No Smart Meter blues ......

uk1

I posted in an earlier thread that I was unable to have a Smart Meter fitted.  I am now obviously wondering how this will change the benefits of a PV and battery  setup.  I know that if I have a larger battery then there will be less export but that also implies cheap rate charging of batteries, so I have asked an installer this question and received a reply.

Question:  I am told that I cannot have a new smart meter.  Could you please  tell me how not having the smart meter changes my experiences and what features and benefits if any I lose please?  Can I still export and be paid and can I have cheap electric rates off peak to charge the batteries?

Answer:  It is not essential for you to have a smart reader to get the full benefits, you may just need to log your metre readings for your energy usage. In regards to your energy provider when you change this will not effect your solar, it will just be a case of sending your meter readings to them if applicable. 

Is this reply correct and complete please?

Many thanks.

mickyduck55

The reply is correct but incomplete..
Export and usage of solar does not require a smart meter BUT some, Octopus Go, Go Faster time of use tariffs to charge your batteries at a cheap rate do require a smart meter.  Economy 7 may not need a smart meter as its been around longer than the meters but I have no experience of that tariff so maybe others can comment.

QrizB

E7 doesn't need a smart meter, but if you don't already have a dumb E7 meter you will need to persuade your supplier to fit one. They may decline to do so, or they may charge you for the work.

If you want to be paid for export you can ask your PV installer to fit an export meter, which again will be additional work. This is not a common option.

paul991

E7 can be used with old mechanical meters and both electronic and smart meters

70sbudgie

Smart meters are only smart if they have telecoms (3G) functionality. Otherwise they are just a digital meter (this is what happened when SMETS1 meters went dumb). Given the conversations over on the energy board about registers in smart meters, I wonder whether the telecoms is required for a digital meter to be able to function as an E7 meter? I would have thought that the meter just needs to be programmed (probably on installation rather than remotely) to use multiple registers.

By the same logic, a digital meter with multiple registers should in theory also be able measure export. 

I'm guessing the biggest challenge will be finding a supplier willing to set this up for you, rather than the technology being unavailable.

You may also find in the future, when 3G is turned off and smart meters are transferred to the new network, that your dumb digital meter might be able to be tweaked to be smart?

uk1

Thanks all once again for your time and help.

So to test I have understood.  With no change of my current at all of my old meter I will unlikely to be able to export or charge batteries at a lower off-peak rate. 

70sbudgie

I don't see why a dumb export meter couldn't be fitted in addition to your existing meter? You would have to submit meter readings for the credit to be applied to your account, but that isn't going to be much different to those with FiTs, or a dumb import meter.

I think it would have to be fitted by your supplier. Although you don't have to sell you electricity to the same supplier as you buy electricity from, I'd have thought they'd be more willing to accomodate an existing customer. I appreciate that logic doesn't always apply.

Edited to add: if you can't access off peak rates now, the only way to change that is to change the meter.

uk1

The one thing I have really grown to appreciate this forum for - as against so many others - is that people do not treat posters with dumb questions as thought they are dumb. 

Thanks all.