Gas Meter: Equipment Autopsy #74

thegeekgroup.org/ - After much demand, we take apart a gas meter! Not knowing what we'd find, Chris explores the special mechanisms behind measuring gas flow in this 60s-70s vintage piece. Along the way we play with air pressure, and explore the idea of a pantograph.
Video Links:
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[@azzym8794]

*This is a rare video where I actually learned something. At 72 years old I always wanted to open a meter but never managed lay my hands on one. You guys did it for me A big **_THANKS_** to the geek group.*

[@denniscat9395]

I took an old 1960s British gas meter apart years ago. Impressed by the engineering quality

[@davidperry4013]

An autopsy of those old mechanical parking meters will be awesome.

[@ANDYCHIRY]

OMG! It's made by Vulcan (min 20:15). That rubbery valve inside is made in Romania. My uncle used to work for that company. Such a surprise for me!

[@EnosShenk]

Really really neat. I also said "That's so cool!" out loud when you got it turning on shop air. A suggestion for something relatively similar you could examine is the pump/meter from a gasoline pump. I used to work for a gas pump manufacturer, and the meter functioned as its own pump as well as precisely metering the amount. The company was also trying to introduce an axial flow meter, that was the size of a pack of cigarettes. It was so precisely machined you could blow in the inlet and it would run (And suck your lip into the hole for good measure) Love the videos, keep it up.

[@RODALCO2007]

A very well made meter, great autopsy. nice metal geartrain on the register too.

[@blackice5000]

Mms y

[@DJDAudio]

This was fantastic! It works just like a steam engine! And with fixed volume per stroke it can be accurate at any flow rate. What a great design. It does get me thinking if I could harness this and build a small generator. The energy would come from a small pressure drop across the device. Thanks for doing this, been wanting to tear one apart for ever. would also be cool to run one from a vacuum on the outlet side.

[@thinkstorm]

I was wondering why this is so complicated.... but wouldn't different flows as well as temperature differences also compress/expand the volume of gas, so essentially at higher flows you would get more gas per pump volume?

[@A1Skeptic]

***** Gas meters are always proceeded by a pressure regulator that drops the gas pressure drastically before the meter. For safety, residential gas meters, pipes, and appliances are never subject to over ONE psi of natural gas pressure!* This "autopsy" isn't really complete without a dissection of the Gas Pressure Regulator that would have been supplying this type of meter. So your intuition about it not working (with the information you had just been provided in this video) was correct. The pressure is carefully controlled to keep the system honest. :) *More accurately, the pressure in the system is restricted to less than one psi above ambient pressure. According to So. Cal. Gas. Co. the residential distribution pressure is only 1/3 of one pound per square inch above the local air pressure at the regulator. (Some new multi-family construction to be allowed to distribute gas at 2 psi apparently so that reasonably priced 3/4 inch and 1/2 inch pipe can be used to supply adequate gas flow on longer runs that would otherwise require larger, more expensive pipe.

[@thinkstorm]

That makes sense, thanks for clarifying!

[@arthurvin2937]

Now I understand how do they make this sound and why are they so huge. I have fairly new meter 2010, and it is based on the same old principles + some kind of RF connectivity.

[@Quakefire]

Works a lot like a steam engine with a basic sliding D valve, right down to the sealing force being from above the valve. Cool linkage!

[@Tangobaldy]

In this digital age we are missing out on mechanical engineering

[@driftsdragsdrives4938]

I love your videos! I'm binging all the autopsys I love them! Keep up the good work man!!!

[@dusterdude238]

would be interesting if you could re-purpose the meter by linking some kind of motor drive to the pantograph arm system on the top, to drive the bellows and transfer air pressure from the inlet to the outlet. might have some sort of useful purpose. like a bellow system for a forge, or something along those lines

[@arpitkumargahlot]

Excellent demonstration

[@formerx]

Great video, man. I’ve wondered about gas meters since I was a kid. I was born four years before the bellows were made.

[@sparkyy0007]

Lol... I was a 49 day old embryo when those bellows were made and always wondered what was inside them.

How does it adjust for temperature and pressure as you mentioned at the start of the video?

[@slimh2080]

my old shovelhead used to have lots of "safety wire" Great video.

[@brianhall8097]

Thanks for the great video you have good videos very interesting see how that operated again thanks very cool

[@HSETM]

What model is that

[@WillPhoneman]

Ok, thanks for this! I have taken several electric meters apart, and a water meter, but haven't gotten a gas meter yet, and wondered how it worked.

[@fpm1979]

Here is an animation of how it works: Elster Kromschröder, Osnabrück: Gaszähler Animation 3D

[@coolbluelights]

Very cool! I always wondered what was inside those things!

[@kasharkhan1699]

What will happen if we inject air pressure from the side of the house? Can we reverse the meter reading ?

[@kc5vgw]

And done on an actual autopsy table! 😂

[@ChaoticGoodChris]

It is indeed, and it's a *used* Autopsy table.

[@Mrkino]

OMG!! you got one! thank you so much.

[@redneckbryon]

That would look very cool in a glass enclosure with its own air supply and working, I think it would be a cool teaching tool, if that one was made in the 60-70s I wonder what one nowadays would look like. As a project you guys should work on getting a permanent air supply put in the lab. Geiger Counter Gas Pump

[@marianoaldogaston]

now day its probably the same. but with cheap materials

[@nicksrandomadventures]

How do you steam meters work

[@roberthorwat6747]

Uber cool! Very enjoyable viewing

[@ChrisHelmich88]

did you try to hook up a vaccum to the outlet to create negative pressure instead of positive pressure on the outlet

[@JF32304]

+Chris Helmich This wouldn't have worked as the whole upper cavity would need to be sealed in order for that to work.

