Have You Ever Calculated Your Shop Energy Consumption and Expense?

[Art Mann]

The cost of operating my shop is overwhelmingly heating, cooling and lighting. About the only piece of equipment i will leave running for enough percentage of time to matter is my dust collector. It consumes about 2KW of power, which costs about $0.18/hour where I live.

[Jim Neeley]

+1 on lighting, heating and cooling.

I have three 5 hp tools: drawing about 5kW. My DC, TS and a large compressor. In my area ($0.12/kwh) that equates to about $0.60/hr apiece. Maybe that sounds like a lot but, as a hobbyist, how much of the time am I running them? An hour or two a day max, generally much less than an hour? A table saw can cut a LOT of wood in an hour!! :-)

Just my $0.02.. (or $0.60).. YMMV.

Jim

[Rick Potter]

About the lighting, I put in half a dozen 2X8' skylights, and they add a lot of light during the day. In the summer I usually don't need to turn on lights in the daytime. The skylights are situated so the sun does not directly shine in, to avoid extra heat gain in the summertime. The white walls and ceiling also help.

Rick Potter

[Julie Moriarty]

Be more concerned about the length of time a machine is running than the horsepower. As stated several times already, it's the lighting and temperature control that will eat up most of the power in the hobbyist's shop. Horsepower of a given machine should be determined by the work you intend to do.

[Jeff Erbele]

Im in the same range as Leo with a full time shop. About 4k sq', fluorescent lighting throughout, certain lights left on 24/7 and exterior dusk to dawn lighting. I dont think I have a piece of stationary equipment that is less that 5HP perhaps other than drill press. 5HP single phase is about my average. Power bill is in the 150 range but varies from 90 to just under 200 depending on season and work load.

I dont think power consumption in a hobby shop with a 50k investment is really going to be an issue. If your worried about 50-100 a month but are at peace with dropping 50k on a hobby youve got an interesting sense of rationality

It'd be like having a hobby around exotic automobiles but not wanting to buy gasoline. When you by a Lambo, the mileage really is irrelevant.

LOL! It will be all of $50k just to have it built and get a fair start on the basics of wiring, lighting, running air lines, duct work and heating. I'm certainly going to use the shop, I just had no idea of what it might cost to operate.

Early on I was thinking about not heating it and avoiding the cold days. Thinking about it more and considering what I'll have invested after outfitting it with tools, machines, blades, clamps and all the gadgets, not heating it would do one of two things, either I would not use it because it is too cold or tough it our and be cold.

[Jeff Erbele]

Jeff,
Yours is a hobby shop, right? Mine is too, I had separate service run to my shop because is was quite a bit cheaper to have the power company dig the trench an bury a new cable from the pole than to have the contractor do the same from the house to the shop. Because of that I had to set up commercial instead of residential service because no one was actually live in the shop. In my neck of the woods a commercial account actually has a better rate than residential, but it has a minimum usage. I have never actually used over the minimum and my elec bill is around $32 a month for the shop. Now to be fair I do not use the shop every day, but I am down there just about every weekend and some evenings. My shop is 30X42. I have all the usual machines and a 3hp cyclone dust collection system. I have a window unit AC that I run in the summer. I would think that you will not need to worry about elec consumption in a hobby shop.

Our new house will be in one of the newer annexes under development in the city limits of Denver. The garage is attached to the house with a 200 amp sub-panel for the garage. I never thought about a second meter or a commercial account but have doubts the city, the power company, the HOA and developer all would approve that plan. If they did, at this point it would be an added expense for a design change and delay construction by longer than we are willing wait.

All of that considered though, the responses here pretty much answered my question and put my fears to rest.

When you drive a vehicle one knows the price per gallon and the MPG
I know my price per Kw but was missing the possible Kw/hr to run the shop. Of course the Kw/hr will depend on the machines and lights i buy and operate, but like you it will be sometimes on nights and weekends. Far from some of the responses where guys or gals make their living at it with some heavy duty machinery, heat or AC and lots of lights.

[Malcolm Schweizer]

I live where energy costs are one of the highest in the world at $ 0.55/KwH. I have not tracked consumption because I usually build in spurts and the saw and planer run all in a weekend, and then it's hand tools from there on. Recently I had a huge mass of lumber to rip and plane and was surprised that my bill did not go up at all. I use a 3hp saw and a Ridgid portable planer.

One thing I am doing in the house we are currently purchasing is converting stove and water heater to LP gas. Since the house is in the historic district I cannot put solar panels on the roof but at least I can switch to gas where possible. For you it may not be as big of a difference but for me it is half the cost.

