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wellington womble

Monitoring a power suppy

I want to use an occasional electricity supply at my field. I have mum's permission to use the external socket at the house (which formerly connected a caravan) providing her tenants are compensated for the power I use. The tenants are happy with that too.

How can I monitor how much I'm using so I can settle up with them? An Owl will only work on a single core cable, which I don't think my usual caravan hook-up lead is.
vegplot

You can buy 3pin watthour meters that will probably do the job.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=watt+meter&tag=mh0a9-21&index=aps&hvadid=5101097186&hvqmt=b&hvbmt=bb&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_6vizgvlhnq_b
RichardW

Make sure its one with a memory or it will loose it all if turned off / power cut / fuse trips.
wellington womble

It's not a three pin socket, though. It's a round one, for a caravan. (I wish I knew the proper names for them)
stumbling goat

Make a fly lead up, 3 pin plug at one end to go in to the socket, supply comes out to a round pin mains coupler, same at other end. Make sure you get the round pin mains couplers round the right way to be safe.

sg
wellington womble

Good plan. Would that be safe outdoors?
stumbling goat

Is the ordinary 3 pin plug going into a weatherproof external socket, one with a flap over the plug that allows the flex to come out via a notch, but covers the plug and socket?

sg
wellington womble

It's not a three pin socket, it's a round one. Like you get on campsites to hook up caravans. Ideally, I would like to connect it straight to my caravan and connect things to that as and when. But there is no 'ordinary' plug involved in that connection to plug the watt meter thingy into. It would help a lot if I knew what the round plug system was called!
dpack

i would think a good spark would be able to wire the meter into a exterior cable/plug system for a reasonable fee

bout 20 mins should do it ,

if you are not good with wires etc get a pro to do it cos outside and electric is potentially dangeroos.
i assume there is a rcd protecting the supply?

another issue is distance,the loss due to resistance in the wire is a function of distance and wire size,for machines using high current a caravan hook up cable might not be "fat"enough over a long distance

the cable that is intended for 110 v industrial concrete breakers etc etc is not cheap but it is very thick,flexible and good for long runs outside (tis similar to the yellow stuff for caravan hook ups but even thicker)

again a good spark should be able to check your intended tools ,the distances involved and suggest the correct wire.

it can be done but it is best to do it well and safely Wink
onemanband

Good advice from dpack.

Alternative method......
Buy......
caravan socket to 3pin plug adapter
3pin to caravan socket adapter (opposite of above)
plug in electric moniter

Run your lead from socket to caravan. Plug all the adapters and monitor together and chuck under caravan out of rain (monitor is probably not waterproof) stick a bucket with a brick on over monitor for good measure.

This will probably be fine for occasional low power usage.

If you are going to use power tools or heaters best follow dpacks advice.
Treacodactyl

Would battery powered tools be a viable option? After catering for all the gadgets and wiring to run power that might pay for a charger and couple of batts.
RichardW

You can get a meter that is built into a 16 amp trailing plug & socket.
dpack

Would battery powered tools be a viable option? After catering for all the gadgets and wiring to run power that might pay for a charger and couple of batts.


it might well be worth doing the alternative costings ,however plug in tools are cheap per unit output compared to battery ones.for instance my sds£600(+2 batteries) and an equivalent one with a wire about£200.

petrol is an alternative for strimmer/mower etc lights etc can be bright and low power with good led systems etc

i would be tempted to look at battery/petrol tools and use the power supply for a recharging "box" so avoiding trailing wires,240 volt in the rain etc etc
wellington womble

I had orginally planned to manage without power. I have a petrol strimmer and was planning to buy a petrol mower. But I have less funds than I'd hoped, so will have to manage with a manual push mower this year. I have two, so it would be daft to buy a petrol one as well.

We also plan to camp there over the summer and let the kids run wild. I am generally ok with dry camping, but it will go a lot smoother with a fridge and a phone charger. Then I will be able to put the heated propagator in the greenhouse as well (the luxury!)

