Using Aclara SGM1416-B Smart Meter

glocal

In case anyone follows this thread, I can confirm what has been said so far and I will add: 

* 'Total Active Import kWh' (3rd screen) here shows the total of Rate 1 and Rate 2. I may get 2+3=6 because the values shown for R1 and R2 are rounded down. 'Total Active Export kWh' (3rd screen) -- whatever that is -- is always 0.

* Having spent some time in the basement of my block, I saw my meter switching to displaying LC1 LC2 at 01:04 BST. That's way off in Manchester where E7 is supposed to run 23:30 00:30-07:30 +/- a few random minutes. The internal clock (revealed if you press B repeatedly) is correctly synchronised. I am assuming my E7 runs 01:04-08:04 but I can't spend more time in the basement in the morning to confirm. The readings for R1 and R2 seem to make sense though. I am not sure what happens in October when the clocks change and I will have to double-check. 

* Active Tariff Price' (shown when you press B ) is wrong. The meter displays '32.830p per kWh' for R1. My bill and contract say 26.42225p + VAT @ 5% = 27.7433625p.Similarly, 'Standing Charge' is displayed as 50.990p Per Day. My bill and contract say 49.33333p + VAT @ 5% = 51.7999965p.I am on a fixed tariff so these can't have changed recently. 

I didn't get an IHD. I was told installers don't give IHDs any more until they know they will work, which they won't in many blocks like mine until the zigbee signal is boosted some time later. 

For some reason, there's never been a connection between my meters and my storage heating etc so I control my storage heaters, water heater, washing machines etc through my own timers or manually. All I can do is make sure I use more power when the meter switches to R2. 

QrizB

glocal said:

 'Total Active Export kWh' (3rd screen) -- whatever that is -- is always 0.

The export register is used by people who generate their own electricity and feed it into the grid, most commonly households with solar panels. It's unlikely to be of much interest to someone with a flat, unless you have a south-facing balcony and one of those kits.

glocal said:

Having spent some time in the basement of my block, I saw my meter switching to displaying LC1 LC2 at 01:04 BST. That's way off in Manchester where E7 is supposed to run 23:30-07:30 +/- a few random minutes.

E7 times dont't generally change from GMT, so your meter is switching at 0004 GMT and should stay like that until 0704 GMT.

2330 - 0730 is 8 hours, so you've got something wrong there?

glocal said:

For some reason, there's never been a connection between my meters and my storage heating etc so I control my storage heaters, water heater, washing machines etc through my own timers or manually.

I don't know the history of your flat, but automatic switching of storage heaters requires an extra cable to be run from your meter to your flat. If your flat wasn't built with E7 in mind (eg. it might be older than E7, or have originally had gas heating) this cable won't be there and it might be too much trouble to retrofit.

glocal

QrizB said: 
The export register is used by people who generate their own electricity and feed it into the grid, most commonly households with solar panels. It's unlikely to be of much interest to someone with a flat, unless you have a south-facing balcony and one of those kits.

That makes sense. Thanks. 

QrizB said:

E7 times dont't generally change from GMT, so your meter is switching at 0004 GMT and should stay like that until 0704 GMT.

It crossed my mind. So, the pattern changes between winter and summer, and I will have to adjust my timers in the flat and habits accordingly. Strange though. You would expect the whole infrastructure to follow clock changes and the pattern in how people use energy. Consumers who go to bed at 11pm, do so 12 months in a year. That's the whole point of GMT/BST. 

QrizB said: 
2330 - 0730 is 8 hours, so you've got something wrong there?

Well spotted. It should be 00:30-07:30 for Manchester. Corrected. 

QrizB said:
I don't know the history of your flat, but automatic switching of storage heaters requires an extra cable to be run from your meter to your flat. If your flat wasn't built with E7 in mind (eg. it might be older than E7, or have originally had gas heating) this cable won't be there and it might be too much trouble to retrofit.

For some peculiar reason, when I moved in I discovered someone had removed that extra cable for this specific flat. No one knows why. Not a big problem really because I have my own timers and I only have to adjust them twice a year. 

QrizB

glocal said:

QrizB said:

E7 times dont't generally change from GMT, so your meter is switching at 0004 GMT and should stay like that until 0704 GMT.

It crossed my mind. So, the pattern changes between winter and summer, and I will have to adjust my timers in the flat and habits accordingly. Strange though. You would expect the whole infrastructure to follow clock changes and the pattern in how people use energy. Consumers who go to bed at 11pm, do so 12 months in a year. That's the whole point of GMT/BST. 

when E7 was introduced it was controlled by elwctromechanical time switches. They couldn't switch between GMT and BST so they ran the same GMT times all year round.

Technology has moved on but the rules for E7 are still the same as they were in the 60s/70s when it started.

Ildhund

glocal said:

 It should be 00:30-07:30 for Manchester. Corrected. 

I rather thought the offpeak timings were agreed between supplier and DNO, so suppliers in the same DNO area will not all necessarily have the same offpeak timings. The Meter Timeswitch Code in your MPAN is an indicator of your peak/offpeak schedule; yours may be different from your neighbour's. OVO customers on E7 in the NORWEB area enjoy offpeak electricity 00:00-07:00 GMT.

glocal

Ildhund said:

I rather thought the offpeak timings were agreed between supplier and DNO, so suppliers in the same DNO area will not all necessarily have the same offpeak timings. 

Last time I checked with British Gas and the Ombudsman, I was pointed to this Time Pattern Regime (TPR) Reference Sheet which is the same for the whole industry.

Ildhund

glocal said:

... I was pointed to this Time Pattern Regime (TPR) Reference Sheet which is the same for the whole industry.

Yes, I use it all the time to match SSCs to TPRs. Each supplier has his own set of supported SSCs with each DNO. To find the actual timings for an Economy 7 plan for a particular meter, you have to find the SSCs valid for the specific MTC, then find which of those are supported by the supplier and DNO concerned. I found over 170 valid domestic MTC/SSC combinations for NORWEB, so there are plenty to choose from. The ELEXON database trying to keep track of all of this information is both large and complex, and it's up to suppliers and DNOs to keep it updated and accurate. Sadly, that doesn't always happen.