The $200 was for supply and installation. Installation is straightforward (a simple clip on the outside of the wire going into your meter box), but regulations require that it be done by an electrician.

So, 5 minutes to clip the transmitter in place, 5 minutes to configure the receiver unit, and 5 minutes to take the owner through it all.

Thanks,

Colin.

The centameter is a whole-of-house gadget. So, the transmitter / measuring unit wraps around the main “in” wire to the house, and the display unit therefore shows the power consumption of the entire house.

There are alternative devices available that act as pass-through plugs – you plug your device (fridge, etc) into the device, and the device into the wall, and they measure the power consumption of that one device.

Its horses for courses – if you’re interested in the detail of one device, the latter is option is the way to go. If you want to watch your overall consumption, then something like the centameter is perfect.

I’ve been able to use the centameter to measure individual devices coarsely, but its not perfect. A device with constant power drain, like a TV, you can turn off and on, and watch the difference. But:

– the centameter is only accurate to 10 watts (so phantom power loads are pretty much invisible), and
– if something else changes in your house (say, the electric hot water system comes on), whatever you’re measuring gets lost in the noise

Those issues aside, I’ve been able to make some useful discoveries about power consumption of various devices just by using the centameter in this way.

As an aside, you might want to check out my new site:

http://www.low-impact.net

This is dedicated to environmental related posts. And, (coincidentally!) I just added a story about the centameter – it covers a lot of the same ground as this post, but does add some new info about other similar devices.

Hope this helps!

dasman

I just found out about this little gadget and I’m interested.

Is it possible to attach at just one appliace? eg attach at the fridge cable and monitor that and then shift it to the freezer – or does it have to be connected at the mains board?

thanks

max