What is Residential Submetering?
Residential submetering is a system for selling electric service to tenants in multi-family, residential buildings. A “submeter” is installed in each apartment to measure individual tenants’ electricity consumption. Tenants are then billed each month for the electricity they use. Submetering is not the same as direct metering. Direct metered tenants have their own accounts with a utility and purchase their electricity, at a residential rate, directly from the utility or from an energy service provider. When a building is submetered, the utility or energy service provider delivers electricity to the landlord’s meter (known as the “master meter”) at bulk rates. The landlord then redistributes this electricity to the tenants. The landlord no longer pays the total cost of electricity used in the building and no longer includes the cost of electricity in the rent. The amount of electricity each tenant uses is measured by the submeters installed in their apartments. Tenants pay their landlord (or the landlord’s designated submetering company) each month for the electricity used in their apartments.

What is Check Metering?
Where customer monitors or evaluates its own consumption of electrical energy or any portion thereof in an effort to promote and stimulate conservation or for accountability by means of individual meters, computers or otherwise, installed, operated and maintained at such customer’s expense, such practice will be defined as check metering.

What is Demand?
residential customers pay only for consumption because there is usually relatively little variation in electricity use from home to home. However, this is not the case for commercial and industrial energy users. Consumption and demand charges are usually part of every commercial or industrial customer's electric bill because their need for electricity varies greatly. Some need large amounts of electricity once in a while while others, almost constantly. In order to supply large amounts of power at once, a utility must install and maintain expensive equipment. The demand charge on a bill is intended to cover these costs.

What is Polyphase Electricity?
Polyphase (three-phase) systems are widely used by a range of parties from small factories to major customers. Motors are powered with three-phase systems since they produce smoother revolution than single phase systems. Three-phase four-wire systems are fed by three-phase three-wire systems. When voltage is transformed, a neutral point is connected to create a four wire system.

What is Power Quality?
Advanced meters can capture electrical anomalies such as transients, voltage disturbances, power factors, and harmonics in order to troubleshoot power quality problems. This can be especially useful when monitoring sensitive loads. Transients can cause premature failure of printed circuit boards in computers and other electronic equipment. Improper power factor can result in surcharges from utility companies. High harmonics can shorten the life of transformers. Using advanced meters will allow detection and documentation of power quality problems so solutions to those problems may be developed and implemented.