Is my meter an RTS meter ?

Gerry1

Phones4Chris said:

Gerry1 said:

Burntwalnut said:

Yes Gerry, looking at chart it should have been replaced or recertified in Feb 2019 but I would be happy if I could have it confirmed that meter is just a preprogrammed multi-rate meter so I can continue as is for now and until things settle.

• My first bet is that the Horstmann is an RTS meter.

• My second bet is that it will happily carry on with its existing settings if the R4 Long Wave signal is switched off at the end of June.  Only tariffs such as THTC and Weathercall would be affected.

• My third bet is that the R4 Long Wave signal will carry on until the 'drop dead' date at the end of 2025.  Or even afterwards...

Burntwalnut said:

Online quotes for E10 are impossible at the moment.

Nope !

My best guess is that the Horstmann meter in the picture posted here is one with an RTC (Real Time Clock) built-in. I'm fairly sure If it were one of the range that was an RTS variant, it would say "RADIO TELE-METER" on the meter on the top LHS where the one in the picture mentioned says "MULTI_RATE"

@Phones4Chris That's certainly a possibility, they could have variants that all use a similar external design.  There even seems to have been a primitive smart meter, the Mainscom that offered 'Remote Reading via Mains Power Line Communications'.

A big clue might be the accuracy of the internal clock.  If @Burntwalnut checks the time displayed by the internal clock against the Greenwich pips (on a non-DAB radio) it may give a big clue.  If it's correct to the second it's likely to be a Radio Tele Switch whereas if it's adrift by a minute or two it's probably a standalone Real Time Clock.

Burntwalnut

Gerry1 said:

Phones4Chris said:

Gerry1 said:

Burntwalnut said:

Yes Gerry, looking at chart it should have been replaced or recertified in Feb 2019 but I would be happy if I could have it confirmed that meter is just a preprogrammed multi-rate meter so I can continue as is for now and until things settle.

• My first bet is that the Horstmann is an RTS meter.

• My second bet is that it will happily carry on with its existing settings if the R4 Long Wave signal is switched off at the end of June.  Only tariffs such as THTC and Weathercall would be affected.

• My third bet is that the R4 Long Wave signal will carry on until the 'drop dead' date at the end of 2025.  Or even afterwards...

Burntwalnut said:

Online quotes for E10 are impossible at the moment.

Nope !

My best guess is that the Horstmann meter in the picture posted here is one with an RTC (Real Time Clock) built-in. I'm fairly sure If it were one of the range that was an RTS variant, it would say "RADIO TELE-METER" on the meter on the top LHS where the one in the picture mentioned says "MULTI_RATE"

@Phones4Chris That's certainly a possibility, they could have variants that all use a similar external design.  There even seems to have been a primitive smart meter, the Mainscom that offered 'Remote Reading via Mains Power Line Communications'.

A big clue might be the accuracy of the internal clock.  If @Burntwalnut checks the time displayed by the internal clock against the Greenwich pips (on a non-DAB radio) it may give a big clue.  If it's correct to the second it's likely to be a Radio Tele Switch whereas if it's adrift by a minute or two it's probably a standalone Real Time Clock.

The meter digital clock has always been about 10 minutes ahead of real time for as long as i can remember but does change by an hour on its own in March/ October

Gerry1

A 10 minutes difference strongly suggests it's not an RTS.

Phones4Chris

Gerry1 said:

Phones4Chris said:

Gerry1 said:

Burntwalnut said:

Yes Gerry, looking at chart it should have been replaced or recertified in Feb 2019 but I would be happy if I could have it confirmed that meter is just a preprogrammed multi-rate meter so I can continue as is for now and until things settle.

• My first bet is that the Horstmann is an RTS meter.

• My second bet is that it will happily carry on with its existing settings if the R4 Long Wave signal is switched off at the end of June.  Only tariffs such as THTC and Weathercall would be affected.

• My third bet is that the R4 Long Wave signal will carry on until the 'drop dead' date at the end of 2025.  Or even afterwards...

Burntwalnut said:

Online quotes for E10 are impossible at the moment.

Nope !

