Power and Energy Monitor Plug

[@kw1984]

A new JW video!!!!!

[@richiethegod]

My thoughts exactly 👏👏👏

[@LindaTheLearner]

about bloody time 👍

[@aidan2535]

Good to have you back JW. From a computer/electrical engineering student your videos are always fascinating. Please keep up the great work.

[@sergiofernandez3725]

Great to have you back on KZbin JW. You are by far one of the best educators around. I watch your old videos all the time and still learn something new.

[@olly7673]

Wow JW! It has been far too long since we've seen you on YT.... welocme back. I'm looking forward to watching this latest instalment.

[@Xclub40X]

JW I missed you pal.... Good to see you again me ol' bright spark 🔆

[@akdenyer]

Great to hear and see you again. All the best John I am coming to the Uk for a week in September.

[@videomaster8580]

And on the third day JW rose again! Glad to see you back.

[@IndependentHeathen]

Hello JW it's good to see you.

[@spankysmp]

Blimey. Where have you been? Glad to see a new video JW

[@Honest_Reviewer.]

Thanks for coming back to KZbin... I always enjoy your videos.

[@wayneski9103]

Great to see you back JW. Love the videos

[@IbrahimHalil-l9x]

We missed you, welcome back sir

[@theirisheditor]

Although domestic customers are not charged for reactive power here in Ireland, the smart meter ESB Networks recently installed on our supply (Omnipower single-phase meter ST) shows separate positive and negative kvarh readings as well as the billed day / night (11pm-8am) / peak (5-7pm) kWh readings.

[@andrewstewart5972]

Good to see you back John. Spot on as usual.

[@clivequinn8978]

Great to see you again JW.

[@colinreid7305]

Great to see your return.Informative video as always.

[@Xclub40X]

JW is back..... let's all PLUG this video and get more to watch it

[@easonwuc]

Great to see you back.

[@StuWilloughby]

He lives!

[@UnstableVolt]

JW is back! 💡

[@thomasw6169]

Great you are back. !

[@alanwhite4427]

It’s great to see you back, please keep up the good work

[@aamontalto]

I’ve been binge watching your YT videos these past 2-3 weeks as I needed to add to my intellectual baggage. They’re a wonderful source of information thank you. But I noticed that you hadn’t posted a video for a while and this made me wonder. Very glad to see that you’re back.

[@Alex1M6]

"Intellectual baggage" What a wonderful phrase.

[@andygardiner6526]

Welcome back John. Keep up the good work.

[@mauanderuk]

Good to see a new video.

[@GaryB007]

Good to see you back. I use that exact monitor plug.

[@owensmith7530]

I also have exactly one of these.

[@Berkeloid0]

I hope JW will return it to you then when he's done, if that's the exact one you use 😝

[@Handlebar-MustDash]

I have the Maplin version, many years old now but still very functional.

[@HIDLad001]

This particular model is also sold in the US with a NEMA 5-15 plug as the Kill-A-Watt EZ. (they are both made by Prodigit Electronics.)

[@fje1948]

It’s been a while John and I hope you are well. Good to see you are back!

[@bobfry5267]

Welcome back from a fan in your neighbourhood.

[@descultualexandru4022]

Hello! welcome back! keep up the good work!

[@jensschroder8214]

Refrigerators can be tricky. When the compressor starts, they need a starting current of 1000W. It's a few hundred watts to run. And then they are switched off again for a long time. If you want to operate this on an island system, you need a powerful 2000W inverter or more. But overall the power consumption is not that high. Inverter fridges don't have such spikes

[@paul756uk2]

I have the exact same one. I leave it plugged into my freezer for months so it gives a good average of it's consumption.

[@JivanPal]

Good to see you back and also on Odysee!

[@Mike_5]

Nice bookshelf JW and jolly good PEM review

[@grayrabbit2211]

I've had a Kill-a-watt meter for ages... I also have an ancient monitor on the main panelboard which wirelessly transmits current kWh usage to a display box which also keeps historical usage stats. Very useful. Not sure what's available for that now.

[@2760ade]

It would be great to hear your take on EVs, and the problems and division of opinion that they are currently presenting.

[@davidgordon3784]

My wife wants to know if the light stays on when you close the refrigerator door. 🙂 I still use my copper dish 500 watt heater c1910. It works fine. When I die I would like to bequeath it to you John in appreciation of your efforts.

[@jon_273]

A very useful device. Mine has even been used to help set the voltage and frequency on an oil platform amongst other things.

[@lordpitnolen2196]

It has been suggested that smart meters could be used so that bills are based on Power Factor rather than Watts and would be more expensive.

[@jwflame]

Smart meters do record VA and power factor, so billing based on that is certainly possible.

[@Berkeloid0]

I mean it's fair enough in some ways - the electricity company has to provide thicker wires and larger transformers to power loads with poor power factor without getting any extra payment in return - I guess it's just that it might be seen as unfair since suddenly you get charged more for the same appliances you've had for years. At least in the EU I believe there are more and more requirements about appliances that must have power factor correcting circuitry in them, so it might go two ways - either they will start charging for VA but it won't matter by then because everyone will have PFC appliances so minimal impact on one's electricity bill, or they might decide once everyone has PFC appliances there's no need to bother changing to VA billing because it won't bring in anything extra. Of course if you live in a country without a PFC mandate then surely it's only a matter of time...

