Smart meters can switch off your electricity supply!

System

This is typical of the reports in the CONUS media.

https://smartgridawareness.org/2016/08/25/how-the-smart-meter-remote-disconnect-can-cause-fires/

Raxiel

joncombe wrote: »

This is why these meters are dangerous. What happens if (or more likely when) someone (other than the supplier) works out how to send the message to shut off the supply to these metres?

Call Bruce Willis?

Razoo

Hengus wrote: »

This is typical of the reports in the CONUS media.

https://smartgridawareness.org/2016/08/25/how-the-smart-meter-remote-disconnect-can-cause-fires/

Interesting report. I did wonder how the smart meter's RD (Remote Disconnection) contactors are operated (it wasn't obvious from the programme I watched).

Presumably the solenoid's coil is energised by the mains supply itself (rather than an on-board battery) and obviously the solenoid mechanically operates the two sets of RD electrical contacts (Live & Neutral), but I wondered if the solenoid was 'energise to open' (electricity supply off), or 'energise to close' (electricity supply on), or perhaps it is an impulse (or successive action) device?

An impulse device would make more sense, as it would allow the solenoid coil to be de-energised immediately following the switching action.

Requiring the solenoid coil to remain permanently energised inside the plastic meter enclosure to maintain a switch status would be asking for trouble, with the danger of the solenoid coil eventually over-heating and causing a fire.

The average household can easily draw 40 amps and more at times, so the smart meter's RD contacts could on occasion become quite hot. If the plastic chassis that holds the solenoid and RD contact assemblies becomes hot, and therefore softens, the contact pressure could reduce, causing the contacts to become even hotter and resulting in a runaway situation.

Hot contacts, hot solenoid coil, plastic enclosure, poorly ventilated meter cupboard... IMHO it's just asking for trouble.

I think I'll stay with my analogue meter.
_____
Razoo

System

Cardew wrote: »

Certainly in my place in Florida, the energy company could, and would, cut off the electricity for an unpaid bill.

If UK companies could cut off supply to those who treat paying their energy bills as optional IMHO it would be no bad thing.

Incidentally, bypassing meters there is theft and you go to jail!

Here in the UK , theft of energy , even as high as 10ks worth is treated as a game ! If we catch you , you repay it and if we dont catch you then we continue paying it. .Makes sense does nt it Cardew ? No wonder energy theft in the UK is treated as a joke.Last night I was visiting Take-Aways in S!!!!horpe and found three of these establishments in half an hour all fiddling their huge gas bills.Because it was with Npower then nothing will be done by this supplier who I have been told are the worst in the UK for stopping energy theft. Certainly these three places were so sure I would nt spot the fiddles they had no objections to me seeing the meters.
If their gas supply was "smart " then the supplier could easily see that an establishment cooking on gas, as they all do, was stealing the energy. Another big plus point for smart energy meters.
Last year in my area we had two power cuts for a few hours and of course the suppliers can arrange for disconnection for gas supply, it just takes longer.Electricity can not be disconnected if the property has "vulnerable " people in the house. There are a few definitions of the word "vulnerable "it covers many different criteria. They cannot be disconnected whether their meters are smart or dumb..Whats the problem ?

mac.d

Other than smart meters giving more regular readings, there's nothing a smart meter will tell the supplier that regular readings from a standard meter won't already tell them. And the staff in those takeaway places you say were all fiddling their meters probably don't have any idea the meter has been tampered with, they just work there and it'll be a boss or owner, or previous tenant that's 'fixed' it.

MeterMan

The only reason why the electricity would be disconnected is because you've ran out of credit.

Meters that can switch between prepay and credit mode vastly reduce costs (no legislation exists which force suppliers to pass on these savings) I am fairly certain that government legislation will have measures in place to protect the consumer from a supplier just switching as and when they choose.

System

mac.d wrote: »

Other than smart meters giving more regular readings, there's nothing a smart meter will tell the supplier that regular readings from a standard meter won't already tell them. And the staff in those takeaway places you say were all fiddling their meters probably don't have any idea the meter has been tampered with, they just work there and it'll be a boss or owner, or previous tenant that's 'fixed' it.

Well I know that , but some staff do obviously know..Last month I got into a place in Doncaster where the staff were all in on the energy theft.They had been refusing access to many meter readers and when one accidently let me in i spotted the fiddle because I take the time to check a particular place on the meter where the fiddle occurs.99% of meter readers are not interested in stopping theft..... I don t take your liberal view which is not based on any practical experience. Many of the staff do know. They are instructed to peddle a story. .eg, Bossman has the key and hes away on holiday for a month etc etc etc

mac.d

House_Martin wrote: »

I don t take your liberal view which is not based on any practical experience.

Ah right I see. That ties in with the rest of the generalisations in your post. I'll leave you to it.

System

mac.d wrote: »

Ah right I see. That ties in with the rest of the generalisations in your post. I'll leave you to it.

poor answer mac, show me a generalisation,.Yes , you need to leave energy theft to me , you are not qualified to give advice on this.You re good on nearly everything else, stick to that. lots of staff are aware whats going off . Just as the wives/girlfreinds are mostly aware that hubby has fiddled the lecky and gas and they come out with all sorts of stories even on meters which have not been inspected in years .He wont want us sticking our noses in and seeing a big obvious wire link sticking out of the electric prepay meter. Even a dopey newbie meter reader would blunder into spotting that one.
what is going off in the UK on energy theft is scandalous. I d like Cardews U.S. rules to be enforced in the UK..Jail them. or at least heavily fine them. To do nothing is really like the suppliers aiding and abetting a criminal act. . But they have their loyal customers to pay for the theft so they do not waste their money on solicitors

theotheroperation

The real reason for installing smart meters is that when the whole country has them - sometime after 2020 - we can move towards variable tariffs and smart appliances. Economy 7 is a crude example of variable tariffs but in the future the supplier will be able to have multiple tariff rates throughout the day and night. Smart appliances will be able to respond to the meter - waiting to start the dishwasher until the cheaper tariff period for example.

This will improve grid stability and reduce the need to have 'spinner' stations on standby for unexpected increases in load.

The technology exists already but we need the smart metering network in place to enable it. The cute little counter top display you get with it doesn't have much of a purpose now but it will have a lot more to say for itself when variable tariffs come in.

As an electrician I think remote disconnection could be a handy feature. You go to a customer to install something, need to attach new tails to the meter, phone the supplier, ask them to shut down, fit your tails and then phone them back to turn it back on again. Certainly preferable to pulling that 100A link out.