Smart Meters

[roverstillidie91]

Has anyone on here got a smart meter?

Personally I have never had one and not categorically interested in having one. (with it being another element of trying to control what we use and cut us off as we go into this net zero rubbish)

It's another control measure and they can even cut off your supply remotely as well (I pay my energy bills so that isn't my concern).

I had an email saying my meter is out of date and needs replacing. No doubt with a smart meter which I don't see how it saves you money as I already know how to anyway.

Have yet to see any evidence that my meter is out of date I was wondering if anyone else had the same issue on here?

[welloffside]

RTID

Funny that.   I've had exactly the same scenario.  Constant e=mails telling me my meters are obsolete and I'm going to die horribly etc. etc.

I have the same approach as you "it ain't broke, why mend it " There is, I feel, a bit of Big Brother in this campaign.

[Filo]

I had free electricity for 1 hour yesterday because I have a smart meter

[BillyStubbsTears]

I used to wonder about previous generations who saw every technological advance as the work of the Devil. I thought we were past that, but obviously not.

[Bristol Red Rover]

I used to wonder about previous generations who saw every technological advance as the work of the Devil. I thought we were past that, but obviously not.

No. The work of corporations that bleed us dry. Maybe you haven't noticed the increasing inequality in this world, the increased control of everything by corporations? Maybe you don't believe the Chinese social credit system won't come into being here? Good luck with that. Personally, I don't see it as something to acquiesce over. I could mention 1938, Hitler, Czechoslovakia etc....

[DRFC_AjA]

I have as on a tarrif that charges you varied prices at certain times. But you're right if you're not on that then pretty meaningless. They try to sell it that you can check your consumption live or see how much you spent in 30 min intervals but really what's the point. What are you going to do leg it upstairs and unplug the alarm clock. If you love having loads of apps on your phone and checking apps every 2 minutes, notifications going off then it's for you as you can add another 

[5minstogo]

Won't be long before they pay you to have one installed . Companies are massively behind on targets and get fined if they fail to deliver on targets. A lot of the ones already installed are obsolete and some aren't even commissioned to the central system.

Engineers go from company to company taking the welcome bonus.

Money to be made.

[ravenrover]

I have an Electricity smart meter fitted with EON. Asked for British Gas to fit one for Gas the engineer came saw the meter fron EON said it was the wrong meter for them to connect to so couldn't fit one. What has a meter from an Electricicity supplier got to do with fitting a Gas smart meter? It's all beyond me

[IDM]

Ours reads both.  We still have the traditional gas and electric meters with their numbers like the odo in your car.

With a smart meter you can see the same info ie how many units have been used, but it’s much more - you can see the units used per day/week etc as well as the cost.  When the rates change the meter changes within a few days.

We don’t use ours to check and reduce consumption, more to know roughly what our bill is going to be so we don’t get nasty surprises.  We can decide if we can afford to use more (turn the heating up) or make savings somewhere.

It doesn’t “control” anything. Just gives more data which you can use or ignore.  A bit like all the stats you get with the footy during a game..

[BillyStubbsTears]

I have as on a tarrif that charges you varied prices at certain times. But you're right if you're not on that then pretty meaningless. They try to sell it that you can check your consumption live or see how much you spent in 30 min intervals but really what's the point. What are you going to do leg it upstairs and unplug the alarm clock. If you love having loads of apps on your phone and checking apps every 2 minutes, notifications going off then it's for you as you can add another 

This is the key benefit. If you can move your consumption out of peak hours, you can save a fortune. Even more so if you invest in batteries and they are plummeting in price.

Since we had our batteries installed and went onto the Octopus tariff that varies every half hour, the average we've paid for electricity is 9p/kWh. The typical standard rate which you have to pay if you haven't got a smart meter is more than twice that.

Imagine deliberately making yourself poorer because a Kremlin bot online had told you smart meters were a conspiracy to take away your freedom.

[Sprotyrover]

I have as on a tarrif that charges you varied prices at certain times. But you're right if you're not on that then pretty meaningless. They try to sell it that you can check your consumption live or see how much you spent in 30 min intervals but really what's the point. What are you going to do leg it upstairs and unplug the alarm clock. If you love having loads of apps on your phone and checking apps every 2 minutes, notifications going off then it's for you as you can add another 

This is the key benefit. If you can move your consumption out of peak hours, you can save a fortune. Even more so if you invest in batteries and they are plummeting in price.

