When you see 1000w usage in Sense, is Sense reporting real power (watts) or is it actually apparent power (VA)?
Update: Got the official response from Sense, in case anyone stumbles on this thread:
“Sense is able to measure and track the number of watts your home draws from your electrical panel and is also able to track the voltage being supplied by your electrical panel. Sense displays Real Power only. Behind the scenes though, we calculate the full spectrum including phase angle of the whole signal, so we know things like apparent power and power factor, but we don’t expose these to the user.”
I would think that just like old analog style power meters that are still in use, a Smart Meter and a Sense would be measuring real power (watts) even though they are theoretically capable of doing Power Factor (PF) calculations. Typically only industrial customers would be paying utilities based on PF.
Look at it this way: Sense is trying to match your utility meter readings. The lowest common denominator there is an analog meter based on motor torque that “measures” current and voltage and spins the little wheels that show “energy consumed”.
From Sense
“Sense is able to measure and track the number of watts your home draws from your electrical panel and is also able to track the voltage being supplied by your electrical panel. Sense displays Real Power only. Behind the scenes though, we calculate the full spectrum including phase angle of the whole signal, so we know things like apparent power and power factor, but we don’t expose these to the user.”