The Washington times., 1925-09-21
Household Hints
Learning to Read Your
Electric Meter
BY SALLY e. DAVIDSON

There are, of course, many things
in this world which battle me more
or less. One about which / have
speculated much is why so many
housewives neglect to inform them
selves on the more intelligent use
OF electricity. Electricity and gas,
as a general rule, are just about
the only household items purchased
sight unseen and in measures and
at prices about which most OF us
know less than we do about higher
mathematics or the Mendelian
theory.
During the last month 1 cues.
toned almost fifty housewives about
the price they paid for electricity
per kilowatt hour. Only five out Of
this number knew what l was talk.
ing about; the rest could only tell
me what their monthly bills were.
Certainly few OF as would enter a
shop and buy a yard or morn Of
material without knowing the cost
per pound or measure in advance,
yet we pay our electric bill each
month without ever troubling to
find out what we are paying for.
In fact, the only time we are in
clined to show interest in these mat.
tiers Is when the bill goes up a BIT,
as 1t does when the shorter fall and
winter days lead ito our using more
electricity than during the summer.
Reading Is Simple
knowing the price paid for cleo.
tr1cdty per kiloWatt hour, which is
the measure by which It is sold,
is the only. way one can keep track
OF its use for cooking, ironing, heat.
ing, lighting and the many other
tasks Tor which 1t now is used.
Any housewife can do this who
knows how to read the meter and
understands the price per kilowatt
hour at which she purchases cleo.
trtcity. And reading the meter is
really very simple; 1T does not mat
ter what type Of meter you have
or how many dials 1t has, for read
ings are taken the same for all
meters.
There are three types of meters
---3-dial, 4.dial and 5-dial. The three
and four dial meters read in whole
kilowatt hours, while the five dial
meters have the first dial measur.
ing tenths OF kilowatt hours. And
the pointers Of the di@1s always
turn from the lowest to the high
est number--that is, from 1 to g..
In reading any meter the dial
pointer which travels at the great
est speed is always read first. This
is always the pointer of the dial
at the right facing the meter, and
It. Is the most important Of all.
1t registers units or parts Of units
every revolution, while the other
dials merely keep track Of the num-
Der Of complete revolutions Of the
first dial.
For example, beginning with the
pointer of each dial at zero, when
the pointer (which travels fastest
of the first dial completes one revo-
luton the pointer Of the second
dials points to the figure /. When
the first dial pointer makes two
revolutions the second dial pointer
win register 2, and so on.
Begin It Right
In reading a meter notice the di-
rection OF rotation of the pointers.
Beginning at the right, the first
pointer usually rotates in the direc-
ton OF the hands Of clock, while
the second rotates in the opposite
direction or counter-clockwise and
so on alternately. The direction in
which the pointers rotate may cas-
fly be ascertained by noting how
the figures run.
Above the dials are figures usual.
Nv reading 40" -1O0," 81 ,000' and
10, 1000" These represent the units
of kilowatt hours which that partic-
ular dial records. Thus 40" above
a dial denotes that each complete
revolution of that dial pointer rep
resents the delivery OF 10 ktloWatt
hours of electricity. And when this
dial has recorded 10 kilowatt hours
and is ready again at zero for an
other revolution the dial having
the next highest figure about 1t