Thanks everyone for the nice comments
freeskier;2833755; said:
what kind of air pump are you running? How is it when it snows? I am using a 250w stock tank heater right now but an air pump sounds like it uses less wattage
I'm running a dolphin AV-50 air pump, the cheapest place I found it at was here
http://www.kensfish.com/largeairpumps.html [FONT=Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif]
$73.95
[/FONT]It consumes 40 watts. The directions says not to be used below freezing but I have not had a problem. I asked many that have used it in the winters and they assured me no problems. I do have it under the decking to keep the elements off it and wind chill. I used pvc pipe from the outlet of the pump to only 6 inches below the water surface. I didn't want to go down too far due to churning the warmer water from down below.
This is what it would cost me to run a 250w heater per month(31 day billing cycle). I'm sure a tank heater wouldn't shut off at all - raising temps high enough to kick it off.
31.62 a month for a heater
5.05 a month for the airpump
126.48 for 4 months using a heater
vs
20.50 for 4 months using an airpump.
I'm currently paying close to .17 a kw, that includes delivery charge