How to make something impossible for someone to use without a manual.
- Have dials that rotate clockwise and anti-clockwise
- Put the final unit (1kWh) before all the other units just to confuse the hell out of ’em
- Make your instructions inaccurate (see below)
Here is how you are actually supposed to read this horrendous piece of design (or not-designed as the case maybe):
Dial meter Your dial meter comprises of six dials. These read from left to right. [Not in my case as you can see from the pic above]
You only need to read the first five dials - starting with the 10,000kWh dial on the left and stopping after the 1 kWh dial. Don’t read the last dial on the right – it is for testing purposes only. Remember that the dials move in opposite directions, as shown by the red arrows in the picture below.
Reading a dial meter If the pointer falls between two numbers, always read the lower number – in Fig A you would write down the number 4. If the pointer is directly over a number always record it – in Fig B you would write down the number 5. If the pointer on a dial falls between 9 and 0, reduce the reading already taken for the dial on the left by one – for example, if your original recorded 5, reduce this to 4.
Following these instructions, the correct meter reading for the dial in the diagram will be 44928.
Source: http://www.edfenergy.com/products-services/for-your-home/my-account/how-to-read-your-electricity-meter.shtml