[Boatanchors] "Smart" Electric Meters

[Ian]

PG&E, the provider in this area of California wants to put in new digital
Time of Use Meters with the users footing the bill with increases in rates.

It may not get approved by the California PUC for it to be paid for by the
user but the PUC is not thought often as being on the side of the user.

PG&E is arguing that it will help future rate increase to be more moderate
and result in savings long-term for the user.

However, to say the least, I'm not so sure that savings will ever happen.
Like the increases in water rates that we've had every time that there's a
drought or threat of one and usage decreases.  Rates then get raised because
the privately owned water company's revenue decreases.  And then never when
the drought is gone do we see a decrease in rates.

When utility rates go up they never go back down.

Ian, K6SDE

-----Original Message-----
From: boatanchors-bounces at mailman.qth.net
[mailto:boatanchors-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Jim Wilhite
Sent: Friday, May 09, 2008 9:52 AM
To: boatanchors at mailman.qth.net
Subject: Re: [Boatanchors] "Smart" Electric Meters

I have one on my house and there is no resulting RFI from it.  The meter 
is read remotely from the headquarters and if the power goes off for 
some reason they are notified by the monitoring station.

I don't know if they can control the shut on/shut off or not, but if 
they can't then it would be an easy software upgrade.

I don't know why any power company would want to raise rates just for 
that, they continue buying the meters anyway, just order the different 
model.  Maybe they have big plans for you to fund some increase in 
salaries of the managers.

Each month we receive the bill with the usage printed on it and haven't 
seen a meter reader ever here.  I built the house 4 years ago and that 
kind of meter is what was installed.  I would imagine some require 
driving by but mine doesn't.  I don't know what frequency is used to 
make the readings, but I have tuned as low at 70 cycles and heard 
nothing that I could pin to the new style meter.

So, never fear unless the power company planners are fools for some 
salesperson who buys lunch.

Jim/W5JO

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <RKofler at aol.com>

Subject: [Boatanchors] "Smart" Electric Meters


>I read yesterday in a newspaper article that my  local electric utility
> company, Portland General Electric Co., is raising the  rates to pay 
> for installing
> so called "smart electric meters". The article did  not go into any 
> technical
> detail, but it said these meters would be able to be  read remotely 
> and
> eventually they would have a situation where they could  remotely 
> regulate some
> aspects of customers power usage during peak hours. My  concern is 
> that these
> meters will be a source of RF interference similar to BPL.  Anybody 
> have
> experience with these "smart meters"?
>
> Thanks
> Roger K7DDG

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