[Prev][Next][Index][Thread]

Re: Gap Losses



At 05:24 AM 10/3/96 +0000, you wrote:
>From webrand-at-dgs.dgsys-dot-comWed Oct  2 22:44:40 1996
>Date: Wed, 2 Oct 96 10:43:35 PDT
>From: webrand-at-dgs.dgsys-dot-com
>To: tesla-at-pupman-dot-com
>Subject: Re: Gap Losses 
>
>Virginia Power does indeed make you pay for kilowatts.  It is an express 
>part of wholesale, industrial, and large commercial rates.  It is built in 
>to the residential rate which measures the service only by the number of 
>kilowatt hours you use.  It would be unfair to some customers to bill solely 
>on kilowatt hours.  Consider one customer who uses  one kilowatt hour/hour 
>all year long and is billed at the end of each month for 720 kwh and at year 
>end his bill has totaled 8760 kwh.  Another customer takes 8760 kwh all in 
>one hour and uses none the rest of the year.  The utility will have to buy 
>about the same amount of fuel for each, but for one it will need installed 
>capacity and reserves for 8760 kw and for the other only 1 kw. The money 
>costs for the capacity are substantial.  The annual capital costs per kwh in 
>these days are just about as much as the fuel costs per kwh. It would be 
>unfair to the 1 kwh per hour customer that each be billed only on kwh.  
>Therefore, most rates are billed in two parts:  The first part is based on 
>the monthly or annual peak kw usage, and the second, on the kwh used.  The 
>fixed costs go into the first part.  The variable costs go into the second.  
>Residential customers would just get mad if presented with a bill based on a 
>two part rate.  Therefore, they are billed solely on kwh and the kw costs 
>are factored in on a reasonable basis.  Wallace Edward Brand
>-------------------------------------
>Name: Wallace Edward Brand
>E-mail: webrand-at-dgs.dgsys-dot-com
>Date: 10/02/96
>Time: 10:43:35
>
>This message was sent by Chameleon 
>-------------------------------------
>
>Hi Wallace -

The power metering you refer to confuses many people, even utility
personnel. This power is metered by what is called a Demand meter. This
meter registers both the power (KW) over a certain amount and the time that
the load exists. The billing is based on KW multiplied by time equals
energy. The time is usually set for a minimum number of minutes to take care
of short time loads such as spot welders.

Accurately metering the electrical energy that a large customer uses is very
complex. Many utilities are now metering large customers with electronic
meters. These meters are programmed to recognize many of the load
characteristics such as demand, power factor, waveform, etc. so the
customer's load can be correctly billed.

To accurately meter a Tesla coil load would require an electronic type meter.

Jack Couture