Initial Meter Reading (This is your starting point)
March 2
End of Week 1
March 9
End of Week 2
March 16
End of Week 3
March 23
End of Week 4
March 30
Weekly kWh
Usage
Due Each Friday by Noon
How Does It Work?
Schools in the Challenge read their meters each week. The difference between the weekly readings shows you how many kiloWatt hours were used.
Here is an analogy that may help. Think of your electric meter as being like the odometer on your car. If you want to see how far you travel on a particular trip, you record the number on your odometer at the start and end of your trip. The difference between the two numbers tells you how far you have traveled. Your electric meter works the same way, only the difference is the number of kilowatt hours you have used.
Provide Your Weekly kWh Usage
Several different numbers may appear on your meter. What you are looking for are kWh (kiloWatt hours). Your meter may also have a "multiplier" (MULT). This is a very important number. See below.
To calculate the weekly kWh used by your school, subtract the previous week's meter reading from the new reading. This will give you how many kWh were used during that week. The "Initial Reading" establishes the kWh starting point. You do not report this number to the database, but need it to calculate the kWh usage for the next week.
In this example the meter was read the same day each week at 9:00 am. If your school has more than one electric meter, see the multiple meter instructions below. If you are ready to send in your data, here is the Log In:
Pay attention to the electric meter "multiplier". If your meter has a multiplier, the raw reading you take will need to be multiplied by this number to get the correct kWh. If the meter has a multiplier, it may or may not be shown on the meter. You should check your electric bill or call your power company. See meter reading tips for more information.
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