An Informal Poll Regarding Smart Meters

[marillion]

I work in the electric industry and we're looking to finally implement smart meters in our service territory next year. I'm just curious to see if any of you out there have them and what your experience has been. I know there has been some controversy about them in some circles, but overall, it seems they improve accuracy and allow customers to really see where their usage peaks during the day. Just wanted to take an informal poll to see what you all thought. Thanks!

 

[Spot's Meow]

I honestly don't know if I have one or not. However, you mention they allow you to see peak usage times during the day, and I do have this ability. When I log on to my account I can see to the hour what the energy usage level was. And it's available the next day I believe. I don't find it very useful because it's exactly what I'd expect - little energy used while I'm away at work, and then a spike when I am home making dinner and watching TV. Knowing this information is kind of interesting I guess, but it doesn't really translate to me being able to do anything about it. Same on a daily or monthly basis, it's clear that my energy usage goes up significantly when the air conditioner or heater are on, but I can't really do much about it. I already try to use them as sparingly as possible, but sometimes it just can't be helped.

 

[marillion]

Sounds exactly like what you have.. And what you described is really one of the biggest benefits.. It can help people monitor their use and if they see times that it really peaks, they can look for ways to reduce their use... But they are also supposed to really be a more accurate way to calculate billing and in fact, a lot of studies have shown considerable cost savings for some people.. I appreciate the feedback! Thanks!

One of the easiest ways to tell if you have a smart meter is to look at it and see if it has a digital readout rather than the analog spinners.. Here's an example.

 

[Owain Taggart]

Yes, we have one. It's complicated as it's all mired in federal political BS, but it actually ended up making it more expensive for us. With these, they're technically able to see which communities use the most and adjust as necessary, but they've been criticized as being inaccurate and getting the federal government to raise rates across the board. As a result some communities have been hit rather hard with rates equal to what they never use, to the point that some businesses are struggling to stay operational and often having to close up shop. Yeah, like I said, it's complicated.

 

[Tora Ziyal]

I have one. Don't know whether it's improved accuracy, but it hasn't made it worse.

 

[Non Sync]

I have one. I started driving an all electric car and I'm able to get better rates during super-off peak hours when it charges.

 

[Random_Spock]

Got one and hate it. They (the electric company) tended to guesstimate the bill before and at times they still do it with the new set up and it's even worse. Thankfully as of late, it hasn't been as bad.

 

[Avro Arrow]

I have one. Our hydro company rolled them out as a prerequisite for time-of-day billing. I have no idea if they're more accurate or not, but because of the introduction of time-of-day billing around the same time, my hydro costs certainly went up.

Of course, now that I'm used to the times of the day that the rates change, I've adjusted what I can, and I think the hydro bills are now ultimately lower (but I'm not sure how much of that is due to the provincial government's 25% reduction). I don't know if the meter allows me to monitor the usage real-time or not, since I've never used that... all I really need is a clock!

My understanding is that one of the big benefits for the hydro company is that the meters have wireless communication, so it's easier for them to collect the readings. I've heard rumblings about them being insecure, but I have no idea if that's even true, and if it is, I don't know what other information people could steal, other than hydro readings.

 

[Kor]

I'll have to look and see what I have; I've never really paid attention.

At first I thought this was going to be about some fancy new meter that could tell you how smart other people are. That would certainly be useful!

Kor

 

[Asbo Zaprudder]

I find the graphing a bit primitive and I would like more breakdown of information on how the energy is actually being used but I guess those features will require a further generation of development to incorporate the internet of things. I'm actually more concerned how the energy provider can justify getting a free loan from me by overestimating my usage when the meter should be providing them with accurate usage information. Several times they have had to reimburse several hundred pounds - bastards.

 

[marillion]

Thanks everyone, for the information so far.. Interesting to get an international perspective, definitely..

Luckily, we're not going to a time-of-day usage system, as that can certain raise bills... Security is always a concern with wireless communication and one of the things that I personally have concerns about as we move more towards the "Smart Cities" concept, where everything is linked wirelessly...