[@markmitchell1290]

I disagree. A vacuum would have negative pressure relative to the atmosphere. So that would simulate quite well the upper chamber at a higher pressure (atmosphere pressure when top is removed) flowing into a lower pressure side (the outlet when hooked to a vacuum).

[@BenShaner]

Parking meters would be cool, both the newer style credit card and older coin ones.

[@vikramchavan5448]

This is great Chris. Thank you for sharing. Just one recommendation if you do not mind, use PPEs while tearing down any equipments.

[@wb8nbs]

Does it run with a vacuum cleaner hooked to the output?

[@DrTwigg]

INTERESTING DISECTION OFA GAS METER..especially the bellows...altho I want this guy to get a quieter clock...the ticking drives me quite mad...

[@fig8man]

Gerald Weaber do you mean the background music?

[@MrOutdoorsWoodsyKindaGuy]

At minute 15, are you teaching us how to set up our gas meter so it turns backwards? Lol

[@AishaDracoGryph]

Around the 6 minute mark I started to think I smelled gas. No leaks from my stove though. XD

[@mariofollowerofjesus8068]

awesome and very educational Have you considered taking a bicycle. speedometer meter apart

[@sincerecharles4587]

Like the channel, Can you explain the breakdown of a Petroleum liquid flow meter (Neptune #2.oil meter)

[@network_king]

Giant electric meter like they use on industrial settings. A clamp on amp meter. A liquid gas meter, would it be like this one or a water meter? Speedometer, RPM, odometer meter like a car, anemometer, barometer, thermometer, humidity, pressure meter for like air. Some of these you could probably do a bunch of small ones in a shoot. Should make another series of like meters that do something at a certain point. Like a compressor cutoff switch, breakers, thermostat. While not a true meter they have metering components.

[@theosandstrom3945]

Could you make your gas bill go down by blowing compressed air through the gauge backwards?

[@JF32304]

+Theo Sandstrom I wouldn't recommend it.

[@kevinbyrne4538]

This gas meter technology probably hasn't changed since circa 1890.

[@mickeyholmes87]

Hi does anyone know what type gas meter this is e.g. Diaphragm, Rotary, Turbine or Orifice?

[@MWvanwijck]

Mike Holmes It's a Diaphragm

[@mathewmclean9128]

That is NOT how I ever imagined a gas meter worked either! I always thought they used some kind of wheel mechanism. Like a turbine wheel being spun by the gas pressure or something like that.

[@AishaDracoGryph]

1961 and the rubber has not rotted yet? Is there something special about natural gas that preserves the rubber?

[@rejeanbeaudette6929]

Take apart a gasoline/diesel meter from old gas station pump.

[@dsgreat3]

To me the video did not feel like a production video and more like one of the blogs. Personally i would have done the taking apart first and then the demo as although it looks cool without the full how it works its just a nice piece of machinery and that not what the autopsy's are to me.

[@g7mks383]

Great strip down great shame about the distracting drums in the background.

[@kenwolfe6093]

How many TGG people does it take.............

[@philiprizek6384]

Has seen a liquid LP gas meter it may have trouble finding one of them to take apart

[@erlendse]

Very nice. a closer look at the valves would be good, otherwise you have shown it all.

[@HDXFH]

well made!!

[@philiprizek6384]

And that meter measures propane in liquid form mahaska oil mahaska Kansas has one on the side of the building they have a bulk tank for propane they deliver so they run liquid LP in liquid form to the meter my best understanding allegedly

[@tieliu8699]

I love it

[@Storyideas81]

A multimeter would be cool.

[@JF32304]

+kennybigmac81 That's just a coil going past a permanent magnet. to show positive or negative and how much current is making it do that.

[@gaskan666]

the index cover is made of plastic not glass. The gas meter is alot older than 78

[@dominicksinclair6394]

amazing always wanted to know how a gas meter work i remember once asking the gas man about it he would just give me a weird look i guess he didnt really know either lol

[@marshallguerra1353]

Very ,very old meter. The newer meters are simpler inside. Gas company test meters in use every 7 years. And if a meter reaches a set age it is automatically retired and replaced.

[@pontorobert9475]

How about taking apart an electrical meter that is three phase.

[@perezfamily3839]

so where is the pressure control.

[@victorsteerup3111]

The pressure regulator is the big pancake device external, upstream of the meter. (not shown in this video) Look at your own meter installation.

[@TheRealMikeHalstead]

Here's a page with a nice animation showing how the bellows operates. www.refrigerationbasics.com/GFB/meters.htm

[@MrDrew810]

Steam meter perhaps?

[@rapidgamingrise]

Check Ritter wet gas meter

[@kwaad2]

Parking meter!!!

[@SamSitar]

looks like gas meters do more work than the other two types of meters.

[@TradieTrev]

pill counter

[@MrTallefjant007]

Are you sure about it?

[@mikedonato1881]

Be careful watch your doing

[@grunthostheflatulent269]

Do you know how the astute knows you are not an equipment god? Because you used the term, "have gotten." No God would ever say this.. A God would say, "Ich bin Gotten!" nevermind..

[@kinkfitsunday]

Very interesting. I enjoyed this!