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In the winter, are not all electronics heating the house - thus no energy is wasted?

Considering the energy I'm paying for:
If I leave my computer running while I'm out, how much energy is actually wasted in the winter? Is all of the energy used in the computer expelled as heat into my home?

To be even more specific:
If my computer ran at a constant 500 watts and I had a 500 watt space heater, would they heat my home the same (thus cost the same)? If so, wouldn't it make sense to leave the computer on in the winter, since the heat produced is not really wasted? That way I always have instant access.

(Ignore variables like computer lifespans, gas furnaces, and cost-effectiveness for the sake of the question.)

Bort
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    Consider that a 500W computer probably uses energy to do things other than generate heat... and that a 500W space heater isn't running an operating system. – tpg2114 Feb 08 '14 at 18:25
  • Duplicate? http://physics.stackexchange.com/q/88780/29216 – BMS Feb 08 '14 at 18:27
  • A full analysis of electric heating must included generation and transmission losses. On the other hand, an efficient heating system (i.e. a heat pump) can do 500 W of heating with much less than 500 W of power by cooling a reservoir. – dmckee --- ex-moderator kitten Feb 08 '14 at 18:30
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    @BMS - My question specifically relates the the cost the energy. (Would it cost the same to use a heater or a computer.) I do not see it as a duplicate. – Bort Feb 08 '14 at 18:45
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    @tpg2114 - It doesn't matter what the computer does, it all becomes heat. Every light, sound, and computation becomes heat in the room. – Bort Feb 08 '14 at 18:47
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    Possible duplucate (or at least very related): http://physics.stackexchange.com/questions/93130/is-it-wasteful-to-use-a-heating-element-instead-of-doing-useful-work – Kyle Kanos Feb 08 '14 at 18:50
  • @tpg2114 A computer doesn't use energy to do anything other than generate heat, at least not on any significant level. The actual energy used for computation is miniscule, less than 1% of 1% of the energy drawn. To several decimal places, a computer is just as efficient a heater as a coil of wire. (Which is to say, it's 100% efficient at converting energy to heat, which is still not an efficient way to use energy to heat something.) – David Schwartz Mar 12 '17 at 05:47

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