Since we had our batteries installed and went onto the Octopus tariff that varies every half hour, the average we've paid for electricity is 9p/kWh. The typical standard rate which you have to pay if you haven't got a smart meter is more than twice that.

Imagine deliberately making yourself poorer because a Kremlin bot online had told you smart meters were a conspiracy to take away your freedom.

What do the batteries work on Solar or off peak?

[Superspy]

I have as on a tarrif that charges you varied prices at certain times. But you're right if you're not on that then pretty meaningless. They try to sell it that you can check your consumption live or see how much you spent in 30 min intervals but really what's the point. What are you going to do leg it upstairs and unplug the alarm clock. If you love having loads of apps on your phone and checking apps every 2 minutes, notifications going off then it's for you as you can add another 

This is the key benefit. If you can move your consumption out of peak hours, you can save a fortune. Even more so if you invest in batteries and they are plummeting in price.

Since we had our batteries installed and went onto the Octopus tariff that varies every half hour, the average we've paid for electricity is 9p/kWh. The typical standard rate which you have to pay if you haven't got a smart meter is more than twice that.

Imagine deliberately making yourself poorer because a Kremlin bot online had told you smart meters were a conspiracy to take away your freedom.

What do the batteries work on Solar or off peak?

Appreciate the question wasn't aimed at me but I've a similar setup so figure the response is relevant. For me the answer is "both".
I'm on a tariff where the export rate is double my overnight import rate, so I fill the batteries every night, and through the day one of several scenarios plays out based on the weather:

a) It's a sunny day. The battery stays maxed out all day, the solar powers my house, and any surplus is exported. Later on in the evening the batteries take over, and if there's any left I dump it back into the grid at twice what I paid for it, just before the off-peak period starts and I charge up again.

b) It's a crap day. The house will use whatever the solar generates, and the battery will supplement this as required throughout the day (at the off-peak rate I charged up at). Nothing is getting exported, so the main benefits on that day are whatever is generated being used + a battery load of cheap-rate charge

c) A hybrid day...peaks and troughs of sunshine. As you'd expect it's a mixture of the 2, with the difference being if the battery has had to provide some power then when it's sunny the battery will charge back up again. Ultimately whatever is left gets dumped back to the grid later at night, as per scenario A.

[BillyStubbsTears]

Both. I've got a 4kW inverter. If the solar panels are producing 4kW and it's an off peak time, that 4kW will all go to the batteries and the demand from the house will be met by off peak import. If there's say only 1.5kW being produced by the solar panels, that 1.5kW will go to the batteries, and an extra 2.5kW will be imported from the grid to top up the battery charge power to 4kW.

(NB: That's a bit simplistic. The inverter is only about 96% efficient, so the 4kW is what it gets as input from the panels or off peak grid import, but it only puts out about 3.85kW to the batteries.)

[BillyStubbsTears]

Better explanation than mine SS!

[BillyStubbsTears]

Real fun comes when, as the last couple of days, there are long periods when the import tariff actually goes negative. So you're getting paid to import from the grid. Apart from the obvious incentive to do cooking, washing, dishwasher etc at those times, you fill up the battery from the leccy you're getting paid to import, then when the battery is full, discharge it back to the grid and get paid 15p/kWh. Then get paid for filling up your battery again.

Last two days, I've imported 60kWh all at prices between 1p and minus 2p, and exported 50kWh, getting paid 15p/unit for that.

It's never going to make you a millionaire, but if you do it sensibly it means there's long periods of the year where you're actually making a fiver a day or so. And even on the worst days, you never ever pay remotely as much as you do on a standard tariff.

Had my system 18 months now and it's not a massive one. The leccy we've consumed in that time would have cost us about £2200 on a standard tariff (we are heavy users). I've actually paid less than £150.

[glosterred]

I used to wonder about previous generations who saw every technological advance as the work of the Devil. I thought we were past that, but obviously not.

No. The work of corporations that bleed us dry. Maybe you haven't noticed the increasing inequality in this world, the increased control of everything by corporations? Maybe you don't believe the Chinese social credit system won't come into being here? Good luck with that. Personally, I don't see it as something to acquiesce over. I could mention 1938, Hitler, Czechoslovakia etc....

