Electricity costs cause serious damage to the family budget. In order to save some money, many enterprising homeowners install an electric two-tariff meter that records electricity consumption separately during the day and separately at night. This approach to reading readings was introduced by power plants serving residential buildings to increase profitability. What are the advantages of this approach to accounting for electricity and what pitfalls can be here?
Wave load
It is obvious that the electricity consumption schedule , for example, in an apartment building has a wave-like character. At night, when all the residents are sleeping and only a certain part of the electrical appliances is working (refrigerators, air conditioners), energy consumption is at a minimum level. In the morning, from about 7 to 10 hours, this figure increases sharply - people wake up, start cooking breakfast, turn on the TVs. This is the so-called morning maximum.
After that, when almost all the residents went to work, the energy consumption decreases and remains unchanged almost until the evening, until 18 o’clock. After that, the evening peak begins - a sharp jump in energy consumption to its maximum value. It will continue until 23-24 hours, and then again comes the minimum of the night.
For these reasons, to unload the evening peak or maximum hours, an electric two-tariff meter was introduced, which records the consumed electricity only for a certain period of time (day or night).
Why was this done?
The thing is that as a result of the wave-like nature of electricity consumption , electrical substations operate in a heterogeneous mode. At night they are practically inactive, and in the morning and evening they are forced to operate at maximum power to satisfy the needs of all residents. As a result, the equipment wears out unevenly, which increases the cost of its maintenance and reduces its durability.
By introducing the right to use an electric two-tariff meter, the electricity supplier company encourages people to use household appliances evenly throughout the day. If with one-tariff metering you pay the same for night and day energy consumption, then for a two-tariff meter, the price per kW of energy at night will be much lower than during the day.
So, if you change your usual daily routine and turn on, for example, a washing machine only at night, you can save a family budget, and the electrical substation will work more evenly.
Benefits of a dual rate meter
The main advantage that an ordinary consumer receives by installing an electric two-tariff meter is money savings.
Typically, the electricity tariff in the daytime is one and a half to two times higher than at night. Two other advantages will be of interest only to those who consider themselves to be a citizen of the rule of law and understand their responsibility to society and nature:
- Reducing the load on the serving power plant (theoretically, this fact can affect the reduction in the cost of electricity).
- Reduction of harmful emissions into the atmosphere as a result of more uniform operation of the enterprise.
It is obvious that in the conditions of deteriorating environmental conditions in the city and increasing utility tariffs, the last two advantages are unlikely to interest anyone. But in an effort to reduce costs, we must remember that the tariff rate in all regions is different. If this is not taken into account, saving will not work.
Underwater rocks
Having installed a two-rate electric meter in your apartment, you will most likely have to change your daily routine. In this case, it will be more profitable to use household appliances at night, and if you are a born “owl”, then this will not become a problem. However, the Larks will make their life less enjoyable.
The second and main pitfall of the two-tariff meter is the tariff difference. So, for example, if the cost of kW of energy according to the one-rate calculation was 5 rubles, then when switching to two-tariff calculation, the price for “day kW” will be 5 rubles 40 kopecks, and for “night” - 2 rubles.
Accordingly, if you do not save electricity during the day, you will not only not be able to save, but also increase your expenses for utilities. And this, taking into account the cost of the meter itself, will result in a tidy sum.
When is a two-rate counter beneficial?
It must be understood that a two-tariff electric meter "Mercury", for example, in the Moscow and Sverdlovsk region will give different benefits. It’s all about the difference in tariffs. To calculate your benefit from installing a new meter, you need to do a number of simple manipulations:
- Find out the cost of one kW of energy according to a single-rate and two-tariff calculation.
- Measure the amount of energy consumed at night.
After you find out all the values, you need to substitute them in the formula:
Here Mon is the consumption at night, Td, Tn and T1 are the cost of “night”, “day” and “round-the-clock” one kW of energy, respectively. The result you get in percentage.
So, if you get a value of 20%, so that your costs before and after you installed single-phase two-tariff electric meters are at the same level, you will have to spend 20% more energy at night than during the day. Only in this case the two-rate meter will pay off.
How to choose a two-rate counter?
The choice of a two-tariff meter is no different from the selection of a conventional device. The main thing you need to remember is the number of mains phases in your home. In ordinary residential buildings, only one phase. You can find out by the rated voltage - it will be equal to 220 volts.
If you choose a meter for a garage, a small enterprise, or a three-phase power line is installed in your house, then you need three-phase two-tariff electric meters. The nominal voltage of the network will be 380 volts.
It is important to remember that three-phase devices are suitable for both types. But to install single-phase devices on a three-phase line is not allowed.
Reviews of double tariff meters
The vast majority of users respond to two-tariff counters positively. According to network users, savings in some cases reach more than 500 rubles. However, there are those to whom the installation of a new recording device was unprofitable and even unprofitable.
But, as a rule, those users who incorrectly calculated the benefits of its use leave negative
reviews on
the electric double-rate meter . It is also important to remember the payback of the device. In some cases, this process may take several years.