Search similar:
|
|
uniqs 507537 |
|
|
|
|
Kenzie
Anon
2007-Nov-18 8:00 am
Is anyone using a Power Saver 1200?I've been looking at the Power Saver 1200 as a way to decrease our power bill at home. Have gotten our electrician to look at the web info; his recommendation is to get a reference from someone who's using it. Is there anybody out there who can comment on how well it works? Our hydro company just put in 6.7 % increase with another one pending, so I'd be happy if we recovered 10% savings on our bill.......
Would appreciate any comments! | | |
| | | |
to Kenzie
Purchase it for it's whole house surge protection, dont bother with trying to save on power. During summer, saved a little, during winter, makes bill higher. | | 1 edit
2 recommendations |
I wish I had seen the original post, and could have added some comments. The best documentation I have seen is a study by Ayhan A. Mutlu, Ph.D., and Mahmud Rahman, Ph.D. of the Santa Clara University, and is posted on the PowerSave website at the following link: » www.power-save.com/Power ··· tudy.pdfUnfortunately, they did not measure nor discuss the typical energy and dollar savings that the device can provide. However, there is one key statement in their study that explains where any energy savings comes from, and I agree completely with: quote: Due to the reduction in the total current, the power loss (I2 total x R1) in the resistance R1, between the wattmeter and the ABET-2201, which varies from house to house, is also reduced. This is the instantaneous power saving that is achieved by installing the ABET-2201. It is important to note that i) the resistance R1 will depend on the locations of the Energy-meter and ABET-2201, and ii) the power saving is proportional to the square of the reduction in the current brought about by the ABET-2201.
The point is that the only place you will see a cost savings is in the 'copper losses' between the electric meter and the PowerSave unit. This is likely a very, very small savings, in spite of the reams of customer testimonials that are posted on their website. A few points may clarify things for consumers that generally don't understand these issues: - inductive loads such as motors, transformers, etc., draw reactive power during every half-60Hz-cycle. The reason is that they require an electric field to be stored in their windings. This does cause a load to appear and be measured by the electric meter. However, inductive loads also return this power to the utility every half-60Hz-cycle. The return of the power likewise has a negative effect on the electric usage. The net result is that this charging and discharging has no effect on your electric usage, and results in no cost to you. It does require all of the electric system components from the utility generators to the transmission and distribution lines, to your panel-board and wiring to be sized to handle this additional current flowing through the wiring. - Some small amount of this reactive charging energy is lost in your system. This energy is lost because the wiring itself has resistance. As the charging current flows through this wiring, some of it is dissipated as heat. You lose this (typically very small) amount of energy, and you are charged for it by the electric meter. - the PowerSave device is a power-factor correction device. I believe it is nothing more than a fixed capacitor bank. Typically, in industrial plants, capacitor banks to balance out the inductive loads, and bring the power factor above, lets say, 0.8. Industrial customers pay a (very large) penalty to the electric company, if they don't meet a certain minimum power factor. The size of the capacitor bank that is to be added to counteract the inductive load is based on very careful measurements and calculations by engineers. Too much capacitor bank, and it in turn will draw reactive power to charge its field, and could reduce any cost savings, or worse yet, cost even more. - A capacitor bank works by storing the energy needed, and supplying it to the inductive loads within the building's system, rather than drawing it from the utility. This saves the utility from having to oversize their generator and transmission and distribution lines. - If the PowerSave device is a fixed capacitor bank, then it can not be designed for every residence which have inductive loads that vary from house to house, and over time within a household. Its hard for me to see how this can work for each and every house, for each time of the day, as the right amount of capacitance has not been calculated carefully for each instance. Think of it like this; during the night, when you are not drawing any inductive load to your motors; the PowerSave capacitors will be drawing energy to charge their electric fields. This will cost money, due to copper losses. The only time it can help is when you are running your motors and other inductive loads or possibly non-linear loads from switching power supplies (including computers, televisions, etc). Going back to what the study pointed out, you will only save money on the copper losses (I^2xR) losses in your wiring between the electric meter and the PowerSave device. Since the unit is usually mounted adjacent to the electric panel, the length of wire between the electric meter and the PowerSave device is very small. Likewise any power savings is likely very, very small. I wholeheartedly believe Anounuser, where he states that he saved in summer and paid more in winter. This sounds like an appropriate scenario, if and only if you meet the requirements that PowerSave clearly states on their website: quote: If you say "yes" to only two or more of the following then you could be saving a significant amount of money on your electric bill right now!
