Is there such a thing as a "fast" electric meter?

[Pimp Daddy]

My buddies was spinnin so fast I thought they were gonna have to replace he bearings in it. And all he had on in the house was the fridge, a few fish tanks and a clock. He calls up the power co. and they tell him they can send someone out. 2 weeks later some dude in an orange jump suit shows up and checks everything, turns out there was a power wire coming thru the front of the house that was frayed and grounding out on the foundation. Power is power and he was payin to electrify the ground. Quick and cheap fix and now his power meter is movin like the hour hand on a clock. Just an idea.

 

[Ex-Member]

THat wattmeter is neat, you can do the same thing for a fraction of the cost if you have multimeter that reads current, an old extension cord/power strip, and $5 in banana plugs from radio shark... Definately check hte voltage though. And while it's not likely & if you have the equipment to do it, line frequency as well.

 

[HuskerCat]

Also check the line voltage. Should be 120 Volts, only +/- one or two volts.
If it's too high, like 125-130 (heaven forbid) will cause everything to use more power beyond normal ratings, thus running up your bill.

Actually, the reverse is true. Higher voltage = lower amperage which = less kwh.
Your best bet would be to hire an electrician to find your problem. You could have any one of a number of problems. A good electrician should be able to look at the nameplates of your appliances and equipment and use his ammeter to tell you if any of them are operating outside of normal parameters. If you have any outbuildings that are fed from your house or house meter you could have a wire going bad under ground, as Pimp Daddy suggested. (I just fixed one Sat.) .