Amps lower than nameplate, or bad meter?

I was concerned that a circuit had too many things on it, so I turned them on one by one, and measured the amps on the hot at the circuit box.

Everything took less current than the nameplates indicated; varying from 1% less for my toaster oven to 20% less for a 150w bulb. Is that typical, or should I be questioning the accuracy of my meter? (The voltage measured

122v)
Reply to
John Smith
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They likely indicate Max. Amps. due to tolerances and voltage differences and may round it off. Some equipment (motors, solenoids, etc.) may initially draw more amps than during steady state operation (motor starting, impedence, etc.). I would only be concerned if something was drawing more amps than its rating, or if total amps exceeded the circuit rating.

Reply to
David Efflandt

I have a standard watt meter like you have at your electrical entrance (old ones are pulled by the power company are often sold to the public) that I wired for 120 V to test individual appliances. The meters I have are certified, so I expect they are accurate. A motor has too much variation so I use a 100 W bulb for a reference. However, a 100 W bulb (or any other wattage bulb) never reads the wattage marked on the bulb. When I'm not checking electric usage over a period of a month or several months, I read for only 3 minutes so I would expect variation from the bulb mark due to temperature and manufacturing tolerance. BTW, I not sure why more people don't use one of these as it sure pinpoint an inefficient appliance.

Reply to
George E. Cawthon

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