Hello, I have a very old imperial meter made by Parkinson Cowan (Ser/ No S512290) that works in ft2. Would someone kindly help with the conversion to kwh please. I also would like to know if it measures in ft2 or 100ft2. This is an image, many thanks.
Best answer by BPLightlog
Updated on 19/08/25 by Ben_OVO
The calculation below is shown on your monthly statements, which can be viewed on your app and online account by following the guide below:
If you’ve got an imperial gas meter then it may be quite old, and even may have reached the end of it’s certification. We’d recommend upgrading to a smart meter free of charge. Smart meters send reads to us automatically so you don’t have to, meaning your bills won’t be to estimated readings. You can find out more, and book an appointment, here.
Ok so it’s measuring in cubic feet (ft3) the reading on the dial is 4974 (ignore the Red figure) and the calculations are like this (posted on your bill)
So the extra piece to understand is the x 2.83 along with the others to get kWh. If the previous reading was 4874 for example the difference is 100 so the calculation would be:
100 x 2.83 x calorific value (typically 39) x 1.02264
The result is then divided by 3.6 to get kwh
Remember that the calorific value varies so that figure can change (and does)
… your gas meter normally reads in either cubic feet or cubic metres.
Just to add to BP’s comment, some meters are capable of showing both volume and kWh, so you have to look carefully to see which number you’re looking at. I don’t think any gas meter produced this century will measure cubic feet (ft³, cu.ft.); they’re all cubic metres (m³) now.
We have seen recently a case where a customer submitted the kWh reading from his meter instead of the m³ reading the system expects; the conversion is only approximate, so the supplier (e.g. OVO) will do the conversion using the appropriate daily CV as BP’s picture shows. Perhaps this is what you did back then.
Can someone explain please- this gas metter reads in Single ft cubic or 100s of cubic feet?!
I decided to give this metter reading to my gas company and they have treated it as :
14.6990 Estimated reading
244.0000 Customer reading
229.3010 Units (100s of ft cubic)
and this jumps my bill to 700£ debit even though I have paid gas regularly !
From gov website not all the imperial gas measure in 100s of ft cubic) but EDF wont agree! When turn it into cubic meters they calculate it by 2.83 instead of 0.0283 !
It looks like you posted a new thread by mistake. Don’t panic! I can get this fixed for you. I’ll arrange to have this merged back into the existing thread and we’ll carry on from there.
@Ben_OVO could I borrow the keys to the towtruck real quick? :)
Can someone explain please- this gas metter reads in Single ft cubic or 100s of cubic feet?! ... When turn it into cubic meters they calculate it by 2.83 instead of 0.0283 !
The meter is measuring in single ft³, but for submission to the supplier, you should give only the first four digits and ignore the ones highlighted in red. The meter in your picture is reading 0244 (x100 ft³). To convert a volume in 100s of ft³ to m³, multiply by 2.83.
What was the last actual reading you submitted before this one?
They have been estimating it this whole time! Dont know if i have ever given a reading since moved in.
their bill was :
14.6990 Estimated reading
244.0000 Customer reading
229.3010 Units (100s of ft cubic)
in the gov web it says that not all imperial meters would read it in 100 of cubic feet! There are single ft3 meters thaw would need to multiply by 0.0028…
and there are the 100s of ft3 that multiply by 2.28…
And my meter looks like reads it on single ft cubic instead of 100s of cubic feet?! From what i read online the single red 0 also indicates that it is in single ft3
… And my meter looks like reads it on single ft cubic instead of 100s of cubic feet?! From what i read online the single red 0 also indicates that it is in single ft3
Actually no .. see the two red digits (at the end, one fixed, the other moving), both are to be ignored and are the two digits after the hundreds reading
… to get the used kWH for this reading! I need to convert it into cubic meters !
No - that has little meaning. The reading is 0244. This represents the volume of gas that has passed through the meter since it was installed. Since that appears to have been 35 years ago, it’s likely that the meter’s dials have rolled over (passed 9999), possibly more than once. It’s impossible to say from your photo whether the total volume having passed through the meter is 24,400 ft³ or 1,024,400 ft³ or even more.
You need to know what the reading was at some earlier date - when did you move in? There must have been a reading then to make it possible for you to open an account with a supplier. You should have taken it and submitted it yourself, but if you didn’t, your account may have been based on the last reading submitted before you moved in, either by the previous occupant or the landlord if this is a rented property.
Once you have an earlier reading, you subtract it from the current one to find the volume consumed in the intervening period. Once you have the volume in 100s of ft³, multiply by 2.83 to convert to m³ and then use the formula BP showed you to arrive at the equivalent kWh used.
… my first ever reading sent to EDF was 9424 on Feb 2023---
Now we’re getting somewhere! That was a long time ago, but we can now assume that the meter reached 9999 sometime after you moved in, started again at 0000 and has now reached 0244. Over those 2½ years, then, you seem to have used 820 units of gas, or perhaps 27 per month on average.
27 x 2.83 = 76 m³ which equates to something of the order of 850 kWh, probably £50 or £60 each month on average, plus, of course, the standing charge of around £9 a month. If this is very different from the amounts you’ve been paying, you’re either in for a nice windfall or a major shock to the wallet. I’m afraid that with the latest estimated reading you showed above being so much lower than the actual one, you may be presented with a big bill. If it’s too big to manage, your supplier will make it easier for you by giving you time to pay, so call them when you get the bill.
So i have been paying 60£ direct debit every single month for the past yeras for both energy snd gas! But once in three month EDF would sent me a gas bill usually for over 150£ which has been paid too! Now when i decided to give this metter reading they did sent me a 700£ debit!
The reason why i was sceptic about is the fact that it is too much and smth seems off because i have already paying and it still is to high debit after the redading!
i have raised a complain to them but for the fact that i believe they mis calculate it...now i am lost ahha! Thank you very much for the explain!