How much does it cost to run a computer 24/7?

[sean2002]

I'm wondering how much of my $180 elecrtic bill is due to my computer being on 24/7, I only have a small 2 bedroom apt. My computer is a P4 2.26 with 512MB RAMBUS, 2 7200RPM HD's, ATI 8500, Sound Blaster Audigy, Antec 420 watt true power PS, Samsung 900NF, logictech Z560's.

Any ideas? even a rough est. will be helpfull

 

[CraigRT]

That sounds like a pretty bad-ass rig... if it's on all time time I am sure that is hurting your bill.. :Q

 

[MomAndSkoorbaby]

Ours runs 24/7.

 

[XZeroII]

I run my computer 24/7 and our bill was only $60 one month. It's easy to figure out. W/O monitor: (420/1000) * 24 * 30 then multiply that by the cost per kw/h you are charged for electricity. If you are being charged $0.07 per kw/h, then it costs you approx $21 per month.

 

[pulse8]

$1,000,000

 

[rudder]

Originally posted by: XZeroII
I run my computer 24/7 and our bill was only $60 one month. It's easy to figure out. W/O monitor: (420/1000) * 24 * 30 then multiply that by the cost per kw/h you are charged for electricity. If you are being charged $0.07 per kw/h, then it costs you approx $21 per month.

Thats why I finally decided to get a 40watt linksys router rather than leave an old k6-2 humming along all day. In a few months the routers power saving will have paid for itself.

 

[XZeroII]

If I were you, I would complain to your landlord about your high electric bill. Get a new refridgerator in there because that will cut probably $10-$20 off per month. Your landlord should be required to get a new fridge if it's really old.

 

[Noriaki]

Electricity Companies usually charge in KwH...or (Number of Kilowatts)*(Number of hours)

In 30 days there are 720 hours.
420watt is .42kw

.42kw * 720h = 302.4kwh

To find out how much 302.4kwh costs you'll have to check your local power company pricing...it's different everywhere. Say it's 10cents per kilowatt-hour, then it's $30.24 per month roughly.
(I have no idea if 10cents is anywhere near accurate I just pulled it out of my ass)

This is an upper bound on the cost. It's very difficult to know how much your computer is using at any given time...but it's likely no more than about half of this...even with a stocked rig like yours.

 

[Viper GTS]

Not much, we have four PC's running 24/7 in my apt, two of which sor sure are drawing more than yours (both are better equipped P4's).

We also have an Athlon classic and S370 P3 733 as servers (two servers).

Our electric bill during the summer was $60 or so, so running one PC full time for a month couldn't possibly cost more than $15, & probably more like $5.

Noriaki is correct, of course, but just from experience I can say it doesn't cost a lot.

Viper GTS

 

[0roo0roo]

leaving a laptop on 24/7 and using ur desktop machine only somtimes might work then again the laptop would wear out u don't have a monster array of fans and lights do u?

how much power do the z560's draw, everytime i touch those heatsinks on the back they are dman warm even with 0 use

 

[Noriaki]

Doesn't cost much where I live either. But if I hop from Victoria to Calgary, the cost goes up about 4x because Electricity is more expensive over there. Maybe he's got an expensive electric company?

I don't leave my computer on 24/7 but my cousin does and my aunt never complains about the high power bill...so I assume it's not significant enough to bother her.

 

[Deeko]

Not much, especially if you keep the monitor off when not in use.

 

[Amused]

OK, seriously. There needs to be a place in the FAQ about this with definitive answers. This question comes up at LEAST once a week.

An average computer with the monitor set to turn off automatically uses about the same energy as a 60 - 100 watt light bulb when idle.

I leave mine on 24/7. I have never had a hardware failure.

[edit] don't the Logitechs have a powersave mode they go in to when they don't receive a signal?

 

[0roo0roo]

[edit] don't the Logitechs have a powersave mode they go in to when they don't receive a signal?

i dunno, maybe but heatsink tells different. promedias do however.

 

[sean2002]

I have 4 80MM case fans too, I guess I will set the computer to turn off the monitor after 15 minutes, and just turn off the power on the Z560's when not in use. I'd hate to have to stop crunching D2OL

 

[Cyberian]

Originally posted by: XZeroII
I run my computer 24/7 and our bill was only $60 one month. It's easy to figure out. W/O monitor: (420/1000) * 24 * 30 then multiply that by the cost per kw/h you are charged for electricity. If you are being charged $0.07 per kw/h, then it costs you approx $21 per month.

That power supply is capable of 420 watts, but is it using that much if the machine is idle?