Is your home over 2500 Square feet? Is your central air conditioner / heat pump unit 3 years or older? Is your forced air furnace 3 years or older? Do you have a pool? Do you have a well? Do you use an air conditioner? Is your refrigerator / freezer not EnergyStar rated? Do you have more than one refrigerator / freezer? Is your washer / dryer not EnergyStar rated? Do you have a hot tub or a jacuzzi? Is your dishwasher not EnergyStar rated? Do you have a number of appliances in your home?
However, I think more than two of these may be necessary for you to save money. I would guess that you must have a very large house (over 2500sq.ft.), and air-conditioning running most of the summer. If the PowerSave unit did have a capacitance that varied real-time, depending on the amount of inductive load in your system, then it would only save you money, and not cost you money when you are not running your inductive loads. Without knowing the exact details of how the unit functions internally, I don't think this is the case. And even if this is the case, the savings will still be very small. It does have some other benefits, however, some are worthy, while other stated benefits may be pure BS. These are some from their website with my comments where necessary: - increases motor and appliance life. This is mostly BS. The motors and appliances are still drawing their reactive power, only from the PowerSave capacitor bank, as opposed to the utility. They will still heat up the same amount from the reactive current flowing, and thus their will be no reduction in life, which would be from reducing heat in their windings. On the other hand, their may be a very small reduction in the time required for inrush current when they are starting. This could help, but not much. - reduction of incoming harmonics and reducing temperature in motors. - This is another benefit claimed by PowerSave Its in the Santa Clara University study. In the study they claim that the capacitors and the resistance in your wiring act as a low-pass filter, and reduce the harmonics flowing into your motors reducing additional heat generated. - In principle, I agree that the equipment will help to act as a low-pass filter. On the other hand, the filter is not specifically designed to what may be needed, because the resistance of the wiring is coincidental. As well, harmonic draw is less prevalent in single-phase residential systems, than in three-phase systems with lots of switching power supplies. It will help, but probably by not nearly as much as claimed. It can't hurt, and may reduce slightly the temperatures in your motors. This is where it may help to save (a small amount of) power drawn by older, non-EnergyStar rated, appliances. Again, note that it will only help when they are running, and may cost you even more when they are not. - Eliminates power surges. I doubt that it completely eliminates transient power surges. It certainly will help. However, a good whole-house surge protector, or even power-surge strips where needed, will do a much better job, than a simple capacitor bank like the PowerSave. - Reduce voltage sags - This is one benefit. When your motor appliance or vacuum kicks on, you notice the lights dimming. This is typically because the high initial current flow required by these appliances causes a voltage drop in your system. Having a capacitor bank like the PowerSave will absolutely counteract this problem by discharging energy into the system to counteract this problem. This is what capacitors do. It will not save the energy lost during this time due to voltage drop (I^2xR) losses in the wiring, because you will pay for the energy lost, whether it is supplied from the PowerSave or the utility. (It is all supplied from the utility; only temporarily stored in the capacitors.) - Save up to 25% on your bill. - Yeah right. Note the key words 'up to'. Most likely, in the best scenarios it would be 1%. And the savings may even be negative, especially if you are not running inductive loads 24hrs a day. I believe that most of the customer testimonials that discussed whopping savings from the PowerSave device, may be due more to the customer's concern about their energy use and cost, and their taking other steps to reduce consumption at the same time or after installing the PowerSave. In the absence of a very careful analysis that measures the savings in typical homes, before an after the PowerSave, with not other changes in usage, I am extremely sceptical. Note that we have not seen this posted on the PowerSave website. They do go very heavy on the customer testimonials. Lets see a scientific analysis of the unit, in common homes. I bet any savings will be much, much less dramatic; and in some homes, end up costing more. For $500, I think you could probably save a lot more money in energy costs by replacing an old refrigerator or air-conditioner with a modern, EnergyStar rated appliance. | | |
