to a lower temp will use slightly less power but maynot be worth if if the heaters only a couple of dollars a month? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Romeo Posted August 25, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 That's what I'm trying to figure out. Some people say that for ever 6°c you heat you quadruple the heating bill. So there's got to be a difference between 16°c and my heater's maximum of 32°c. But a lot of people just see the "50w" rating and work it out that way - but that can't be true for all of the settings. I might have to get one of those power metres from Bunnings Warehouse. I think they're $17.99? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David R Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 Look at your power bill and find out how much your provider charges per kilowatt hour (kWh). Divide the number of watts being used (in this case 50) by 1000, then multiply it by the number of hours per day it is running. so 0.050 * 24 * $___ = ............. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Insect Direct Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 yea power usage for that 50watt heater can vary, you mentioned its on 24/7 so its trying to heat constantly which mean your haeters to small to heat the tank above tht, but id geuss its going off bt not for long/you havent noticed it if its staying at a constant temp? if its on 24/7 the it wont matter if set to 16 or 32 it will use the same, but if its going on and off (thermostat) then will use less. David R - your onto it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vindy500 Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 Normally I wouldn't use a heater for goldfish, but it's sad to see them just sit on the bottom of the tank all day doing nothing. With it on they're happy as larry, following each other around, annoying the snails and just being awesome. Without the heater it's 7-9°c average - which is pretty chilly! must be cold in your house! If we insulate the tank, will it use less power since it's not running so hard? If it's set to 16°c will it use less power since it wont be running so hard? Cheers, Romeo yep Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whetu Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 Romeo, when you say the heater is 'on' 24/7, do you mean it's plugged in and switched on at the wall during that time, or do you mean the little light in the heater unit is also on - meaning the heater is actually heating 24/7? I suspect you mean the first one - the heater is plugged in, but the thermostat in the heater keeps going on and off to keep the water at a constant temperature. In that case you can't calculate its power use by multiplying the wattage by 24 hours. I would suggest using one of those power meters that you can plug the heater into and measure its use over a 24 hour period. Then you can multiply it out from there. To keep the tank at such a low temperature, the heater will probably not be 'on' much at all, so the power consumption is likely to be tiny. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Romeo Posted August 25, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 RE Whetu Oooooh, is THAT what that little light means! I've only ever noticed it on a few times, so it can't be going hardcore all the time right? That's exactly what I wanted to hear, thanks a lot. I knew it was a bit more complicated than simply working it out by it's wattage. I might get some insulation for under and behind the tank, I've already cut a lid out of Perspex for it and that seems to have kept a bit of heat in. Cheers, Romeo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richms Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 Go to the warehouse and get a plug in watt meter for twenty bucks. Even if the watt readings are not accurate (which they are not) the runtime is so you can use that to work it out. Bit of a worry if the tank gets to 7° - it may be cheaper to bring it into the house where it will benefit from the heating of the house then leave it outside or wherever it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Romeo Posted August 25, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 RE Richms The tank IS inside the house - in her bedroom . It's just freakin' cold at her flat because it's not insulated. It's like an icebox some days - bring on summer! I might go get one of those meters also :] Cheers, Romeo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richms Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 RE Richms The tank IS inside the house - in her bedroom . It's just freakin' cold at her flat because it's not insulated. It's like an icebox some days - bring on summer! In that case I would be more worried about her health then that of the fish, that's insanely cold to be living in and IMO a place that is that cold is not fit for living in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Romeo Posted August 25, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 RE Richms Heh, you've obviously never lived south of Auckland I take it? We breed our women hard down here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whetu Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 On a slightly different topic - 30cm x 20cm x 20cm is a very tiny tank. It really is waaay too small to keep a couple of goldfish in. Perhaps you could encourage your girlfriend to log in to this forum and we can discuss with her what the ideal living conditions are for a couple of goldfish? Most of us (speaking for myself anyway) probably started with a couple of goldfish in a small bowl, but unfortunately it will almost certainly result in disaster for the fish and an unhappy girlfriend! So for the sake of happy fish and happy girlfriend, send her along to us for a chat! :lol: By the way (without going into detail) the main reason that tank is to small is that goldfish produce a lot of waste and it is extremely hard to keep that volume of water in good condition for them. A larger tank might sound like more work, but in fact it is likely to be a lot less work because it is easier to keep conditions stable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Romeo Posted August 25, 2008 Author Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 Thanks Whetu, I've been dragging her around petshops for that very reason. Though, she's doing 30% water changes weekly, and the fish are about 4cm long each. It's pretty much just temporary until we can get a place of our own set up with another 80cm/70L tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ianab Posted August 25, 2008 Report Share Posted August 25, 2008 Yeah.. it aint really cold unless the condensation on the inside of the windows freezes Seriously the watt / hour calculation will give you absolute maximum power that the heater could draw. But because it's on a thermostat it will only run part of the time, and in a small tank like that it wont be very much. A 50w can keep a 60l up to temp if needed. So in a tank that size it may only run 25% of the time. But you are right about the temperature, if it drops below about 10C then goldfish go into a semi-hibernation winter mode and become less active. Keeping the tank at ~16C will be fine. Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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