[Larry Edgerton]

My old shop, 148x56' was about $250 a month for electricity and heat was $1600ish in the coldest months. Its part of the reason that I sold it, besides the commercial gas, electric and tax rates as Leo mentioned.

My new shop is hidden in the middle of nowhere one the same property as my new house, is 36x50', will have a wood burner, something that they would not allow in a industrial district, and will be insulated like crazy with passive solar on the south side. No three phase is the only bad point, must run of converters.

The electric bill is directly proportionate to the amount of work the shop is putting out so I never minded it, but the heating bills, taxes were killing me. Fine when I had 18 employees, but not so good as a single man operation. I looked at every way I could cut constant overhead costs so I could get smaller, and make my life simpler in the bargain.

Larry

[Jeff Erbele]

I live where energy costs are one of the highest in the world at $ 0.55/KwH. I have not tracked consumption because I usually build in spurts and the saw and planer run all in a weekend, and then it's hand tools from there on. Recently I had a huge mass of lumber to rip and plane and was surprised that my bill did not go up at all. I use a 3hp saw and a Ridgid portable planer.

One thing I am doing in the house we are currently purchasing is converting stove and water heater to LP gas. Since the house is in the historic district I cannot put solar panels on the roof but at least I can switch to gas where possible. For you it may not be as big of a difference but for me it is half the cost.

I am in Denver Colorado, USA. Natural gas is the standard heating fuel, readily available within the metropolitan area via underground gas service lines and the least expensive fuel for heating. I think we are paying about $0.125/Kwh which is in the mid-range of U.S. electric rates; some locations pay less and other more. We are on a residential meter. Commercial meters are billed at a different rate tier.

We have a 6.3 Kw D.C. solar system which provides over 75% of our average annual residential consumption. The D.C. power is converted to A.C. with an inverter at the control panel. Many months, especially in the summer when the days are longer with more hours of sunshine, our monthly electric bills are $7.35 none of which is for electricity consumed. That minimum bill is for various taxes and utility company fees. The reality is even during the hottest weather when the central air conditioner is running nearly full time during the day and well into the night, our solar system is generating excess power in each 24 hour period. The excess helps power the grid and our net meter runs in reverse, subtracting Kwh's. I think the highest bill we ever received was about $32, which includes the $7.35 taxes and fees. The highest bills are either side of the winter solstice, December 21st, the shortest day of the year.

As I recall, when we had the solar system installed about three years ago it would have cost about $22,000 with a payback or break even point of 7 year and 2 months. We had the option of buying the system or leasing it. As we were uncertain if we were going to stay in the present house for 7 years we choose the lease option which cost $89.00 per month. The lease provides us the option to buy the system anytime, with a declining balance based on the $22,000 prorated over 20 years, the system design life, even though it is expected to function for many years beyond that.

Other things worth mentioning:
The system will loose some efficiency over time. The lease or lease-purchase agreement is transferable if we sell the house. If the new buyers do not want it, the solar company will remove it at not cost. They said they never have done that because of the economics new buyers want it after they understand the numbers; that it is advantageous. Also we have 302 days of sunshine per year on average. Germany leads the world in solar production but has far less solar exposure than many other populated areas. The worst place in the US for solar production, per our solar-rep, is some place in the Upper Peninsula in the state of Michigan. (I don't know if that is the lower 48 states or if it includes Alaska.) His point was, the best place for solar production in Germany, is less than the worst place in the US, yet it leads the world in that regard. That is impressive. The American, US Southwest, has more than enough solar exposure to power the world. Our rooftop could power our house and another one just like it, but as long as we are on the grid the utility companies will not allow it. They are not in the business of buying electricity; they are in the business of selling it. The main reason they allow such systems as ours is they need and want the Carbon Credits required of them. It's a trade off and a win-win situation, although it could and should be better, given global warming, carbon fuels, green house gases and all related. It could, should and will get better; just not fast enough or fast as it should.
I almost forgot a key point of our system and lease, that is our rates are fixed for life. We are protected from any future rate increases. That could be of great value or mean nothing, depending on technological advancements and future energy prices, or the costs related to capturing, converting and transmitting that energy.

In hindsight we made the right choices, first by having it installed and second by leasing it as now we are having a new house built. We are sold on solar and will have it installed on the new house, but a system must be designed specially to the house, location, orientation and so forth; further we will be working with revised rules, prices and plans at the time. Those could be more favorable but likely will not be. It is unknown; as something changes almost monthly. Planning in advance is not an option; first the house must be built, the sale completed, a meter installed, in our name, and only than can be engineered, after which a proposal is presented to us with all of the data, options and pricing.

