Electricity rates, meters and utilities

I understand that it is just a generalised "ratio" split, regarding peak & off peak electricity.

Also;
I'm no Electrical Expert, but I understand that the Power Stations run at a pretty constant rate, pushing power into the grid. I've never been involved with operations of these facilities, and I'm not sure if they alter the loads going into the grid to meet the 24hr cycles... However I have been told that The Electricity Distribution Companies have to continually balance their power... Early in the morning, the power is pushed out to the residential areas, as people get ready for the day, and during the day, a little extra power gets pushed over to Industry and City Offices, and then in the evening the city winds down, and some extra power gets directed back through the residential substations (substations in the residential areas)....

Large Sewer Mains;
These are actually "tidal"... Nearly everyone has a shower (and maybe a dump) between 5am and 9am, and all that water reaches the sewer plants kind of around mid-day.... In the mid-day peak tide!

What are you saying? That you have an older meter or a newer electronic meter?

http://www.savepower.nsw.gov.au/Portals/0/docs/news/Media07121202.pdf

If that doesn't explain it, tell us more about the scenario.

WTF!

With an analog electricity meter, how do utility companies know how much electricity a house hold uses at each rate.

Example:
Bob has an analog electricity meter (with no configurable time variables)
Bob only turns his electricity on at 22:01 and then turns it off at 07:59.
Bob only uses Energy Australia's off peak rate.
How does Energy Australia know what rate Bob is using?

The reason why I think analogue meters are better for the consumer are they don't measure when the power is used, and then charge expensive rates when you want to use power, ie when you are at home after work cooking dinner and watching TV.

The power tariff recorded by smart meters varies greatly during the day. At my property Energy Australia advised via a letter the rate per kilowatt hour was about 10 cents off peak, something like 25 cents during the day, up to about 30 cents on the shoulder and then something like 45 cents a kilowatt hour at the peak.

Meanwhile at my home I pay around 20 cents a kilowatt hour all day every day.

They measure offpeak power, usually for hot water systems, with two wheel meters.

Let me know what kind of meter you have. If it's a digital, let me know the model numbers. If it's analogue, post as many details as you can.

I'll unravel it for you. I spend a LOT of time looking at different electricity meters.

If you want to reduce your power bill, check my profile for who I work for.

In this example Bob isn't using "off-peak/on-peak" tariffs. He's still on the old single rate for all his usage.

It means surges (when you start an heavy load eg: AC/Fan/washer/oven) cost you money and the digital meters cost you more bcos they're better at measuring them.

Have you ever noticed your lights dimming at around 10pm for a split second , thats the hotwater tariff coming on , there is a generator at the substation that sends out ripply frequencey that is measured by the zelwiger relay which is the square thingy generally in the middle of where your meters are . So you have two meters one for t31 and one for Tariff 11 . The new meters have the cappabilty of measureing more than one circuit. So you could have your pool on one tariff your lights and power on another and your hotwater on the third , all wired as different circuits all being controlled by ripply frequence ( Execpt T11 its always on ) .Analog meters are extremely acurate. The best way to read them is from right to left with the lowest numer written down .

The Bob example Bob is a fool just because he is only using power during the hours of 10pm to 7 am doesnt mean he is using offpeak T31 , YOu have to have the circuit wired corectly via the meter and via the relay .

Oh there was a range (batch) of analog metres out there , Waughbit and Franklin that where in accurate however in the favour of the customer. The EA's are bussy replaceing them . Though that was a while ago .

Sent you a PM.

Big Electricity Consumers (major industry) can buy electricity at about 7c/kWH... (24/7 - flat rate).

I understand that The Power Stations crank out electricity all day long at a fairly steady rate... Then the retailers devise ways to maximise profits!

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From wiki
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Base_load_power_plant

Economics

Power plants are designated baseload based on their low cost generation, efficiency and safety at rated output power levels. Baseload power plants do not change production to match power consumption demands since it is more economical to operate them at constant production levels. Use of higher cost combined-cycle plants or combustion turbines is thus minimized, and these plants can be cycled up and down to match more rapid fluctuations in consumption. Baseload generators, such as nuclear and coal, often have very high fixed costs, high plant load factor and very low marginal costs. On the other hand, peak load generators, such as natural gas, have low fixed costs, low plant load factor and high marginal costs.[7] Typically baseload plants are large and provide a majority of the power used by a grid. Thus, they are more effective when used continuously to cover the power baseload required by the grid.
[edit]

Base load power plant usage

Nuclear and coal power plants may take many hours, if not days, to achieve a steady state power output. On the other hand, they have low fuel costs.[9] Because they require a long period of time to heat up to operating temperature, these plants typically handle large amounts of baseload demand. Different plants and technologies may have differing capacities to increase or decrease output on demand: nuclear plants are generally run at close to peak output continuously (apart from maintenance, refueling and periodic refurbishment), while coal-fired plants may be cycled over the course of a day to meet demand.[citation needed] Plants with multiple generating units may be used as a group to improve the "fit" with demand, by operating each unit as close to peak efficiency as possible.

In WA, at the moment, we have 1 electricity retailer - I think. At least that's the case where I live, in a rural town. When I put solar panels up I needed a new power meter, so I elected to go onto smart power at the same time. For my wife and I it works a-treat.

This is a bit complicated, but I'll give it a go:

1. EVERY weekend of the year: 0700 - 2100 16c/unit 2100 - 0700 10c/unit

2. EVERY night of the year (weekends included): 2100 - 0700 10c/unit

3. Weekdays, October to March (inc): 0700 - 1100 and 1600 - 2100 40c/unit 1100 - 1600 20c/unit

4. Weekdays, April to September (inc) 0700 - 1100 and 1600 - 2100 20c/unit 1100 - 1600 40c/unit

ALL net units put back into the grid are paid at 47c/unit. I say it that way, because we use what we produce FIRST. eg If I'm producing 2 units and using 1 unit, 1 unit is going back into the grid, to be paid at 47c/unit. If I'm producing 1 unit but using 2 units, I'm drawing 1 unit from the grid, being charged in accordance with the rates above.

We have a digital meter which allows us to check for ourselves exactly how much we've used in each tariff point and how many units we've put back into the grid.

That doesn't sound anything at all like what you blokes in the East are describing, but it's most certainly what happening here, with one exception. Anyone doing the solar cell thingy now only gets 27c/unit.

My understanding is the analog (elctromechanical) ones use a metal disc that's actuated by a magnetic field. The rotation count of the disc is what the mter reads.

When a surge happens (when the lights slightly dim when the AC comes on), the coils which produce the field are only slightly affected... where as the digital meters go straight up and level off.

Analog meters are easy to hack (magnets, obstruction of disc...), digital ones aren't.
The analog will speed up until levelling.