Power Mate

Power-Mate

The Power-Mate is a device that is inserted between the main’s power outlet and an appliance’s power plug. The device can accurately measure and calculate power, volts, amps and energy being used by an electrical appliance. The Power-Mate can also measure the greenhouse gas emission created by an appliance. The highlight of the device is its ability to determine the actual running cost of an electrical appliance.

 

Warringah Library Service has 8 of the devices and it is available for loan for a 7 day period from any of our branches.

 

The Power Mate was invented by Mike Russ, and it was a winner of The New Inventors TV show on the ABC
http://www.abc.net.au/tv/newinventors/txt/s1330918.htm

 

How it Works

Primarily the Power-Mate has been developed so that consumers can have some control over their electricity bills by using the device to analyse electricity consumption. The product is not only for consumer though, and can be used by electricians investigating a faulty power point, auditors checking on residential power consumption, or technicians checking the efficiency of radio transmitters.

 

The Power-Mate can measure the maximum and minimum fluctuations of power, voltage, and current for each appliance you plug in to it. It can also advise of the actual energy consumed per kilo-watt-hour (kwh). The Power-Mate will then do all the sums for you and calculate the energy consumed hourly, quarterly and yearly. The Power-Mate will give you an accurate dollar amount for each individual appliance in your home on an hourly, quarterly or yearly basis.

 

The Power-Mate calculates two types of power: Running and Standby. Running power means power consumed when the appliance is turned on. The Power-Mate will also calculate standby power, such as the power used by that remote-controlled TV in the spare room that you only use once a week. Any appliance that can be turned on with a remote control uses a small amount of power whilst turned off.

 

In 2000 up to 11.6% of Australia’s household electricity usage was from standby power. Standby power is an underestimated energy sponge that accounts for approximately 11.4% of our power bills, of which 5% is deemed wasted energy. That’s equivalent to $500 million. That’s not only a lot of money, but a lot of greenhouse gas, amounting to 5 million tonnes of CO2. There are currently no Australian standby energy standards by which manufacturers must abide.

 

The Power-Mate can also identify if an appliance is faulty or if it’s using more power than it should.

 

The Power-mate is easy to use. The user simply unplugs the appliance to be measured from the power outlet plugs the Power-Mate into the outlet, and then plugs the appliance into the rear of the special ‘piggyback’ plug of the Power-Mate.

 

The Power-Mate has a maximum capacity of 2.4 kilo-Watts. The Power required for an appliance is usually written on the unit’s label or cast into the plastic or metal of the appliance. Users must follow the colour-coded panel on the front to go through the Power-Mate’s various measuring functions.

 

The Power-Mate cannot be used for devices that are hard-wired. For example, it cannot calculate your lighting use or ducted air-conditioning use.