Imperial Measurements in the U.K.

It's not just the US gallon that is smaller than the Imperial gallon. The US pint and US ton are also both smaller. And there are some other units that are missing in America, such as the stone. Just looked up the hundredweight (cwt) - see that is also smaller, by almost a stone.

Weights are "quite easy": 14 pounds in a stone, 8 stone in a hundredweight, 20 hundredweight in a ton. If you are conversant in Imperial, then you will know how many pounds there are in a hundredweight (the clue is not in the name), and how many pounds in a ton. If you have just got out your calculator, then you are not conversant

A metric tonne is almost the same as a ton, while the US ton is significantly lighter.

Another difference is the naming of the £ and # symbols. These are called 'pound' and 'hash' respectively, while Americans often call the # 'pound' and use it to represent 'lb'.

I thought that the differences were down to taxation - pay the same money for a smaller amount, the difference being tax.

faroukfarouk said:

Hi @NIrelandGillian ; in the South it's been metric for years, right? they go by kilometres...

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Yep we've been metric since the 1970s but only changed our road signs in 2005. Yet most of us will still ask for a pint (there isn't a metric equivalent word that describes what you want like a "pint", without getting technical) and we mostly still weigh ourselves in stone but I measure my height in centimetres lol. Some imperial has slipped back in and its Americas fault; all our takeaway coffee comes in 8oz, 12oz, 16oz etc which is a bit weird.

Chesterton said:

I was watching a documentary the other day when I noticed these Brits were talking about length and width and such in terms of feet and inches. Then I remembered that I think you still drink "pints". I found the video below which seems to say you guys use the imperial system more than I thought. So when do you use imperial vs. metric? I'm sure that metric is always used in the sciences, right?

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As someone who was born before decimalisation (though not old enough to remember it). I'd say that technically people measure in metric, but practically they use imperial.

That is changing as we have later generations that have been primarily bought up with metric.

It is really bad in the UK, but in Ireland all long measurements are are KM/KMPH, which helps a great deal.

Personally as mathematician, I think metric is a mistake and feet and inches are far better measurements. If people were truly in favour of metric, both angles and time would have been dealt with long before now. The fact that they are still based on a Babylonian system of counting using knuckles (base 12 if I remember correctly) is a good indication that we should drop metric and go back to more intuitive amounts. E.g. A foot is relatively easy to measure (use a foot), an inch can be taken from your thumb knuckle to the tip of your thumb. a yard is your nose to the tip of an outstretched arm and so on.

Silly Uncle Wayne said:

As someone who was born before decimalisation (though not old enough to remember it). I'd say that technically people measure in metric, but practically they use imperial.

That is changing as we have later generations that have been primarily bought up with metric.

It is really bad in the UK, but in Ireland all long measurements are are KM/KMPH, which helps a great deal.

Personally as mathematician, I think metric is a mistake and feet and inches are far better measurements. If people were truly in favour of metric, both angles and time would have been dealt with long before now. The fact that they are still based on a Babylonian system of counting using knuckles (base 12 if I remember correctly) is a good indication that we should drop metric and go back to more intuitive amounts. E.g. A foot is relatively easy to measure (use a foot), an inch can be taken from your thumb knuckle to the tip of your thumb. a yard is your nose to the tip of an outstretched arm and so on.

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Go check it out, but if my memory serves me correct, the French revolutionaries messed around decimalising the days of the week and months etc.
Clocks had 10 hours, there were ten days of the week, 3 weeks per month, (ie.30 days)

It cause a huge problem and had to be abandoned.

Francis Drake said:

Go check it out, but if my memory serves me correct, the French revolutionaries messed around decimalising the days of the week and months etc.
Clocks had 10 hours, there were ten days of the week, 3 weeks per month, (ie.30 days)

It cause a huge problem and had to be abandoned.

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Actually now you mention I do remember hearing of attempts at a 10 day week. I think they found that productivity went down. Optimum work rate was six days and then a day of rest. Who would have thought that up .

One of the reasons why decimalisation of time would be difficult is the fact that a year is not a nice round number. 7 day weeks fit with a lunar cycle as well.

Xarto said:

Yep we've been metric since the 1970s but only changed our road signs in 2005. Yet most of us will still ask for a pint (there isn't a metric equivalent word that describes what you want like a "pint", without getting technical) and we mostly still weigh ourselves in stone but I measure my height in centimetres lol. Some imperial has slipped back in and its Americas fault; all our takeaway coffee comes in 8oz, 12oz, 16oz etc which is a bit weird.

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Could you say "a 25 please" as in a .25 liter?

Chesterton said:

I was watching a documentary the other day when I noticed these Brits were talking about length and width and such in terms of feet and inches. Then I remembered that I think you still drink "pints". I found the video below which seems to say you guys use the imperial system more than I thought. So when do you use imperial vs. metric? I'm sure that metric is always used in the sciences, right?

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I'm glad you brought this subject up, because the British misuse of metric vs imperial is one of my pet hates, for example we categorically have MILES in the UK, but MSM insists on calling them kilometers!!! This is surely a political nod the the vile EU which we are now no longer a member, and I wish they would pack it in! This kind of thing comes from the same stable as refusing to say BC and AD, it's now CE or something like that which won't offend non Christians in our predominantly Christian country.
Re cms vs inches, this us another adoption from the EU, and the result is mass confusion amongst people of a certain age, I think it's wrong to change your culture to suit foreigners, it should be the other way round.
Rant over : )

I've never been able to get my head around m, km, cm etc, and still talk in feet, inches and stones (weight).

The fact is that I'm hopeless at assessing any kind of distance/measurement. If someone says "it's 5 metres long/wide" or the room is 20 square foot", it means nothing to me. Same with the weather; "25 degrees" tells me nothing - I need someone to say "it's t shirt and a cardigan weather", or "2 jumpers and a coat."

