Plug-in electricity smart meters

dinkygirl

I’ve been waiting for Npower to tell me when they will be getting to my area to install smart meters. I’ve just changed my tariff but my estimates and previous usage are higher than the same times last year and after a reading cockup somewhere in the last year I’ve got an outstanding balance to clear. So i want to figure out what is using the extra electric and hopefully bring my usage down and clear the balance sooner.

I’ve had a look online at those plug-in smart meters you connect to your electricity meter. The Geo Minim Energy Meter has caught my eye and although most of the reviews are very positive there are some that have had real problems with getting it to connect.

Has anyone here got one or similar who can give me some advice on these types of meters? Amazon reviews can be helpful but I don’t always trust them as people sometimes get paid for them.

matelodave

I've been using the Energyhive system for the past five or six years (not to be confused with the Hive thermostats)

and this is the output that I get

https://www.energyhive.com/dashboard/dave You can see my energy consumption and download the data if you are so inclined.

matelodave

matelodave wrote: »

I've been using the Energyhive system for the past five or six years (not to be confused with the Hive thermostats)

and this is the output that I get

https://www.energyhive.com/dashboard/dave You can see my energy consumption and download the data if you are so inclined.

alternatively there's Efergy Engage - see here https://engage.efergy.com/content/get-products which does virtually the same (in fact it uses a very similar - if not the same - dashboard as Energy Hive

Norman_Castle

The one you have mentioned is neither plug in or smart.

I use one which looks identical to this https://www.homeautomation-direct.co.uk/solutions/energy-monitors/eco-eye/eco-eye-plugin-energy-monitor-uk.html
Its helped me find both expensive and cheap to run items although it cannot be used on appliances which are hardwired such as showers or immersion heaters.

Undervalued

Norman_Castle wrote: »

The one you have mentioned is neither plug in or smart.

I use one which looks identical to this https://www.homeautomation-direct.co.uk/solutions/energy-monitors/eco-eye/eco-eye-plugin-energy-monitor-uk.html
Its helped me find both expensive and cheap to run items although it cannot be used on appliances which are hardwired such as showers or immersion heaters.

Yes but that is a completely different thing to what (I assume) the OP meant.

Your device, as you say, will only measure the consumption of any appliance you can plug in to it.

You can get devices that have a sensor that clamps around one of the thick "tails" between your meter and you fuse box / consumer unit. They measure all the consumption in the house and generally transmit to a desk top display. On mine (which was a British Gas giveaway before Smart Meters were though of) you can manually key in the unit price and it then tells you various things like the daily or monthly running costs. Some will store data and give more information whilst others just show the present current draw.

dinkygirl

Norman_Castle wrote: »

The one you have mentioned is neither plug in or smart.

Not sure what you mean??

It monitors electricity consumption directly from the main meter via a sensor that attaches to the main cable feeding into the meter. It then wirelessly transmits your energy use to the monitor display which plugs in. I might not have used the correct terminology for this type of energy monitor but I wasn’t after individual plug in ones for different devices.

Sorry if I wasn’t clear.

dinkygirl

[QUOTE=You_can_get_devices_that_have_a_sensor_that_clamps_around_one_of_the_thick_"tails"_between_your_meter_and_you_fuse_box_/_consumer_unit._They_measure_all_the_consumption_in_the_house_and_generally_transmit_to_a_desk_top_display._On_mine_(which_was_a_British_Gas_giveaway_before_Smart_Meters_were_though_of)_you_can_manually_key_in_the_unit_price_and_it_then_tells_you_various_things_like_the_daily_or_monthly_running_costs._Some_will_store_data_and_give_more_information_whilst_others_just_show_the_present_current_draw.[/QUOTE]

Yes that’s what I’m after. How accurate have you found yours?

Undervalued

dinkygirl wrote: »

Yes that’s what I’m after. How accurate have you found yours?

Very!

If I turn on an additional good old fashioned 100 watt lamp (say) the consumption shown on the display goes up by almost exactly that.

Any variation is more likely to be the rating of the lamp than the meter.

In money terms you need to program it for the unit price. If you pay a higher rate for the first XX units then I would use the amount you pay for the remaining units, assuming you will use all the higher priced units each month come what may. That way it shows you the extra cost of using additional appliances.

Mister_G

I have had one of these for the past two years.

http://109.73.126.210/index.php/energy-monitors/standalone-monitors/owl-usb/

I've found it quite useful, but my solar panels rather confuse the readings.

Norman_Castle

dinkygirl wrote: »

Not sure what you mean??

Thread title, "plug in electricity smart meters" should be cable connect energy monitors.


From memory the cable connect monitors aren't very accurate with lower consumption items nor do they allow you to isolate individual use such as a washing machine.

matelodave

Mines the clamp round the cable type and so records everything in the house. If you look at the dashboard link above you'll see how we are chewing through leccy at this very moment whilst my wife is doing the washing & tumble drying. The sawtooth during the night is the heatpump kicking in and out.

It's hard to specifically quantify how accurate it is because of some of the stuff we've got - the heating for instance is an inverter driven heat pump and so I suspect that the power factor is all over the place.

However that said it can record when lights are switched on and off, the TV and even when my wife is using her sewing machine. You can see the fridge & freezer switching on an off and when we switch the coffee machine on & off and I can view it remotely should I feel the need.

I reckon it probably undereads by around 10% depending on the load - I guess that motors and stuff with strange waveforms wont be as accurate as say resistive loads like kettles and heaters.

I've got a pretty good idea of whats on by looking at the loads and can check that stuff is turned off when it should be.