If you're looking to size a solar system or buy a generator for your home, it's important to understand how many kilowatts (kW) it takes to power a house. According to the Energy Information Agency (EIA), the average American household uses an average of 10,715 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity per year. That's 29,360 watts (W) per day, which can be divided by 24 hours to get an average of 1,223 watts to power a house all day long. Electricity consumption varies widely, and there is no simple rule of thumb for determining how many watts a home may need.
That exact number depends on several factors, such as the number and type of appliances in your home, the size of your home, and where you live. More appliances mean you'll need more watts, but the type of appliances you have also influences the amount of electricity you consume. For example, using more efficient Energy Star appliances can reduce total consumption, especially for items that consume more energy, such as refrigerators, air conditioners and dryers. It's self-explanatory, but in general, larger houses consume more electricity.
More rooms mean more light bulbs and appliances, plus a larger area to maintain heating and cooling all year round. Especially in the case of heating and cooling systems, their geographical location is an important factor in your home's total energy consumption. If you live in a hot climate and need to run your air conditioner frequently, you'll probably consume more electricity than someone who lives in a more moderate climate. Kitchens have appliances that stay on for long periods of time (refrigerators and freezers), as well as appliances that are used intermittently, but consume a lot of energy when turned on.
Overall, electricity needs for heating and cooling are some of the highest of any category of appliances. Washers and dryers consume a lot of energy when used, but their usage schedule will greatly affect the real impact these appliances have on your monthly bill. If you have a Time-of-Use (TOU) tariff plan, you'll be charged different amounts of electricity throughout the day. In general, it's cheaper to operate the devices during “off-peak hours”, which are usually during the night.
Most lithium-ion batteries, such as the Tesla Powerwall or the Generac PWRcell, have a rated power of 4 to 5 kW or more and a useful capacity of more than 10 kWh. The average home consumes about 1,223 watts (1.2 kW) at a time, and depending on the appliance you're powering at any given time, that number could increase significantly. This means that you'll only be able to power your home for a short period of time with most batteries; to make it work longer, you'll need several batteries stacked together. Government-backed system that certifies the energy efficiency of household appliances is ENERGY STAR certified.
If an appliance is better than the average appliance in its category to some extent, it is labeled “ENERGY STAR certified”. ENERGY STAR appliances cost less money to operate because they are more efficient with the electricity they consume. To better understand what types of energy plans to look for in Dallas and how many kilowatts are used in an average-sized home, home professionals state this clearly by stating that “the average of 2,000 m2 home uses around 1000 kWh of energy per month or about 32 kWh per day”. However Texans consume energy well above the national average during the summer months due to their geographical location and insulation levels in their homes.
An easy way to get an estimate of your monthly energy consumption is to request historical readings which will help you get a better idea of what your home's kilowatt consumption will be like. It can also make your Texas home more energy efficient and reduce your monthly electricity bills in Dallas. Once you have an idea about your monthly energy consumption use Picker 3000 Plan to quickly reduce the number of energy plans from more than 100 to a few that are right for you and use Texas Electricity Rating bill calculator to calculate your monthly bill based on the kilowatts used.