Hi
I was just wondering what energy usage people were experiencing when printing using their A1 minis? I know this is a how long is a piece of string question. But we had quite a high electricity bill last month and i was wondering if it had anything to do with me printing?
What would an average £/KW per hour do you think (roughly of course)
thanks for any help
N
Hi, these are measures extracted from a review:
Then, at idle state (no printing) is almost nothing (5W)
When heating nozzle and bed is the max draw (120W)
And when printing is about 50W
Then, the printer consumes 1KW after 18-20 hours printing, in Spain this is 0,20€
Then, if you have one complete month printing day and night, 24 hours a day, it will add to your invoice about 38Kw (7,5€ at Spain prices)
I measured the usage during a 25 hour print on my A1 with the plate at 65c in a fairly cold room.
It came in at around 2.5kw so with my current tariff of 28p/kw then that’s 70p a day or 100w / 2.8p an hour.
I’d imagine the mini would be a bit less with the smaller bed to heat.
thanks for the info! I think im just getting paranoid - the high bill, and a seemingly often inaccurate ‘smart meter’ I think has been confusing me
Very interesting! Thanks for your detailed answer.
Could you please also tell us how did you get these stats, are they accessible in the Bambu Studio app itself, or are you using some 3rd party app? I would like to monitor electricity usage of my A1 mini too!
If you have a battery backup with a display it will tell you power draw.
Hello!
Because of power outages I’m trying to set up a stable off-grid printing setup. I’m using a power station rated at 600 W max. When I start a print on my A1 printer, the station shows a surge up to 950 W and then cuts power to the AC outlet.
Does anyone know what the peak draw is on the A1 at print start? Any real measurements or specs?
There are devices like the Kill-A-Watt energy monitor that will monitor line voltage for issues while monitoring the energy consumption in real time for anything plugged into it. It can tell you in local currency how much you’ve spent too. They are handy items if trying to find energy parasites and wasteful appliances.
This morning’s news was reporting on some area in the US around an AI data center where the electricity rate was up 230-something percent over pre-AI data center rates. They had an AI data center move in and demanding a lot of power which drove up prices. As energy gets more expensive it’s going to get more important to economize.
But, for those who can, solar is still a great way to sidestep all the electricity rate issues. I put up solar almost four years ago and my electric bill is only a grid connect fee (I generate a slight excess) and my EV just helps amortize out the solar because all my transportation electricity comes from my solar. I haven’t bought gas in almost three years now.
And I run my printer a lot. Doesn’t cost me anything for the electricity but a grid connect fee.
Even without the tax rebate, solar is still a rocking deal. A basic system can pay for itself in a decade or less giving another 10 years or so of “free” electricity. Those who have seen 200% increases could amortize in less than 5 years.
For a bit more money you can get a system that can isolate from the grid when it’s down and still provide power for a home or business. It’s like having a backup generator that runs when the sun is out. And adding a battery can keep you running when the sun isn’t out. Also, solar locks in your cost - no utility rate increases if you aren’t using utility power. Financing is also available that has a payment equal to your average electric bill. It doesn’t even have to cost any extra over what people are already paying but you own the equipment.
The grid is getting more stressed. Outages are getting more frequent and longer. The replacement transformer supplies are low and getting lower as demand is outstripping supply. At some point powerlines can be back up but power still out due to waiting on key parts. And electricity is rapidly getting more expensive thanks to all that wonderful AI.
Lots of information out there for anyone interested.
Are you on 240V? The heaters are run directly on the mains so consume a lot more power and heat much faster on 240V vs 120V mains.
If you are on 240V if there is a way to run with 120V output it may get you below the power limit. If not you’ll just need to get a bigger/more capable power station.
