energy loss

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wwstrick

Member
Location
Antigua, Guatemala
I am a solar electric installer here in Guatemala. We have no electric code and no inspection of new houses. We also do not have licensed electricians. As a consequence we have some problems in design and install of residential electric. I have a customer whose energy consumption should be under 1000 kWhr looking at his home and the way he uses things. I arrived at this figure by doing an energy audit like I would for an off grid customer. It is a new house and he is consuming over 2000 kWhr. I strongly believe that he is loosing energy somewhere due to the design and installation of the wiring. He had 00 wire in a 320ft feeder from the meter to the main distribution panel. They have taken that out and installed 0000. I am planning on using a meter on individual branch circuits to see if I can find any unexpected consumption. Does anyone know of any reference material to help me know what to look for that could be causing high consumption?

I would get an experienced and qualified electrician to find the problem, but I really don't know where to find one. Thanks
 
Jraef

Jraef

Moderator, OTD
Staff member
Location
San Francisco Bay Area, CA, USA
Occupation
Electrical Engineer
Some of the big obvious ones to eliminate first, basically household appliances that are not turning off:

Well pumps that never shut down and the excess water is just released back down the well or into a stream somewhere (ran into that one at my Sister's cabin in Oregon).
Water heaters that are likewise stuck on, boiling away water into the relief valve for no reason
Air conditioners running 24/7 in rooms with open windows.
Electric ovens that don't fully turn off.

If they have a load center, turn all of the breakers off, then turn them on one at a time, looking for what makes the meter spin the fastest. If you turn everything off and there is still energy consumption, you may have an illegal tap somewhere.
 
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digital_precision

Member
Location
lexington, SC
Do as stated above, and systematically check each branch for excessive draw. I have seen this scenario a few times in various rental units and in rural areas that don't have much in the way of code enforcement officials. All three times it turned out to be illegal taps, i.e. someone stealing power. The ones I came across were very low tech and very dangerous. A fire was inevitable.
 
kwired

kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
In addition to some of what was already mentioned - leaking hot water faucet, hot tubs, pool pumps, dehumidifiers, outdoor lighting that has malfunctioning photo control and runs all day can add up fast.
 
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wwstrick

Member
Location
Antigua, Guatemala
I haven't heard of any grow rooms here!
I am going to measure consumption fir a couple of days on the circuits with larger draws. If nothing stands out I will look for an unauthorized tap. Thanks


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