Electricity is something that we are around every day. We understand that we need to pay so much towards the electricity we use but do we ever fully understand what we are paying for? Talking to your electrician can help you figure out what you pay for, but for the most part they will talk to you in terms of kilowatt and kilowatt hours. This can help you know that you pay for the kilowatt hour but not the kilowatt, but what is the difference between these two items? They are not so different as they cannot be compared to each other but, what exactly does this mean.
Kilowatt (kW)
A kilowatt is actually only a measurement of power according to Energy Lens. This is only because power is usually “the rate at which energy is generated or used”. So you can’t have power without the energy already being there. The energy is the kilowatt hour which will be discussed soon. The kilowatt will actually help you in determining how much energy you are actually using. This is because the more power that you need or how fast you use the energy that you are given will actually change how many kilowatt hours you actually are using.
Kilowatt Hour (kWh)
The kilowatt hour on the other hand is a measurement of energy. When it comes to explaining energy it is simplified as “a measure of how much fuel is contained within something, or used by something over a specific period of time”. Sort of like your body, when it runs out of energy and burns out all the stored energy, you need to relax and rest. You used up the stored fuel in your body, the calories. Much like calories the energy made in a kWh will be used to help create power within the items in your home.
So what about energy use and time?
There are many different ways that the usage of the kWh can change over time. When it comes to breaking down the power it could change from day to day and month to month. Not only that but the days and months change time themselves over a potential timeline. The only way you can tell is if you had days with the exact same scenarios.
Back to basics
So without the kWh we cannot have the kW. This seems strange but ultimately the kilowatt hour will make the energy that is needed to power all of our devices such as the TV and appliances. Likewise, the hot water burning will use the oil in order to create the power it needs to allow you to have hot water for dishes, showering and the like.
The kWh is what you pay for when it comes to your electric bill and it will vary depending on the appliance that you use. However, it could change depending on the Kilowatt that the energy is being used by. Electricity is a large circle that is dependent on these two things to function properly.
