Cost Per Hour Running Average A/C Unit

[meand]

Let's assume 5 baht per unit.

Any people in the "know", that can give a ballpark answer on this for an "average" sized ac. Thanks.

[attrayant]

What do you mean by unit? Is that a kilowatt hour? KWH is the standard unit of measure in the west, not sure about here.

Did you have a particular size a/c in mind? I've seen systems from 12 to 40-something thousand BTUs for sale.

[Crossy]

Too many variables for an accurate appraisal but let's have a guess.

A 12,000 BTU A/C will use about 1.2kW when the compressor is running. If you don't have Arctic temperatures say a duty cycle of 60% so that's about 0.75 units per hour (yes they use kWh here same as most other countries).

[Carib]

Too many variables, room size/ insulated or not/ outside temperature/ aircon capacity/ set at what room temperature, just to name a few.

I see Crossy beat me to the `variables`.

Edited March 13, 2012 by Carib

[4evermaat]

What floor you are on. You would probably use a/c much more on 5th floor than ground floor.

But usually, average a/c unit will use 1kwh/hr running almost continuously. Good to use the shut-off timer if the a/c unit has one. This way it is a fail safe to prevent you from leaving on too long. You cool down the room.

"2nd best time to plant a tree is today." Sent from TV android app.

[meand]

Too many variables for an accurate appraisal but let's have a guess.

A 12,000 BTU A/C will use about 1.2kW when the compressor is running. If you don't have Arctic temperatures say a duty cycle of 60% so that's about 0.75 units per hour (yes they use kWh here same as most other countries).

So................... 0.75 units/hour X 5 baht/unit = 3.75 baht for an hour.

This sounds low to me, but I appreciate all the responses. You'd be able to run this 8 or so hours a day for a month for 1000 baht?!

To try and answer some of the questions....I know there are a lot of variables, but put a running ac anywhere (ie compressor going), and about how much does it cost in an hour assuming 5 baht per unit. Let's say the average ac in a 30 meter squares apartment, so a small one (12,000 BTU?? Not sure). MAybe I already got the answer, that just seemed low. Thanks all.

[meand]

What floor you are on. You would probably use a/c much more on 5th floor than ground floor.

But usually, average a/c unit will use 1kwh/hr running almost continuously. Good to use the shut-off timer if the a/c unit has one. This way it is a fail safe to prevent you from leaving on too long. You cool down the room.

"2nd best time to plant a tree is today." Sent from TV android app.

So, assuming the 5baht/unit.... you say about 5 baht an hour.... I think this sounds about right. As the other poster said, depending on the duty cycle (and many other things). In this example you could run it about 6 or 7 hours a day for 1000 baht a month assuming the 5 baht per unit.

Thanks (all) for the reply.

[meand]

What do you mean by unit? Is that a kilowatt hour? KWH is the standard unit of measure in the west, not sure about here.

Did you have a particular size a/c in mind? I've seen systems from 12 to 40-something thousand BTUs for sale.

Thanks. Yeah... smaller units... so ~12,000 btu.

[Tywais]

I have a 12,000 BTU in my bed room which has east/west windows so exposed to the sun pretty much all day, 9000 BTU just wasn't enough. On the worse days running around 10-12 hours my bill increase is around 1000 Baht. This is assuming a tariff of around 3.5baht/unit (kWh).

[4evermaat]

What floor you are on. You would probably use a/c much more on 5th floor than ground floor.

But usually, average a/c unit will use 1kwh/hr running almost continuously. Good to use the shut-off timer if the a/c unit has one. This way it is a fail safe to prevent you from leaving on too long. You cool down the room.

"2nd best time to plant a tree is today." Sent from TV android app.

So, assuming the 5baht/unit.... you say about 5 baht an hour.... I think this sounds about right. As the other poster said, depending on the duty cycle (and many other things). In this example you could run it about 6 or 7 hours a day for 1000 baht a month assuming the 5 baht per unit.

Thanks (all) for the reply.

yep. it was 5bt/unit where i stayed in patong. Some places was as high as 10bt/unit. but 6-8bt/unit was not uncommon, even at some thai apts. I had my meter right outside my apt room, so I could read the meter before and after I shut down the a/c unit and I discovered it is appx 1 unit/hr. Running the unit on average 3-5 hours a day, plus using hot water daily and a small cooking hot plate. I was paying appx 1400 in electric/mo.

[jb5music]

Age of air conditioner maybe? - What I was really looking for and cannot find anywhere even on Google except for 4evermaat up there (thank you) - is the exact cost per kilowat hour between the different provinces.

[YipYipYa123]

Age of air conditioner maybe? - What I was really looking for and cannot find anywhere even on Google except for 4evermaat up there (thank you) - is the exact cost per kilowat hour between the different provinces.

Does electric have a differnt cost in every province ?

[BigJohnnyBKK]

And you know there are meters that you can hook up to the device or the circuit to show their draw real-time?

[harryfrompattaya]

Please tell me why All the smart and rich ones on Thai Visa love to talk about the price of A/C

If you have to ask or talk about it. It is to expenses to use.

That is the reason I do not ask how much it cost to run 100 feet boat every week.

[chrisinth]

Age of the aircon is a big factor as they have improved in power saving over the years. Also the area that is being conditioned, ie, how long does it take the compressor to run to reach the required temperature and how many "leaks" are in that area?

Check the thermostatic control as well, a good thermo means a lot!

[BigJohnnyBKK]

Please tell me why All the smart and rich ones on Thai Visa love to talk about the price of A/C

If you have to ask or talk about it. It is to expenses to use.

That is the reason I do not ask how much it cost to run 100 feet boat every week.

Some people don't consider AC optional. Some people live above their means. Maybe he's charging someone else for running it on his bill.

Do you really care?

[NanLaew]

Age of air conditioner maybe? - What I was really looking for and cannot find anywhere even on Google except for 4evermaat up there (thank you) - is the exact cost per kilowat hour between the different provinces.

Does electric have a differnt cost in every province ?

It can vary from house to house in the same city. Witness the new build 4 bedrooom house we lived in for 3 years. The only aircon was in the master bedroom so was used most evenings except in the cool season when it was never used. The average monthly electric bill was never less than 3000 baht, probably averaging around 3400. Moved to a similar sized 2-storey house and there's now two airconditioners that get regular use through the hottest part of the year and I have yet to pay more than 2800 baht a month for the electric. Both houses are of similar age with proper roof insulation and similar brick wall construction. The aircon units in the current house may even be a tad older than the ones in the 'more expensive' first house. One thing to note was the persistent low-voltage issues at the first house that saw line voltages drop to as low as 170 V AC in the evening. My guess is the lower primary voltage supply made all the appliances with an inductive load, such as air con, fridges and fans, run inefficiently, hence the higher electric bill.

[mistitikimikis]

When you really want to know exact buy an electricity-meter; cost about Baht 1.200 otherwise it's always guessing!