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You chose the one month with the lowest electric requirements out of the past 12 months at least according to my Progress bill. Wait till it drops to below freezing and see how much your heat pumps are running, and how cool the "warm" air is coming out of the vents, before you make your decision. I have a 2000 sq ft and my Nov bill was $80+$10 for water /trash, all electric no gas whatsoever.
Heat pumps make sense but in a dual heat situation. When it gets below 40 or so they run constantly and the air coming out of them is 80*-85* if you are lucky, which by the time it hits you, actually feels somewhat cold. Above 40* or so they work wonderfully and are perfectly suited to our "normal" climate, average highs are in the 60's this time of year and lows in the 40's, we will be lucky to get out of the 40's as a high soon, this winter is going to suck.
While that might be true, the electric portion of our bill was $73, which includes heat, lights, powering appliances, powering other devices, etc. We had plenty of cold nights so far in late October in November. Again, that is an incredibly low bill for a house this size powering so much. I guarantee it won't go over $120 this whole winter.
1500 sq. feet can easily be heated and cooled by a mini-split. These things are state of the art and probably 5 or 6 times more efficient than propane gas. Read the first article which compares it to heating with oil in a cold climate.
Mini splits were designed to retrofit a house without central air to give it the efficiency of central air without all the duct work needed. Putting a mini split in a traditional house already fitted with central air (ie not a cottage like that first article) is a good way to kill your resale value IMO. You'd have to purchase several of them and install them all around the outside of your property. It might be a little more efficient than the current crop of high SEER central air units but the cost would quickly surpass that of a single highly rated split unit. Not to mention the unsightly-ness of the units scattered outside and hanging on the walls inside.
While that might be true, the electric portion of our bill was $73, which includes heat, lights, powering appliances, powering other devices, etc. We had plenty of cold nights so far in late October in November. Again, that is an incredibly low bill for a house this size powering so much. I guarantee it won't go over $120 this whole winter.
OP here. This has been an educational discussion to follow; thanks for all the input and your voices of experience!
Even in Florida, with few below 32 degree nights, a heat pump didn't work for me. And that was in a concrete house built in the late 90s. My current house was built in 1910(!) and lacks the energy efficiency of post-war houses. I have uber-insulated the attic to R-50, but not yet done the walls or crawl space. It's on my list, but the next step is clearly to replace the 20-year old HVAC that is still, bless its heart, chugging along.
Since the LP propane tank is already in place, it would easy to just buy a new gaspack, so my question was to get a feel for electric bills in winter with all-electric heat. My summer AC bills are high due to the lack of shading and southwest exposure; it'll take awhile for the tree I had planted to help with that. I just worry about dealing with $200+ electric bills in the cold winter months as well.
It shouldn't be a problem. My highest heating cost was under $100 this year. We don't keep it above 69 really and mostly around 67, so I shouldn't have a problem keeping it under $120, unless we all the sudden become Minnesota. I'll keep you updated and I promise I won't lie. If you're right I'll give you your props
Last edited by Waterboy526; 11-25-2013 at 06:56 AM..
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I just worry about dealing with $200+ electric bills in the cold winter months as well.
