Jump to content

Smart Meters ???


matone
 Share

Recommended Posts

59 minutes ago, matone said:

Anyone got any views on the pros & cons of Smart meters?

My electricity supplier wants to fit one but I`m reading lots of negatives in the press !!!

Sadly, I do?

If you need a device that tells you to turn something off or down you may be in trouble anyway?

It's reported they are not interchangeable between suppliers any way and could provide a hackers route into your system?

A big nope from me.

Just another officially sponsored scam?

Edited by old man
Link to comment
Share on other sites

17 minutes ago, old man said:

Sadly, I do?

If you need a device that tells you to turn something off or down you may be in trouble anyway?

It's reported they are not interchangeable between suppliers any way and could provide a hackers route into your system?

A big nope from me.

Just another officially sponsored scam?

Mmmm,sort of thing I`ve been reading .....

As far as I can see ,I`m already in control of consumption with things called switches.

Edited by matone
Link to comment
Share on other sites

My supplier doesn't offer them in my area yet, but I have a number of concerns;

  1. Interchangeability between suppliers.  The original smart meters weren't all interchangeable between all suppliers.  More modern ones (mostly) are (so I'm told).
  2. Risk of hacking.  They use mobile phone technology, so in theory can be hacked.  However - other than possibly showing someone when the premises are unoccuplied (and so increasing the risk of burglary) the risks are that the readings will be lost/corrupted.  The suppliers should notice this - just as they in theory notice when the old type meter goes wrong (which they rarely do) from the change in readings/usage.
  3. Usefulness.  I know how much energy I'm using and how much individual appliances use - and if I want more detail, I can easily read the present 'non smart' meter and put in in a free app on a phone, or a simple spreadsheet.  I did in fact do this for a period when I had a new heating system so I could assess it's effectiveness in saving gas - and get an idea all was running about right against my predicted usage.
  4. Flats/old houses/wireless difficulties.  In old houses the meter is sometimes in a separate location (mine (water, gas and electricity) are in an externally accessed plant room with the boiler) - I don't know whether an inside display would work through the thick walls.  In flats, meters are sometimes arranged in banks in a communal meter cupboard - that may be some distance from the flat concerned.

Having said all that, I suspect I will accept one when offered.  One key fact is that you DO NOT have to accept one.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Had mine for at least 5yrs Gas and Electric bill is down they read the meters every month..

have a little mini type computer screen that sits on top of my microwave in the kitchen shows how much electric and gas you are using at anyone time 

have noticed when you switch the kettle on it doesn't half jump the cost up on the electric meter...

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just now, hawkeye said:

have noticed when you switch the kettle on it doesn't half jump the cost up on the electric meter...

Well - it would - most kettles are 2 or 3 KW. 

Simple rules of electricity;  Heat uses a lot and is expensive. 

Light (cool running lights like low energy, LED etc.) is cheap.

The areas to watch are the 'always on' type things like fridge freezers, where a good modern fridge freezer A+ will save compared to older ones with lower efficiency.  Some examples here

https://www.carbonfootprint.com/energyconsumption.html

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

59 minutes ago, hawkeye said:

Had mine for at least 5yrs Gas and Electric bill is down they read the meters every month..

have a little mini type computer screen that sits on top of my microwave in the kitchen shows how much electric and gas you are using at anyone time 

have noticed when you switch the kettle on it doesn't half jump the cost up on the electric meter...

 

Thanks,5 yrs is a pretty good period to get an insight and find out any problems !

Edited by matone
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, Davyo said:

I wont have an option once they are compusary

if they ever become compulsory, then you won't (by definition) have an option.  But at present they are not going to be compulsory.

 

2 minutes ago, Davyo said:

enviroment and savimg energy

They don't save the environment, or energy either.  In fact - all the effort and cost of replacing all the old style meters before they reach 'end of life' costs the environment - because we are scrapping loads of perfectly good meters.  They don't save energy because ALL they do is meter it.  IF you choose to turn something off - then energy is saved, but NOT BY THE METER.