[Brian Elfert]

As already mentioned, your heating and cooling costs will probably exceed your electricity costs for lights and machines. In most climates you will want to heat your shop during the cold months to prevent condensation that builds up on metal surfaces when you cycle the temperature from very cold to room temperature and back to very cold. I keep my tools in a non climate controlled garage and get some rust on metal during the summer due to high humidity. I don't have condensation issues in the winter as I don't have heat in the garage so everything stays cold and natural temperature swings are not that dramatic.

[Jeff Erbele]

As already mentioned, your heating and cooling costs will probably exceed your electricity costs for lights and machines. In most climates you will want to heat your shop during the cold months to prevent condensation that builds up on metal surfaces when you cycle the temperature from very cold to room temperature and back to very cold. I keep my tools in a non climate controlled garage and get some rust on metal during the summer due to high humidity. I don't have condensation issues in the winter as I don't have heat in the garage so everything stays cold and natural temperature swings are not that dramatic.

Denver is a high desert like plateau. Our average temp is higher than the Twin Cities area and humidity is much lower. If you get by with a non climate controlled shop my situation is less of a problem. Well, except for maybe summer heat, but week days I am working in the home office anyway.

Still I understand your point. I hate rusty tools but won't be heating the garage simply to prevent it. Machine oil, WD-40, silicone spray and paste wax control that well enough now. Oil does not work on the ways of the Shopsmith. It collects flower dust and gums it up, but paste wax works great.

Initially I was not planning on heating the shop and air conditioning was out of the question.
I reconsidered that and changed my mind from no and for sure not, to why not, ya go for it. I'm sticking a lot of money in the new shop, new machines & tools. If it is uncomfortable in any way, dimly lit, dusty, chilly to cold or miserably hot I would be much less inclined to use it. So why do that; spend a little more and eliminate all of the deterrents to using it.

[Brian Elfert]

My garage can only nominally be called a shop. The only big iron right now is a Craftsman table saw from Craigslist. I've been working to convert a bus in a motorhome for a number of years now so that is mostly what I use my tools for. I have lots of small hand tools that tend to rust a bit in the garage. I have not been good about doing anything to top coat my table saw.

[Jeff Erbele]

I know what you mean; I know your climate well. I used to work in Bismarck ND in industrial repair. Frequently I was on assignment to our shop in Minneapolis, sometimes just on a delivery run, other times for 2-3 weeks at a time and infrequently longer. Here in Denver we never experience the humidity Minneapolis does, or that of the Eastern or Southern states. Our climate is more like the Southwest, but influenced by the mountains to the west and major weather patterns from every direction at different times of the year. Fog is a rare occurrence. On the other hand Virga is more common. Virga is rain that evaporates before it hits the ground; something strange to witness for the first time.

Rusty tools. I discovered automotive parts cleaner is effective for De-rusting. You can buy it by the gallon from most auto repair parts stores. It will dissolve some petroleum based products, some plastics and Styrofoam, so be careful what you store it in. As it is petroleum based is is flammable; rags soaked in it are subject to spontaneous combustion so use appropriate precautions. A metal coffee can, metal bucket or cake pan works fine for soaking tools. Food service supply companies sell steam table inserts, stainless steel containers of various sizes and shapes. Those are the pans one sees in buffet lines. Most are relatively inexpensive and have great uses around the shop, storing project parts, soaking tools etc.

Big Iron - All I have right now is a Shopsmith and a Foley Belsaw Sharp-All. I simply don't have the space for more floor model machinery right now. The present 20 x 20 garage is storage only, with medium duty, 2,000 lbs per shelf capacity, Gorilla racks along the front wall, one side wall and a third row beside the walkway opposite the units on the side wall. In theory one could park a car in one half of the garage. The fact is that is full of a large roll-away tool cabinet, the machines I have, smaller shelves, shop vac, air compressor and the like. Its fairly well organized but stuffed full. Working in it as a shop is impossible. That will change in the new house with a basement and a 4 stall garage, a 20 x 20 and an adjacent 20 x 30 work shop, all in one space unless I partition it. After we move I'll buy the machinery for a wood shop.

We work in spaces we have available at the time and within our budgets, call them parking garages, garages with a work shop or dedicated work shops. For the past several years my pickup tail gate, saw horses and driveway have been my work area
That takes some attitude adjustment, having had a former 24 x 24 very nice, heated garage/workshop.

Good luck with the motor home conversion and build.