This is quite fascinating! I have always read about things like the difference between purely inductive loads and purely resistive loads, but this is a much cleaner explanation of inductive. Help me with this part though: said by whizkid3: However, inductive loads also return this power to the utility every half-60Hz-cycle. The return of the power likewise has a negative effect on the electric usage. The net result is that this charging and discharging has no effect on your electric usage, and results in no cost to you. So in theory (or reality?) if I have nothing in use whatsoever in my house and I turn on only the HVAC blower, (a motor) there is in fact *no* energy consumption for that device in regards to the metered power? I have an electrician friend who always makes the comment about baseboard heating units as "the utility's best friend" because he said they are a purely resistive load. I would take that then as the opposite of what you described above, and would then understand that there is a constant draw on the utility main. I am close at all or is that too simplified? -Matt | | 3 edits
1 recommendation |
said by mattmag:said by whizkid3:However, inductive loads also return this power to the utility every half-60Hz-cycle. The return of the power likewise has a negative effect on the electric usage. The net result is that this charging and discharging has no effect on your electric usage, and results in no cost to you. So in theory (or reality?) if I have nothing in use whatsoever in my house and I turn on only the HVAC blower, (a motor) there is in fact *no* energy consumption for that device in regards to the metered power? No. Wouldn't that be sweet? Fat chance. Motors are considered inductive loads, because they have a relatively high amount of inductance, compared to typical resistive loads such as electric ovens and heaters. The resistive load of the motors (and everything else), is what costs you. Resistive load is (for the most part) heat and other energy used. Motors gets hot (or warm). This heat escapes, and you pay for it. Motors transfer electric energy into mechanical energy. This energy leaves the electric system, and thus you pay for it. Both of these parts of the total load are considered resistive loads, because that is what the electrical system sees; and this energy leaves the electric system. Thus you get charged for it. The inductance (or capacitance) is only a small part of, or one component of, the load a motor places on the electrical system. These two components, resistive and inductive, because of the mathematic property of superposition, can be split into two separate components, and the results of each examined separately. I was discussing the separate component of inductance; its effects in your system; and the effect of the PowerSave device on the inductive component. (It basically only affects the inductive component by reducing it.) The portion of the motor load that does actual work remains the same, and causes your electric meter to spin. You pay the same to do the same work with the resistive components of your motor load, regardless of the separate effects of the inductive load, which I am considering by itself. Thus, your blower is not going to run for free. This will be the case, unless the blower magically had a power factor of zero. The only equipment that has power factors of zero (theoretically) are pure inductors & capacitors. The goal of the PowerSave device is to adjust the total power factor within your house to a pure resistive load by balancing out the inductive load by adding capacitance. The effects of doing so can save money. It does so by a minute effect on your resistive load. Theoretically, it lowers the current draw between the meter and the PowerSave device, by attempting to eliminate or reduce the additional charging current needed to power your inductive loads. If it can lower this current, the overall current between the meter and the PowerSave device is lowered, resulting in a lower heat loss in the wires themselves. Any savings here, by my estimations, will be minuscule in comparison to the total power consumption of the household. Going back to the blower, and its load...The blower draws both real power and reactive power. The real power is the portion that is used to do work (as work is defined by physics). This, again, is the conversion to mechanical energy which is desired work, and heat dissipated in the wires and windings, which although is not desired and is wasted, is still 'work' as defined in physics. The reactive power, is electricity that the utility provides and is used to temporarily charge up the motors windings each half-cycle. However, as the magnetic field in the motor collapses each half-cycle, this reactive power is returned to the utility. Thus, their is no net use of this electricity over time, and the meter does not record it. You do not use the reactive power to do work; it is not used; and you are not charged for it. Because it must flow over your house's wiring, however, a very small amount of it is lost in the resistance of the wiring in your house. This little bit is used to do real work and is dissipated as heat. You are charged for this energy, as it is not returned to the utility, and is measured over time by the electric meter. Power factor correction capacitors, such as the PowerSave, try to reduce this continual back-and-forth flow of reactive power. Because they only reduce it