I have most of the components for the improv system, so it should be doable. I was just slightly dubious about all those things plugged into each other!
vegplot

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/electric-coin-meter-/271824688921?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item3f4a039719
dpack

phone charger=car charger and 12v battery .this will also power led lights quite well.

the strimmer will make a reasonable job of mowing unless you need a putting green.

evaporation fridge is a box and a wet towel in the shade .

just a few thoughts that avoids the expense and risks of 240v on long leads etc etc .
Mistress Rose

If you can get some charcoal fines from a charcoal burner you can make a very efficient fridge. Charcoal in a bowl or waterproof box, box or bowl in middle for cool things, keep charcoal damp and let it evaporate. It has a very high surface area and can absorb lots of water, so plenty to evaporate and keep your milk cool.
Hairyloon

Gas fridges can be quite effective if you want colder than basic evaporation.
wellington womble

Yeah, I could do all of of those things. Or I could just plug in a lead! I was really hoping there was something simple like an owl, but that worked on a caravan hookup. Eventually I will have a submeter connected via armoured cable, but I can't afford at the moment.
Hairyloon

Yeah, I could do all of of those things. Or I could just plug in a lead!

Ah yes, sorry I got distracted...
If folk are upgrading to these new smart meters, can you not just beg one of the old ones and plug it in?
wellington womble

Unless we are taking about literally just plugging it in, it is beyond my skills at present. I dare say I can wire a plug with instructions, but I don't fancy practicing on anything connected! Hairyloon

Unless we are taking about literally just plugging it in, it is beyond my skills at present. I dare say I can wire a plug with instructions, but I don't fancy practicing on anything connected!
No, you do want to disconnect it before you start with the wiring.
I'll probably be passing that way sooner or later: I'll be happy to drop by and wave a screwdriver about if you like...
RichardW

I was really hoping there was something simple like an owl


You can make the owl work but you will need to open up the cable so that the sensor can go over just one wire.


Or THIS that I mentioned earlier but it is costly.
Graham Hyde

Hi WW. That offer from HL sounds good.
The meter that Richard W suggests is simplicity itself just a part of your extension cable.
Coloured blue means it is 220volts (the yellow are 110volts) and it is rated IP44 which means rain proof not waterproof as advertised (it would not cope with immersion).
You can buy extension leads with this type of socket at most builders suppliers you just then need to buy an adapter to go from the circular socket to the three pin socket you are used to.
Sorry but it is money, money, money but they should last a life time.
wellington womble

I was really hoping there was something simple like an owl


You can make the owl work but you will need to open up the cable so that the sensor can go over just one wire.


Or THIS that I mentioned earlier but it is costly.

Ah, that's what I need. Perfect.

It's very kind of you to offer, HL, but the meter will do nicely until I can get the armoured cable in. Thank you all for your help and patience.
onemanband

That metermaid sounds just what WW is after.
Although it is expensive, if not overpriced, for what it is.
My suggestion of 2 adaptors and a meter, although not waterproof, would set you back IRO £40.
Those sockets on the meter maid cost less than a tenner each and there's only a metre of cable. They're charging at least £110 for the meter part !
RichardW

That metermaid sounds just what WW is after.
Although it is expensive, if not overpriced, for what it is.
My suggestion of 2 adaptors and a meter, although not waterproof, would set you back IRO £40.
Those sockets on the meter maid cost less than a tenner each and there's only a metre of cable. They're charging at least £110 for the meter part !

I agree its a right old rip off.

One on ebay used but might go a bit cheaper. Still more than I would pay.

Get a 13amp plug in one that has bat back up so you dont loose readings. Or an old house meter & wire it to a plug & socket.
onemanband

£99 incl p+p, vat and 25m of cable camaro

Those round plugs are generally known as "Commando" plugs, by the way... 16A or 32A I think.
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