npower told me the meters have to be checked every 2 years for saftey reasons and that's what they have been doing. Althought the safety check was just looking atv it, he didn;t get a meter out to check for leaks or anything took him less than 30 secs and he was back out of the door, surely such peokle could be trained to change a battery or two.
So if one rigged up a device to hold the button down continuously it could well stop the smart meter working.
No chance where we live! No mobile coverage.
Yes. Which unless designed by an idiot, wouldn't involve disconnecting the meter from the gas supply. As had to be done to change the entire thing.
Fairy nuff. So not needed to be changed about 3 times in that period?
I think you've missed my point. ;-)
The 'new' meter had a design life of 10 years, including battery. Anyone with half a brain cell knows batteries can and do fail long before their claimed life. Far more so than electronics. So why make it impossible to change the battery?
I was told the design life of the battery in 'my' meter was 10 years.
Probably, depending whether it activates on the press, or on remaining pressed, but I'd imagine low battery is one of its anti-tamper features and they'd send someone round to do a "safety" check.
I was told that all current smart meters are dual fuel, so one supposes they are powered by electricity, but who pays for the electricity they use?
I have no gas and EDF have told me they have no electricity only ones to fit. This seems rather stupid in my view. However the longer it takes the more likely we can have one that will talk to me. maybe they can do a deal with Amazon so their Echo dot can tell me what my usage is? Of course it will mean somebody writing an app, or skill as Amazon call it to use their web site or some kind of data from the meters radio link. Brian
Yes, the government want to encourage people to switch energy companies by ensuring that people who don't move are told about alternatives. But as you say if more switch the incentive to switch may well reduce.
I would argue that the government should not have intervened as I benefit from these incentives.
Switching energy suppliers is just a paper exercise. I really don't understand why I can not switch by ringing up a new supplier and giving them my meter reading there and then. Job Done.
As a heating oil customer, I can ring various suppliers for a quote, chose the cheapest, ring them back and even get a year's supply of oil delivered the next day. The last time I changed electricity suppliers it took several weeks and even then they used some estimated reading.
How does the meter behave if the battery fails. Does the customer get free gas?
The customer isn't directly charged for it.
All modern gas meters have a battery, smart or not to power the LCD screen.
OFGEM repealed that requirement (for gas and elec meters) w.e.f. 1 April this year.
Hang about. Who said it was *impossible* to change the battery? I find that hard to believe given the Batteries and Accumulators Directive came into force in 2008 and requires provision in smart meters - as in much else- for easy removal of the battery at the end of the meter's life.
But what's possible ain't necessarily cost-effective, especially in the field. And I am willing to believe that those involved in designing the meters and their maintenance might just possibly have done their sums - taken into account also such things as the risks of consumers or others[1] removing batteries from meters for one reason or another[2].
[1] something "others" can easily do - or be blamed for doing - in the many external meter boxes. [2] eg, if removal leads to no gas, maliciously to make life miserable for the customers; or, if removal leads to gas provided no matter what the position on the account, as an alternative to buying more creditDave Plowman (News) wrote on 02/11/2016 :
For a short while, I understand OVO offered a unit which tapped into their SM's to grab the data which then interfaced it to your LAN.
Brian Gaff submitted this idea :
I read somewhere, that the supply is derived from the un-metered supply side of the meter.
They have to swap them every few years so as long as the battery lasts that long its fine. They have to be safety checked and calibrated for some reason.
In message , "Dave Plowman (News)" writes
:-) My gas metering is close!
I've told this before so I'll keep it short... gas supply from medium pressure main, gas meter battery powered, BG started long correspondence about needing to change the meter. After several abortive visits they coincided with a National Grid man who told them to change the battery!
I stood well back but I think the issue is something to do with the pressure reducer fitting not suiting the meter connection BG wanted to use. Must be about due to start over again....
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No doubt why our "mandatory to replace every ten years" lecky meters have calibration date codes of 1967, 1980 and 1996. Those dates corespond to when the supplies would have been installed.
The letter I got telling me the meter had to be changed. Not in that detail, but the battery failing early was the reasons they were all changed. Of course nothing is impossible, but it was obviously a job which couldn't be done in situ.
This was quite a few years ago.
Two men and van to bring the new meter. Change it over then go round bleeding air out of all appliances etc (or just checking they are ok. Now I can't really think of any such battery that couldn't be changed in minutes by one man on a bike.
People already remove gas meters etc to avoid paying for the gas.
At least a smart one would dob them in for doing that ...
wanna bet that a re chipped disconnected smart meter wouldn't just sit there telling the gas company that
- it was AOK
- Gas usage was minimal.
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