Clip on meter - 'smart meter'

[oranjeboom]

Hi all, 

 

Looking to have a temporary 'smart meter' to have in addition to the old analogue one. User has no wish to have have a 'smart meter' installed by current provider and dubious about the merits of having one. But would like to have something that is easier to read in terms of consumption used at hourly/daily intervals. I see that there was some discussion here about them a few years back, but many of these units don't appear to be available any longer such as Effergy and Owl.

 

 

 Just needs to be accurate (there's a question mark on current analogue dial meter but no wish for energy company to replace it with smart meter...unless it shows to be inaccurate) and simple to install, so ideally clip on to the house feed.

 

There's obviously plenty to choose from via ebay/amazon, but accuracy and simplicity is key. I have however read that there's a question mark on the accuracy of the clip-on ones but wondering whether there's any exception to this? 

 

 

[SteamyTea]

Some of those old analogue meters have a magnet on the disk, you can read the revolutions with a simple Raspberry Pi circuit.

 

As for clip on ones, I used the old CurrentCost, but like all the clip ons, they only sense current, so no adjustment for voltage or power factor.

[ProDave]

Nothing to stop you buying your own electricity meter and fitting it AFTER the DNO's meter as a check meter.  I have one, but wired backwards to record how much I export.

 

Some of the cheap clip on wireless ones are useless for me at least, as they can't differentiate between imported and exported electricity.

[oranjeboom]

3 hours ago, SteamyTea said:

Some of those old analogue meters have a magnet on the disk, you can read the revolutions with a simple Raspberry Pi circuit.

 

As for clip on ones, I used the old CurrentCost, but like all the clip ons, they only sense current, so no adjustment for voltage or power factor.

Probably a bit much for me at this stage. KISS for now!

 

1 hour ago, ProDave said:

Nothing to stop you buying your own electricity meter and fitting it AFTER the DNO's meter as a check meter.  I have one, but wired backwards to record how much I export.

 

Some of the cheap clip on wireless ones are useless for me at least, as they can't differentiate between imported and exported electricity.

 

 

Yeah may have to go down that route and get my electrician to fit one.  Accuracy is key. 

[Alan Ambrose]

Yeah agree (a) the simple cheap things like CurrentCost are not very accurate, but they may do, (b) putting in your own accurate in-board meter is a neat alternative, (c) there are also third party per-circuit set-ups with phone apps etc that quite useful (search the forums), (d) accurate 1/2 hour reporting is a benefit of smart meters - I know there are drawbacks but I think it's the future. For instance, you can't access the 'smart' time-of-day tariffs, like Octopus Agile, without one.

[S2D2]

Smart meters are very accurate and best of all completely free to have installed, you've already paid for it whether you have one or not.

 

To get good accuracy and usage breakdown (over what a cheap in line meter would give) from a consumer product you're looking at openenergymonitor emontx with a 100A clamp for around £160. You could compromise accuracy and do it cheaper with a home brew setup. But why when smart meters are available?