Comments on: Gas versus Electric Dryer II

By: Paul

Paul — Tue, 31 Jul 2007 17:58:01 +0000

Great spread sheet but I noticed there was no cell to account
for the gas dryer’s motor. I used the tested figures (.21kw) from this site:

http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/dryers.html

and added cells for that. Also they measured their electric dryer’s power consumption at 4kw for the cycle but the gas btu’s were the same as yours. Otherwise it’s a GREAT tool. Many Thanks :)

By: Tom

Tom — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 19:21:22 +0000

A new twist for you. I live in the Jensen Beach area of FL, one mi from the ocean. In 2004, in one month’s time, we had hurricanes Jeanne and Francis. Both eyes came ashore within 10 mi of our house. We were without electricity a total of 5 wks combined. I have a 6kw generator which can be, and was, hooked straight to the panel box after both. It was our salvation. It would run everything in the house, without having to alternate breakers, except the central A/C, and the electric clothes dryer. We have LP gas for our range and water heater. Our electric clothes dryer has died after 10 years. You can bet your butt that I am buying a gas dryer, because the generator only has to power the motor to turn the drum. The little bit of difference between the energy cost doesn’t matter to me. P.S. Adelphia cable was the last utility to get back up and running. (over 2 months) After the first couple of weeks, I went and bought a Dish.

By: Jayne

Jayne — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 21:38:12 +0000

I’m a single mom moving about to move into a rental house. I have a small child and do approx. 8 loads a week. I own a gas dryer, but there’s no hookup for gas. Is it better to buy an electric dryer, or pay to have a plumber install a gas line?

By: JJ

JJ — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 15:54:09 +0000

Go look at http://www.savenrg.com They have a patented – yes patented, house design that does away with the heating element in the clothes dryer and pumps atic heat instead.

That is just a small portion of there HUGE energy savings built into their homes.

Personally, I think we have far more gas than even some industry execs believe. There is proven reserves in Kansas that has as much energy as the oil in Kuwait. Several small companies have most of it tied up. They are pumping, and it is so clean it can go right into the distribution system – almost unheard of.

I have not decided for my self. Am rebuilding after a house fire. But am leaning electric. There are so many more sources for generating electric that are renewable (or not if coal is used but which can be processed for super clean burning) that if supervised properly rates will be much less volatile than other “fuels”. Yes, I believe in some regulation and some deregulation. Just not the way the wonderful pols here in Md. (and CA) did it.

By: John

John — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 12:53:28 +0000

It seems the discussion is primarly regarding the installation and operating costs. Now that I have that information, my big question is, which dries clothers faster? I have always been a gas appliance consumer, but if cost of electric vs. gas is minimal in my area, efficiency and time are very important. Thanks!

By: Jim

Jim — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 06:25:21 +0000

Hi Linda,
For the electricity decision, it would probably be best if you ran the numbers (cost of buying power from SDGE, # of loads, etc) through the spreadsheet:

http://www.jimcarson.com/a/gas_versus_electric.xls

Front-loader washers use about 40% less approximately half the water as the top-loader types.
Jim

By: Linda

Linda — Fri, 20 Apr 2007 05:59:51 +0000

We are considering what kind of dryer to buy to replace our gas dryer which is more than 15 years old. We’ve had about 3 repairs, all kind of pricey, in that time. We had solar panels on the roof which were calculated to cover our current usage. If we switch to an electric dryer, I’ll just be buying more power from SDGE. But, with the new gas dryers, is their energy consumption so much less than my old dryer that if I buy gas, my gas bill will go down or if I buy electric my electric bill won’t go up that much? This is far beyond comparing apples and oranges. It’s very complex. Also, are front loaders more energy effecient or do they just save water over top-loaders?

By: duane

duane — Sun, 15 Apr 2007 12:53:24 +0000

When moving from natural gas to propane changes must be made to the gas burner. Propane burns hotter than natural gas. Most new drier come setup for Natural gas with the part to change over to propane included.

By: laura

laura — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 04:54:57 +0000

My question is…”what is the difference between natural gas and propane gas clothes dryers?” We’ve moved and have our dryer, which used natural gas, and now is using propane. It looks like a fire is going on in the back of the dryer so we are not using it until we find out.

By: damyank

damyank — Sun, 25 Mar 2007 14:13:20 +0000

As an HVAC and gas contractor and a former appliance repairman I have some food for thought for all:

1.Drier repair costs for gas driers are much more expensive. If you tend to keep your appliances a long time consider electric the way to go.

2.If you are limited in demand growth for your electric panel (100 amps or less for your panels capacity) AND you already have gas piped into your house And you have the additional capacity in your gas system, go with gas.

3.An IMPORTANT consideration is also whether or not your local electric utility uses nuke, coal, or hydro generating power. If the answer is yes to any of these, then the rate of increases in your electric bill is likely to be less making electric the way to go.

4. I personally think that the rate of fuel increases in the next few years will make all of these considerations extremely critical to us all.