Smart meter help!

katty11

Hi folks

I am hoping to get a smart meter soon scottish power have said that they are looking to roll them out - although I've heard conflicting reports on this!

I'd like to hear from people who already have a smart meter and the difference it makes. I'm terrible for leaving lights on and leave everything on standby.

For those of you who have smart meters what difference does it make? Have you found yourself turning things off? Eg how much would it cost to keep a light on all night? And is it saving you money?

Thanks for all your help!

matelodave

You can do all those things without a smart meter however the monitor unit is a reminder to show you when stuff is left on and gives you up to the minute information of what is using power so you can turn it off if it's not necessary. They will not save you any money unless you put a bit off effort in yourself.

Hopefully what they will do is make sure that your bills are up to date and accurate so you wont end up with estimates, arrears or over payments.

MeterMan

Like Dave says.

You're only going to save money by changing your households energy habbits. If you're part of a young family with lots of gadgets then there will be plenty of money to be saved.

If you're an older person then you wont save too much because the older generation are already quite energy/money savvy. Its just the way people where brought up.

That being said, turning your TV off from standby each night isn't going to save you alot of money, but if you have 4 tvs, computers games consoles, phone chargers, lamps, cookers, microwaves, toasters, kettles and basically anything that plugs in, and you turn all those off from standby, then yeah, you could save a noticable difference.

penrhyn

I have Smart meters.

The answer to your question is, None at all.

Apart from the accurate bills.

katty11

Thanks for all your responses I guess what I'm asking (not very well) is if having a smart meter has changed your attitude to your energy bills and your habits ie if you can actually see it's costing you X amount to have that light on or heating up so high does it make you do something about it?

MeterMan

katty11 wrote: »

Thanks for all your responses I guess what I'm asking (not very well) is if having a smart meter has changed your attitude to your energy bills and your habits ie if you can actually see it's costing you X amount to have that light on or heating up so high does it make you do something about it?

I fit them on a daily basis, I get the impression that changing your energy habbits is too much of a chore for most people. Its all about individual preference, It wont save money for you, you have to actively seek ways to reduce your usage.

lstar337

katty11 wrote: »

Thanks for all your responses I guess what I'm asking (not very well) is if having a smart meter has changed your attitude to your energy bills and your habits ie if you can actually see it's costing you X amount to have that light on or heating up so high does it make you do something about it?

This isn't the best place to ask, as most people here keep a very close eye on their usage anyway.

Ilona

Hi Katty. I don't have a smart meter because it wouldn't save me money, therefore I don't need one. Educating yourself and your family is the way forward. Keep in mind that every switch you have in the 'on' position is costing you money, therefore switch it off if you are not using the appliance. If it helps, post big notices near all your switches to remind you to pull the plug out or turn off at the wall.

If you go to the Old Style board and ask how you can reduce your power consumption, there will be lots of people to advise you how you can cut down.
Ilona

tangoev

We had a Smart Meter from OVO that was fine. When we moved to Scottish Power it has taken a year for them to admit that they cant read Smart. We are having them replaced.
Smart Meters are zero benefit to consumers.

[Deleted User]

tangoev wrote: »

We had a Smart Meter from OVO that was fine. When we moved to Scottish Power it has taken a year for them to admit that they cant read Smart. We are having them replaced.
Smart Meters are zero benefit to consumers.

So what ! suppliers prefer them, they re cheaper to run than meters from the last century, so why not go along with what both the government and the suppliers both think is needed. You may be charged once the roll-out is more or less complete if you refuse one.To say they are zero benefit is wrong. No estimates ,I like them, save s me the trouble of reading them, and I don t get many visits from meter readers.
If you have Ovo s "Secure Liberty"smart meter, (prepay or credit mode ) I have heard that they charge a whopping £100 to change it..All smarts fitted at the moment revert to "dumb " mode once you move from the original supplier (BG to Sainsburys Energy excepted ). Amazing that Scot Power has`nt realised that in a full year. They don`t support the Liberty meter, only Utilita do, unless you re in Northern Ireland where they are a great success and very popular and used by all their suppliers I believe.

Sunblind_Duck

Not my cup of tea, I'm afraid. They are not compulsory, by the way. Don't forget, the water companies boasted that metering would cut bills. I know a lot of people who have now had to purchase water butts in order to keep bills down. Telling customers "We are going to reduce you bills" equates to saying, "We are going to reduce our profits". I shouldn't think so. http://stopsmartmeters.org.uk/