We cannot imagine life without home appliances. Over the years, they have become a necessity for every house. But these appliances require power to run. Some of these appliances consume more power than others, and some consume very high power.
Let us identify the most power-consuming appliances that are found in most homes.
Understanding Wattage
Every appliance comes with a wattage rating. This rating lets us know how much power the appliance consumes. A typical light bulb is usually rated at 60 watts, and a microwave oven can draw up to 900 watts of electricity.
A Kilowatt-hour is a unit that measures electricity consumption. You have used one unit of electricity if you use 1000 watts of power for 1 hour. For instance, an appliance rated at 1000 watts will consume 1 unit of electricity when used for one hour. Similarly, an appliance rated at 2000 watts will consume two units when running for one hour or one unit every half hour.
Some Power Thirsty Appliances
Many appliances in a typical home consume immense amounts of power. Let us look at some of them.
Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) Systems
It generally depends on the size of your house and the capacity of the HVAC system. But these systems can take up to 4000 watts of electricity. Run them for one hour, and your electric meter will show you consumed four units.
Most of these systems are run continuously through the day and night and are often the biggest contributors to your electricity bills.
Electric Water Heater
An average size (30 – 40 gallon) water heater is rated at 4000 – 4500 watts. These heaters often trip automatically when the water reaches the set temperature. It is assumed that, on average, the water runs for around 3 – 5 hours a day, which means that it consumes somewhere between 12 and 22 units of electricity every single day.
Electric Dryer
The dryer can significantly impact your electricity bills if you do laundry too often. A typical dryer can be rated anywhere between 2000 and 5000 watts. A typical drying cycle lasts between 45 and 90 minutes. This means that the dryer will use between 2 – 5 units of electricity for every cycle when used on high-heat mode.
Electric Cooking Range
Electric ovens and stoves are used for cooking daily. But fortunately, they do not run for very long periods. A typical cooking range can draw anywhere between 2000 and 5000 watts of power when running on high heat. If your cooking sessions last for around an hour, you will use between 2 – 5 units of electricity per day.
Can Appliances Draw Electricity When Plugged in But Turned Off?
This is a commonly asked question by those trying to save up on their electricity bills. The answer to this is it depends. However, many appliances are considered energy vampires and continue to draw small amounts of power even when switched off.
For example, the clock on your cooking range or microwave will need some electricity to run. But a television on standby mode will continue to draw power, so will a charger that is plugged in and not connected to anything.
Measuring the Power Consumption for Appliances
The most convenient method of measuring power consumption for an appliance is to use a plug monitor. These monitors can be plugged into the outlets, and the appliances can be plugged into these monitors. When the appliance is turned on, the monitor will display the amount of power the plugged-in appliance is drawing.
Another method is to have an ammeter to measure the current going into the appliance. You can find the power the appliance consumes by multiplying the reading on the ammeter with the voltage. For instance, if your ammeter shows your stove drawing 15 amps and the voltage applied to the stove is 220 volts, you can find out that the stove is drawing 3,300 watts.
Ammeters are often complex and should only be installed by certified electricians.
Last Few Words
Electrical appliances play an integral role in our lives. But there are also significant costs associated with them. If you are trying to reduce your electricity bills, it is best to seek the advice of a certified electrician to prevent any dire consequences. Understanding the power consumed by different appliances is the first step to keeping an eye on and thus controlling electricity consumption.
We at Golden Electrical Service have numerous teams of licensed electricians who have years of experience troubleshooting and providing electrical solutions to households and commercial buildings. Our teams of experts are well versed with all kinds of electrical systems and will be glad to assist you with all kinds of troubleshooting, installation, and upgrades. Don’t hesitate to get in touch with us at goldenelectricalservicellc@gmail.com.
