Can Lightning Strike Cause PoCo Electric Meter To Spin Faster?
PatchogPhil
| Posted in General Discussion on
Is it possible that a lightning strike could cause the electric meter from the power company to spin faster and record more KWHs than really being used? It is not a digital meter. Neighbor’s house got blasted last Fall by lightning strike. Just about all their electronic items in the house got damaged. Whatever was plugged in : Appliances, tv’s, computer, cable modem and TV boxes, some cellphones, iPods, controls for gas range, oil fired boiler controls. They got a new more efficient fridge. Their usuage has been up a bit more than 30% compared to last year. And they have 2 less people living there (teenagers off to college). Avg temps within 1 degree for same time periods. They are trying to get the PoCo to test the power meter.
Replies
It's unlikely, but lightning
It's unlikely, but lightning can do strange things. Of course, lightning can also cause internal shorts in appliances that result in increased usage.
Yeah, I was wondering if something like their dishwasher got screwy. Maybe the internal heating elements are on constantly while the unit is in operation.
patchogue... elec meters sometimes screw up.. one house i built had elec heat... and for 3 months in the winter... the meter showed about $30
man, we build well insulated houses.. but not that good
they got a new meter and the utility got the shaft
patchogue... elec meters sometimes screw up.. one house i built had elec heat... and for 3 months in the winter... the meter showed about $30
man, we build well insulated houses.. but not that good
they got a new meter and the utility got the shaft
patchogue... elec meters sometimes screw up.. one house i built had elec heat... and for 3 months in the winter... the meter showed about $30
man, we build well insulated houses.. but not that good
they got a new meter and the utility got the shaft
whoa Mike,
got the shakes?
well, that was weird... i only posted it one time
Paul's had that problem
Paul's had that problem b/4-could be east coast near the water interference or............
maybe this: Did you "preview" your post? I had a dbl appear and the only odd thing I did was "preview" it b/4 "save". Why I would preview, I have no stink'n idea.
Hey Mike, take your mouse off "bump fire" mode and put it back to "single fire" mode, willya?
:)
Lessee.... that's 9 months
Lessee.... that's 9 months of Winter and $90 dollars for heat!
:-)
Lightning lasts for about 1 microsecond. It certainly can speed up the meter (or try to do so) but only for 1 microsecond. Instantaneous power can be fantastically high but it is only for 1 microsecond.
Check out6 how they work.
http://science.howstuffworks.com/electric-meter-info.htm
Yes, especially on older meters with horseshoe damping magnets. A high enough current lightning surge (typical duration is 6 us rise time, 150 us decay) can partially de-magnetize those horseshoe magnets. When that happens, the eddy currents that are generated in the aluminum rotor disk are less, and the disk spins faster. Have the poco bring out a new meter.
BTW, the poco can check the meter and often will grant a rebate based on the meter inaccuracy.
Thanks for the info. Not sure how to determine an "older" design of the meter? It is not a digital readout meter..... does that necessarily mean it is of the type you speak of?
Is this what you mean?
View Image
Inside something like this (found on internet, not the meter in question) ???
View Image
Exactly!
The big damper magnets act to retard the disk movement (imported steel on your pix, that IS an old pix). If they get slightly demagentized due to the leakage field from a lightning current, they will have less of a braking effect on the disk and it will spin faster.
BTW, did you know folks have cheated the poco by adding modern NeFeB super strong magnets to the front of the meter glass?
Try it if you have a big magnet, you can literally watch the disk slow down. Of course, if the poco finds it ..........
Same thing with an induction motor, for a brake, you can put DC on the windings vs. AC and you can barely turn the motor shaft by hand (speed related). You do not want to do that to a TS or RAS as at high speed it brakes so hard the blade can come loose.