How to Interpret Your Residential Electrical Meter

Understanding the Residential Electrical Meter

Your home’s residential electrical meter measures how much electricity you use. Knowing how to read this meter can help you to become more energy efficient and save money. Understanding the different components of your residential electrical meter is key to interpreting its readings.

Interpreting Readings on Your Electric Meter

Most residential electrical meters measure kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity used. As you use an appliance or device, your meter will record the amount of electricity you’ve used. The meter typically has either a digital or analog face, and uses either gear movement, spinning disk, or a digital display for providing energy readings.

When interpreting your meter readings, pay attention to:

• The time frame in which the reading is recorded
• The type of display your meter has
• The type of energy unit used
• The position of the decimal or rest position

Analyzing the Usage of Your Unit

Your residential electric meter will provide you with information about the amount of energy your unit has consumed in a set period of time. This information can be used to identify trends and take necessary steps to become more energy efficient. Try tracking your daily, weekly, and monthly usage to identify potential problem areas.

Tracking Your Usage for Efficiency

By tracking your usage, you can see how changes in your lifestyle or home environment can have an impact on your energy consumption. Small changes such as unplugging devices that are not in use or using low-energy bulbs can make a big difference. Your electricity meter can provide you with the information necessary to identify and understand your energy usage and make the necessary adjustments.

Interpreting Your Residential Electrical Meter

Understanding your residential electrical meter can help you better understand your energy usage and make the most of your energy efficiency. Here's how to interpret the readings off of your electrical meter:

• Identify the type of meter. There are two types: analog and digital.
• Read the meter reading. Pay attention to the numbers and how they move.
• Interpret the movement of the numbers. An analog meter reading "spins" in the direction the dial points. Clockwise "spinning" indicates usage while counter-clockwise indicates generation.
• Learn about usage terms. For analog meters, usage is measured in KWh. For digital meters, usage is measured in kW.
• Calculate your consumption. With an analog meter, use the current reading minus the previous reading to determine your energy consumption. With a digital meter, find the meter’s cumulative total.

Knowing how to interpret your residential electrical meter can ensure that you make the most of your energy efficiency and understand your energy usage. The above steps will help you read and understand your residential electrical meter.

Interpreting Your Residential Electrical Meter

Reading your residential electrical meter can help you keep track of your energy use and identify any potential problems in your home's energy system. The face of your electrical meter will provide you with a wealth of information - here's how to make sense of it.

Step 1: Determine Your Meter Type

If your home was built between 1960 and 1990, you will likely have a round-shaped analog meter. This type of meter has a set of five or six dials. If your home was built after 1990, you will likely have a digital meter. Digital meters look like LCD or computer screens.

Step 2: Understand What the Dials or LCD Readouts Represent

• With a round, analog meter, each dial will represent a single digit of energy usage, usually from 0-9.
• With a digital meter, each LCD screen will display two digits.
• The top dial or LCD screen will indicate the total kilowatt-hours, or KWh, used by your household.
• The other dials or LCD screens will often display other energy information such as demand (the maximum amount of energy used in a certain period of time) and power factor (the ratio between active power and apparent power).

Step 3: Read the Meter From Left to Right

When reading an analog meter, start with the dial furthest to the left and read the digits clockwise, including any +/- or graphics drawn on the dial. When reading a digital meter, read the numbers on the LCD screens from left to right. For both types of meters, you can add up the digits or numbers to get the total energy usage.