Abide with me. said:

I'm glad you brought this subject up, because the British misuse of metric vs imperial is one of my pet hates, for example we categorically have MILES in the UK, but MSM insists on calling them kilometers!!! This is surely a political nod the the vile EU which we are now no longer a member, and I wish they would pack it in! This kind of thing comes from the same stable as refusing to say BC and AD, it's now CE or something like that which won't offend non Christians in our predominantly Christian country.
Re cms vs inches, this us another adoption from the EU, and the result is mass confusion amongst people of a certain age, I think it's wrong to change your culture to suit foreigners, it should be the other way round.
Rant over : )

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Actually the UK's decision to switch was more to do with have a universal set of measurements and the fact that metric had superseded imperial in most of the countries it dealt with (Europe). UK tried to get USA to adopt it too, but failed (look up Today I Found Out on You Tube).

They would have succeeded had they done things a bit more gradually - but instead they adopted metric by law in some cases (weights) while ignoring it in others (long distances). In some areas they have been successful - i.e. short distances are mostly measured in cm/mm by younger generations.

In Ireland they gradually changed signs to the point when I first came over here in the 60's outside of Dublin km signs were predominant, but in the area of Dublin miles were still more common. Now nothing is in miles except in people's heads.

I do think it was a mistake adopting the metric system, but worse is not completing it now, some 50+ years after starting it.

Silly Uncle Wayne said:

Actually the UK's decision to switch was more to do with have a universal set of measurements and the fact that metric had superseded imperial in most of the countries it dealt with (Europe). UK tried to get USA to adopt it too, but failed (look up Today I Found Out on You Tube).

They would have succeeded had they done things a bit more gradually - but instead they adopted metric by law in some cases (weights) while ignoring it in others (long distances). In some areas they have been successful - i.e. short distances are mostly measured in cm/mm by younger generations.

In Ireland they gradually changed signs to the point when I first came over here in the 60's outside of Dublin km signs were predominant, but in the area of Dublin miles were still more common. Now nothing is in miles except in people's heads.

I do think it was a mistake adopting the metric system, but worse is not completing it now, some 50+ years after starting it.

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I think the whole thing is as nuts as gradually introducing driving on the right, it wasn't broken and shouldn't have been ' fixed'.

Abide with me. said:

I think the whole thing is as nuts as gradually introducing driving on the right, it wasn't broken and shouldn't have been ' fixed'.

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Are they doing that? Norway(?) managed it by doing it over one weekend - changing all signs in one go and making everyone change at the same time. A gradual changeover just wouldn't work (a rapid one wouldn't either in the UK, for that matter).

Silly Uncle Wayne said:

Are they doing that? Norway(?) managed it by doing it over one weekend - changing all signs in one go and making everyone change at the same time. A gradual changeover just wouldn't work (a rapid one wouldn't either in the UK, for that matter).

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I was joking..a bit..but on a serious note, what would the point be of changing to left or right, unless you were doing it for the benefit of foreigners coming into the country? I wouldn't expect France to change sides just to suit our holiday makers and hauliers.

Abide with me. said:

I was joking..a bit..but on a serious note, what would the point be of changing to left or right, unless you were doing it for the benefit of foreigners coming into the country? I wouldn't expect France to change sides just to suit our holiday makers and hauliers.

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It would be a bit pointless both sides changing sides

Silly Uncle Wayne said:

Are they doing that? Norway(?) managed it by doing it over one weekend - changing all signs in one go and making everyone change at the same time. A gradual changeover just wouldn't work (a rapid one wouldn't either in the UK, for that matter).

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It was Sweden who did it. But yes, they did it over-night. It is one of my early child-hood memories: Crossing the border from Norway into Sweden and my dad had to take the car to the other side of the road. The roads were like an X at the border

Chesterton said:

Wow, I never heard of this. Raises so many questions. They switched from left to right, or vice versa? What on earth was the reason given?

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They switched from left to right. I guess they just wanted to get things right On a more serious note: All countries around Sweden were driving on the right side of the road. There is a lot of traffic crossing the border from Norway, Finland and Denmark, and I guess it would just be easier and safer to have the same rules as their neighbours. I assume that it will reduce the number of people who drive on the wrong side of the road by accident

I think it's very unlikely that the UK or Ireland will ever change which side we drive on. Being surrounded by water means that there are no roads that cross borders with countries that drive on the wrong side.

It would be almost impossible to do. Almost every road sign would need changing. Junction geometries are designed for a particular side. Some motorways and dual carriageways have limited interchanges, and so would be completely wrong if you changed sides. Then there is the safety aspect. It's one thing to drive on the other side in a different country. But to swap to driving and cycling on the 'wrong' side after a life time of doing it on the left would be very dangerous and lead to accidents. And all our vehicles are right hand drive.

It's a good job that countries like France and Belgium (or most other similar neighbouring countries with porous borders) drive on the same side.

Example below of a road bordering France and Belgium. Here, the border runs along the road for a short distance, with Belgium (correction not France) on the left. It would be interesting if French drivers drove on the left and while Belgium drivers drove on the right!

Google Maps

(This would be an interesting house, for Covid restriction: walk out the back door - French rules. Leave by the front door and have Belgium rules.)

The border between Belgium and the Netherlands is even more 'interesting'. These borders often zigzag, and have no border signs.

TheNorwegian said:

It was Sweden who did it. But yes, they did it over-night. It is one of my early child-hood memories: Crossing the border from Norway into Sweden and my dad had to take the car to the other side of the road. The roads were like an X at the border

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More about it here:
A ‘thrilling’ mission to get the Swedish to change overnight
Occurred on 3 September 1967.