Upgrading old electricity meter to a smart one

EssexHebridean

Cashmygiro said:

MultiFuelBurner said:

Welcome to the weekend SS where the mods don't return until midday Monday and the trolls are known to visit (not that I class anyone a troll here this is just a general statement)

But back on subject there do seem to be a fair few people with jaded view if energy suppliers and their smart meter installs. I do wonder if this is on the back of the poor media clickbait coverage of obscene profits and such.

MultiFuelBurner said:

Welcome to the weekend SS where the mods don't return until midday Monday and the trolls are known to visit (not that I class anyone a troll here this is just a general statement)

But back on subject there do seem to be a fair few people with jaded view if energy suppliers and their smart meter installs. I do wonder if this is on the back of the poor media clickbait coverage of obscene profits and such.

So someone who doesn't agree with you is a troll now?

MFB has been very clear that they are not calling anyone on this thread a troll - that is even within their posts that you have quoted! 

As for the stats about “dumb” smart meters - that would include the relatively small number of SMETS1 meters which have not yet been made smart again, or are unable to be. And in the context of this thread, those are completely irrelevant as the meter which will be fitted in the OPs case will be a SMETS2. 

More generally, the surveys that tend to be done which claim big numbers of people have issues with their smart meters are often relating to the frequent issues (seen on this board on pretty much a daily basis) where people confuse the IHD (the little digital display that tells you what your daily cost is, among other things) and the actual smart meter - a lot of those publicly claiming that their “smart meter does not work” actually mean that the IHD is non-functioning - with the smart meter itself still working away as it should in the background.

as for the OP - with an older style meter already showing signs of failing, it’s tricky to see how even the biggest conspiracy theorist (and again, for avoidance of doubt, not suggesting anyone on this thread is such a thing) could think they would be worse off with a new smart meter being fitted - even if it turned out to be unable to communicate with the supplier, they would still be better off because at least it would be recording their use and they would avoid the risk of estimated bills so long as they continued to provide readings as they do currently.

ArbitraryRandom

MikeJXE said:

ArbitraryRandom said:

MikeJXE said:

Of the 32.4 million installed smart meters, 9% or three million were not operating in smart mode at the end of March 2023 “and are effectively indistinguishable from a traditional meter”, according to the NAO. This means they do not send energy use information to suppliers and may not display this to customers

Thank you for posting the article, though I'm not sure why you thought it appropriate to post the whole thing - that would seem to be a clear violation of copyright (which would allow for a short quote to be copied under 'fair use'). 

With reference to the discussion, you claimed 12% were dumb - your 'evidence' states 9% AND it's quoting figures from early last year... want to try again? 

The point I am trying to get across is that there are 2 sides to a story that the eco warriors don't want you to know 

You might convince more customers to change to smart meters and perhaps EV cars if you told the whole truth. 

I'm not trying to convince anyone of anything Just pointing out that if YOU are complaining about others not telling the truth then YOU might want to ensure your posts don't contain misleading or fake statistics... 

Reed_Richards

QrizB said:

Reed_Richards said:

I wonder if that happened to the other 2,999,999, or whatever that number is. 

A non-exhaustive list might include:

• Flat batteries in gas meters
• Cell tower or radio site outages
  
• Failed or faulty OTH firmware updates
• Embedded system crashes
• etc.
  

Some of them will be temporary, others will be fixable remotely, and the most stubborn ones will require a technician to visit.

And the common factor of all the listed items is that they are faults that occur after the event to a meter that was working properly in the first place.  I was actually wondering how many others were refused an IHD because their smart meter did not work "smart" when it was installed.

QrizB

Cashmygiro said:

Netexporter said:

Funnily enough, most of us who have smart meters pay a lot less for our energy, get accurate billing, without effort, and sometimes get paid if we help to reduce demand at critical times.

But it is a free country, so you are able to carry on shooting yourself in the foot, if you wish, as long as you have a licence for the gun.

I get accurate billing and I'm on a low tariff with Octopus. Getting a smart meter is not going to save me any more money. 

Octopus's cheapest current tariffs all require smart meters.

If you're a customer on a legacy tariff that's cheaper than the SVT, it will eventually end. When it does, it's likely that a smart meter will save you money.

matelodave

For those who understand, no explanation is needed. For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.

EssexHebridean

The above isn’t quite true though - we do get plenty of folk who arrive here genuinely worried because of “things they have read” and frequently - and sometimes despite the best efforts of the conspiracy theorists, trolls and tinfoil hat merchants who are of course not on this thread, we still manage to make them understand that what they have read is the energy equivalent of malicious gossip designed to harm, and they go away reassured. Perhaps the second part of the sentence should read “for those who do not want to understand…”? 

Cashmygiro

matelodave said:

For those who understand, no explanation is needed. For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.

The argument for smart meters is never substantial. I don't get estimates as I upload my own readings therefore I get accurate bills. I don't have to go out in the cold to read my meters as they are indoors. It only takes a minute to read and submit the reading via the app. I can do that in less than the time it takes the kettle to boil for a cup of tea. Oh wait, I need a silly little display to warn me in red that I'm using too much leccy why the kettle is boiling... click... kettle boiled... back in the green again. phew!  

MultiFuelBurner

matelodave said:

For those who understand, no explanation is needed. For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.

It is quite amazing the lengths of assurity the smart meter antagonists have in their convictions. Convictions that end up meaning they potentially pay 20-40% more for their energy. I can only assume these people are so well off they can afford energy at any price.

Reed_Richards

Cashmygiro said:

The argument for smart meters is never substantial..... 

That's as maybe but in the instance the OP faces a choice between an old meter that appears to be faulty and a smart meter.  This is barely a choice at all, a faulty meter will have to be replaced and there is little chance that this can be with anything other than a smart meter. 

If anyone posting is against smart meters then make a practical contribution and give the OP suggestions as to how a faulty meter could be replaced with something other than a smart meter.  

t0rt0ise

Cashmygiro said:

matelodave said:

For those who understand, no explanation is needed. For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.

The argument for smart meters is never substantial. I don't get estimates as I upload my own readings therefore I get accurate bills. I don't have to go out in the cold to read my meters as they are indoors. It only takes a minute to read and submit the reading via the app. I can do that in less than the time it takes the kettle to boil for a cup of tea. Oh wait, I need a silly little display to warn me in red that I'm using too much leccy why the kettle is boiling... click... kettle boiled... back in the green again. phew!  

I agree the arguments we are given for having a smart meter are silly and easy to argue against. I don't understand why they don't tell about the cheaper tariffs available with a smart meter. They will never persuade people otherwise. What the companies need to do is follow Octopus's lead and all bring in new smart tariffs, that would maybe do it.