HVAC and refrigeration
Refrigeration defrost energy cost
Price scheduled defrost heater operation independently of cooling load.
Your inputs
Complete the fields for your selected method. Zero means intentionally zero, not unknown. Currency selection labels amounts; it does not convert exchange rates.
How this calculation works
heater kW*hours per cycle*cycles*days*rate.
Use measured real electrical input kW, not volts × amps or shaft power. Hours describe time at that measured input. All rates are user supplied; no tariff lookup. An integrated kWh reading must not have duty cycle applied again. Heater-only arithmetic, independent of refrigeration cooling load. Does not recommend defrost settings.
What information do I need?
Use records for the same job, equipment or accounting period. Only the fields for your selected entry method are required. An unknown amount is not zero.
Input definitions and where to find them
- Defrost heater electrical input (kW): Measured or qualified supplier/assessment value for defrost heater electrical input at the SAME operating point. Do not infer equipment sizing, safe limits or missing engineering data.
- Hours per cycle (hours/cycle): Actual enabled heater hours per cycle; convert observed minutes÷60.
- Cycles per day (cycles/day): Already selected/observed cycles/day, not a setting recommendation.
- Days in period (days): Actual time from logs/calendar/statement, or an explicitly labeled future schedule. Keep the period in days in period consistent with all matching costs/outputs.
- Electricity price per kWh (selected currency): Matching energy/volumetric tariff or bill component for electricity price per kwh, excluding fixed charges or other charges not modeled.
Use the Where to find this value controls beside the inputs for available work-it-out helpers. Estimates remain your assumptions; a helper does not verify the source figures.
Worked example
Example amounts use US dollars (USD).
Example answer: Period defrost energy is 1,460.00 kWh for the illustrative inputs below.
Example inputs
- Defrost heater electrical input: 2.00 kW
- Hours per cycle: 0.50 hours/cycle
- Cycles per day: 4.00 cycles/day
- Days in period: 365.00 days
- Electricity price per kWh: $0.15
- Period defrost energy
- 1,460.00 kWh
- Period defrost electricity cost
- $219.00
These illustrative values are not recommended rates or industry averages. Replace every example input with your own figures.
Use the result well
Price scheduled defrost heater operation independently of cooling load.
Keep inputs on the same scope and time basis. Calculations retain precision internally; displayed values generally round to two decimal places, with extra precision for very small values and whole-unit rounding where required. Economic comparisons describe your supplied assumptions and do not guarantee future results.
This tool provides business arithmetic. It does not approve engineering designs, establish legal or tax treatment, select equipment or certify safe operating conditions.