Metering

Forget smart meters - you need LIVE metering that splits your power logically by where it's used. You can drive intelligent future strategy and decisions from facts about your usage.

Getting Started

In order to see live information about energy usage, you need a few simple and inexpensive components:
  1. The Data Logger
  2. The Meters
  3. A PowerHub.Live Subscription

Data Logger

 The data logger is the component that connects PowerHub.Live and the meters together. One data logger can run up to 16 individual meters as long as they are close together.

There are a couple of different products you can choose to use:
  1. An off-the-shelf TCP/Modbus adapter. This simply connects to the internet through an ethernet cable and acts as a simple bridge. These cost around £100. An example is the ExpertDAQ EX9133C-2-MTCP. These can be setup as either a server (and you need to open ports on your firewall) or as a client (where you don't)
  2. A custom made ESP32 logger. These need a few simple components to be soldered together and then our software flashed onto them. If you have these skills this is the best solution and will cost as little as £40. It integrates flawlessly with PowerHub.Live and can even be exapanded to read temperature and humdiity, control relays, and even display the information on a small OLED screen. Fancy giving it a go? See our Instructions

Meters

 You need some electricity meters that communicate using the MODBUS standard. We strongly recommend Eastron which provide a wide range of single and three phase meters. These can either be wired in-line by an electrician, or if you wish to avoid that can use a CT clamp around your live wires.

You can install a meter in each place you wish to monitor. Often you might install several at your main power incoming point to pick up the power as it's distributed to various locations - circuits or buildings.

We recommend purchasing from JW SmartMeters. Here are links to the most common models:
Hard wired in
SDM120 - 45a single phase
SDM230 - 100a single phase
SDM630 - 100a Three Phase
CT Clamp Meters
SDM120CT - Single Phase
SDM630CT - Three Phase

Small Example

A simple home, with solar panels, and a garden office. You would install a single data logger at the main distribution board, and then 4 or more meters to monitor: 1. The incoming electric supply 2. The solar generation 3. The garden office 4. The rest of the house If you want to install more, you could isolate sockets, lighting, kitchen, ovens, or whatever you wish to detail out.

Larger Example

A commercial property with 3 phase going to 5 separate buildings, solar panels and EV chargers. Here you would start with the place the main supply comes in, and would install: 1. The incoming electric supply 2. The solar generation 3. One for each building that branches off Then - to expand - you'd setup an additional data logger and meters on each building to really isolate down what is used - for example sockets, lighting, EV Charging.