Safety and Outages | Power Restoration | Your Meter

Electric Meter Accuracy Testing

The meter is an extremely accurate instrument which measures the use of kilowatt-hours. Meters are tested when installed and tested on a rotating basis to insure accuracy. It is seldom that a meter is found to run fast and record an increased usage. The National Bureau of Standards sets meter standards.

If you believe there is a problem with your meter, contact the Cooperative to request an accuracy test. This special testing requires a service fee of $20.00, but if the meter is found to be over 2% inaccurate, the fee will be refunded and the bill will be adjusted accordingly over the last six months.

Tampering

Tampering with electric lines or meters is illegal and dangerous. Please contact the Cooperative if you are aware of any tampering with any equipment which is the property of the system. Please note that only Eau Claire Energy Cooperative personnel are authorized to break a meter seal and replace them. If you do have an emergency and you need to break a seal, please contact us as soon as possible so a replacement can be installed.

Stray Voltage Assistance

Stray voltage is an increasing concern for rural farmers. If stray voltage is present on a farm, it can affect the milk production of dairy cattle. The causes of stray voltage are many. If you believe you might have stray voltage, the cooperative stands ready to investigate that possibility. We have the equipment and trained personnel to offer assistance and advice pertaining to stray voltage.

Tree and Brush Clearing

Eau Claire Energy Cooperative conducts tree and brush clearing along the right-of-way of distribution lines to provide safe and reliable electric service. This is a legal right and responsibility of the cooperative. Tree and brush clearing is an essential part of the cooperative's service. The cooperative tries to control trees and brush at an early stage of development before they interfere with lines. Keeping the trees and brush at a low level will decrease outages due to natural growth interference. Please contact the cooperative office before attempting to cut trees close to power lines. We will honor your request to cut trees in the right-of-way area. Information regarding distance of tree planting and tree cutting requests is available from the cooperative.

Troubleshooting

You can use your electric meter to check on where energy is spent and for trouble-shooting. If the results of the meter monitoring chart show that your daily electrical use has doubled for no apparent reason and you have ruled out lifestyle considerations and other unusual uses, you can use the following procedure to locate sources of trouble with the aid of your electric meter.

  1. Turn off the main disconnect. The disk in the electric meter only turns if electricity is being used. Therefore, the meter should have stopped. If the disk is still turning, check to see that the water pump is turned off at its own fuse box. Sometimes the water pump is wired ahead of the main disconnect for fire protection purposes. Now that the meter has stopped, you can proceed with trouble-shooting. The idea is to energize as much of your electrical wiring system as possible, one circuit at a time, and still have a stopped meter disk.
  2. Turn off the main fuse or breaker in all buildings. Then turn on the main disconnect. If the meter disk is still stopped, this tells you that all wiring from the main disconnect to each building main fuse or breaker is okay.
  3. Proceed with each individual building by unplugging or turning off everything that could use electricity. Then turn on that building's electrical box or breaker. To further pinpoint possible trouble, turn on each main fuse or circuit breaker in each building. one at a time. Continue this process until one of two things result if the meter disk is stopped, you're okay; but if the disk is turning and the appliances are off, you have discovered a source of trouble.

Common Sources of Trouble

Common sources of trouble include electrical faults in wiring systems that are usually due to physical damage, moisture and dirt, or improper connections. Sometimes you'll find equipment using electricity that you thought was turned off. It could be a stock waterer, thermostat, or basement and attic lights. If no problems are found, your Cooperative has test meters available to record the electrical consumption of whatever is plugged into them. By comparing your recorded use with that of our list for farm and home appliances and equipment, you can determine whether that equipment is using an unusually high amount of electricity.

However, if all methods fail, contact your electrician or seek proper advice from your local Cooperative.