[@patrickwigmore3462]

​@@Berkeloid0 The cost of maintaining the wires and transformers is (in principle) already covered by the current billing system. So, it's not necessarily unfair to the power company if metering doesn't take into account power factor. They're getting paid for it either way. It *is* _technically_ unfair to the customers who have the best power factor, because they are effectively subsidising those with the worst, but I imagine most homes are pretty similar, so the subsidy is probably quite small in practice.

[@Berkeloid0]

@@patrickwigmore3462 I suppose that's a fair point. Since the current energy price should factor in those extra grid expenses, I guess you can argue that if they do start charging for VA, the energy price should drop to recognise that the highest PF consumers will make the network more efficient. Then the final electricity bill should come out the same for those who hover around the "average" grid-wide power factor, and the price would only go up for those with truly poor PF. That would be the fairest way to do it in my opinion, and yes of course we all know it would never happen like that!

[@e5Group]

Big Fan. Love the books behind. 💪👍👋❤️

[@jensschroder8214]

Today the load in houses is either power factor 1 when the electric stove is on or more capacitive with other consumers. So it makes no sense to add another capacitor to compensate.

[@andrewtitcombe8378]

I have one of these . But I can't find a way to test a mains power bank. As once the power bank shuts down the meter loses the measured KWH.

[@davepusey]

Still got one of these. Original from Maplin. Very handy.

[@SiaVids]

I like to use my very dubiously constructed HOPI meter as everything is displayed at once on it.

[@Swwils]

This man has the four volume Stubbs Waverly electrical encyclopedia on his bookcase and he means business.

[@roberthuntley1090]

Any idea as to how accurate these are when fed with 'dirty' power supplies. I use a solar PV diverter (effectively an automatic 3 kW dimmer switch) to feed a 3 KW array of electric convector heaters, and used one of these to check on the diverter's own reported savings. If this meter is accurate, then the diverter display overreads by circa 13%. Just trying to see if that is a fair reflection when working on a highly distorted, 'dimmed' waveform.

[@lawnmower1066]

Your video upload timing was excellent and came just in time. I was being talked into watching EastEnders!

[@cainweber1978]

John, please please take this to solar and wind power. Will Prowse is huge in USA doing this. Need a good UK equivalent.

[@ovalwingnut]

244 VAC❗ 😵‍💫 In the US I generally stay clear of our house 120 VAC. Our 220 (to select machines) is a NO GO ZONE. To think you "guys" have that on almost every wall in your homes is... ShOcK & AWE impressive. R.E.S.P.E.C.T. Just saying. By the way I have a Kill-a-Watt and I didn't appreciate the additonal features until now. Thank you. Cheers!

[@izzystuart7798]

The US uses 240v in all houses, the houses are fed from a center tapped transformer giving you 120v in two phases or 240v across both phases.

[@ovalwingnut]

@@izzystuart7798 Thank you iZzy I apparently was "way off" on my calculations? It's good to know [now] because that additional 20VAC would make things exceptionally more dangerous for me. I owe you my life my friend. You RoCk!

[@izzystuart7798]

@@ovalwingnut It can be anywhere from 220v to 240v depending on the area. Not sure if that would make a big difference unless it was supplying a heating element. Technology connections has a great video on the US electrical system called "The US electrical system is not 120V" :-)

[@NewWorldHoarder]

I have both 230v and 110v power tools which are used in a non-regulated setting, not a building site etc. I consider the trade off in terms of safety vs convenience to be equal. However with rising and ridiculous energy costs, can I confirm that the 230v tool will be more efficient and thus less costly to operate than the 110v model?

[@jwflame]

The losses will mainly be in the 230-110V transformer. However even with that, any difference will be insignificant.

[@2Sorts]

The smart meter ‘in home’ monitor gives a whole house running total of course but not individual appliances.

[@2760ade]

I use mine sometimes to work out the cost of say a washing machine cycle, or boiling a kettle. If you have little else running at the same time, as I do, it still gives you a rough idea!

[@IcenI_Koi]

Welcome back John, been a while. Hope you are well ?

[@jaessak3463]

Knowledgeable video. Where can I buy this Energy Monitor please. Thank you.

[@cannamorecamping5029]

I have this meter. I think mine came from Maplin. £12.50 in the sale. The buttons on mine have a mind of their own. Frustrating thing is it has no memory so as soon as the powers off you lose your data.

[@Graham_Langley]

I can confirm the price - mine was bought from Maplin 4/4/04 for £12-49 and still works perfectly. I've got a later one from Lidl with a three-button interface which has a 2x LR44 cell backup but you have to remember to take them out when not in use as they don't last that long.

