DIYbanter

DIYbanter (https://www.diybanter.com/)
-   UK diy (https://www.diybanter.com/uk-diy/)
-   -   Smart meters to be compulsary? (https://www.diybanter.com/uk-diy/641640-smart-meters-compulsary.html)

Dave Plowman (News) November 1st 19 01:27 PM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
May I ask a question about these?

My current supplier (arranged by Flipper) needs monthly readings. Gas
meter is in the cellar, and not in the easiest place for reading Leccy one
is easy.

Free meters with a remote reading would be very handy. Don't really care
how smart they are as I already know leaving the oven etc on when not
needed will waste money. ;-)

--
*42.7% of statistics are made up. Sorry, that should read 47.2% *

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

Andy Burns[_13_] November 1st 19 01:40 PM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

My current supplier (arranged by Flipper) needs monthly readings. Gas
meter is in the cellar, and not in the easiest place for reading Leccy one
is easy.


The in-house display lets you see both meter readings (and more such as
per minute/hour/day/month usage in a graph) without going and disturbing
the spiders

David November 1st 19 02:51 PM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
On Fri, 01 Nov 2019 13:27:54 +0000, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

May I ask a question about these?

My current supplier (arranged by Flipper) needs monthly readings. Gas
meter is in the cellar, and not in the easiest place for reading Leccy
one is easy.

Free meters with a remote reading would be very handy. Don't really care
how smart they are as I already know leaving the oven etc on when not
needed will waste money. ;-)


I signed up for a tariff which mandated a Smart Meter.
I await a few quarters to give me an idea if there has been any impact.
Meanwhile I have a display in the hall which includes a clock synchronised
with the mobile network.
So perhaps a very minor win.

Oh, and there was a possible very minor gas leak from the meter outside
the house - small (but within tolerance) drop in gas pressure when tested
before the meter swap. No drop afterwards.


Cheers



Dave R


--
AMD FX-6300 in GA-990X-Gaming SLI-CF running Windows 7 Pro x64

--
This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
https://www.avast.com/antivirus


Harry Bloomfield, Esq. November 1st 19 04:20 PM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
on 01/11/2019, Andy Burns supposed :
The in-house display lets you see both meter readings (and more such as per
minute/hour/day/month usage in a graph) without going and disturbing the
spiders


Not actual readings, just consumption and when here. It was something I
complained was missing.

Dave Plowman (News) November 1st 19 04:22 PM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
In article ,
Andy Burns wrote:
Dave Plowman (News) wrote:


My current supplier (arranged by Flipper) needs monthly readings. Gas
meter is in the cellar, and not in the easiest place for reading Leccy one
is easy.


The in-house display lets you see both meter readings (and more such as
per minute/hour/day/month usage in a graph) without going and disturbing
the spiders


Given Flipper will change my suppliers if they find a better deal, are
these smart meters now compatible with all?

--
*Why do overlook and oversee mean opposite things?

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

Andy Burns[_13_] November 1st 19 04:28 PM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
Dave Plowman wrote:

Given Flipper will change my suppliers if they find a better deal, are
these smart meters now compatible with all?


new ones are supposed to be, old ones are supposed to be upgradable now
(unless you're with BG for some reason) but even if it goes dumb, you
can still read the meter from the display yourself.


Robin November 1st 19 04:29 PM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
On 01/11/2019 16:20, Harry Bloomfield wrote:
on 01/11/2019, Andy Burns supposed :
The in-house display lets you see both meter readings (and more such
as per minute/hour/day/month usage in a graph) without going and
disturbing the spiders


Not actual readings, just consumption and when here. It was something I
complained was missing.


What's the make and model of the display please?

--
Robin
reply-to address is (intended to be) valid

Harry Bloomfield, Esq. November 2nd 19 09:58 AM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
Robin brought next idea :
What's the make and model of the display please?


'Secure' is the make, I cannot find a model.

Andy Burns[_13_] November 2nd 19 10:02 AM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
Harry Bloomfield wrote:

Robin wrote:

What's the make and model of the display please?


'Secure' is the make, I cannot find a model.


