High power usage on 3 phase

[Crusader]

Normally our power usage is around 1500 units max which is already very high for 4 people who are at work the majority of time. The past 2 months the consumption has jumped by 400 units to 1900 units. We can't figure out what's causing this since this is the time of the daily loads heading and usage patterns have not changed at all. No heaters or airguns used and even in summer our usage was never this high with aircons running...

We are 4 people using 2 geysers, 8 fridges/freezers and then the normal TV, PC, Playstation, lights etc. Nothing that should use loads of power.

We are on 3 phases, which is shared to3 buildings and the municipal meter is ancient. Could the meter have become faulty? The main distribution box regularly makes very audible buzzing sound. Any suggestions on tracking down what causes the high usage?

With a 3 phase system how many wires should be coming from the pole? There seems to be 4 (red, blue, white & black). A quick test with the Efergy CT clip shows that all 4 of these carries voltage. Is that normal?

 

[Speedster]

Normally our power usage is around 1500 units max which is already very high for 4 people who are at work the majority of time. The past 2 months the consumption has jumped by 400 units to 1900 units. We can't figure out what's causing this since this is the time of the daily loads heading and usage patterns have not changed at all.

We are 4 people using 2 geysers, 8 fridges/freezers and then the normal TV, PC, Playstation, lights etc. Nothing that should use loads of power.

We are on 3 phases, which is shared to3 buildings and the municipal meter is ancient. Could the meter have become faulty? Any suggestions on tracking down what causes the high usage?

With a 3 phase system how many wires should be coming from the pole? There seems to be 4 (red, blue, white & black). A quick test with the Efergy CT clip shows that all 4 of these carries voltage. Is that normal?

AFAIK Efergy (or any) CT only shows current, not voltage? I'm open for correction here though.

The 4 cables should be the three phases and a common neutral (plus a grounding cable).

Best guess would be some heating device that's kicked in / been switched on for the winter months. Or maybe longer showers on cold mornings?

 

[P924]

Could the meter have become faulty?

Highly unlikely - not for a 400kWh error.

A quick test with the Efergy CT clip shows that all 4 of these carries voltage. Is that normal?

CT measures current. Yes, it is normal. 3 Lives and a neutral.

8 fridges/freezers

Are you a serial killer?

But seriously - when billing go up it is almost always because usage went up. I'm willing to bet it is because of more hot water usage (also geysers use more electricity in winter).

 

[MJAnderson]

@Crusader dawg the FUCK are you using 8 fridges for

 

[Grubscrew]

2 geyser running for 4 hours a day is about 720 units a month. Winter will increase this also.

Go and look if there are leaking taps on the warm water lines. Tha might cause the geysers to continuously heat up water.

 

[Crusader]

Highly unlikely - not for a 400kWh error.

CT measures current. Yes, it is normal. 3 Lives and a neutral.

Are you a serial killer?

But seriously - when billing go up it is almost always because usage went up. I'm willing to bet it is because of more hot water usage (also geysers use more electricity in winter).

Sorry, I meant current instead of voltage. So it's fine that the ground shows current as well?

As for the 8 fridges and freezers. We are 2 separate households on the property (1 main house & 2 apartments. So thats 2 small chest freezers + fridge for each household and an extra fridge in the other one for extra storage. Not a serial killer.

I'll check for leaks on the warm water pipes and test with both geysers switched off. Just waiting for 2 more CT clips to arrive (they're finally back in stock) so I can do proper testing.

 

[P924]

So it's fine that the ground shows current as well?

Neutral is the return path, and not the same as ground - it should be connected to ground somewhere, but there are different places that can be done depending on installation and regulation. In a domestic installation, your 3 phases get split into 3 single phase circuits, each between one of the lives and the neutral.

 

[Crusader]

Neutral is the return path, and not the same as ground - it should be connected to ground somewhere, but there are different places that can be done depending on installation and regulation. In a domestic installation, your 3 phases get split into 3 single phase circuits, each between one of the lives and the neutral.

Sorry, struggling with the terminology since my knowledge is very limited here. So it's expected that the neutral should have current then?

The main DB box is a mess.
The 4 wires coming in from bottom left are from the utility pole. Wires going out bottom right goes to main house. 3 wires going out on the left and toward top goes to my apartment. (At least as best I can tell).

 

[Speedster]

Sorry, struggling with the terminology since my knowledge is very limited here. So it's expected that the neutral should have current then?

The main DB box is a mess.
The 4 wires coming in from bottom left are from the utility pole. Wires going out bottom right goes to main house. 3 wires going out on the left and toward top goes to my apartment. (At least as best I can tell).

Wiring looks all in order. Muncipial feed (red, white, blue) comes in and goes to the three isolaters, from the isolaters it goes to the meter and then on to the combined breaker. Red, white and blue then each go out both the top and bottom. One of the phases connects the stand alone isolater which also goes out the top.

Anyway, your usage isn't due to the wiring in that picture. As mentioned above, most likely some form of heating thing

 

[Snyper564]

@Crusader dawg the FUCK are you using 8 fridges for

I have 4 fridges and 1 chest freezer. I run a small home brewing operation

 

[Crusader]

Wiring looks all in order. Muncipial feed (red, white, blue) comes in and goes to the three isolaters, from the isolaters it goes to the meter and then on to the combined breaker. Red, white and blue then each go out both the top and bottom. One of the phases connects the stand alone isolater which also goes out the top.

Anyway, your usage isn't due to the wiring in that picture. As mentioned above, most likely some form of heating thing

Thanks one less thing to eliminate. Geysers are main focus now.

 

[Crusader]

Managed to track down where the geyser is wired for my apartment. Seems it has a phase all to itself. After being switched off for the entire day it drew around 2.7kW for around 90 mins and has switched off. The Efergy shows usage of 0.0 kW. Will monitor how it functions overnight. Seems that the thermostat on this one is fine and not the cause of the problem.