between the capacitors and the utility, the only place they reduce the portion lost to heat in the wiring and that you are charged for, is between the meter and the device. There will still be virtually the same back-and-forth flow of reactive power, only this time it will be from the capacitor (PowerSave), to your motor and other inductive loads. Basically, the reactive power will be stored in the capacitor bank, and supplied to the inductive loads as they need it, over your house's internal wiring, not all the way from the utility. This is a very complicated subject, that even most electrical engineers only understand after working with power systems for quite a while. I hope that I was able to shed more light on it. | | Splitpair Premium Member join:2000-07-29 Cow Towne |
to mattmag
said by mattmag: The return of the power likewise has a negative effect on the electric usage. The net result is that this charging and discharging has no effect on your electric usage, and results in no cost to you. What I have discovered is while a mis-applied bank of PFCCs connected to single phase 240/120 will draw a substantial amount of amperage they will not spin the meter. Wayne | | public join:2002-01-19 Santa Clara, CA |
to whizkid3
said by whizkid3:The point is that the only place you will see a cost savings is in the 'copper losses' between the electric meter and the PowerSave unit. This is likely a very, very small savings, in spite of the reams of customer testimonials that are posted on their website. It is easy to pay shills to say anything. That said, it makes more sense to add capacitors to each motor, rather than have one best guess value for the whole house. Even better would be an auto switched array of caps to match the load in real time. | | |
to Kenzie
Very Very nicely put whizkid3
I am planning on pulling the second unit I had at my wifes salon, and put it in my shoppe. I run a Scooter and Electric Car dealership, and the guy in back runs Semi and Buss Repair. He has one massive 400 gallon (or 200 gallon, cant remember which) air compressor, a Oil burning furnace that runs pretty much 24/7 in the winter with a massive blower, and a natural gas furnace in the showroom as well as tools and other motors and whatnot.
He has 2,000 amp incoming power from the previous company that occupied the building, but, I think the most we've ever hit was around 300 amp, and that was when he was using a large 500lbs electric wielder.
Power bill averages around $2,000/month +/- $200, so after installing it, we should be able to see a noticable change ins power savings. If we do not, that will be the once and final proof this this think is a sham for power savings.
HOWEVER, I have said it before, and before in previous threads, I have had VERY GOOD SUCCESS with this unit as a Surge Suppressor. Not retyping it, so just check out one of the other threads. | | |
to Splitpair
said by Splitpair:said by mattmag: The return of the power likewise has a negative effect on the electric usage. The net result is that this charging and discharging has no effect on your electric usage, and results in no cost to you. Hey, I said that; not mattmag! What I have discovered is while a mis-applied bank of PFCCs connected to single phase 240/120 will draw a substantial amount of amperage they will not spin the meter. Exactly. However, there will be some copper loss in the charging current that is feeding your capacitor's stored electric field every half-cycle; just like the loss the PowerSave promises to save you by counteracting the inductive load. Just that it may be so small, that you can't even see it in the meter spin. | | |
to whizkid3
said by whizkid3:said by mattmag:said by whizkid3:However, inductive loads also return this power to the utility every half-60Hz-cycle. The return of the power likewise has a negative effect on the electric usage. The net result is that this charging and discharging has no effect on your electric usage, and results in no cost to you. So in theory (or reality?) if I have nothing in use whatsoever in my house and I turn on only the HVAC blower, (a motor) there is in fact *no* energy consumption for that device in regards to the metered power? No. Wouldn't that be sweet? Fat chance. Motors are considered inductive loads, because they have a relatively high amount of inductance, compared to typical resistive loads such as electric ovens and heaters. The resistive load of the motors (and everything else), is what costs you. Resistive load is (for the most part) heat and other energy used. Motors gets hot (or warm). This heat escapes, and you pay for it. Motors transfer electric energy into mechanical energy. This energy leaves the electric system, and thus you pay for it. Both of these parts of the total load are considered resistive loads, because that is what the electrical system sees; and this energy leaves the electric system. Thus you get charged for it. The inductance (or capacitance) is only a small part of, or one component of, the load a motor places on the electrical system. These two components, resistive and inductive, because of the mathematic property of superposition, can be split into two separate