Electricity Cost for a Chameleon

[runfluterun]

Hello all!
I have been researching for quite some time, and am finally going to own my own veiled chameleon in a little over a week. He will be 5-6 months old when I get him!
Anyways, I have been doing ample amounts of research on owning a chameleon, and have created my set up, and I feel like I have a good grasp on caring / owning a chameleon. My only question / worry now is how much my electricity bill is going to raise. I will be using a uva/uvb light and heat light 12 hours a day, and the night heat lamp at night.
Also, if anyone has any beginners advice for me, or other chameleon-y experiences let me know! As I said, I have been doing a lot of research, but you can only learn so much before owning one yourself...
Thanks a bunch, and looking forward to future experiences!

-runfluterun

 

[Solid Snake]

Welcome to Chameleon Forums!

You wont need a heat lamp at nite.

You could technically calculate electricity cost by looking at what watt fixture/bulbs youll be using, times that by 12(hrs a day they will be on) and times that by how much your power company charges you.

That will be about the least costly thing for you though.

 

[Chris Jury]

Electricity costs vary widely depending on many factors--anywhere from $0.10-0.50 per kWh is feasible, though most places it averages more like $0.15-0.20 per kWh.

As above, no need for a lamp at night. Hence you'll need a basking lamp on during the day, say 40-100 watts, as well as a fluorescent lamp, say 20-40 watts. You may need more fluorescent lighting to keep plants alive in a larger enclosure, so factor that in if it applies. Each may draw more wattage than they're rated at, so let's say you'll be using a total of around 100-200 watts * 12 hrs/day = 1200-2400 watt hrs/day = 1.2-2.4 kWh/day.

If you're getting pretty cheap electricity on average of $0.10 per kWh then it'll cost 1.2-2.4 * 0.10 = $0.12-0.24 per day in electricity, or $0.60-1.20 per day at $0.50 per kWh.

This should give you a rough idea. It all depends on what you're paying for electricity and what your actual usage is. Hope that helps.

cj