My best guess is that the Horstmann meter in the picture posted here is one with an RTC (Real Time Clock) built-in. I'm fairly sure If it were one of the range that was an RTS variant, it would say "RADIO TELE-METER" on the meter on the top LHS where the one in the picture mentioned says "MULTI_RATE"

@Phones4Chris That's certainly a possibility, they could have variants that all use a similar external design.  There even seems to have been a primitive smart meter, the Mainscom that offered 'Remote Reading via Mains Power Line Communications'.

A big clue might be the accuracy of the internal clock.  If @Burntwalnut checks the time displayed by the internal clock against the Greenwich pips (on a non-DAB radio) it may give a big clue.  If it's correct to the second it's likely to be a Radio Tele Switch whereas if it's adrift by a minute or two it's probably a standalone Real Time Clock.

As it's such an old meter, I can only go by the pictures I've found of the various models and the referenced BS that's on the meter. The Horstmann RTS ones do seem to be marked "RADIO TELE-METER".

@Burntwalnut btw, a lot of suppliers have been telling their customers on E7/E10/other multirate tariffs who don't have a smart meter, that they have an RTS setup, which in a number of cases is not true. Whether they are being cautiously pro-active or just trying to up the number of smart meter installs is up for debate!! I suspect the latter going by some of the responses that front-line Customer Services have been giving people (and they really haven't a clue)!
I would be inclined to speak to EDF to see if they can offer you a reasonable E10 tariff rate compared to what you have with a view to upgrading to a smart meter at some future point as there's no urgency as your set-up is not RTS. Suppliers need to concentrate on people with genuine RTS set-ups.

If not, I'd be inclined to stick with what you have for now. Once the dust has settled with the RTS switch-off, then try again with suppliers prepared to offer E10. If you get issues with the current supplier (SSE?) then raise a formal complaint (which at least gets the matter escalated to a higher level) then that means you could go to the Ombudsman after 8 weeks if need be.

Burntwalnut

Gerry1 said:

A 10 minutes difference strongly suggests it's not an RTS.

That's the kind of comment I have been hoping for but would still like to know how to go to meter and physically confirm its RTS status if that is even possible 

Ildhund

Burntwalnut said:
The meter arrangement is origional from when we had the house built in 2008 ( no meter changes of any kind and no previous meter). It has always been E10 on theTPR quoted earlier.
Supply no. S 02 120 101 17 **** **** 660

Thanks. That's pretty unequivocal. MTC 120 translates to SSC 0938, which in turn gives TPRs 00376 and 00377 - I think the standard Economy 10 arrangement for Northern Scotland.



No sign of anything to do with RTS: TPRs higher than 999 are traditionally reserved for RTS timings.

Saf321

Lifeisfun said:

Hi folks, would really appreciate your help to identify whether my meter is an RTS meter - photo attached. I am being pressurised by my electricity provider to change my meter to a smart meter since they say RTS is ending soon.  However, looking to the horror stories around Smart meters, I do not want to change my meter which is working well. Thanks

I have this same meter aswell and give 2 readings for it. I've asked on a few forums including here if it's RTS and I've been told no so fingers crossed it's not. 

Saf321

Saf321 said:

Lifeisfun said:

Hi folks, would really appreciate your help to identify whether my meter is an RTS meter - photo attached. I am being pressurised by my electricity provider to change my meter to a smart meter since they say RTS is ending soon.  However, looking to the horror stories around Smart meters, I do not want to change my meter which is working well. Thanks

I have this same meter aswell and give 2 readings for it. I've asked on a few forums including here if it's RTS and I've been told no so fingers crossed it's not. 

This is mine

QrizB

Saf321 said:

Saf321 said:

Lifeisfun said:

Hi folks, would really appreciate your help to identify whether my meter is an RTS meter - photo attached. I am being pressurised by my electricity provider to change my meter to a smart meter since they say RTS is ending soon.  However, looking to the horror stories around Smart meters, I do not want to change my meter which is working well. Thanks

I have this same meter aswell and give 2 readings for it. I've asked on a few forums including here if it's RTS and I've been told no so fingers crossed it's not. 

This is mine

Definitely not RTS.

It's yet another ECO 20:20 digital meter.

https://www.edfenergy.com/sites/default/files/eco_2020.pdf

Saf321

@QrizB thank you