Bought a Kill-A-Watt power consumption meter

[ShotgunSteven]

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: ShotgunSteven

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: ShotgunSteven
I want to get one of those and see how truthful the claims of the various compact fluorescent and LED lamp bulbs are, as per their electricity consumption.

That'd be interesting.

I tested the fluorescent lamp I installed above my desk. It's kinda a strange lamp, I hope it doesen't burn out anytime soon, I haven't found a replacement at any B&M stores, lol.

Anyway, it's a F17T8 bulb, 17W.

It consumed 17W for the 1-second of startup, but settled down to 15W after that. Not bad.

I was thinking I would do it over a period of at least a month, measure light output, heat output, power consumed, et cetera. Get all bulbs in an equivalent range, say a 60w incandescent, then a compact fluorescent and LED bulb that output an equivalent amount of light. Maybe keep track of overall use and see if they really last as long as they claim, also.

HEH. That'd be pretty hardcore.....

As with regular lightbulbs, though, the stated "Life" figure is only an average.

And uh, you'd be logging the hours of the LED bulbs for a LONG time........... Possibly the rest of your life, and then some.

I know. The ones I am looking at purport to only cost 80 cents a year to run at twelve hours a day, so I figure $1.60 per year is fairly cheap to run it 24/7 to try and kill it off. 😉

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: ShotgunSteven

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: ShotgunSteven

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: ShotgunSteven
I want to get one of those and see how truthful the claims of the various compact fluorescent and LED lamp bulbs are, as per their electricity consumption.

That'd be interesting.

I tested the fluorescent lamp I installed above my desk. It's kinda a strange lamp, I hope it doesen't burn out anytime soon, I haven't found a replacement at any B&M stores, lol.

Anyway, it's a F17T8 bulb, 17W.

It consumed 17W for the 1-second of startup, but settled down to 15W after that. Not bad.

I was thinking I would do it over a period of at least a month, measure light output, heat output, power consumed, et cetera. Get all bulbs in an equivalent range, say a 60w incandescent, then a compact fluorescent and LED bulb that output an equivalent amount of light. Maybe keep track of overall use and see if they really last as long as they claim, also.

HEH. That'd be pretty hardcore.....

As with regular lightbulbs, though, the stated "Life" figure is only an average.

And uh, you'd be logging the hours of the LED bulbs for a LONG time........... Possibly the rest of your life, and then some.

I know. The ones I am looking at purport to only cost 80 cents a year to run at twelve hours a day, so I figure $1.60 per year is fairly cheap to run it 24/7 to try and kill it off. 😉

Aren't they like 20 bucks though?

I've wanted to pick one up just for kicks.. .Maybe use it in the shop as an indestructible light or something.

I don't really think they're THAT bright though.

 

[Ornery]

...hovers between 166-167W...

Wow, that's more than I would have thought, but the monitor sounds right on. I always thought my monitor was using about twice what the box does. 😕

 

[eelw]

Originally posted by: Ornery
...hovers between 166-167W...

Wow, that's more than I would have thought, but the monitor sounds right on. I always thought my monitor was using about twice what the box does. 😕

Not with the power hungry CPUs and GPUs in todays computers.

 

[iwantanewcomputer]

is there any difference between this and a standard dmm except made for household appliances? i might get one, but i would rather get a high quality dmm if this doesn't do everything. it might be a pain to wire stuff to a normal dmm though, especially cause you probly shouldn't use small homemade wiring for high power appliances

 

[Heisenberg]

Originally posted by: iwantanewcomputer
is there any difference between this and a standard dmm except made for household appliances? i might get one, but i would rather get a high quality dmm if this doesn't do everything. it might be a pain to wire stuff to a normal dmm though, especially cause you probly shouldn't use small homemade wiring for high power appliances

Normal DMM's typically don't measure power, or record kWh's over time.

 

[Toastedlightly]

you are a nerd. I envy you. Bastage.

 

[eelw]

Originally posted by: Heisenberg

Originally posted by: iwantanewcomputer
is there any difference between this and a standard dmm except made for household appliances? i might get one, but i would rather get a high quality dmm if this doesn't do everything. it might be a pain to wire stuff to a normal dmm though, especially cause you probly shouldn't use small homemade wiring for high power appliances

Normal DMM's typically don't measure power, or record kWh's over time.

Exactly. And typical Wattmeters cost over $100. The Kill-A-Watt meter is such a simple and inexpensive device.

 

[Eli]

Well, our fridge uses 29W while Off and 70W while the door is open... That makes sense, there's a 40W bulb in there.

Waiting for it to cycle...

Edit: Wow, not nearly as bad as I thought. Only 215 - 225W while running.

For some reason I thought they drew like 800-1000W....

 

[Chaotic42]

Originally posted by: Hossenfeffer
You know... you might be able to make a few bucks somehow. Offering to check peoples' appliances and stuff out. Could surely at least make the $30 back.

Not if he keeps putting his devices at full load to test the thing out.

Kill-A-Watt: $27.83
Power for devices to test it: $123.22
Fuse: $.40
Getting 50 strangers to read your power usage updates like they're soap operas: Priceless

 

[eelw]

I wish there was a way to measure the power consumption of my AC.

 

[trmiv]

I'd like to hook that to my reef tank. The tank alone costs me an extra $30/month in electrical costs.

 

[Kelemvor]

I always wanted to just buy one frmo the local Home Improvement store, test thigns in my house, and then take it back.. But that'd be wrong of me.... Do they make anything like that that can be hooked up to the breaker? That way you could test the dryer, AC, etc if they are each on their own breaker....

Also, did you let the monitor go to Sleep Mode and see if it uses less when Windows does the "Turn off Monitor" thing?

