I have a network with 3 of these switches, but only one reports watts. Is there some trick to get these reporting?
Are these the light switch ones or the one that go into the power socket?
If it is the power socket one I believe there are two variants of this model. The older ones didn’t report the power use but the newer ones do.
Thanks Peter. These are fairly new plug-in models. All bought at the same time.
Hi fullmoonguru
- Have you compared the Capabilities of your three plugs to see if the one which isn’t working is the same as the other two. The Capabilities look something like this:
210,156,0,4,16,1,L,R,B,RS,|37,39,49:3,50:2,112,114,133,134,
Mine is for a different model so it will be different to what you have.
- Does the device show as 0W on the bottom left corner of the device on your Vera or does nothing show at all?
I have two and they both report watts correctly (love these switches).
My capabilities are the same:
210,156,0,4,16,1,L,R,B,RS,|37,39,49:3,50:2,112,114,133,134,
I would try removing them from the vera and re-adding them.
Does anyone know if the plug-in smart energy switch will read power flowing in either direction? Normal direction is plug to receptacle, but the reverse direction is from the receptacle back to the plug and into the outlet it is plugged into? I have found the hard wired smart energy switch only reads power passing from “Line” to “load”, but reads 0W in the reverse direction.
I have tried Kill-a-watt and Ensupra plug-in power meters and they both read backward as well as forward power flow. Just trying to find a Z-wave compatible device to do the same. I haven’t had much luck with the Aeon folks, have sent them an initial question and some followup information but no reply yet. I likely could use a Home Energy Monitor for sensing the power and then something like the SES to control the power but that is fairly expensive for a couple of circuits.
Update:
In a reply from Aeon tech support, only their Home Energy Monitor (HEM) devices are capable of bi-directional power measurement. The smart energy switches only measure forward power flow, i.e. from Line to Load.
And have been using a HEMg1 to read power out of my inverter and it seems to be fairly accurate, came out within 3% of the reading on the Ensupra watt meter over an 8 day period. Two things I found on at least the HEMg1 is that it seems to read high at low watts (like under 50). Since it is a 200 amp clamp-on CT, they are probably somewhat non-linear at very low currents. The other thing I have found is that you can vary the voltage (param. 1?) number and change the watts calibration. So if you enter 108v instead of 120v, the KW reading is 10% lower, etc. The HEMg1 does not measure voltage, it seems to just use whatever number you enter in the voltage parameter field.
I can verify the HEM bidirectional capabilities. Had a 2 day power outage and I noticed my HEM reading a constant 3250 watts. For two days. Finally figured out out was reading my generator output. Bad thing is I see higher watt usages when there’s a lot running in everyday use so guess that means my generator output is inadequate. 
You did not disconnect from the grid when you started that generator? As in flip all breakers off? I sure hope you did as otherwise you might have some slightly singed utility workers itching to pay you a visit. 8)
The generator is on an auto transfer switch which disconnects the house from the mains.
I was wondering about that. You can run most of your house on a 3250 Watt generator? I have a 5000W unit for manual use and I know that won’t run my whole house. The A/C requirements alone woudl strain it to the limit. If, or better when, a hurricane hits, that unit is intended to run the fridge, a number of LED lights, a small TV/Radio, a couple of fans and a window A/C so I can get one room cool until the power comes back on. Last time we got hit bad that took almost a week.
Briggs & Stratton has a nice capacity calculator here. [url=http://www.briggsandstratton.com/us/en/generators/portable-generators/portable-generators-101/how-much-power-do-i-need?sort=home]Choosing a Portable Generator | Briggs & Stratton
Deere has a manual list that allows you to calculate your need. [url=https://www.deere.com/en_US/docs/home_and_workshop/sizing_generator.pdf]https://www.deere.com/en_US/docs/home_and_workshop/sizing_generator.pdf[/url]
The AC units aren’t on the transfer circuit. I get a bit of a brown out when the well pump kicks in. I try not to have too many lights on at the same time, though that’s not as much of a problem since I switched most of the main bulb lighting to LED. Still, it’s a bit shy for longer term use.