Here we f**king go…..

[selby]

   If you are linked to the grid and there is a power cut  even if you have battery storage  then you will still have a power cut due to the system being linked to the input side of the system and they can charge your batteries at will to equalise the generation system mainly at night.
 It is their way of keeping you dependant on the grid and accountable and paying fixed charges on the bill.
 You also need a spike to earth as a lightning strike can blast the system apart.
  If you are off grid altogether with your own form of generation and battery storage, then in times of power cuts you will be better off.
  Billy does use the system correctly for the maximum benefit and the smart meter is an advantage him.
   The negative is that it gives control of your usage being able to be switched off or on remotely by the control of the company, who would in an emergency have the ability to knock an area off for the benefit of say a city instead of a rural area.

[roverstillidie91]

I used to wonder about previous generations who saw every technological advance as the work of the Devil. I thought we were past that, but obviously not.

No. The work of corporations that bleed us dry. Maybe you haven't noticed the increasing inequality in this world, the increased control of everything by corporations? Maybe you don't believe the Chinese social credit system won't come into being here? Good luck with that. Personally, I don't see it as something to acquiesce over. I could mention 1938, Hitler, Czechoslovakia etc....

Here we f**king go…..

just wait until the great reset you'll not know what's hit you

[selby]

  Any right thinking Labour voter should be feeling ashamed of themselves now.

[Filo]

  Any right thinking Labour voter should be feeling ashamed of themselves now.

Why, it was always going to be this way, the Tories have been setting this up ever since they realised they would lose the election, to brainwash people into thinking this is all on Labour, I can’t say I’m happy about the increased living cost announced, but we’ll all have to endure the pain to repair the damage already done, to carry on the Tory policy of unfunded spending would be madness

[Bentley Bullet]

It wasn't always going to be this way according to Starmer.

[Superspy]

Could somebody please explain, in simple terms, what the hell the last 4 posts have got to do with smart meters, because I'm at a loss?

[selby]

  Superspy I apologise, wrong thread, my fault others just followed

[SydneyRover]

   If you are linked to the grid and there is a power cut  even if you have battery storage  then you will still have a power cut due to the system being linked to the input side of the system and they can charge your batteries at will to equalise the generation system mainly at night.
 It is their way of keeping you dependant on the grid and accountable and paying fixed charges on the bill.
 You also need a spike to earth as a lightning strike can blast the system apart.
  If you are off grid altogether with your own form of generation and battery storage, then in times of power cuts you will be better off.
  Billy does use the system correctly for the maximum benefit and the smart meter is an advantage him.
   The negative is that it gives control of your usage being able to be switched off or on remotely by the control of the company, who would in an emergency have the ability to knock an area off for the benefit of say a city instead of a rural area.

I think, according to the link energy suppliers would need to discuss a disconnection with the user to ensure they have a safety back up for medical purposes etc.

''Smart meters: a guide for households''

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/smart-meters-how-they-work#further-information

All systems require an earth rod (spike) to earth the system regardless whether they have solar or not, surge protection must be installed for solar systems.

https://www.inbalance-energy.co.uk/articles/surge-protection-for-solar-pv-systems.html

[BobG]

I've been suspicious of smart meters for a while.I spent some time working with nPower. What I learned was definitely not confidence building. No standard; awful procurement; incomplete development; control software given away (!!) to US conglomerates. The whole system was scary. So whilst smart meters have to be the future, I sure ain't  gonna be amongst the early adopters, or even the early majority.

BobG

[drfchound]

Bob, mate, you certainly won’t be amongst the early adopters.
They have already been around for lots of years.

[BobG]

I know Hound. As I at least implied, it's been a while since I worked wirh nPower. The shambles around the standards, the interfaces and the licensing wouldn't be resolved quickly notwithstanding the need to meet government installation targets. Raven, at post 7, illustrates one element of the problems. Clearly, things have improved and clearly they are improving still. But I see no need to adopt what may be an 8 track solution from my provider when alternative solutions to meeted dated standards are available. I prefer in this instance to be part of the late majority. There's still plenty of room to be a part of that group

BobG

[albie]

BST is right on this.

Best to think of smart meters as a gateway to other choices as the change to electrification gathers speed.

Flexible pricing is the next big thing, and smart meters are key to that.