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior
I always wanted to just buy one frmo the local Home Improvement store, test thigns in my house, and then take it back.. But that'd be wrong of me.... Do they make anything like that that can be hooked up to the breaker? That way you could test the dryer, AC, etc if they are each on their own breaker....

Also, did you let the monitor go to Sleep Mode and see if it uses less when Windows does the "Turn off Monitor" thing?

I am sure it would, maybe I'll test it out.. I don't use those features, so I didn't think about it.

The last time my monitor was turned off for more than 5 or 10 minutes, it took 5 minutes for it to come back on...

It's old, so I don't stress it by turning it on and off.. It's been on 24/7 for 6 years now...

On another note, it's sad that I've had the same 15" monitor for 6 years...

 

[Kelemvor]

Also if you have free time, you could take all the data you've posted in this thread and put it all together in the Original Post. Might make it easier to read. 🙂

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior
Also if you have free time, you could take all the data you've posted in this thread and put it all together in the Original Post. Might make it easier to read. 🙂

Yeah, I was going to do that, along with the model of appliance.

 

[sharkeeper]

Speaking of reef/aquaculture, exactly ten years ago we were paying an average of $10k per WEEK for energy! Talk about sticker shock.

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: sharkeeper
Speaking of reef/aquaculture, exactly ten years ago we were paying an average of $10k per WEEK for energy! Talk about sticker shock.

:Q

Damn.

I've always wondered how much places like big grocery stores put out for energy.

As if the open freezers aren't bad enough, have you ever tried to count all the 400 or 1000W bulbs in a place like that? :Q

They probably get charged different rates being a business and all, but still.....

 

[sharkeeper]

They pay by time of use and peak demand.

A large department store typically runs $10k to $20k per month with average energy management practices.

Some designs are royally screwed, however. For example, a new store may want to save money by using ceiling space for the return. Well this sounds good to save money up front, but then they quickly realise their cooling demand shoots way up, often higher than capacity on warmest days because of all that heat from light fixtures! Duh! The few hundred k they saved up front gets burned up in less than two years.

Most chain stores like WalMart and Target are managed by third party offices. They can load shed, adjust heat and cool settings up and down remotely, etc. This can save a lot of money too by reducing peak demands. If done properly the impact is minimal to the customer. If done halfass (more frequently), the place runs hot and/or cold and may have other problems that can be quite obvious.

 

[conjur]

Originally posted by: Eli

Originally posted by: ArmenK
How much did it cost? Where did you get?

I got it on eBay for $27.83 shipped.. by far the best deal I was able to find. It's like 40 bucks in stores.

Text

Just ordered one yesterday from eBay. 🙂

 

[freebee]

I posted this awhile back over at the fw. It was only 29.99 shipped at amazon. Not in stock anymore. Its ok, kind of a novelty item.

 

[0roo0roo]

Originally posted by: Eli
Ok..

The computer was drawing 6 watts while OFF.

Upon hitting the power switch, it surged to 180W.. then stayed around 170 - 175W while going through POST and beginning to load Windows.

After I typed in my password, it hovered around 160W, sometimes dipping into the 140s for a while before spiking back up to 160W.

Now everything is loaded, CPU is idle and it's hovering between 136-137W.

Interesting.

Now, let's fire up Prime95....

Using In-place large FFTs(maximum heat, power consumption), as soon as I click the button, it spikes to 168 and then hovers between 166-167W.

This is with a Mobile XP/2600+(2.0GHz) @ 177x13.5 = 2.4GHz @ 1.65v .. I also have 5 HDDs(120gb, 80gb, 60gb, 20gb, 17gb), so that probably adds some unnecessary wattage.

Back down to 136-137W as soon as I shut it off. Neat. 🙂 So I guess you could say Microsoft was nice enough to save us electricity by incorporating the cpuidle function into Windows?

Maybe they figure we owe 'em.

what psu? range of efficiencies possible is pretty wide. seasonic is good 🙂 mine claims ~80%🙂

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: 0roo0roo

Originally posted by: Eli
Ok..

The computer was drawing 6 watts while OFF.

Upon hitting the power switch, it surged to 180W.. then stayed around 170 - 175W while going through POST and beginning to load Windows.

After I typed in my password, it hovered around 160W, sometimes dipping into the 140s for a while before spiking back up to 160W.

Now everything is loaded, CPU is idle and it's hovering between 136-137W.

Interesting.

Now, let's fire up Prime95....

Using In-place large FFTs(maximum heat, power consumption), as soon as I click the button, it spikes to 168 and then hovers between 166-167W.

This is with a Mobile XP/2600+(2.0GHz) @ 177x13.5 = 2.4GHz @ 1.65v .. I also have 5 HDDs(120gb, 80gb, 60gb, 20gb, 17gb), so that probably adds some unnecessary wattage.

Back down to 136-137W as soon as I shut it off. Neat. 🙂 So I guess you could say Microsoft was nice enough to save us electricity by incorporating the cpuidle function into Windows?

Maybe they figure we owe 'em.

what psu? range of efficiencies possible is pretty wide. seasonic is good 🙂 mine claims
~80%🙂

I'm using a Zalman 350W supply with PFC.. I can't remember the model, heh.

 

[trmiv]

Originally posted by: sharkeeper
Speaking of reef/aquaculture, exactly ten years ago we were paying an average of $10k per WEEK for energy! Talk about sticker shock.

Yea, the costs are nuts for coral aquaculture if you use artificial light. The best way to do it seems to be what Calfo does, using a greenhouse and utilize sunlight.

 

[sharkeeper]

Actually most of our power was used for water processing. We did have a few 10's of kW of Xenon arc lamps and other HID lamps but the pumps use the bulk of it.