Question 1

Can I measure the usage of any device which has a plug?

Accepted Answer

You can measure anything with a three prong plug as long as it does not exceed the rated capacity of this model, 125 VAC, 15 Amps, or 1875 VA. I believe this should cover most common household devices and common tools found in the average American garage. Check the power usage rating on the particular device before trying to plug it in to the P3. The main thing to watch out for the amount of Amps that the device can use per the UL rating label. If you cannot find the UL power usage rating label, don't risk it.  If you go over the 15 Amp limit, youmight short out the P3, or worst, you might start an electrical fire!

Question 2

Just curious, one reviewer thought that this meter was reading his computer's wattage too low...and I have to ask, isn't 263w a pretty heavy load to be putting on a wall socket??

Accepted Answer

Monica -

Wall outlets and their wires inside the walls and their circuit breakers are rated in AMPS not WATTS. I googled for watts to amps calculator and found a handy calculator that was easy to use. Do a google search for

how to convert watts to amps calculator
  
I found it easy to use. With wall power AC electricity, you need to calculate AMPS.

For example, a 500 watts power supply in a PC plugged into a wall AC outlet will draw 4.55 AMPS. 
  
 A typical house circuit breaker for an outlet can handle 20 AMPS or 30 AMPS. Check your breaker panel to know. Each breaker should be clearly labeled in AMPS.

I hope this helps. 
Harry S.

Question 3

Does the P3 display line voltage?

Accepted Answer

Yes, you can switch between displaying line voltage, amps, watts, VA, Hz, PF, kWH / Hour.

Question 4

does the Kill A Watt provide true power measures, as well as the phase factor?   How can I find more information on the proper use of the P3 unit's several features?

Accepted Answer

The LCD shows all meter readings: Volts, Current, Watts, Frequency, Power Factor, and VA. The unit
will start to accumulate KWH and powered duration time (hour) after power is applied.Press Volt Key for true RMS Voltage (Volts) display.

Press Amp Key for true RMS output current (Amps) display.

The Watt/VA Key is a toggle function key. Press the Watt/VA key once to display Watt meter, then press key to display VA meter. The LCD will display Watts as the active power, where VA is the apparent Power. (VA=Vrms Arms)

The HZ/PF is a toggle function key. Press the HZ/PF key once to display the frequency (Hertz), then press key to display the Power Factor. HZ is the Frequency of output Voltage, where PF is the Power Factor (PF=W/Vrms Arms).
 
The KWH/Hour is a toggle function key. Press the KWH/Hour key once to show the cumulative energy consumption since power was applied to the unit. Then press key to display the cumulative time since power was applied to the unit.

Consumption will be displayed in Kilowatt-Hours (from 0.01 KWH to 9999 KWH). Time will initially be displayed as Hours:Minutes (from 00:00) and switch to Hours (to 9999). Counters will recyle to zero when they reach their maximum. To reset, remove power from unit(unplug it) momentarily.

This is true AC current readings, if your planning to calculate usage for DC (solar battery backups)remember to multiply AC readings x 5 for 12 volt and 2.5 for 24 volt.

Also the max volatge is 125 vac,max current 15 amps,max power is 1875 va..

Works good no operating issues so far, only complaint I have is 
it gets in the way of second outlet plug.

Hope this helps..

Question 5

I have a meter but have misplaced the instuctions. Where can I get this?

Accepted Answer

See the above comments about downloading the manual from the website.

Question 6

Does this model save the cumlative totals during power outages/ switching plugs? I have an old one before these got real popular and it resets if the power goes out. Tough to get a yearly consumption when it resets..

Accepted Answer

No, it resets to zero when the connection is interrupted.
Best bet is to take a reading at the same time every day, that way you can estimate your usage after the power is restored. A recording watt meter is considerably more expensive than $17.00!
.

Question 7

what does this do?

Accepted Answer

Monitors how much electricity of whatever is plugged into it. U need to know how to read watts and to translate it to how much it affects your bill. There's a lot of websites especially "green power websites" that can guide you

Question 8

Where can I download instruction manual?

Accepted Answer

I'm not supposed to put links here so just google "manual for p3 killawatt" and your problem is resolved.

Question 9

Is this a TMRS meter I wanting to plug into receptacle from my inverter  a regular meter reads low voltage ?

Accepted Answer

Shouldn’t be a problem

Questions & Answers