How do I determine the cost of operating an electrical appliance per month?
Though we pay for electrical use by kilowatt hours, the energy consumption of an electrical appliance is typically measured by watts. Determining the operating costs for an electrical appliance therefore requires converting the wattage of the appliance, to kilowatts (there are 1000 watts in 1 kilowatt). To find your monthly energy consumption for an electrical appliance, take the equipment wattage (W) and divide by one thousand, multiply by hours of use per day times days per month. This will give you an estimate of kilowatt-hours used per month. W/1000*hrs/day*day/month=kWh/month To find your monthly cost, take the energy consumption that applies (kWh) and multiply by your energy costs. kWh/month*$/kWh=$/month If no information is available on the specifications label for a product, an inexpensive Energy Meter that can calculate kilowatts can be purchased at a hardware store. Please follow proper operating instructions for these type of devices.
