Cost of Operation

Michael

Michael

New member
With rising fuel costs I thought this little table may be of value..

The cost comparison is based on an incremental increase of existing fuel. Pressure washers compared use the same pump/ motor and have similar heat rise values.

Electrical rate is per kWh from Chicago, IL area electric utility. The unit is 72 kW or 245,670 Btu equivalent.

Natural gas rates per cubic foot from Chicago, IL area utility. The heater burns 34.2 cubic feet/ hour or 9.7-m3/ hour at 345,500 Btu.

Kerosene and Diesel fuel price reflect Chicago, IL area retail cost per gallon. The units consume 2.25 US gallons/ hour.

LPG rates per gallon from Chicago,IL supplier. The units consume 16 pounds per hour at 345,500 btu.

FUEL COST/unit HOURLY DAILY (8 hours)
Electric $0.04672 $3.36 $26.88
Natural gas $0.07542 $2.58 $20.64
Diesel $1.80 $4.05 $32.40
Kerosene $2.55 $5.74 $45.92
Propane $1.94 $7.49 $59.92

Hope this helps? Cheers.
 
Interesting, Michael..........thanks for sharing.

Here's a simple way to look at it:
 

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thanks michael,good info,i knew costs were higher since i am filling up twice a day instead of once,but i dont ever seem to have the time to look at the details.
 
I try and stay away from mentioning our equipment to the detriment of others but...

I used our Impact 2000/3 oil fired belt drive, 5403N natural gas fired belt drive, 5403P propane fired belt drive and 3400P72 total electric. Each uses a 5hp 3 phase motor, 3.6 GPM @ 2000 PSI General T1321 pump.

I used these models as a comparative base because they use the same pump/motor combination so I can remove that portion from the equation and just look at the cost of heating water.

Of course, operating costs will vary based on the power source for your burner. These models are most commonly used in the Industrial market and therefore representative.

You can calculate the cost of running your engine by consulting the owner's manual or going to the web site of the engine manufacturer to determine the Brake Specific Fuel Consumption usually based per horsepower.

For example we build an LP burner/LP fueled engine combination that sees the engine burn 7.5# per hour and the burner (345,500 Btu) 16# per hour. Knowing that a 30" diameter (20-100#) tank can only provide 289,900 Btu says that you need to feed this combination from at least two 30" diameter tanks or a 250# 'fat boy' tank to prevent freezing.

Sorry for the advertisement but I was trying to illustrate how you can calculate your cost of operation and use the information to determine the best way to proceed based on your circumstances.

Hope this helps further? Cheers.
 
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