Pipit?

https://www.securemeters.com/index.php?cID=1981

Robin November 2nd 19 11:40 AM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
On 02/11/2019 09:58, Harry Bloomfield wrote:
Robin brought next idea :
What's the make and model of the display please?


'Secure' is the make, I cannot find a model.


If it's a Pipit 500 I don't think it can display meter readings.

--
Robin
reply-to address is (intended to be) valid

Andy Burns[_13_] November 2nd 19 11:44 AM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
Robin wrote:

If it's a Pipit 500 I don't think it can display meter readings.


Suppose that's what you get from a "generic" IHD, rather than one that's
from the same manufacturer as the meters ...


Robin November 2nd 19 12:07 PM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
On 02/11/2019 11:44, Andy Burns wrote:
Robin wrote:

If it's a Pipit 500 I don't think it can display meter readings.


Suppose that's what you get from a "generic" IHD, rather than one that's
from the same manufacturer as the meters ...


We've had 2 IHDs, both from firms other than the meter manufacturer,
which have displayed meter readings.


--
Robin
reply-to address is (intended to be) valid

polygonum_on_google[_2_] November 2nd 19 03:26 PM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
On Friday, 1 November 2019 13:33:18 UTC, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
May I ask a question about these?

My current supplier (arranged by Flipper) needs monthly readings. Gas
meter is in the cellar, and not in the easiest place for reading Leccy one
is easy.

Free meters with a remote reading would be very handy. Don't really care
how smart they are as I already know leaving the oven etc on when not
needed will waste money. ;-)

As I have previously posted, the meters that might most helpfully be remotely readable are water meters. Whether smart or dumb, but preferably with a mechanism for alerting if flow is continuous or excessive.

We can easily wander out and open the gas and electric meter enclosures. We have a very good idea as to our gas and electricity usage. We have next to no idea if there is a water leak between meter and house.

Dave Liquorice[_2_] November 2nd 19 11:40 PM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
On Sat, 2 Nov 2019 08:26:26 -0700 (PDT), polygonum_on_google wrote:

We have next to no idea if there is a water leak between meter and
house.


Leaks tend to "sing". A bad leak will be audible where the rising
main enters the building. To listen for a small one press the handle
of a long screwdriver against you ear and the other end against the
rising main. With nothing taking water you shouldn't hear anything a
leak will be a sort of hissing noise. Also listen to the street stop
cock.

--
Cheers
Dave.




Robin November 3rd 19 09:03 AM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
On 02/11/2019 23:40, Dave Liquorice wrote:
On Sat, 2 Nov 2019 08:26:26 -0700 (PDT), polygonum_on_google wrote:

We have next to no idea if there is a water leak between meter and
house.


Leaks tend to "sing". A bad leak will be audible where the rising
main enters the building. To listen for a small one press the handle
of a long screwdriver against you ear and the other end against the
rising main. With nothing taking water you shouldn't hear anything a
leak will be a sort of hissing noise. Also listen to the street stop
cock.


While that's still one of the ways Thames Water /locate/ leaks, if a
user is fit enough to listen for leaks then with a water meter they can
probably just turn off every tap and see if the meter shows a flow*. But
that does require the ability/willingness to kneel on the pavement (or
worse) and peer at a meter. I'd thought Polygonum's point was more that
it'd be nice to check for leaks in comfort from an in-home display.

Could be worse though: I wonder how the many water meters in Oz are home
to a dangerous spiders and snakes.

*all the meters I've seen were analogue with a "low flow indicator" so
it's not a matter of spotting a needle move round the numbers. I think
the digital ones switch the display to a direct reading of flow rate.
--
Robin
reply-to address is (intended to be) valid

Rod Speed November 3rd 19 05:10 PM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 


"Robin" wrote in message
...
On 02/11/2019 23:40, Dave Liquorice wrote:
On Sat, 2 Nov 2019 08:26:26 -0700 (PDT), polygonum_on_google wrote:

We have next to no idea if there is a water leak between meter and
house.


