Smart meters yes or no?

[Tom Christopher]

Been an electrician for around 10 years and always get asked about my view on smart meters. Which every time I’m asked I say that I’m unsure on the whole matter....

Recently moved house and in the middle of renovating it. Just had a letter through about changing over to smart meters for Gas & Electric

What are people’s thoughts on them?

 

[suffolkspark]

no

 

[Tom Christopher]

no

Very helpful

 

[Octopus]

Over my dead body ...

Smart meter installations suffer sharpest drop yet as 'people refuse to have them in their homes' - https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/11/29/smart-meter-installations-suffer-sharpest-ever-drop-households/

 

[SJD]

Not for me. They shouldn't have been rolled out till there was a standard that worked across all suppliers. Plus there should have been a user-accessible isolator, which if I recall was rejected due to cost (or maybe because it hit the revenue of those who charge to fit a separate isolator).

 

[Rpa07]

No as well - the advert on the tele that tells people that they can save money by having a smart meter is bunkum.
People have the ability to save money right now by thinking, educating themselves and updating lighting and such like. It doesn’t take a new meter to do that.

 

[Silly Sausage]

No as well - the advert on the tele that tells people that they can save money by having a smart meter is bunkum.
People have the ability to save money right now by thinking, educating themselves and updating. It doesn’t take a new meter to do that.

Those adverts fry my brains!
They're verging on total lying, which I'm sure is not allowed.
They're are deception at least, I'm amazed they get away with it.

 

[ruston]

Misleading claptrap, only there for their own agenda.

 

[buzzlightyear]

will send a link soon about a**meters .

 

[Strima]

No.

And I won’t until they make them compatible across all suppliers and they are upfront about their data collection.

 

[buzzlightyear]

 

[Wilko]

And it's a no from me, too.
Just another thing for some pimply faced teenager to hack, in my grumpy old man opinion (IMGOMO).

 

[Rpa07]

IMGOMO is that what Tarzan used to say to Cheeta the chimpanzee - oh that was UNGAWA! Sorry, carry on berating supposed progress!

Wait - you can’t stop me now I’ve leant the way to link
Umgawa

 

[Andy5678]

I would rather they spent the money on re-newable energy.

Would be smarter if people read their meters and submitted the readings online manually for now till there is a better system in place.

 

[buzzlightyear]

if I waist money on electricity ,what is to do with them ,I still pay for it ,so when can they install me one in the chicken coupe .

 

[Powellm]

A bloke at work today told me they are manipulating them and I could agree with him. Before I had one in my old house I was always at 110 quid DD when I moved to a smart meter it went to 130 quid DD. so by me being cautious and watching it constantly it cost me more.

 

[snowhead]

No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
I think I may be on the fence with this.
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,

 

[ruston]

No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
I think I may be on the fence with this.
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,

Are you sure?

 

[buzzlightyear]

A bloke at work today told me they are manipulating them and I could agree with him. Before I had one in my old house I was always at 110 quid DD when I moved to a smart meter it went to 130 quid DD. so by me being cautious and watching it constantly it cost me more.

smart for them ,but not for you .

 

[buzzlightyear]

No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
I think I may be on the fence with this.
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,

 

[Luke105]

Over my dead body ...

Smart meter installations suffer sharpest drop yet as 'people refuse to have them in their homes' - https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/11/29/smart-meter-installations-suffer-sharpest-ever-drop-households/

 

[snowhead]

Are you sure?

Absolutely certain.

For all the reasons others have stated.
Plus the program is trying to run too fast.
There are too many mistakes being made by inadequately trained Meter Cowboys.

There's a post on the Plumbers forum where a gas guy went to a boiler not working the day after both meters were changed for Smart.
The installation had been left with reversed polarity by the meter installer.
DNO came out within 30 mins and pulled the main fuse, Energy company came later to correct it.

How many more have been done like that and not found yet?

 

[ruston]

@snowhead
I knew you were serious . I was just being flippant.

Ps. For once we are all agreed up to now.

 

[Andy-1960]

Big no from me too!

I think there are other motives for these;

1. Peak time billing, they will be able to introduce tariffs where you pay more at certain times.
2. The ability to turn off the customer, this is fine for genuine non payers, but I can see simple bill disputes or even the energy company making errors resulting in disconnection at the push of a button.
3. They will know what we are up to by our energy signature, even to the point that they will be able to see when we are in or out of the house - just imagine not if but when these things get hacked by criminals.

