There are 4 e-Views written by our customers, and 23 customer questions that been answered by our staff for Wattson Home Energy Meter
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So the Wattson - does it save you money and help save the environment? Well, not directly. You clip on the clip, turn it on, and it shines out pretty colours and interesting numbers. This does not directly do anything to reduce the amount of power you are using, but it does suddenly make you amazingly aware of how much you are using, and that in turn starts to embed in you the habits of turning things off and thinking about what you are using. Which is great stuff.
It's completely mesmeric too, watching the number jump as you turn things on and off, watching the colours fade from eco-friendly blue to killing-the-planet red. everybody asks about it as well.
Being wireless you can take it round the house with you too, which is very handy for hunting down "power vampires", those things that suck up electricity without you really thinking about them. Surprises for my included the tiny night light we have to stop you stubbing your toes in the dark in the bathroom and the kettle. Eating up a massive 1400 watts, the kettle is the most power-evil thing in the house so far. The good thing is that you don't use your kettle for more than a few minutes at a time, and good job too!
I've not experimented with Holmes yet, but it's only a matter of time.
How do you rate this e-View? 
This e-View is rated: Helpful (12) Passionate (1) I got one of these & immediately bought one for my mum as well. As soon as you plug it in, the attractive box tells you how much electricity you are currently using. As soon as this happens all you care about is getting the number lower.
My guess is you will drop 200-400W 'background usage' during the time your house is occupied, as you turn off lots of things (mainly lights) that are normally on. When i used the software to measure the improvement i dropped my total electricity usage by 25%.
How do you rate this e-View? This e-View is rated: Helpful (7) Passionate (1) I loved this and did as everyone does and went round the house trying to get that number as low as i could....sitting in the dark can be strangely satisfying, lol.
The only thing i can say against it is the build quality, i had only connected it up to the pc to download the results about 3 times in 7 months, when the usb connection disappeared into the unit and can be heard rattling around inside. it's not essential but i was not pleased as it is one of the more expensive energy meters.
It still works and looks good though.
How do you rate this e-View? This e-View is rated: Helpful (2) Passionate (0) Paying the full price for this is perhaps slightly excessive for what you're getting. The graph software is definitely really complex and really good, but on the actual device you can only see the current wattage or time or how much it is currently costing you in one year. As I've seen on other energy monitors, it is really useful to be able to see how much it is costing you per hour, rather than a whole year, which is much more useful. Although after a while you do get used to it and get a feeling for what costs a lot and what doesn't. rnSince we are renting, we didn't realise that energy saving light bulbs hadn't been implemented and discovered that lighting up our living room was costing us £150 a year! We changed the lightbulbs quicksmart!
How do you rate this e-View? This e-View is rated: Helpful (0) Passionate (0) Product Questions about the Wattson Home Energy Meterback to top »
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Most Helpful Questions
14 out of 15 people found this question and answer helpful
Tom asked this question on 29th Jan 2008
Q: How many days of data can the device store?
A: Wattson can store up to 4 weeks of energy-use history which can be uploaded to your computer via the USB lead.
Easy-to-use software (holmes) is available for your PC/Mac which will allow you to look at the history of your electricity use over a period of days, weeks or months. John
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6 out of 6 people found this question and answer helpful
Sarah asked this question on 30th Nov 2007
Q: Does the Wattson do the same as the Efergy energy meter or more?
A: The Wattson has some interesting features which you won't find on the Efergy notably USB PC/Mac data link and is supplied with PC/Mac data analysis software. It is the most versatile monitor in term of sensitivity and compatibility as it will work with both Economy 7 and Micro-generation systems. It also has ambient mood lighting!
Did you find this q&a helpful? 4 out of 6 people found this question and answer helpful
Ian asked this question on 16th Dec 2007
Q: How accurate is Wattson Energy Meter? Can it be compared to the meter reading? Does it need calibration?
A: The Wattson gets its data from the electricity meter, so it is very accurate, and any changes in consumption are reflected immediately. The unit can display usage in both monetary and wattage terms, so it can be compared to the meter reading. Calibration is not required. Thomas.
Did you find this q&a helpful? 3 out of 4 people found this question and answer helpful
mr r asked this question on 22nd Feb 2008
Q: How is the Wattson powered, and how much power does it use itself ?
A: Wattson is powered by mains electricity, and uses about 8w of electricity when it's in colours and numbers mode. The display unit has an internal battery too, which means that you can use it for up to 8 hours unplugged from the mains. Thomas
Did you find this q&a helpful? 3 out of 3 people found this question and answer helpful
Caroline asked this question on 8th Jan 2008
Q: We live in an old cottage with very thick walls, will this affect the operation of the wattson home energy meter?
A: According to the manufacturers the display can be located anywhere in your home (up to 100 meters away through air, or 30 meters through walls). John.
Did you find this q&a helpful? 3 out of 3 people found this question and answer helpful
Mike asked this question on 3rd Jan 2008
Q: Does this work on 3 phase supplies (I believe the efergy can accommodate 3 sensors which I need).
