Posted by Ron on July 13, 2012, 3:56 pm
Op 13-07-12 wk 28 03:44, Ecnerwal schreef:
> All you need to get a disk readout is a watch, if you have a disk
> meter...perhaps a calculator as well, both of which are probably built
> into your cell phone, even if it's not a "smartphone."
> For a not-huge chunk of change and one visit of a licensed electrician
> competent to disconnect your main wire, run it through a current
> transformer, and reconnect it, you can have a much more convenient
> method to look at your usage from inside the house. An ammeter is the
> simplest readout to connect, or you can have an actual power meter if
> you wish to be fussy (if the voltage varies enough that an ammeter is
> not a pretty direct reading of your power used, you have fairly poor
> power supply.) It's also a lot more like instantaneous, which something
> depending on disk rotation is going to be a far cry from - if there's
> even a rotating disk - modern meters, even if not "smart" are often just
> an LCD display. A current transformer updates in real time, while the
> disk only tells you every few seconds if you are using lots of power, or
> every few minutes if you are using a small amount of power.
> That's a hardware solution, of course, but beats the heck out of
> standing around by the meter pointing your phone at it, if you want
> ongoing monitoring. You can even datalog it with a computer and make
> fancy charts. Whether that will actually affect your power use patterns
> kinda depends on you.
What a long story iStrohm is dirt cheap!
Posted by Jim Wilkins on July 13, 2012, 4:16 pm
> Op 13-07-12 wk 28 03:44, Ecnerwal schreef:
>> ...
>> That's a hardware solution, of course, but beats the heck out of
>> standing around by the meter pointing your phone at it, if you want
>> ongoing monitoring. You can even datalog it with a computer and
>> make
>> fancy charts. Whether that will actually affect your power use
>> patterns
>> kinda depends on you.
> What a long story iStrohm is dirt cheap!
But the phone isn't, and these are alternatives for those who don't
have them.
jsw
Posted by Jim Wilkins on July 13, 2012, 11:10 am
>>Instantaneously knowing how much Watt your entire house uses with
>>Android App called iStrohm is possible from today.
>>
>>iStrohm works by clocking one round of your fuse box rotating disk,
>>showing immediate total Watt usage.
>>
>>Alternative Apps also exist, but they require manual input of the
>>kWh
>>consumption and do not show current Watt usage, which makes
>>energy-measuring and energy-saving a very time-consuming task.
>>
>>iStrohm makes serious energy-savings an easy do within minutes task.
>>
> The Web version is here:
> http://www.jecarter.us/apps/KWCalculator/
> and the standalone app is here:
> http://www.jecarter.us/apps/KWCalculator.apk
For those of us who still have slide rules, this shows how to
calculate power by timing the meter rotor:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electricity_meter
The Kill-A-Watt EZ can predict the cost of using an appliance for a
month from a typical day's use, such as making coffee. It breaks down
electricity use to the level where you can make choices, unlike
measuring the entire house. It won't help with wired lights or 240V
loads, but you can capture infrequent short-duration ones like a
clothes dryer from meter readings.
jsw
Posted by Ron on July 13, 2012, 3:54 pm
Op 13-07-12 wk 28 02:30, news@jecarter.us schreef:
>> Instantaneously knowing how much Watt your entire house uses with
>> Android App called iStrohm is possible from today.
>>
>> iStrohm works by clocking one round of your fuse box rotating disk,
>> showing immediate total Watt usage.
>>
>> Alternative Apps also exist, but they require manual input of the kWh
>> consumption and do not show current Watt usage, which makes
>> energy-measuring and energy-saving a very time-consuming task.
>>
>> iStrohm makes serious energy-savings an easy do within minutes task.
>>
>> Offered for only € 1,99 at the Google Play Store for Android phones.
>> https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cloggsoft
>>
>> iPhone users will also find iStrohm soon at the Apple AppStore, where it
>> currently is waiting for review.
> There are a couple of free Android apps for that.
> The Web version is here:
> http://www.jecarter.us/apps/KWCalculator/
> and the standalone app is here:
> http://www.jecarter.us/apps/KWCalculator.apk
> Might as well give the goodies away as I was "SmartMeter"ed recently.
> In spite of the variety of meters available, the new meter they
> installed is one of the few with no simple means of access :-(
The KWCalculator does miscalculate completely
600 r/kWh at 6 seconds rotation = 360 Watts?
This is completely wrong!!!
iStrohm only costs 1 beer for crying out loud and is mobile and does the
job correctly and in a user-friendly and fun way!
Posted by Morris Dovey on July 13, 2012, 4:49 pm
On 7/13/12 10:54 AM, Ron wrote:
> iStrohm only costs 1 beer for crying out loud and is mobile and does the
> job correctly and in a user-friendly and fun way!
Hmm - I don't have an iPhone. How about I send you the beer, and you
send me the iPhone with app and service?
OTOH, I have a free Arduino app for controlling and acquiring all the
data you might ever want for a small portable nuclear power plant. To
get your copy, just e-mail a photo of your reactor. :-)
--
Morris Dovey
http://www.iedu.com/Solar/
http://www.facebook.com/MorrisDovey
XML site map
> meter...perhaps a calculator as well, both of which are probably built
> into your cell phone, even if it's not a "smartphone."
> For a not-huge chunk of change and one visit of a licensed electrician
> competent to disconnect your main wire, run it through a current
> transformer, and reconnect it, you can have a much more convenient
> method to look at your usage from inside the house. An ammeter is the
> simplest readout to connect, or you can have an actual power meter if
> you wish to be fussy (if the voltage varies enough that an ammeter is
> not a pretty direct reading of your power used, you have fairly poor
> power supply.) It's also a lot more like instantaneous, which something
> depending on disk rotation is going to be a far cry from - if there's
> even a rotating disk - modern meters, even if not "smart" are often just
> an LCD display. A current transformer updates in real time, while the
> disk only tells you every few seconds if you are using lots of power, or
> every few minutes if you are using a small amount of power.
> That's a hardware solution, of course, but beats the heck out of
> standing around by the meter pointing your phone at it, if you want
> ongoing monitoring. You can even datalog it with a computer and make
> fancy charts. Whether that will actually affect your power use patterns
> kinda depends on you.