This New Zealand calculator helps households estimate and compare the cost of different home heating options, from heat pumps and electric heaters to wood burners and gas, so you can heat your home affordably through winter. You enter the heating you use, the hours, and the relevant energy prices, and the tool estimates the running cost of each option for your situation, accounting for the very different efficiency of, for example, a heat pump versus a plug-in heater. The breakdown compares the cost per hour and per season across heating types, helping you understand why some heating is far cheaper to run than others and make choices that keep both your home warm and your power bill manageable.
A heat pump coefficient of performance (COP) of around 3.5 means it delivers 3.5 units of heat per unit of electricity, while a plug-in heater has a COP of 1. Real efficiency varies with the unit and the outside temperature. Power prices change, so use your current rate. Estimate only, not financial advice.
The heat you need is the output in kilowatts times the hours used. A plug-in electric heater uses that much electricity directly. A heat pump uses far less, because it moves heat rather than generating it, dividing the electricity needed by its coefficient of performance. The calculator multiplies the electricity each uses by your power price and the days in the season to compare seasonal running costs, showing the saving from the more efficient option.
Heating with 3 kW for 6 hours a day over 120 days at 28 cents a unit, a plug-in electric heater costs about $605 for the season. A heat pump with a COP of 3.5 delivers the same heat for about $173, a saving of roughly $432 over the season, which is why heat pumps are so much cheaper to run.
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