Erratic electricity usage.

Ectophile

If it's a spinning disc meter, then some will run backwards when you're exporting power.  But some will stop, and won't run backwards (mine doesn't).

If it's a digital, but not smart, meter then most will stop while you're exporting.  They may display "rEd" while that's happening.  But there were a few electronic meters that didn't stop.  They add up all the electricity, whichever way it goes.

SMETS1 smart meters should handle exports fine.  SMETS2 meters should be calibrated to measure the export.

[Deleted User]

Let’s go back to basics. If your solar PV is generating, then any house electricity demands will be met by solar first and Grid second. So if your solar is outputting 3kW and your house demand is 2.3kW, then 0.7kW will be exported to the Grid. Conversely, if your solar is only outputting 2.3kW and your house demand is 3.5kW, then you will be importing 1.2kW from the Grid. This import will be recorded on the import side of the meter. As suggested above, the problem with some analogue meters was that the export of solar electricity was causing the meter to run backwards.

But this isn’t the issue. You are shocked by how much electricity you have been using. Using the Occam’s Razor principle, the most likely cause is a high demand device like an immersion heater.

Your solar generation is a separate issue. All solar installations will have a MCS Certificate which will state how much energy your array is forecast to produce. This will vary between installations depending on array size; orientation and shading. Your installer will have installed a generation meter as part of the installation. It is simple to check the output of your panels against what was forecast. For example, my MCS Certificate gives a figure of 5900kWh/year. I am a month away from the 2 year point and my generation meter is showing a figure in excess of 12000kWh. Clearly, if the total output was showing a significant shortfall on the MCS figure, then I would contact my installer (or A N Other installer) to carryout a system check. 

The other unknown here is how pro-active have you have been in using the energy that your array produces? For example, do you delay your washing and cooking until you see the Golden orb in the sky? It is estimated that PV solar homes - without a battery - use between 25 and 50% of the solar output. The rest goes to the Grid. I have an EV and a battery, and I manage to use just under 80% of what my array produces.

As far as your old analogue meter is concerned: that ship has sailed. You would have had a case if you had raised your concerns with the supplier before the smart meter was installed.

Finally, a comment about EVs. If you intend to use solar to charge an EV then you need a charging point that is capable of using excess solar (or the balance will come from the Grid at full price). After the house load has been satisfied, your solar excess will need to be in excess of 1.3kW if the EV is to charge. It is not easy with a small array once the sun’s elevation drops.

littleteapot

SAC2334 said:

Fitters of solar panels are supposed to inform occupier and suppliers so they can fit a digital meter which would not reverse but many never bothered .

More like they keep the analogue meter to save money.

A (now retired) colleague used to brag about not only having a FIT which was paying him at least 25p/kWh but also having a meter which ran backwards when exporting. He likened it to a free battery of infinite capacity.

As he lived alone and was out working 5 days a week, he actually went to the effort in summer of deliberately wasting energy so that he didn't give 'negative' meter readings which would make his supplier want to replace the meter with a modern one due to being suspicion of it being faulty or fiddled.

markin

What is the total from the new meter and date installed?

Any annual numbers from before the solar install and after?

SAC2334

littleteapot said:

SAC2334 said:

Fitters of solar panels are supposed to inform occupier and suppliers so they can fit a digital meter which would not reverse but many never bothered .

More like they keep the analogue meter to save money.

A (now retired) colleague used to brag about not only having a FIT which was paying him at least 25p/kWh but also having a meter which ran backwards when exporting. He likened it to a free battery of infinite capacity.

As he lived alone and was out working 5 days a week, he actually went to the effort in summer of deliberately wasting energy so that he didn't give 'negative' meter readings which would make his supplier want to replace the meter with a modern one due to being suspicion of it being faulty or fiddled.

Yes my friend  has had one for years and they will have to get a warrant and locksmith to replace his Sangamo Weston backwards running meter .He s canny enough not to let it go negative to raise suspicion. He actually burns electric on purpose often to get the reading above last quarters. 

Not that the dim witted suppliers are that bothered or that clever as they all know from the make and model of the meter its the one which reverses and they re fully aware he has solar panels . 

Blakea7

Evan3020 said:

Do you have Fish tanks, pool, hot tub or any other high energy device?
You don't mention gas?

No we have nothing that I would class as high energy use ….no fish tank, hot tub, immersion heater
etc.  we are energy conscious so we don’t use multiple appliances at one time, we only use the dishwasher and washing machine during periods when the solar is producing, we have energy saving light bulbs and leave as few items as possible on standby at night for example our house alarm and outside security lights, everything else gets switched off.  We live in a remote location so have no mains gas we use tanked LPG.

Blakea7

These are all actual readings ….no estimates/

Blakea7

pochase said:

Welcome to the forum.

Do I understand correct that the meter you believe might have been faulty has been disposed of already in June?

Without the meter you have no possibility to prove that the meter was faulty, normally the supplier would get the meter tested, but if it is gone they cannot test if there was a problem.

Thanks.  Yes the meter has been disposed of already.  But surely if I can establish a lower energy use with my new meter then I might have recourse to go back to the electricity company and ask them to explain why my historical use was so high and erratic.

Blakea7

Ectophile said:

If it's a spinning disc meter, then some will run backwards when you're exporting power.  But some will stop, and won't run backwards (mine doesn't).

If it's a digital, but not smart, meter then most will stop while you're exporting.  They may display "rEd" while that's happening.  But there were a few electronic meters that didn't stop.  They add up all the electricity, whichever way it goes.

SMETS1 smart meters should handle exports fine.  SMETS2 meters should be calibrated to measure the export.

We had a spinning disk meter and the provider removed it as they said spinning backwards meant it was faulty.   They installed a digital but not smart meter back in Jun 2014 and we have literally just had a smart meter installed 2 months ago although its still not commissioned but so far we appear to be using less electricity as we are now taking reading every day and keeping a note of our consumption.

pochase

Blakea7 said:

pochase said:

Welcome to the forum.

Do I understand correct that the meter you believe might have been faulty has been disposed of already in June?

Without the meter you have no possibility to prove that the meter was faulty, normally the supplier would get the meter tested, but if it is gone they cannot test if there was a problem.

Thanks.  Yes the meter has been disposed of already.  But surely if I can establish a lower energy use with my new meter then I might have recourse to go back to the electricity company and ask them to explain why my historical use was so high and erratic.

My answer as a supplier would be you have started to reduce your energy usage and now try to claw back part of  your old usage by saying you never had a high usage. And you have waited until the meter has been destroyed so no investigation is possible.

I am not saying at all that this is the case, but how do you proof otherwise without a meter to examine?

Also a meter that sometimes is not working correct, and than is working again is very unusual.