components, and the results of each examined separately. I was discussing the separate component of inductance; its effects in your system; and the effect of the PowerSave device on the inductive component. (It basically only affects the inductive component by reducing it.) The portion of the motor load that does actual work remains the same, and causes your electric meter to spin. You pay the same to do the same work with the resistive components of your motor load, regardless of the separate effects of the inductive load, which I am considering by itself. Thus, your blower is not going to run for free. This will be the case, unless the blower magically had a power factor of zero. The only equipment that has power factors of zero (theoretically) are pure inductors & capacitors. The goal of the PowerSave device is to adjust the total power factor within your house to a pure resistive load by balancing out the inductive load by adding capacitance. The effects of doing so can save money. It does so by a minute effect on your resistive load. Theoretically, it lowers the current draw between the meter and the PowerSave device, by attempting to eliminate or reduce the additional charging current needed to power your inductive loads. If it can lower this current, the overall current between the meter and the PowerSave device is lowered, resulting in a lower heat loss in the wires themselves. Any savings here, by my estimations, will be minuscule in comparison to the total power consumption of the household. Going back to the blower, and its load...The blower draws both real power and reactive power. The real power is the portion that is used to do work (as work is defined by physics). This, again, is the conversion to mechanical energy which is desired work, and heat dissipated in the wires and windings, which although is not desired and is wasted, is still 'work' as defined in physics. The reactive power, is electricity that the utility provides and is used to temporarily charge up the motors windings each half-cycle. However, as the magnetic field in the motor collapses each half-cycle, this reactive power is returned to the utility. Thus, their is no net use of this electricity over time, and the meter does not record it. You do not use the reactive power to do work; it is not used; and you are not charged for it. Because it must flow over your house's wiring, however, a very small amount of it is lost in the resistance of the wiring in your house. This little bit is used to do real work and is dissipated as heat. You are charged for this energy, as it is not returned to the utility, and is measured over time by the electric meter. Power factor correction capacitors, such as the PowerSave, try to reduce this continual back-and-forth flow of reactive power. Because they only reduce it between the capacitors and the utility, the only place they reduce the portion lost to heat in the wiring and that you are charged for, is between the meter and the device. There will still be virtually the same back-and-forth flow of reactive power, only this time it will be from the capacitor (PowerSave), to your motor and other inductive loads. Basically, the reactive power will be stored in the capacitor bank, and supplied to the inductive loads as they need it, over your house's internal wiring, not all the way from the utility. This is a very complicated subject, that even most electrical engineers only understand after working with power systems for quite a while. I hope that I was able to shed more light on it. As said, I've yet to see any device with a PF of zero, The average house does not use enough of an inductive load to warrent or benefit from power factor correction. It only starts to make sense when you start looking at medium to large installs. Not only that, the bulk of "modern" electronics designed for the house have a negative effect on PFC by inducing certain harmonics which actually increase power consumption(not all devices do it, before Whizkid jumps on me ) | | |
said by vapochilled:The average house does not use enough of an inductive load to warrent or benefit from power factor correction. That is certainly true. And even then, simply correcting the power factor is not going to save money on your bill, as homeowners don't get penalized for low power factor, only businesses do. Its (typically) not even measured at your house. Not only that, the bulk of "modern" electronics designed for the house have a negative effect on PFC by inducing certain harmonics which actually increase power consumption... Technically speaking, modern electronics (devices with switching power supplies), have a negative effect on power factor, not PFC. They will typically lower your power factor, because their current-drawing pulses and harmonics of these pulses can be out-of-phase with the voltage supplied. | | garys_2k Premium Member join:2004-05-07 Farmington, MI |
to Kenzie
An instructor once told our class that, if we really needed an electric heater, to make one out of winding copper wire around a massive iron core. In other words, build a big, fat inductor and plug that in. We'd get the heat from the eddy current and such but the power company would make it almost free. I doubt that's really the case, tho, as I imagine the amount of generated heat (small) would equal the amount of non-reactive power metered (also small). | | |
