my new neighbor has had many visitors since moving and now has unwanted visitors outside bv who are loud and trespassing and i believe they had used my outside power outlet. I'm asking if it is possible to determine if power was used from that outlet
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Maybe your new neighbor is doing AirBNB. Call the city manager and ask if that's legit.– Harper - Reinstate MonicaCommented Jul 26, 2018 at 18:06
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Put an interior switch on your exterior outlets. Perhaps a spiky hedge or fence between yards is justified. 6' fences are not that tough to put up if you bother reading the internet first. It'll cut down on the noise too.– Wayfaring StrangerCommented Jul 26, 2018 at 21:06
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Your exterior outlets are probably on a Separate Circuit Breaker , turn that breaker off. Also to answer your question - you cannot go into the past and find out if those outlets were used. You can however install a monitor in your service panel .. but in reality - turning the breaker off will stop the usage.– KenCommented Jul 27, 2018 at 3:28
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1 Answer
Without any additional equipment (a clamp-on ammeter), it's not possible to determine how much electricity was used from one specific outlet / fixture. And, even then, it won't be able to determine how much was used in the past, only what's used once the equipment is installed.
Even so, it's not likely the neighbors used a significant amount of electricity from a single receptacle. Assuming you're in the US, it's 120V 15A, which is 1800W max - run that for an hour, and that's only 1.8 kWh (anywhere from ~20 to ~50 cents, depending on your rates). 5 hours a night for 30 nights a month, and it's "only" ~$30 difference in your electric bill - probably rather insignificant with AC running during the summer. And that's a worst-case scenario; if they are actually using it it's likely not anywhere near the 15A limit and so cost is much less.
If your electric bill is unusually / unseasonably high, check your HVAC first, followed by your water heater (if electric).
