Power Savings Calculator - Electricity Usage Calculator.

Learn how to save money, without having to save power.

Power companies, especially Meridian, make it next to impossible for you to figure out which is the best metering plan to be on. That is why we developed this calculator. We wanted to make it easy to decide whether to install one meter or two, and which rate to go on.

This calculator is based on Meridian's rates and plans for the Christchurch area, but could be used to get a rough idea of price comparisons for the rates of any power company. Check the Meridian Rate Card for current pricing plans.

The key result to note is that unless you are a "low user" no matter how or when you use electricity, there is one rate that always comes out as the cheapest.

Email the author.
** For acurate results, enter your actual meter readings - these are printed on the back of your monthly bills.
** If the rates in your area are different, you can alter them in the dark grey column on the right. 		Below are Meridian's official
Christchurch Residential Rates
as of 15 March 2009.
Month: Days in month Day Units Used Night Units Used Total Units Used
Rates
Reset Default Values
Jan: 31 773
Anytime
24/7 Rate $ per kWh
 
Day/Night
Day Rate $
Night Rate $
 
Economy 24
24/7 Rate $
 
Economy 24 Nightboost
Day Rate $
Night Rate $
 
Economy 24 Night
Day Rate $
Night Rate $
 
Daily Charge
Applies to all $ per day
Feb: 28 548
Mar: 31 908
Apr: 30 905
May: 31 1311
Jun: 30 1243
Jul: 31 1915
Aug: 31 1766
Sep: 30 1687
Oct: 31 1403
Nov: 30 1170
Dec: 31 894

Month Anytime
(Single Meter)
0.2390 / kWh
A continuous supply of electricity.
This rate will apply to all electricity used, e.g. whether your hot water is on a seperate meter or not.
Economy 24
(Single Meter)
0.2147 / kWh
A continuous supply of electricity, but there must be some part of your supply that can be interrupted ocasionally, e.g. hot water or nightstore.
Day/Night
(Dual Register Meter)
Day=0.2688 / kWh
Night=0.119 / kWh
Requires a single dual-register meter, which records both day and night units seperately.
The day rate, called 'Day/Night Day', applies from 7am - 9pm, it is continuous, and must be used in conjunction with 'Day/Night Night'.
The night rate applies from 9pm - 7am, it is continuous, and must be used in conjunction with 'Day/Night Day'.
Economy 24 Nightboost
(Two Seperate Meters)
Day=0.2147 / kWh
Night=0.1307/kWh
The Day Meter supply is continuous.
The Night Meter supply is controlled and could run anytime from about 9pm to 7am, and usually supplies a hot water cylinder or a nightstore.
The Night Meter supply also activates sometime during the afternoon to boost hot water supply.
Supply can be interrupted from time to time to save energy during peek times.
This plan suits homes with a smaller HW Cylinder or where there is high usage of hot water.
If you currently have a single meter or a dual-rate meter, changing to this plan could involve having to get a Sparky to run an extra 6mm feed from your Meter Box to your Switchboard, and hooking it up, however you may easily recover this cost within 12 months, as many households could save between $500 to $1000 per year.
Economy 24 Night
(Two Seperate Meters)
Day=0.2147 / kWh
Night=0.1146/kWh
The Day Meter supply is continuous.
The Night Meter supply is controlled and could run anytime from about 9pm to 7am, and usually supplies a hot water cylinder or a nightstore.
Supply can be interrupted from time to time to save energy during peek times.
If you have a small HW Cylinder then you may need to move to the Nightboost plan, or you could run out of hot water during the day.
If you currently have a single meter or a dual-rate meter, changing to this plan could involve having to get a Sparky to run an extra 6mm feed from your Meter Box to your Switchboard, and hooking it up, however you may easily recover this cost within 12 months, as many households could save between $500 to $1000 per year.
Jan: $184.75 $165.96 $146.81 $131.78 $125.22
Feb: $130.97 $117.66 $104.16 $93.46 $88.83
Mar: $217.01 $194.95 $173.96 $155.64 $148.10
Apr: $216.30 $194.30 $175.11 $156.08 $148.76
May: $313.33 $281.47 $250.08 $224.10 $213.10
Jun: $297.08 $266.87 $238.55 $213.28 $203.01
Jul: $457.69 $411.15 $373.34 $331.85 $316.66
Aug: $422.07 $379.16 $341.38 $304.40 $290.07
Sep: $403.19 $362.20 $317.90 $286.18 $271.61
Oct: $335.32 $301.22 $271.82 $242.17 $230.85
Nov: $279.63 $251.20 $218.47 $197.36 $187.03
Dec: $213.67 $191.94 $168.70 $151.79 $144.09
Yearly Total: $3,711.17 $3,358.26 $3,020.45 $2,728.26 $2,607.51

Compare with Mercury Energy using the Mercury version of this calculator.

Mercury currently appear to be about 8% to 16% cheaper than Meridian.