to Kenzie
And by doing so will induce a slightly higher current in PFC devices (caps) shortening their life and causing a slightly higher incomming current | | |
Kenzie to Kenzie
Anon
2007-Nov-19 9:04 pm
to Kenzie
Thank you; I'm very impressed with the thorough answers. Although I can't claim any experience with electrical (other than changing my own light bulbs), I get the gist and will explore other ideas. Could anybody comment on the comparison between propane appliances versus "energy star" electric. The obvious pro for our household would be the capacity to have a stove/fridge if the power were off for extended periods (we live in Canada; although our winters are obviously shorter and warmer, we're now more likely to get ice storms which appear to cause more damage to the grid). If the cost were comparable and "emissions" were low, this might be worth considering? | | |
As this is off-topic of the original post; I would suggest posting a new topic. | | |
Kenzie
Anon
2007-Nov-20 5:39 pm
I'm an obvious newbie; appreciate the guidance. And, I'll do just that! | |
your moderator at work
hidden :
| |
Re: Is anyone using a Power Saver 1200?Thanks, Mike - it was a good read. I read the Mike Holt site often. Interestingly enough, anyone with any brains was basically saying what I have posted here, but perhaps differently. Any power saved from I2R losses between the meter and the panelboard will be microscopic. And the losses may even increase when there is no inductive load running, due to the reactance of the Power Save device itself. | | |
to Kenzie
Just spent some time researching this for a friend of mine. Check the link to Mike Holt newsletter below which has had a significant amount of realy smart people discussing the Power save 1200. IMHO this device is a scam. If it sounds too good to be true..... Anyway, check out the following and make your own judgement. » www.mikeholt.com/newslet ··· comments | | |
to whizkid3
A company in which I was a managing partner was a regional distributor for comparable technologies in a major metropolitan market after trusting business associates who had invested considerably in the product line. Figuring such an investment would be backed by corresponding research and verification, our firm backed this roll-out with a $100k investment. During the first quarter of operation, we blew out marketing, sales, office, office equipment, installation technician relationships and administrative staff. Our sales were healthy enough to continue moving forward, but we would need additional capital (~$100k) to move us into profitability. I had not received any concrete answers from corporate/manufacturers regarding actual kilowatt-hour reductions aside from friends/distributors of said manufacturers so we performed our own research involving third-party independent contractors in electrical engineering and related disciplines. Here were our findings: The technologies offered in relation to black box energy savers in the marketplace for residential/commercial usage comprise many variations/combinations of storage capacitance technologies (Power-Save, Circuit Master, KVar, Stems, etc.). These vary considerably in pricing ($200-$1200 per unit), location of installation (at panel, at application, or anywhere along electrical system) and by sizing (by hp of motors, total amperage of electrical system, etc). What they all do similarly is reference anecdotal evidence, Power Factor United States Department Of Energy reports, and independent laboratory testing displaying a reduction in amperage and improvement of power factor. What they do not do, is reference a consistent result set in a reduction of kilowatt-hours beyond what has been called iron loss/copper loss (loss of electricity in the lines on the order of 2-3%). Within both residential and commercial environments, a thorough analysis/consultation has revealed that there are no sound solutions currently available that document accurate, estimable or fiscally sound buy-back scenarios for the sales/installation strategy to conserve billable energy in homes/small businesses. Nor is there a sufficient alternative that can be fit into a similar sales/installation model to recognize prospective clients savings on their electrical costs. Demonstration videos show the amperage being reduced and power factor being improved when capacitance is applied to a motor. This is typical of appropriately sized Power Factor correction technology, but note that the current into the motor will remain the same. Put otherwise, the actual kilowatts drawn by the motor does not change. LM Photonics Ltd., a New Zealand-based patent holder in early 3-phase power factor correction technology, indicates that this model has a troubled history: The initial introduction of this technology was a marketing person's dream, and some very extensive marketing plans were implemented in the early 80's. Unfortunately, the marketing was based on the results achieved with very small machines, and expectations