Leaks tend to "sing". A bad leak will be audible where the rising
main enters the building. To listen for a small one press the handle
of a long screwdriver against you ear and the other end against the
rising main. With nothing taking water you shouldn't hear anything a
leak will be a sort of hissing noise. Also listen to the street stop
cock.


While that's still one of the ways Thames Water /locate/ leaks, if a user
is fit enough to listen for leaks then with a water meter they can
probably just turn off every tap and see if the meter shows a flow*. But
that does require the ability/willingness to kneel on the pavement (or
worse) and peer at a meter. I'd thought Polygonum's point was more that
it'd be nice to check for leaks in comfort from an in-home display.


Could be worse though: I wonder how the many water meters in Oz are home
to a dangerous spiders and snakes.


Never seen either with mine and ours are currently above ground.

Redbacks are trivial to check for and there isnt enough room for a snake.

My stupid meter ticks audibly with any water flow.

*all the meters I've seen were analogue with a "low flow indicator" so
it's not a matter of spotting a needle move round the numbers. I think
the digital ones switch the display to a direct reading of flow rate.





polygonum_on_google[_2_] November 3rd 19 06:12 PM

Smart meters to be compulsary?
 
On Sunday, 3 November 2019 09:03:19 UTC, Robin wrote:
On 02/11/2019 23:40, Dave Liquorice wrote:
On Sat, 2 Nov 2019 08:26:26 -0700 (PDT), polygonum_on_google wrote:

We have next to no idea if there is a water leak between meter and
house.


Leaks tend to "sing". A bad leak will be audible where the rising
main enters the building. To listen for a small one press the handle
of a long screwdriver against you ear and the other end against the
rising main. With nothing taking water you shouldn't hear anything a
leak will be a sort of hissing noise. Also listen to the street stop
cock.


While that's still one of the ways Thames Water /locate/ leaks, if a
user is fit enough to listen for leaks then with a water meter they can
probably just turn off every tap and see if the meter shows a flow*. But
that does require the ability/willingness to kneel on the pavement (or
worse) and peer at a meter. I'd thought Polygonum's point was more that
it'd be nice to check for leaks in comfort from an in-home display.

Could be worse though: I wonder how the many water meters in Oz are home
to a dangerous spiders and snakes.

*all the meters I've seen were analogue with a "low flow indicator" so
it's not a matter of spotting a needle move round the numbers. I think
the digital ones switch the display to a direct reading of flow rate.


When we had a serious leak, about four years ago, in a previous house. It had probably been going on for several years before we noticed.

We didn't, at the time, have a meter.

There was no evidence at the surface of any leakage at all.

The leaks were located under our driveway, far enough away that we'd never have heard any singing.

Thames Water staff had been around the area listening in the months before we found the leak. They didn't find anything. There again, our driveway is private property so they had no right to wander in and listen.

Eventually, we saw water coming into the garden. That was a bit of a giveaway. :-)

Had to dig a minor ditch and, when that was deep enough, all the water simply disappeared. We had exceptional drainage and were more or less on top of a hill.

Once Thames fixed the leak, they forced us to have a meter. It was at that point we started to think about the implications of another unnoticed leak and the potential cost in water alone.

Reading the meter from inside, and, as I said, an alert mechanism, would have been welcome. Though no need (in our view) for it to be a significantly smart device.






Peeler[_4_] November 3rd 19 06:36 PM

Lonely Psychotic Senile Ozzie Troll Alert! LOL
 
On Mon, 4 Nov 2019 04:10:37 +1100, cantankerous trolling geezer Rodent
Speed, the auto-contradicting senile sociopath, blabbered, again:


Never seen either with mine and ours are currently above ground.


Let's all hope that YOU will soon be below ground, senile asshole troll!

--
FredXX to Rot Speed:
"You are still an idiot and an embarrassment to your country. No wonder
we shipped the likes of you out of the British Isles. Perhaps stupidity
and criminality is inherited after all?"
Message-ID:


All times are GMT +1. The time now is 07:16 PM.

Powered by vBulletin® Copyright ©2000 - 2024, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
Copyright ©2004 - 2014 DIYbanter