What is a watt-hour meter?
A watt-hour meter is used for measuring electrical power at your house or company. It measures kilowatt-hours, or kWh, which is the equivalent of 1,000 watts used for one hour.DescriptionStandard household watt-hour meters consist of a glass-fronted dial equipped with numbers that increase as electricity is generated. Inside, two electrical coils are arranged at 90 degrees to one another. One measures voltage, the other current.FunctionThe product of voltage (volts) and current (amps) is power (watts), and the two coils create electromagnetic fields that cause a disk at the base of the meter to turn. The more power generated, the faster the disk turns.AMRAMR, or automatic meter reading, technology allows meters to be read by the utility company over the power lines, negating the necessity for a meter reader except for a standard checkup approximately once a year.IssuesMechanical meters can be tampered with, though utility company staff are trained in how to recognize this, and the intr