 

[0roo0roo]

hm how mcuih of a power difference do u get when running cpu at 100% and idle anyways? or is it so small that u shouldnt consider?

4 80mm fans? u could probably get away with 2 in the winter most dells and stuff only have maybe 2 fans ...yet they survive whats the point of extra cooling if it does nothing but make noise

 

[Viper GTS]

Originally posted by: Cyberian

Originally posted by: XZeroII
I run my computer 24/7 and our bill was only $60 one month. It's easy to figure out. W/O monitor: (420/1000) * 24 * 30 then multiply that by the cost per kw/h you are charged for electricity. If you are being charged $0.07 per kw/h, then it costs you approx $21 per month.

That power supply is capable of 420 watts, but is it using that much if the machine is idle?

No, it will only consume as much power as is required by the devices it's powering + a little overhead due to inefficiency.

But 420W would be an upper boundary.

Viper GTS

 

[Amused]

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
hm how mcuih of a power difference do u get when running cpu at 100% and idle anyways? or is it so small that u shouldnt consider?

4 80mm fans? u could probably get away with 2 in the winter most dells and stuff only have maybe 2 fans ...yet they survive whats the point of extra cooling if it does nothing but make noise

Good point. My house is 10 degrees cooler in the winter. I've been disabling two of four case fans in the winter and my case and CPU temps are the same as they are in the summer. Not only is it quieter, it saves me a little money (probably a buck a month, if that ), AND it cuts down on the dust in the case, even though I have a filter, dust still gets in there.

XZeroII,

You're assuming your 420 watt PS is being fully used. It is not. It is capable of supplying 420 watts, but your computer is not using nearly that much when it's idle.

 

[ChrisIsBored]

This puppy comes in handy even if you're not using it for tank related measuring...

http://www.reefcentral.com/calc/tank_elec_calc.htm

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: XZeroII
I run my computer 24/7 and our bill was only $60 one month. It's easy to figure out. W/O monitor: (420/1000) * 24 * 30 then multiply that by the cost per kw/h you are charged for electricity. If you are being charged $0.07 per kw/h, then it costs you approx $21 per month.

Even if you have a 420 Watt PS, the computer is not drawing 420 Watts all the time, so the cost is actually less than $21.

With the monitor though, one starts looking at a lot of power being used. IIRC the monitor uses most of the power in a computer system, and if you leave the monitor on all the time then that might be a good reason for your electric bill. $180 is a lot higher than I'm used to hearing about. Do you have A/C or electric heat?

ZV

EDIT: By "on" when referring to the monitor I meant on and in use. On and in standby mode is just about as good as being off.

 

[radioouman]

Our server runs 24/7, but the monitor stays off most of the time, and the system is only a Pentium 166... Our bill is about $60 per month, and very little of that is the computer. I couldn't even tell that it was running.

 

[0roo0roo]

Originally posted by: Amused

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo
hm how mcuih of a power difference do u get when running cpu at 100% and idle anyways? or is it so small that u shouldnt consider?

4 80mm fans? u could probably get away with 2 in the winter most dells and stuff only have maybe 2 fans ...yet they survive whats the point of extra cooling if it does nothing but make noise

Good point. My house is 10 degrees cooler in the winter. I've been disabling two of four case fans in the winter and my case and CPU temps are the same as they are in the summer. Not only is it quieter, it saves me a little money (probably a buck a month, if that ), AND it cuts down on the dust in the case, even though I have a filter, dust still gets in there.

u can also think of it as a couple pounds less of pollutants per year i guess

 

[NewSc2]

my apt's first power bill came in last month, and it was about $90 for about 2/3 month usage (3 guys)

i'm sure my 21" monitor uses up a lot of electricity, as does having my HT system on most of the time. I don't think that speakers even when powered on use that much power, because no signal is running to the speakers that any amp has to amplify..

we're dreading next month's bill, however, we'll probably sign up for the low-income thing (we all have small part-time jobs and our rent is covered by parents) and our bill will be cut by 25%

 

[BatmanNate]

I live in a one bedroom and have about a $35-40/month bill, and here's what I run:

Dual Athlon Rig, 5 HD's (4 7200 RPM, 1 10,000), 2 CDROM, full PCI/AGP (3 vid, nic, scsi, sound, raid), 431watt PSU, 3 monitors, hella fans
Dual P2 rig, 3 HD, no monitor
Quad PPro 200 half meg Rig, SCSI RAID, 500 watt PSU, no monitor
Single Duron 920 rig, 21" monitor plus stereo equipment.



How's your water heater?