Reading Your Meter to Find Out the KWh You Have Consumed
Electricity is billed by the kWh you use. Different rates apply to different areas. In addition, in some areas, charges vary by the time you are using it. In addition, rates can vary within an area by the month. Electricity costs are based on the base cost of the company’s energy. This means that if the basic energy cost is lower one month than another, the cost per kWh to you will also be lower.
The electric company keeps up with how many kWh you use by installing a meter on a pole that is wired to your house. All electricity available to you will come through this meter, which measures it as it comes in. You can see the evidence of this electricity usage by looking at the big wheel spinning horizontally on the meter. The speed at which it spins shows how fast power is coming in.
Above the big wheel are little dials. There are what measures your power consumption, and thus the amount your will be billed for. There are five dials, and they turn different directions. Some turn right, and some left. Check to see which way they turn. You can tell by how they are numbered. Those numbered clockwise turn to the right, or the clockwise direction. Those numbered left turn in counterclockwise.
To read you meter, look at the dials and write down the number the hand has just passed. If a dial hasn’t passed zero, but has passed nine, look to the dial just to its left and write that one down. The number you get is the number of kWh that has passed the meter since it was installed. To get the number for the current period, subtract the last reading from this number. The answer will be your current usage.
To figure an estimated cost for the current period of usage, take the amount of the current usage and multiply by the cost per kilowatt hour. You can find this out either from your last bill, at the company’s online site, or by calling the company. These will of course be an estimate, but should be very close.
You may wonder what good it does to know what you bill is going to be. One way it helps is that it will keep you more aware of your usage, and what may make a change in it. For example, if you have a party, wash a lot of clothes, have several games and TV’s going a lot of the time, you can see how it impacts your usage. You can also adjust your thermostat up or down and check the impact on usage as well.
Knowing the kWh you use, and how different situations might impact it, you can make decisions to conserve energy. For example, you might think turning that air conditioner down low is worth what it costs. That is, until you see what it actually does cost. That may well change your mind.
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Category: Home Management
Keywords: current usage,estimated cost,cost per kilowatt