A: It most certainly can, but to do this extra sensors are required. Wattson is supplied with one sensor - so to monitor a three phase supply two additional sensors will be required. These are available form us priced at £9.95 each. John.
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Edward asked this question on 2nd Jan 2008
Q: I see you say it will work with microgeneration systems. We have a 5kw PV array; does it show gross or net consumption - orseparately?
A: The Wattson can show both consumption and generation
* Able to measure microgenerated electricity supplies such as Solar Cells or Wind Turbines, providing a greater understanding of net energy use.
* Generated energy information shown on Wattson as generated energy, net consumption and total generated to date.
* Both generated and consumed energy stored in Wattson’s internal memory.
* All data can be viewed via Holmes – Wattson’s own personal data sleuth program.
* Simple installation of extra sensor
Did you find this q&a helpful? 3 out of 4 people found this question and answer helpful
Robin asked this question on 13th Nov 2007
Q: How big is this? It looks like a really cool coffee table.
A: You might fit one cup of coffee on it but we wouldn't recommend that...
The display unit (pictured) is 105mm X 170mm x 55mm.
(and the transmitter is: 110mm x 84 mm x 26 mm) John.
Did you find this q&a helpful? 3 out of 3 people found this question and answer helpful
Susan asked this question on 13th Nov 2007
Q: Electric meters are usually outdoors these days, so how do you attach the Wattson to an outdoor meter?
A: The Wattson uses a electricity sensing device which is clipped onto a cable coming out of the electricity meter. That sensor is then connected to a battery-powered wireless transmitter which sends data to a display unit located up to 30 metres away. John
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Alan asked this question on 8th Feb 2008
Q: What is the tolerance of the measured data i.e. +- 5%. What is the tolerance of the efergy and the OWL ?
A: The performance of these devices is broadly similar as they all use the same kind of detector clipped onto the power cable. The estimated overall accuracy is somewhere around the +-5-10% mark.
Did you find this q&a helpful? 3 out of 3 people found this question and answer helpful
Mike asked this question on 3rd Jan 2008
Q: Is it possible to get sensors for large cables. I am thinking of using a couple of these at work but the 3 phase supply cables are about 16-18mm diameter?
A: No - there is only one model of sensor clip manufactured for use with Wattson.
Did you find this q&a helpful? 3 out of 4 people found this question and answer helpful
David asked this question on 1st Jan 2008
Q: Is the device capable of telling me how much electricity I have used over a given period, ie from 1st Jan to 1st Feb? And can it be reset?
A: The Wattson comes bundles with the Holmes software, which can be used to track usage over a given time. Thomas.
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0 out of 0 people found this question and answer helpful
Tim asked this question on 27th Jun 2008
Q: This unit looks good but costs around £100 more than the others featured on the website.
What additional features does it offer over say, the Efergy home energy meter POVID 43579
Thanks
Tim
A: The Wattson offers a number of extra's notably the ability to export data to a PC or MAC, and use special 'Holmes' software to keep track of consumption. The Wattson can also deal with a number of non-standard monitoring applications - it's sensitive enough to capture data from micro-generation equipments (e.g. solar panels and wind-turbines) and flexible enough to cope with mixed tariffs such as 'Economy 7'.
It also features extremely cool looking (and useful) ambient lighting which highlights changes in consumption. John
Did you find this q&a helpful? 12 out of 13 people found this question and answer helpful
Tom asked this question on 24th Feb 2008
Q: Are both the CT's and the display unit powered by batteries. Can they be powered by mains? If not how long do the batteries last? If the batteries go flat do you lose your data.
A: The transmitter (the bit that clips to the cable by your electricity meter/fusebox) is powered by 4 AA batteries. When you buy your Wattson you'll find that DIY Kyoto have supplied you with four good quality AA batteries in the box.
The batteries are Duracell Procell, and these should last between 3 and 6 months. You can use rechargeable batteries in the transmitter, but they may only last for 2 -3 weeks because the power drainage characteristics mean that alkaline batteries are more suitable. We'll do some research to see if we can find some that will work.
The display unit has a built in battery pack which means that the Wattson can be carried around the house when you're hunting power vampires. If you're in numbers and colours mode (this uses about 5W of power), then the battery will last about 8 hours. When the battery starts getting low it will flick into low power mode (1W) so that you don't lose any data. You'll need to plug Wattson back in to the mains to charge up again.
Wattson comes with a charger in the box so that you can power it from the mains. Here are all the bits that come in the box:
If you're using Wattson in night mode (the display is switched off) then you may get up to 3 months out of the internal battery.
Even if you leave Wattson plugged in 24 hours a day, 7 days a week in full numbers and colours mode (5 Watts) then it shouldn't cost more than £8 per year in additional electricity usage (at £0.13 per kWh).
My Wattson is by the front door, so that when I leave the house in the morning, I can just press the mode button on the top of the unit, and switch it into night mode when there is no one in.
Wattson uses EEPROM memory to store its data which means that it should be safe if the unit loses power completely. I'm just checking with the manufacturer now, so we should have a definitive answer for you soon.