were high because of the results so achieved. There were many promises made to prospective users based on extrapolated data which was not field verified at an early stage, and could not be realized in real applications." To succeed in this market, an outfit would need to fully understand energy consumption within an installation, and it may very well involve application of capacitance where necessary, but savings would primarily be generated in other areas. That means that such an outfit would need machine, lighting, and process knowledge as well as expertise in metering and tariffs. It would need to start by making a survey of the energy consumption in an installation and assess where the energy is wasted, and then concentrate on the areas of high wastage. There are no catch-all products in technologies mentioned herein that can save energy unless it is correctly applied, and even then, not at the percentages promised by Power-Save, KVar, Kill-A-Watt, Circuit Master, etc. Energy saving technology looks very attractive as a means of saving (and making) money, and there are a lot of techniques around that can be applied to save energy, but to be successful in this market, the requisite skills required to understand energy, how it is used, how it is wasted, how it is measured and how it can be controlled are more than the company currently possesses. The learning curve in this market is rather steep, requiring advanced Electrical Engineering expertise with corresponding installation technicians on staff/sub-contracting in HVAC, lighting, insulation, and overall electrical analysis. In this instance, an entirely new sales/marketing model would be required. At this point, it is my reluctant, but appropriate, recommendation that the company cut its losses investing further time/energy/money in this market to seek out the right fit of reliable technologies, skills, and clients that can benefit from any application of services/technologies for electrical bill reduction in the residential/commercial marketplace. References Black-Box Inductive Motor Energy Savers History, Technology & Science » www.lmphotonics.com/energy.htmEffective Applications of Storage Capacitance Technology » www.elspec-ltd.com/defau ··· ANG_ID=0Power Factor Correction Technology Explained (Computer Usage) » www.dansdata.com/gz028.htm | | |
to whizkid3
I am so happy to see your post and appreciate your honesty.
I have been involved in designing and testing Energy Consumption Monitors since 1992. I have seen many of these "gimick" energy reducers over the years, but lately, I'm seeing more and more of these with outrageous claims of savings. I feel sorry for the poor homeowner with good intentions of energy reduction. I wish these falsities were more publicized.
Lately, I've seen similar mis-representation in the Energy Monitor industry. I'm talking about cheap monitors that claim to tell you how much you're paying for electricity and KWh consumed. They falsely claim to be measuring energy, since the only parameter being monitored is panel current using a cheap current transformer.
One of our customers had purchased such a device before finding out about our product. He tested the monitor with a 40W bulb and got 42W display. Then a dimable 13W CF bulb and got 48W displayed. Finally he tried a 13W non-dimable CF bulb and got a fluctuating display ranging from 0 to 739 W (I suspect the CT is picking up harmonics from the switching ballast).
The scary part about this, is that our monitors have been used for refrigerator replacement programs for years, where the refrigerator's consumption is assessed to determine if a new efficient model would have reasonable payback benefits. If some of these cheap monitors are used for this purpose, my guess is that a lot of refrigerators will be needlessly replaced.
I believe that when we talk about green earth, many are thinking a different green at anyone's expense. | | Splitpair Premium Member join:2000-07-29 Cow Towne |
to Kenzie
said by Kenzie :
Would appreciate any comments! I did find a real good use for an old 30 KVAR PF cap bank. I obtained this particular cap bank as by the way it was designed I could jumper in or out up to 9 caps which as best as I can tell would simulate 3 power-saver 1200s. While regardless of how I configured it no real power savings could be measured but there are way too many variables for me to say not to use one (ps-1200). So I was left with what to do with the perfectly good bank of GE caps. I have an old Hobart 230 amp buzz-box stick welder. In all three of the three homes I have used this unit it would make the florescent lights in the shop flicker more so as expected with a stuck rod so I got (pardon the pun) the bright idea to connect it to the welder. Basically I hung it on the back of the welders cart and wired it to the transformer so it would only be connected to power only when the welder was switched on. Well the results are nothing short of amazing. Now other than when the welder is switched on there is no flickering of the shop lights while welding and even my son who once and awhile stabs the rod vs. scratching it can barely got it to stick. Neat really neat. Wayne | |
|