The whole thing is a con (as you might expect from a government scheme).

What potentially might happen in the longer term is that energy will be charged by supply and demand, so there will be incentives to use energy when plentiful (and so cheap) (presumably when the wind is blowing, or the sun is out?) and save it when it is in short supply (and so more expensive).  A sort of much enhanced 'economy 7', but based on grid demand, not just time of day.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Common sense makes them pointless and scammers /hacking worries make them a dodgy looking item.We have energy saving bubs in every lamp/light .Heating turned down to comfortable <dumb*** son used to walk around in shorts till his first gas bill arrived with a thud:oops:> and no standbye off with the TV and dvd player .

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, JohnfromUK said:

if they ever become compulsory, then you won't (by definition) have an option.  But at present they are not going to be compulsory.

 

They don't save the environment, or energy either.  In fact - all the effort and cost of replacing all the old style meters before they reach 'end of life' costs the environment - because we are scrapping loads of perfectly good meters.  They don't save energy because ALL they do is meter it.  IF you choose to turn something off - then energy is saved, but NOT BY THE METER.

The whole thing is a con (as you might expect from a government scheme).

What potentially might happen in the longer term is that energy will be charged by supply and demand, so there will be incentives to use energy when plentiful (and so cheap) (presumably when the wind is blowing, or the sun is out?) and save it when it is in short supply (and so more expensive).  A sort of much enhanced 'economy 7', but based on grid demand, not just time of day.

...and will they be able to switch you off remotely with them ?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

49 minutes ago, matone said:

...and will they be able to switch you off remotely with them ?

No - or at least highly unlikely.  They don't contain any physical switching (at least in any present proposals), but can record usage against time - and apply different cost bands.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Had one from British Gas for about 5 months now. Lots of colour and info BUT I found exactly how much energy  we were using and what it was costing.
Our bill has now dropped due to   I don't leave lights on anymore when not needed, I find we are still comfortable with the thermostat a little lower.

well recommended.
:thanks:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As a meter fitter for over 10 years now the main thing I've found is quite simply smart meters suit some people better than others. Somebody who sends in their own readings will not benefit as much as someone who is away for days or even weeks at a time, the SED (Smart Energy Display) has its plus points but generally the older generation are already quite energy savvy, one lovely old guy was using 10watts so I was honest and said he can't really save a lot when he's not using a lot to begin with. Another customer had a simple use for his, as he leaves his house he glances at it to see if he's left anything on. 

Believe this or not but it's truly amazing just how many people out there have complained to me about their bills being high but a quick demo with the SED has always revealed what is causing the problem, one time the monitor was showing a consumption of 3KW, customer insisted nothing was on but turned out the thermostat was faulty on his immersion heater bringing it on when not required. Another one that springs to mind was when I discovered a fridgefreezer on in a garage, nothing wrong with that except it had no food in it and the customer had forgotten about it!

Although anything with a heating element in it can be pricey to run its most often lighting where a lot of money can go, 8 50watt spotlights in a kitchen are obviously more expensive to have on compared to an old 100watt strip light yet a lot of people seem to be oblivious to this fact, I was going to recommend LED lighting but there's conspiracy theories about those as well now....:rolleyes:

Edited by Ttfjlc
Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, Ttfjlc said:

..... LED lighting but there's conspiracy theories about those as well now....:rolleyes:

I'm curious about this.  I have (almost) all LED lighting - probably over 100 individual units in a large house.  They have been superb.  Before, incandescents were energy heavy, and when I went to the (various types) of low energy (flourescent type) bulbs, the light was poor and about 30% suffer early life failures.

So far, since fully refitting the whole house 2 years ago - only one LED unit has failed (and that was in the first few hours and replaced under warranty).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, JohnfromUK said:

No - or at least highly unlikely.  They don't contain any physical switching (at least in any present proposals), but can record usage against time - and apply different cost bands.

I had a look through the installers manual and settings whilst the engineer was installing one in my old property and pointed out the capacity to remotely switch off, and he admitted it was present, but not currently being used.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...