I hope this answers your questions! :)
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Karl asked this question on 24th Feb 2008
Q: Mow many data points can the device store? John said "up to 4 weeks", but is that one point per day, per hour, minute, second or per millisecond?
A: Wattson has a 32Kb non-volatile EEPROM internal memory, which stores data at five-minute intervals. This means means 288 values for every 24-hour period. Every five minute value has a cost (pence/cents, etc) assigned to it, which is stored at the time of readings collections. So historically recorded
readings and costs are not affected by current rates.
You have to connect Wattson up to your computer to download the information. You'll need the holmes software to do this, and you can download it for free. Make sure you do a monthly download, or Wattson starts overwriting the oldest data first. You might lose some information if you forget. Wattson has a mini USB connector, and comes supplied with a USB lead in the box to enable you to hook it up to your computer.
Wattson is USB 1.0 and 2.0 compatible, and comes with a USB-A to USB mini-A cable.
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Anne asked this question on 27th May 2009
Q: On average, how long does it take for the Wattson Home Energy Meter to pay for itself? And how does this compare with the Efergy and OWL meters?
A: While home energy meters do not directly pay for themselves they do provide the user with a greater sense of various factors contributing to electricity usage in the home. For example, on seeing that you consume ‘x’ amounts of electricity on lighting you may chose to replace your light bulbs with more energy efficient versions in an attempt to reduce your consumption.
All of the energy meters have slightly different capabilities and specs which are detailed on the relevant product pages.
I hope this helps
Marty
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anonymous asked this question on 1st Dec 2008
Q: I am looking for a product that will allow me to monitor individual appliances, ie. PC Lcd TV, is the Wattson capable of doing that? Do i have to move it to each appliance or (as i read it) connect it to meter and then switch each appliance on to get its usage amount?
This probably sounds daft but i'm having trouble getting my head round which is the best approach. Cheers Bigbod
A: Wattson measures the total consumption of a premises rather than individual appliances. If you wish to measure single appliances we'd recommend the Ecosavers Energy Meter though you will have to move it to each appliance and then switch each appliance on to get its usage amount.
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Alan asked this question on 18th Jul 2008
Q: I bought an energy monitor a year ago which only provides instantaneous reads, making it a bit limited. This KYOTO meter would be ideal for me but my meter outlet splits into two consumer units one for RCD protected circuits and one for non protected eg house Lighting and the Cooker. Both cables together are too big to get one sensor round. As with the micro generation question can this be solved by using another sensor and treating it as a secondary consumption circuit which the meter will also log? I am advised it is not a good idea to put the sensor on the incoming tail to the meter (presumably because the meter takes power you do not pay for)
A: As far as we can surmise, you should be able to use one clip around each outgoing cable. You would need to purchase an additional clip, but it should work fine with your setup. Hope this helps.
Did you find this q&a helpful? 1 out of 1 people found this question and answer helpful
Foxborough Middle asked this question on 27th Jun 2008
Q: We have been raising money to make our school more green and we are thinking of buying one of these Wattsons.
Would it work in a school environment?
Thanks
Jerrie
A: Unless you have some extremely peculiar wiring!! The Wattson can deal with just about every domestic or commercial application. John.
Did you find this q&a helpful? 1 out of 1 people found this question and answer helpful
Jaime asked this question on 8th Jun 2008
Q: I live in an old mansion block and the electricity wires seem to be pretty big (about 14mm) is this the only meter that can take such large cables?
A: The Eco-Eye Elite is suitable for 13mm cables and the manufacturers will supply customers direct with a 16mm version if the 13mm standard sensor isn't suitable.
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Geoff asked this question on 2nd May 2008
Q: Does the Wattson work in North America ?
A: We put this question to the manufacturers and this was their reply...
"wattson is currently for use with 50Htz 240v single phase and 415V three phase power supplies.
wattson is CE certified and will work in all EU countries. Note: Installation may differ from country to country so please check with a qualified electrician before fitting.
holmes software can change the unit of currency to be $, �, � or Japanese Yen.
For countries which operate on a 110V, 60Hz electrical supply system such as the USA and Canada, there is no reason to believe that our unit will not work properly, but we are not currently U.L. or CSA certified and you should not use your wattson in these countries. Indeed we cannot be held liable for any problems or safety issues that could possibly occur in the event of a fire or accident etc."
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Joshua asked this question on 6th Apr 2008
Q: Many providers/tariffs offer multi-tier pricing based on time-of-day (e.g. Economy7), per-day-usage (e.g. first 'x' kWh used @ tier 1 rate, rest @ tier 2 rate) and many have a standing charge. Is Wattson able to take this type of thing into account or does it just use a flat rate (therefore providing inaccurate cost readings?).
A: The Wattson can indeed handle Economy7 tariffs. Hope this helps.
Did you find this q&a helpful? 1 out of 1 people found this question and answer helpful
Helene asked this question on 18th Mar 2008
Q: Could you tell me what the upper limit for measuring power(current?) is with the Wattson? I would like to see if it is useful for non-domestic premises.
A: The maximum wattage that the Wattson can measure is 9,999 watts. Hope this helps. Thomas
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