Ampy Electric Meter, What Do The Lights Mean?

mooreg

For those that might find this useful there's a pdf at

I can't post a link as a new user, Google for CM-AM-Manual.pdf and you should find the user guide.

Anti creep occurs if an average power of 12.5 watts (+-20%) or less is detected for a period of 4 minutes and 48 seconds. Activation of abti-creep is indicated by the red LED being continuously lit. This function is reset as soon as the average power over 4 minutes and 48 seconds exceeds 12.5 watts (+-20%); the LED then returns to pulsing as normal.

a1red

Any one know the life span of a type 5077A electricity meter??
Thanks peeps
Red

michaelbob

Mo54 wrote: »

The solid LED simply means that there is no load on the meter (no electricity is being used) and the meter has entered 'anti creep' mode. When it is flashing, the flashing rate is proportional to the electricity being used.

This is the correct answer. I recently had solar panels installed and when they are generating more than I'm consuming, the red light on the main meter glows continuously. I take this as an indication that power is being exported to the grid. The meter cannot register this reverse power and enters 'anti creep' mode. The 'genersted power' meter behaves in a similar manner ie at night the red light glows continuously.

The following extract from the ELSTER A100C single phase meter makes this clear

"meterspec.com/143.pdf"

10 TEST INDICATOR
A red test output LED is provided which pulses in accordance to the following configurations:
Import only meter: The LED pulses for forward energy only
Import meter with Power Flow Insensitive enabled: The LED pulses for forward and reverse
energy
Import/export meter: The LED pulses for forward and reverse energy
The LED is permanently illuminated when in anti-creep (i.e. below starting current) for all
configurations.
The test indicator pulses are 40ms wide. The pulse value is 1000 p/kWh for all meter ratings
and is marked on the meter nameplate.
The LED is not modulated.

Other manufacturers meters will be similar.

stackhouse

I found this thread after a lot of phoning and googling to no avail! Long and short is, had solar panels fitted on Monday. Tried to set up Geo Solo PV monitor. Meter is on solid red light - as described above- and appt monitor will only read pulses when flashing....suggestions please? Pretty please lol...

[Deleted User]

solid light on can also mean solar panels are providing enough for your needs, or, my favourite, the meter is bypassed under its cover

tomi44g

If you have an iPhone or iPod Touch then you can read your current energy consumption using the Power Meter App (search 'Power Meter' on the App Store).

Just point the camera to the flashing LED and the App will display how many kW of energy you are using

utility_csa

sacsquacco wrote: »

solid light on can also mean solar panels are providing enough for your needs, or, my favourite, the meter is bypassed under its cover

Slightly correct.

The solid lights mean it is in reverse mode. you can still be consuming more than you are generating though.

Terrylw1

tomi44g wrote: »

If you have an iPhone or iPod Touch then you can read your current energy consumption using the Power Meter App (search 'Power Meter' on the App Store).

Just point the camera to the flashing LED and the App will display how many kW of energy you are using

Or you could use the kwh reading on the meter itself.

cottager

Sorry to resurrect this thread again, but after looking around for a while for the answer to my question, it's the most helpful result I've been able to find. But I'm a simple female (:D), so I'd like to check if I'm understanding it correctly.

Background: an old building has always been wired up with basic light and power from a supply cable from the main house -- usage negligible and never mattered, just part of the main household bill. Soon, though, a family member's going to be between properties for a while and will be using it as a place to store stuff, run things like washing machine/fridge etc, work on their hobbies, lights will be on a lot more and so on.The supply's been upgraded with extra lights and sockets added, and they want to pay for what they use for however long it is, so the electrician (now finished and gone) put in one of these Ampy Reporter 5077A meters where the supply enters the building, so it can be monitored.

I looked at it earlier but wasn't quite clear what it's going to tell me! The only paperwork left with it was something from Westwood Meters in Devon about installation, and there's nothing in the way of a user guide. On the unit itself is Ampy Automation's name, Peterborough: they don't appear to have a website so no joy there, and I could trace nothing very helpful about this particular model to interpret what it will show... except this thread.

I thought or hoped it would express usage in simple kWh or units (something I could equate directly to my leccie bill), but reading earlier posts I'm not quite sure if it does.

From the first page...

dunloadin wrote: »

One flash (or impulse) does not equal one unit, if it did we'd all need to be big earners to afford lekkie; the number of flashes per unit should be written on the meter. The meters I fit have 1000 impulses per KW(unit), a second LED gives a longer impulse once per unit.

On initial fit the LED remains constantly on with no load on the meter, once the power is switched on to the house and a load is present the meters led's will 'flash' or recieve an impulse.

espresso wrote: »

That depends on your definition of one unit. These meters register units of one watt and flash once for each watt used. As already stated in post #2, 1000 flashes equates to 1kWh or one chargeable unit of electricity e.g. a cost of approx 10p.

I get the bit about the flashing red indicator, one flash/impulse representing one watt used. I turned one light on, and from being solid red, after a delay it began flashing.

But how does this correlate with the actual numbers on the digital display?

It's still on the start reading of 1 at present, and once lights/power start being used this number presumably begins incrementing; but is this ALSO expressing watts (the number of impulses espresso and dunloadin mentioned) or does the display show kWh/units of electricity?

In other words if it showed 100 for example, would that be only 100 watts used (impulses), or 100 kWh?

As the meter has on it "1000 imp/kWh" I assume the numbers displayed do indeed represent watts/impulses, so the readout would need to reach 1000 before 1 kWh had been used? So my "charge" for their share when my bills arrive would be based on multiples of 1000, to determine how many units (or kWh) they'd used?

Just wanted to be sure...

BTW, what does "anti-creep" mean (posts above) and is it relevant to this situation at all?

Many thanks

[Deleted User]

i havenoticed that a very small ammount of electric used, say a tv on standby , wont make the solid light start flashing