[@G1ZQCArtwork]

Welcome back after a long break, hope you are well. I was hoping you might mention SMART Meters, which it is rumoured will be shifting to charging for VA power factor soon, as a way of charging the customer more. This needs thrashing out down to basics. Cheers David in Lincolnshire.

[@kye903]

Was very handy for making a spreadsheet to show my usage. The only issue is the cooker of course, since it doesn't have a plug. Does anyone make a device that can be fitted "in-line" between the twin & earth and the wall socket to show the usage of the cooker...? Or can a plug be temporarily fitted to the end of the twin & earth cable just for this purpose?

[@merlin5476]

@Kye903 i personally wouldnt put a 13A plug on your twin & earth. I doubt you would get a 6mm cable in the plug & you can only draw 3000watts from your 13A plug ( it msy get warm over a period of time too. You may however be able to use either 1 hot plate or 2 at once or just the oven, but not more than 3000watts.

[@Berkeloid0]

For those ones a more fiddly option could be to buy one of those cheap Chinese DIN rail mount power meters and a DIN rail enclosure to mount it in. They are available up to around 100 amps. Then you could put a 32A plug and socket on it and use it for measuring higher current devices like ovens. Not sure what the rules are over there but if you need a small 32 amp socket for permanent use you could consider buying an Australian domestic 32 A plug and socket, which are around the same physical size as the UK 13 A plug (with a different pin configuration of course). Then you could at least plug the oven into the wall without the power meter when you're done. Search for "as/nzs 3112" and pick the Wikipedia result if you want to see photos of how the different amperage sockets work.

[@LoftInsulation-pj9dj]

Wow a new video. Can you do a new video on tt systems?

[@jwflame]

What information did you want that isn't in the video from September 2021 on TT systems?

[@LoftInsulation-pj9dj]

@@jwflame oh right ill refer to that video cheers man. Also would it mean if im on a tt system would my neighbours be also tt aswell?

[@jwflame]

@@LoftInsulation-pj9dj Adjacent buildings should be on the same earthing system particularly if supplied from the same transformer or where there are conductive parts shared between them such as water pipes. Doesn't mean they always are, as plenty of installations are wrong. Some of that covered here kzbin.info/www/bejne/iWaypX-da9uikLs

[@LoftInsulation-pj9dj]

@@jwflame man your a good dude. $$$

[@gbelectricks]

Nice to have you back JW👏 That’s a good little product there. It makes you wonder if a bigger version of one of these (relatively cheap devices), is available to hard wire into the consumer unit, to monitor everything connected at the consumer unit. It certainly would make determining “maximum demand” a bit more accurate. How can they manufacture this for £20 then a power logger is up in the £3K range🤔

[@jwflame]

There are things like this for permanent installation: shellystore.co.uk/product/shelly-pro-4pm/ 4 channels, power monitoring and remote on/off control.

[@ruben_balea]

There's also a really cheap DIN rail meter called D52-2066 that displays V, W, A, Hz, PF & kWh at the same time. It probably has the same precision as the cheap plug-in ones. It uses a current transformer that can be built in or external, but with any of them you have to disconnect the main live lead to feed it through the current transformer. These with current transformers are safer if they fail, other types are wired in series with the load and can melt or catch fire if the internal construction is shoddy, I would only trust one of that type if it's from a reputable brand.

[@Killerspieler0815]

PowerFactor has a use to destingush Computer power supplies: without PFC ( = the worst cheapest ones = Danger!) & witth Passive-PFC (old/cheap ones) & Active-PFC ( better one/modern ones)

[@dollarama8652]

🔦🔌💡⚡ Yay! a J.W video

[@steviecandtheplace2b]

I got mine from Maplin 😂

[@voltare2amstereo]

35p that's silly expensive.

[@GM-dc8vr]

The incorrect capitalisation of kWh disturbs me.

[@Berkeloid0]

Clearly it's measuring the Kelvin-Watt-Henry (KWH) of the load, giving you the temperature, rate of power consumption and inductance all in one convenient number!

[@GM-dc8vr]

@@Berkeloid0 😂😂😂

[@sedsberg77]

Be careful with these on very high loads for very long times. Like EV-charging.

[@cannamorecamping5029]

This one claims to be rated for 15amp I think. It also has an alarm if you overload it.

[@sedsberg77]

@@cannamorecamping5029 Even if the rating is adequate it can overheat over time because of bad quality or corrosion, pitting, dirt etc. on the plug contacts. And you lose one of the safety measures. The temperature sensor in the plug since you now basicly have two plugs. The charger/equipment and the meter. Here in Norway it's not even legal to charge with a plug at 5 amps on a 16A circuit. It has to be hard wired to a separate circuit.

[@cannamorecamping5029]

@@sedsberg77 I'm actually using one to charge my ev. My ev is not a car though and the charger only draws about 500 Watts.

[@rossthompson1635]

I have one that looks the same as this - the contact pressure on the pins of the plug is very poor and yes they do heat up quickly (or even flickers on and off). I keep meaning to take it apart and see if the sockets can be squeezed up a bit.

[@joesmith-je3tq]

Good to see you posting again.