These are another thing that has not been thought through by government.. a bit like diesels (don’t get me started on diesels!!!)

 

[Baddegg]

Smart meter installations suffer sharpest drop yet as 'people refuse to have them in their homes' — The Telegraph - https://apple.news/AYbNdKAzsQ4CDGHJ5BDGMtQ

 

[littlespark]

And it's a no from me, too.
Just another thing for some pimply faced teenager to hack, in my grumpy old man opinion (IMGOMO).

Hacked along with your pc, phone, Wi-fi network...

Other comments against smart meters?
The reversed polarity one? That’s the engineers bad training, not the meter itself.
Hackers turning off your power? Get real.

The only valid argument I see against them is the lack of standards between every provider.
And I agree the adverts are misleading. If you wanted to save money, you’d be watching your meters anyway and adjusting usage.

I know it’s not a popular viewpoint, and at the moment I don’t have a smart meter cos they don’t work with PV.

 

[Squid]

Hacked along with your pc, phone, Wi-fi network...

Other comments against smart meters?
The reversed polarity one? That’s the engineers bad training, not the meter itself.
Hackers turning off your power? Get real.

The only valid argument I see against them is the lack of standards between every provider.
And I agree the adverts are misleading. If you wanted to save money, you’d be watching your meters anyway and adjusting usage.

I know it’s not a popular viewpoint, and at the moment I don’t have a smart meter cos they don’t work with PV.

GCHQ quoted on the threat of hacking and network virus impregnation across a network, don't forget the device will be linked to your network so it's another way in data theft is more profitable then burglary also look at how easy it is to steal modern cars with decent scanner.

You stick to electrikery and I will stick with IT security ;o))))

 

[PEG]

If i hear that Maxine Peake,whining on about what a crackin' idea they are,one more time....i may ask her,what she earned out of that arrangement,and does she feel like compensating the many people who are locked out of a free-and-fair choice of supplier,due to incompatibility issues...

Putting the word "smart",in front of something,immediately makes me suspicious....or my "smart-haemorrhoids" would have been more popular....

 

[Shoei]

The general experience is for smart meters to be a benefit they need smart users, and the majority of us can't be bothered. So no, they aren't worth the cost and hassle.
https://www.politico.eu/article/smart-meters-undercut-by-human-nature/

 

[Squid]

If i hear that Maxine Peake,whining on about what a crackin' idea they are,one more time....i may ask her,what she earned out of that arrangement,and does she feel like compensating the many people who are locked out of a free-and-fair choice of supplier,due to incompatibility issues...

Putting the word "smart",in front of something,immediately makes me suspicious....or my "smart-haemorrhoids" would have been more popular....

I have some "smart haemorrhoid" cream for sale......... reaches the parts that other creams can't reach and sends data to your smart phone per hour, if you annoy the wife she can hack the system to give you extra itchiness on those long drives........

 

[Silly Sausage]

No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
I think I may be on the fence with this.
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,

I detect a smidgen of indecision there ...

Should be more of
NO NO NO ..................

 

[Deleted member 26818]

Also a no from me.

 

[telectrix]

No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
I think I may be on the fence with this.
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,
No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No, No,

is that you final answer. you stand to lose £500/year if you're wrong

 

[snowhead]

is that you final answer. you stand to lose £500/year if you're wrong

My gas and electric bill combined for the last 12 months was £916.
For Smart Meters to save me £500, that's over 50% of my energy costs, they would have to be smarter than Stephen Hawkins and Einstein working together.

 

[static zap]

With

.....Stephen Hawkins and Einstein working together.

and your smart heating+lighting talking to the freezer IOThings.
You will come home to a cold /dark house every time you go out,
and the GPS in you phone detects you are more than 5 miles away ..
Best get some good security sorted!

 

[Spoon]

I'm also in the NO group.

 

[telectrix]

can just imagine some old dear seeing the display on her new smart meter telling her she's usin 2 shillings per hour. oh dear, she turns off lights, falls down the stairs in the dark, breaks her hip. never mind, the smart meter will phone an ambulance, but the paramedics can't get in because the smart meter has disabled the ring door entry.

 

[BruvDunk]

No.....

And I won't spend 100 quid on a thermostat so I save on my heating bills when I'm driving home remotely either!!

