Customer
Service > About Your Meter
About Your Meter
Electricity is measured with
a kilowatt-hour meter. This is the device
used by the company to record the power you
use. If you've never read your meter before
you'll find it's very easy. Reading your
meter regularly will allow you to track your
energy usage and use your energy efficiently.
What is a Kilowatt Hour?
Electricity is measured in
units called kilowatt hours. A kilowatt hour
is consumed when you use one kilowatt continuously
for one hour. All electrical equipment has
a kilowatt rating which is usually printed
on the equipment. Sometimes you will see
amps (A) or kVA instead. A kVA is approximately
equal to a kilowatt for most domestic loads.
Four (4) amps (A) on a 240 volt device is
also about one kilowatt. For example: an
electric kettle rate at 1 kW used for 15
minutes uses 1 x 15/60 = ¼ kilowatt.
Your consumption is shown on your bill in
kWhs for the current month and for the previous
4 months. This makes it easy for you to monitor
your usage.
Reading a Digital Meter
If you have a digital meter
it is simple to read. Just read off the numbers
shown on the front. If you read your meter
about the same date each month, and subtract
the previous reading from the current reading,
you get your consumption for the month.
For example: On the first
of January your meter is reading 41,360 kilowatt-hours.
On the first of February the meter reading
is 41,440 kilowatt-hours. Your consumption
is 41,440 - 41,360 which equals 80 units.
Your meter readings and your
usage are shown on your bill.
Reading a Dial Meter
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If you have a dial meter, it will look like this diagram. It will have four dials on the face each with a pointer and the numbers 1 through 0 around the outside. Your meter reading will consist of four numbers, one from each dial.
The following steps will help you to obtain your meter reading: |
Write down the numbers
on the dials from left to right.
If a pointer is between two numbers,
use the lower number. On the meter
in our diagram, the reading is 5258.
You now have your meter reading.
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To determine how much
electricity you have used (measured in
kilowatt-hours, or KWh) since the last
reading, just subtract your previous
meter reading, taken from the "Meter
Reading" section of your bill, from your
new meter reading.
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