Energy monitoring
Meters that tell you what a circuit actually costs to run, rather than what the quarterly bill says the whole house did. Fit one to a single appliance, or to the mains where everything lands.
Inline or clamped
An inline meter wires into the circuit and measures the current flowing through it, which caps what it can handle. A clamp, properly a current transformer, closes around the outside of a cable and reads the field instead, so it can measure a whole house.
One circuit or the whole board
A single-circuit meter answers what the hot water or the air conditioner costs. A whole-house meter clamps the mains where they enter the switchboard and answers what the house draws in total, which is the one that changes behaviour.
Single-phase and three-phase
Most Australian homes are single-phase. Larger ones, and anything with ducted air conditioning, a pool or an EV charger, are often three-phase, which needs a meter built to read all three. It is the specification people most often get wrong.
It measures, it does not switch
A meter tells you what is happening on a circuit. Turning that circuit on and off is a relay's job, and while a few meters include a switching output, most do not. Measuring first and automating second is the usual order.
Sensors · 3 products Energy Monitoring at Synced Australian stock
Filter guide
Which protocol should I pick?
Protocols are the wireless languages smart devices use to talk to each other. Some need a hub, some run straight off your Wi-Fi. Here's what each one means for your setup.
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Zigbee
Low-power meshThe cleanest mesh for a bigger setup. Every mains-powered device repeats the signal, so coverage grows as you add more. Needs a hub like a Hue Bridge or SmartThings.
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Wi-Fi
No hub neededThe simplest way to start. Plugs into your existing Wi-Fi with no extra hardware. Best for a handful of devices; very large setups can crowd the network.
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Ethernet
Wired to your routerThe steadiest connection you can give a device. A cable means no Wi-Fi congestion and nothing to drop out, which is why hubs, panels and cameras so often offer it. The catch is physical: it has to sit within cable reach of a network port.
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Bluetooth
Direct, short-rangeGood for setup and close-range control from your phone. Range is short with no remote access on its own, so it's often paired with a hub or bridge.
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Filter guide
What's a channel?
One channel switches one circuit. A 2-channel relay behind a single plate can run two lights on their own schedules, or a light and an exhaust fan, without needing a second device.
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One channel
Switches one circuitSwitches one thing on its own: a light, a fan, an exhaust.
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Two channels
Switches two circuitsTwo circuits controlled separately, like both halves of a double switch.
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More about energy monitoring
Choosing an energy meter.
Start with the question, not the meter
One appliance, or the whole house? A single circuit you can reach in a wall box is a small inline meter. Whole-house consumption means clamping the mains in the switchboard, which is a bigger unit on the DIN rail. The answer picks the hardware.
Solar needs two channels
Measuring what you import is one number. Measuring what you generate and export as well is two, and that means a meter with two channels reading two sets of cables. A single channel gives you the net figure and hides everything underneath it.
All of it is electrician work
Clamps go around live cables in the switchboard and inline meters wire into a circuit, so there is no version of this you fit yourself in Australia. The upside is that it is quick, and nothing about the existing wiring has to change.
The data lives on the device
These meters record to their own memory, typically between ten and sixty days at one-minute resolution depending on the model, and keep logging through an internet outage. Anything longer term means sending it somewhere, either the maker's cloud or your own system.
Common questions
Quick answers before you buy. We test this gear ourselves. Can't find yours? Ask our Melbourne team
Yes, for all of them. Clamps go around live cables inside the switchboard and inline meters wire into the circuit they measure, so this is licensed work in Australia either way. A whole-house meter is usually a single visit and nothing about your existing wiring changes.
Yes, and it does not need to talk to the inverter. A clamp reads the current in the cable, so it works whoever made the panels. Use one channel on the mains and one on the solar circuit and you get what you imported and what you generated as separate figures.
No. Your retailer's meter measures the whole property for billing and reports to them, usually with a long delay before you can see it. These measure whatever you point them at, in real time, and the data is yours on your own network.
Two things people find worth the money: finding the circuit quietly costing more than expected, often hot water or an old fridge, and shifting heavy loads into cheaper tariff windows once you can see what they draw. Both need the measurement before the automation.