 

[Silly Sausage]

No.....

And I won't spend 100 quid on a thermostat so I save on my heating bills when I'm driving home remotely either!!

People rave about technology and all this stuff you can do remotely from your mobile super-computer. Well, when tech can clean out, build the fire in my wood burner and set light to it whilst I'm out so I can come to a nice warm house, I might be interested.

 

[PEG]

If we are to believe our excitable American cousins,smart meters are perfect,for coming home to a real fire...

 

[pe2dave]

A lot of that is stretching the counter argument a little too far,
but with todays offerings, I'm saying no.

 

[buzzlightyear]

A lot of that is stretching the counter argument a little too far,
but with todays offerings, I'm saying no.

the only way is to cut most of the elec, is start put in led lighting thought your buildings ,winter time is where you use most .apart from cooker and other things .

 

[DC-backfrom the past]

ok so I'm different I have had smart meters for over a year.
Its not been hacked , electricity and gas are still on. Its been useful to show the Mrs what uses the most power ...ie the tumble dryer that she used for the odd one item. now its used properly.

I don't see the harm in it
If I move supplier I will tell the old one come take yer meter back …
new tech is here to stay.
we all went through the fear in 2000 of the world collapsing due to 2k bug ….it didn't happen..

so basically its a yes from me,
ive nothing to hide and prefer that to some person turning up and trooping my house around to read my meter

 

[naylorpd]

I have a smart meter but I still get an email every few months asking me to send in a meter reading...

 

[Grey Master]

Definitely a No from me!
When they were giving the old folks Owl power units to monitor their usage I thought that was a good idea, that's all the new meters are plus the need for meter reading removed.
No benefit to the user only to the supplier -not needing people to go round reading the meter so they know what to bill you!

 

[SparkieMarky]

Definately a NO here as well. Have told them repeatedly to go and do one. If you do some research you will find that the models opted for in the UK have issues with accuracy, especially with led’s and dimmer as well as other issues on ober reporting consumption.

The other big swindle is that suppliers have been given leave to recover the installation costs from customers. So the more installed the more if costs all of us.

The ultimately its crap out of date tech that has compatibility issues, does people out of a job, leaves customers at the mercy of big business (that will say thats what you have used and unless you can prove otherwise that’s what you are paying) and will cost all of us a fortune for what is yet another stupid foverment white elephant!

Other than that I don’t have any views about them!

 

[chrisdungan]

OH FFS just get over yourselves.
Love 'em or hate 'em they seem to be a fact of life, eventually there won't be a choice. Here in New Zealand if you do any sort of a domestic board upgrade that involves touching the metering the old meters get swapped for smart.
For example if you want to install PV they're 100% essential as they're the only surefire way of collecting the import/ export percentages.
Yes there are concerns about data collection, but remember it's only units used over short time periods during the day rather than units used over monthly periods. remember the retailers keep that data for years. I've used that data to help prosecutions for electricity theft and the police can access that data via a court order to track illegal dope growing operations.
Yes some have concerns about the radiation from the data transmission......... just wear a tinfoil hat

 

[chrisdungan]

OH FFS just get over yourselves.
Love 'em or hate 'em they seem to be a fact of life, eventually there won't be a choice. Here in New Zealand if you do any sort of a domestic board upgrade that involves touching the metering the old meters get swapped for smart.
For example if you want to install PV they're 100% essential as they're the only surefire way of collecting the import/ export percentages.
Yes there are concerns about data collection, but remember it's only units used over short time periods during the day rather than units used over monthly periods. remember the retailers keep that data for years. I've used that data to help prosecutions for electricity theft and the police can access that data via a court order to track illegal dope growing operations.
Yes some have concerns about the radiation from the data transmission......... just wear a tinfoil hat

 

[Spoon]

I've used that data to help prosecutions for electricity theft and the police can access that data via a court order to track illegal dope growing operations.

Dope growers that don't bypass the meter?? That's very nice of them...

 

[Mark van Hoven]

‘’There's a post on the Plumbers forum where a gas guy went to a boiler not working the day after both meters were changed for Smart.
The installation had been left with reversed polarity by the meter installer.’’

Had smart meters installed on Monday.. Wednesday the boiler cut out, manage to restart the pilot light and it worked again, however it went of again today.. could this be to do with reverse polarity??
How can you check??
(Yes after reading all the posts wish I didn’t bother now)

Cheers