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From: moroney@jon.DEC (Mike Moroney)
Newsgroups: net.consumers,net.analog
Subject: Re: Power meters
Message-ID: <1538@decwrl.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 8-Apr-85 12:35:47 EST
Article-I.D.: decwrl.1538
Posted: Mon Apr  8 12:35:47 1985
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Xref: watmath net.consumers:2133 net.analog:262

>> Domestic electricity meters *do* measure true energy.  They will even run
>> backwards if there is a net outflow of energy.  My father, who has
>> a graduate engineering degree, assures me that this is true.

>Alas, no longer:  this was fixed long ago.  I am told that the birth of
>particle physics had something to do with it:  the cyclotron at MIT would
>brown out all of Cambridge when it charged up, and then send that current
>back into the power grid when the magnets discharged.  The local power company
>got upset at having MIT brown out Cambridge "for just pennies a day!" :-)...
>Hence, they started putting ratchets into modern meters to prevent the wheel
>from turning backwards.

Not true. (At least not any more)  There is a fairly recent law stating the
electric utility HAS to purchase excess power from their customers.  No
changes had to be done by the utility to meet this law since standard electric
meters do spin backwards.  My old high school installed a wind generator
and the meter to the school building did spin backwards during windy nights
when the building lights were mostly off.

"There's a madness to my method."			Mike Moroney
						..decwrl!rhea!jon!moroney