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Wonder what it cost per hour to run this system...

Mark Eatherton
Mark Eatherton Member Posts: 5,858
in Radiant Heating
<a href="http://contractormag.com/news/snowmelt-inc-1234/">http://contractormag.com/news/snowmelt-inc-1234/</a>



800 amps times 240 volts = 192 KWH...



192 KWH @$0.15 = 28.80 per hour.



a 24 hour snowfall would cost $691.00 per day...



How much is one of them there John Deere riding mowers with a snow blower?? :-)



Interesting approach for sure.



ME

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Comments

  • STEVEusaPA
    STEVEusaPA Member Posts: 6,505
    My estimates tell me.....

    one GAZILLION dollars...lol.  I think a snowplow with spreader, and a live-in operator for  5 months would be cheaper....Hey at least he has his own transformer (did they throw that in for free?)

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  • Steamhead
    Steamhead Member Posts: 17,312
    Something wrong with this picture

    where the super-rich can afford this much snow-melt, while the rest of us gasp at our utility bills and suffer the consequences of dwindling energy supplies.
    All Steamed Up, Inc.
    Towson, MD, USA
    Steam, Vapor & Hot-Water Heating Specialists
    Oil & Gas Burner Service
    Consulting
  • kcopp
    kcopp Member Posts: 4,462
    on the flip side...

    what contractor in their right mind would install that.... that is a kin to installing a boiler 10 times oversized for the house. That is way over the top. kpc
  • Mark Eatherton
    Mark Eatherton Member Posts: 5,858
    If you've got 'em, smoke 'em....

    Most of the clientele that I have that have me work on their SM systems can afford to burn money on their drive way.



    Were it not for the smell and the fly ash and smoke, that's what they'd probably do... :-)



    I just consider it giving them the most efficient way to automatically burn their money and make the snow disappear. Efficiently.



    A person who occasionally hangs out here told me of a snowmelt system he saw that had a fire capacity that was less than half of what I would have sized it for, and it works fantastic. I am certain that it is possible. It just comes down to what the client expects and is willing (or not) to put up with in the way of accumulation.



    That, and getting the homeowner to interface with their system, and turn it on in advance of snowfall, and or off if it is a wet spring snow fall that will quickly melt by itself, or the sun is shining, or whatever.



    I guess the protocal has, is and always will be, if you've got it, flaunt it.



    Maybe one of these days, one of our government agencies (pick one) will get smart and start requiring that the emitting surface be used as a DHW preheat when it is not being used as a SM system with current water to water heat pump technology.



    ME

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  • MIke_Jonas
    MIke_Jonas Member Posts: 209
    Those that got 'em

         A few weeks ago, I was sitting at a light on an expressway off-ramp. In my mirrors, I saw some type of 2 seat Mercedes sports car I had not seen before. It pulled up alongside me and it was sharp as could be, very space-age looking and sounding.



        As he pulled away, I noticed he had a vanity license plate that read "I FX HRTS".

        This is the way I look at it...he's a heart doctor, right? That guy gets up every morning and cuts peoples chests' open (he might even have a lackey for that), he puts his hand on your heart, he even turns it off, cuts and slices on it, then turns it back on again. All in a days work.



       I want that dude to have a whole fleet of one-of-a-kind Mercedes sports cars.



    And I also want that dude to have a clear driveway to get out of at 3 ayem if he ever needs to get to the hospital and fix my heart.
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