Kill-A-WAtt Meter in Chiang Mai

[Mekong Bob]

The Kill-A-Watt is a meter that measures energy consumption of individual electrical appliances (refrigerators, computers, clothes dryers, televisions, etc.) in the home. It's made in Taiwan and sold in USA as the Kill-A-Watt, $25.



Although the USA version is designed for 110-120V system, Wikipedia says there's a version for 220-240V as well:

http://en.wikipedia....iki/Kill_A_Watt

Anybody know if the 220V version is available in Thailand? Tried Amorn Electronic and HomePro, no luck.

[worgeordie]

Hi Bob, Aliexpress,the retail arm of Chinese giant, product sourcing company Alibaba,

have them ,the ones they show on the site are listed as 110 V ,but if you read further

they also say they have many others with different configurations regards the plug, 

 

A company named CHNFAVOR has them listed at US 21.99 post free Thailand,they

will all be made in China anyway,so go to the source.,that is if you cannot find any

locally,small parcels come through customs no bother.

regards Worgeordie

[JDGRUEN]

I like the idea you have OP... I have been traveling around Thailand for about 7 months... Recently I have stayed in Ao Nang renting in a fairly luxurious resort for going on three months (only because I can afford the low season prices)...

 

Anyway... recently I have discovered that the nice refrigerators in these luxury units run very hot on the outside and seem to run all the time.. I turned off everything but the fridge and the meter still spun rapidly... I turned down the fridge to the near lowest level as it had been at a high setting - both fridge and freezer... and the rapid spinning of the outside meter stopped... I wish I had had one of those kill-a-watt meters you are seeking to really prove my point.  By the way - the fridge is performing quite well at the lowest setting... and is not near as hot on the outside walls.

 

Actually - while not possible when renting a unit - I wish I had my own electric meter behind the electric company's meter.  I had a big problem in the last unit I stayed in.  Right at the end of June a power outage and surge burned up the unit's electric meter.  They installed another one - said it was a new unit - but looked like a used - refurbished unit to me...  Looked quite different than the others.   I thought the June electric bill was very high but the July charge was DOUBLE that of June ... I was shocked and strongly suspicious of the replacement meter... But arguing with the landlord did no good.  

 

Bottom line is -- everyone in Thailand should look closely at their electric usage for any appliance - even the air con units if possible ...

 

I will be on the look out for the Kill-A-Watt unit or anything of a similar nature ... I hope someone has a lead on a source for you.

 

[eyecatcher]

I used to have one in England.
They are a complete gimmick / boys toy.
You need it for two hours then its in the cupboard forever.
This is what you do with it
Buy it, take it home
Then you go around the house looking for electrically run items, yes this is the exciting bit.
Ok fridge wow! Now you got to shift the damn thing to plug on your toy. Leave it for 15mins and take the reading.
The reason you leave it for 15 mins is because already you have found the TV and you want to test that now.
Another 10mins you decide to try the kettle and realise the kw rating is correct.,so that was useless.
Then you see the air cons, yes that's the one......but no you cannot test them, they don't have a plug.
Now you are bored, you can't try the washer because it's not washing say so you decide to try your pc and then your phone on charge.
This is the reality they are a pointless waste of money.

When I had one I learned one thing, the only thing worth knowing and that's how much it actually costs you to have your TV set on standby for 18hrs a day.....which was about £1 a month....and it proved it wasn't even worth getting out of your chair to switch it off .

The meter doesn't save you money it's your lifestyle and how conscientious you are about saving money, switching lights off blar blar blar
And pretty much every appliance has a usage rating so you just need some aptitude at simple arithmetic.

[Mekong Bob]

I used to have one in England.
They are a complete gimmick / boys toy.
You need it for two hours then its in the cupboard forever.
This is what you do with it
Buy it, take it home
Then you go around the house looking for electrically run items, yes this is the exciting bit.
Ok fridge wow! Now you got to shift the damn thing to plug on your toy. Leave it for 15mins and take the reading.
The reason you leave it for 15 mins is because already you have found the TV and you want to test that now.
Another 10mins you decide to try the kettle and realise the kw rating is correct.,so that was useless.
Then you see the air cons, yes that's the one......but no you cannot test them, they don't have a plug.
Now you are bored, you can't try the washer because it's not washing say so you decide to try your pc and then your phone on charge.
This is the reality they are a pointless waste of money.

When I had one I learned one thing, the only thing worth knowing and that's how much it actually costs you to have your TV set on standby for 18hrs a day.....which was about £1 a month....and it proved it wasn't even worth getting out of your chair to switch it off .

The meter doesn't save you money it's your lifestyle and how conscientious you are about saving money, switching lights off blar blar blar
And pretty much every appliance has a usage rating so you just need some aptitude at simple arithmetic.

 

points to ponder . . . . .

 

a well-delivered soliloq1uy!

 

 

[Lancelot]

Your electric meter will do the same thing- allow you to measure kWh usage for an appliance. Forego the Watt Killer and spend the savings on beer :)

 

http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/measure.html

[Langsuan Man]

I was never able to find one in Thailand, despite several people telling me that they were available at Home Pro so I was able to get one from on Ebay from a foreign (Asian) seller

 

The only problem is that since it uses the European "pole" type plugs it sticks out too far from the wall and not flush like the one shown above, which makes reading and pushing the operational buttons difficult if it is plugged into a low receptacle

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/261108986901?_trksid=p2059210.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

 

[attachment=279498:kill a watt.png]

[Thighlander]

My frig says 501.11 kWh per year right on the tag inside the frig.  less than 6 thb per day.....if it is running all the time, the refrigerant has leaked out, or the thermostat is bad, in which case your food would freeze in the frig section.  One more than 15 yo would use double, I would estimate.....but nothing like an old a/c.  Big C had a nice Panasonic, with freezer on the bottom for 6990 a few weeks ago....do the math.....and there is a value on having fresher food, too.  Frozen jugs/containers of water or food in the freezer will reduce consumption.  Even using an LED bulb in the frig will lower by a few thb per month.  Also, don't keep it in a hot area, or it's going to work harder.  A ceiling fan can help cool the heat given off by a frig..

[JesseFrank]

I was never able to find one in Thailand, despite several people telling me that they were available at Home Pro so I was able to get one from on Ebay from a foreign (Asian) seller

 

The only problem is that since it uses the European "pole" type plugs it sticks out too far from the wall and not flush like the one shown above, which makes reading and pushing the operational buttons difficult if it is plugged into a low receptacle

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/261108986901?_trksid=p2059210.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

 

kill a watt.png

 

That's why I purchased this one from Ebay, as you can keep it on the cupboard or on top of the fridge. But as eyecatcher said already, you use it once, in my case because i suspected the fridge have an issue, and thereafter it's useless.

 

http://www.ebay.com/itm/310585085041?_trksid=p2059210.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

 

Edited August 16, 2014 by JesseFrank

[noendtoit]

Hi Bob, Aliexpress,the retail arm of Chinese giant, product sourcing company Alibaba,

have them ,the ones they show on the site are listed as 110 V ,but if you read further

they also say they have many others with different configurations regards the plug, 

 

A company named CHNFAVOR has them listed at US 21.99 post free Thailand,they

will all be made in China anyway,so go to the source.,that is if you cannot find any

locally,small parcels come through customs no bother.

regards Worgeordie

But if you order from China and want the benefit of the ASEAN/China free trade pact (no import duty) the shipper needs to supply Form E with the CORRECT HS code.