Abstract
In numerical simulations, compact quantum electrodynamics exhibits a weakly first-order phase transition. On large lattice sizes, using conventional updating algorithms, this goes along with strong metastabilities near the location of the phase transition. The relative weight of the two phases cannot be marked out accurately enough within a reasonable amount of simulation time. We discuss a phenomenological method that allows to determine the relative weight between the phases in principle with great precision. Our method is expected to give reliable results for any system exhibiting a similar phase transition pattern.