Electrical management has been difficult the last few days. I have both heaters on medium, pulling about 750 watts or 6.25 amps each. That means that together they are using half my available amperage. I’ve discovered that if I add the furnace and one light, I’m okay, but if I add a second light, I blow a breaker. It took me a while to figure out what was going on, that is why do my heaters die but I still have lights? The answer is, of course, that the blown breaker cuts off 120 volt power to the outlets and the battery takes over my 12 volt appliances. Which further explains why the lights get dim; the furnace is drawing a lot of juice.

I’m pretty sure I have a 15 amp exterior plug available to me; I just haven’t found it yet. If that’s the case, I’ll snake a cord in through a window and hook the heaters up to it. It’s quite trying having to remember to shut off the heat to run the printer or the microwave!

Thankfully, I rarely run the lights when I’m home in the evening. I don’t need a light in the study for working at the computer, so I just leave the range light on in the kitchen so I don’t trip on anything. I only like it bright when I’m doing the washing up and preparing dinner. So, I’ll switch over to my L.E.D. puck lights for the time being.

In some ways, I find having to manage my power usage a pain, but in another way I’m grateful for it because it makes me aware of what I’m doing and how I’m spending my time.