Received this from some members of the Alternative Technology Association.

Hi All

Not sure if this has already been raised I noticed recently that my climate smart meter was registering more than normal so I switched everything off without much change.

I assume therefore that the meter was measuring the current produced by the grid connected inverter.

As we do not consume much during the day most of the daytime consumption shown would be the PV and this would be added to the night consumption for the daily total which is completely incorrect.

We only have one current transformer CT and it may not be positioned correctly but I would reckon that this may well be a problem with most installations with a PV system. As this is a simple meter I would be surprised even with 2 CTs it could be configured to discount the PV current.

I had a look at a friend’s which had been installed after the PV system was installed but could not see the CTs. The meter seemed to be reading high for the load they guessed was on.

Has anyone else noticed this.

M.

It has been talked about on whirlpool. It may be that the current pickup(in the meter box) just registers current and can’t tell which way it’s flowing so it’s all counted as consumption.

G.

There is no way for the “Smart” meter (quotes on purpose) to give you an accurate reading with solar on the roof. I sat down when I had my PV put on and drew it up for my own head and there is physically no where you could get just the reading for the power being consumed. this is because the PV dumps the power straight to the bus in the switch board and what is needed is used then excess flows out through the meter and past your clamp meter. It does not care about incoming versus outgoing current.

So the only true method you have is to have a much more accurate system like Auzion energy maximizer or similar. These are then able to do it at much greater granularity.

The only other ways are looking at the only meter in the house that counts (the power meter) or install a second device on the inbound circuit from the solar and do some mental arithmetic comparing 2 meters one shows your contribution the other total.

A.

They burn up batteries like crazy too. I’ve pulled mine out.
G.

Mine is fine. Love it.
No new batteries in 18mths
And it’s wired to show my total draw but ignore the solar input.

It’s very easy to setup. 5 minute job.
If you aren’t electrically savvy I wouldn’t advise doing it yourself.

P.

[b][Two suggestions are offered about how it can be fixed. If you want access to them Contact Us.][/b]

see also http://localpower.net.au/monitoring.htm

The ClimateSmart Home information booklet in explaining this says “Depending on how your PV system is wired to your electricity box your monitor may not always give you an accurate reading during daylight hours. However during the evening your monitor should give you a better indication of the energy your appliances are consuming – helping you to control your energy consumption”

It is possible for an electrician to counteract this problem according to an experienced PV engineer….Changing wiring in a meterbox should never be attempted by anyone except licensed electricians!