Appliances
Reliable household appliances make our lives easier. When they're working well we don't notice them. But, we couldn't live our lives without them.
Our customers have many questions about electricity requirements for household appliances. This section will help you understand how appliances use energy and our rate information will help you understand electricity costs.
The amount of electricity you use is measured in kilowatt hours (kWh). A kilowatt hour is the equivalent of 1000 watts of electricity. For example, one 100-watt light bulb used for ten hours is 1 kWh (1 bulb x 100W x 10h= 1000Wh = 1 kWh).
The amount of electricity used by your appliances will vary depending on their individual energy needs. Your appliances will also use different amounts of electricity from one day to the next - depending on the size of your family, appliance use and other living habits causing your electrical consumption to vary.
The information below provides a general breakdown of energy usage in an average home.
This chart lists the most common household appliances, their typical load in watts and their estimated average kWh/month. For example, a television used extensively may consume 75 kWh/month. The associated cost would be 75 kWh/month multiplied by the current residential rate.
Appliance |
Wattage |
Average |
Air Cleaner (Room Type) |
40 |
10-30 |
Air Cleaner (Furnace Type) |
20 |
10-15 |
Air Conditioner (Room, 6000 BTU/h.) |
750 |
0.75 |
Air Conditioner (Room, 9000 BTU/h.) |
1050 |
1.05 |
Blanket (Double) |
180 |
10 |
Broiler |
1400 |
10 |
Car Block Heater |
500 |
0.50 |
Ceiling Fan |
60 |
1-20 |
Clothes Dryer |
4800 |
50-125 |
Clothes Washer (Automatic, excluding water) |
500 |
5-20 |
Coffee Maker |
900 |
4-8 |
Computer (Monitor and Tower) |
100-200 |
10-144 |
Deep-fat Fryer |
1500 |
8 |
De-humidifier |
350-800 |
75-575 |
Dishwasher (excluding water) |
1300 |
10-30 |
Food Freezer (15 cu. ft.) |
335 |
100 |
Food Freezer (frost free 15 cu. ft) |
425 |
130 |
Fry Pan |
1150 |
10-20 |
Furnace Fan Motor (oil/gas - intermittent) |
350 |
55-145 |
Furnace Fan Motor (oil/gas - continuous) |
350 |
250 |
Furnace Oil Burner |
260 |
50 |
Grill (sandwich) |
1160 |
4 |
Hair Dryer (portable) |
1000 |
4-6 |
Heater (portable) |
1000 |
1 |
Heater (portable) |
1500 |
1.5 |
Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV) |
130 |
94 |
Iron |
1000 |
10-15 |
Kettle |
1500 |
10-15 |
Lawn Mower |
1500 |
3-6 |
Lighting: |
|
|
- Ceiling Fixture (single lamp) |
60 |
1-12 |
- Ceiling Fixture (3 lamps) |
180 |
2-35 |
- Compact Fluorescent (60 watt equivalent) |
18 |
3-4 |
- Fluorescent Fixture (2 tube, 4 ft.) |
100 |
1-20 |
Tri-light |
100 |
1-20 |
Microwave Oven |
1,000 |
15-30 |
Range |
12,000 |
50-90 |
Range (self-cleaning cycle only) |
3,200 |
2-5 |
Refrigerator/Freezer (12 cu. ft) |
300 |
50-100 |
Refrigerator/Freezer (frost free 17 cu. ft) |
500 |
100-150 |
Stereo (solid state) |
30 |
6 |
Television (colour) |
200 |
10-75 |
Plasma |
350 |
10-80 |
Rear-projection |
210 |
10-75 |
LCD |
220 |
10-75 |
Toaster |
1,150 |
2-4 |
Vacuum Cleaner (central) |
1,600 |
5-10 |
Vacuum Cleaner (portable) |
800 |
2-4 |
Video Cassette Recorder/Player |
40 |
1-8 |
Video Game Console |
|
|
Xbox 360 |
190 |
10-75 |
Play Station 3 |
200 |
10-75 |
Wii |
19 |
5 |
Water Bed Heater |
400 |
50-120 |
Water Heater (40 gallon) |
3,000 |
400-650 |
Water Pump (3/4 HP) |
|
0.56 |
Water Pump (1 HP) |
|
0.75 |
