Oil consumption meter

[MikeJhn]

Any one have any experience at the cheaper end of the market, can't seem to find one below £100.00, would be nice to have a total flow over a period and current consumption, or am I asking too much?

 

[MikeJhn]

Sixty views and no comments, does no one use a flow meter?

 

[Ben-gee]

what's wrong with an oil tank gauge (eg watchman), or the sight gauge on the tank, or just a dipstick?

 

[MikeJhn]

Not really accurate enough, the gaps between the marks on a gauge or dipstick are so small that the quantity of fuel left/used is really a guess or at best an estimate in the short term, I am looking for a more accurate reading between adjustments to get empirical evidence of improved performance.

 

[Mrb]

This any good?

Apollo Ultrasonic Smart Oil Tank Level Monitor, Apollo Smart | Buy at H.P.W.

 

[Shower Engineer]

I bought one of these Oil Tally :: Domestic/residential/household/Kerosene heating oil meter 729440152086 | eBay about 5 years ago, think I paid about £140.00 for it at the time. It is accurate but doesn't fall in your sub £100.00 budget.

 

[MikeJhn]

Thanks for that both of you, the "Apollo" I already have a non working one of those, lasted about a month, I am rapidly coming to the conclusion that I won't get one for the budget I set myself, will keep looking.

 

[MikeJhn]

Just had another look at my busted "Apollo" and it's not the smart digital one suggested by Mrb, anyone know if they are any good? how accurate are they?

 

[DaveyHep]

Doubt you’ll get a cheap flow meter that’ll read at such low flow rates.

 

[MikeJhn]

I bought one of these Oil Tally :: Domestic/residential/household/Kerosene heating oil meter 729440152086 | eBay about 5 years ago, think I paid about £140.00 for it at the time. It is accurate but doesn't fall in your sub £100.00 budget.

Now if I can get one of those for about £100.00 that would be ideal, perhaps I need to purloin someone's water meter. LOL

 

[MikeJhn]

Found the Apollo Smart meter at a good price: Energy Monitor :: Apollo Smart Alarm Oil Monitor :: Tank Depot may just have to get one and see how good it is.

 

[MikeJhn]

Well I bought one and it was a straightforward set up and fit, only time will tell how accurate it is.

 

[OffshoreGas]

I’ve got some portable ultrasonic flow meters I use/rent out.

They cost about £15k each and are accurate to about +/- 10%. I doubt you’re going to get anything useable for £100.

 

[MikeJhn]

That's interesting, I have fitted the unit and it is reading the fuel level accurately to about +/- 10% how accurately it will read the consumption remains to be seen, but looks very good so far.

 

[OffshoreGas]

That's interesting, I have fitted the unit and it is reading the fuel level accurately to about +/- 10% how accurately it will read the consumption remains to be seen, but looks very good so far.

In an application like this level is a reasonably easy to measure, you’ve got a fluid that doesn’t move much. The level instrument is looking for a reflection from the change in fluid from oil to air. If the density of the oil changes by 20% it doesn’t matter much because it’s the boundary it’s looking for.

Your original query was on flow, that’s a whole different beast.

 

[MikeJhn]

Yes it is, but this particular level meter also works out the flow and cost according to what price you paid and input into it, obviously does this through the change in level over a specific time period.

I do have an ultrasonic flow meter that I use on pools to check the condition of the filter and pipework.

 

[MikeJhn]

Just to update this, a few glitches in the first instance as the tank I was fitting too did not have a flat area to attach the sender unit, once that was sorted by packing one side with washers and silicone sealing the base it has worked flawlessly, gives a good indication of cost per day/week, consumption also in day/week/month, very useful if you have aspergers as my OH constantly tells me I have.