How to read a meter
Digital Electricity Meter
A typical electricity meter has a display like this:
Write down numbers from left to right, ignoring any numbers in red or in a red surround.
If you are on a tariff that charges lower prices for off-peak electricity, your meter may have two rows of figures:
In this case, write down all the numbers from left to right in each row, ignoring any numbers in red or with a red surround.
Check your previous bill to see which is 'day rate' and which is 'night rate'.
Electronic Electricity Meter
An electronic electricity meter has a display like this:
Some meters require you to press a button to take a reading. Others have a scroll through menu.
Write down all the numbers from left to right in each display, ignoring any numbers in red with a red background. Check your previous bill to see which is 'day rate' and which is 'night rate'.
Dialled Electricity Meter
A traditional dial meter looks something like this
Note that each dial turns in the opposing direction to the one before it. They may not be the same as shown above.
Every dial on every meter revolves from 0 to 9 before going around again.
To make a correct reading:
- Go from left to right and note down the number on each dial.
- If the needle is between the two numbers, write down the lower number.
- If the needle is directly over a number, write that one down.
- If the needle falls between 9 and 0, write down 9 and then reduce the number you read on the previous dial by 1. For example, if you originally recorded 6, reduce it to 5.
- Ignore the dial on the far right.
On the above image, the reading is 44928
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