SMET2 meters

[tsh2]

+1 on the nonsense above being FUD.

I have the 'gas can't talk to electric' problem, and with EDF on their EV tariff this means no remote reading (due to their software thinking smart is all or nothing on that smart only tariff). Will see what happens back on standard rate next month...

The GEO in-home display is garbage. really poor data visibility (can't access the peak-off peak rates, can't see any single day other than today), and the extrapolations are wrong (all year, it was showing under budget because the averaging was inaccurate). I only saw the web data for a month, but this looked better. It won't really help you to track down excess usage though, beyond the most obvious things.

Getting readings for both rates plus export is not at all intuitive, that is the only real downside.

 

[Pink Duck]

My experience with half-hourly meter readings under SMETS2 also enlightening: Didn't work with Bulb (IT troubles), didn't work with Yorkshire Energy (IT troubles), didn't work with Pure Planet (IT troubles). Started to only just recently present after nearly 4 years with Shell Retail, of all companies! (renewable)

 

[X-Cile]

Currently with Octopus and want to move to their Octopus Go tariff which means I need a smart meter installed. Literally after a couple emails yesterday, they've booked me in for a 1st March installation. It could then take up to 6 weeks after that to move onto the actual Go tariff. That was it, so far no stress free but I guess too early to say. I already have a Hypervolt charge installed and just waiting for delivery of my Y now.

 

[Leejmoff]

That's not how any kind of smart meter I've heard of works.

exactly what I thought. The app reads the meter, shows me how much I'm using, but when I spoke to Scottish Power, they confirmed it does read it and show you the reading, but its not submitted officially for 3 months, or when you request it in the app.

 

[Adopado]

exactly what I thought. The app reads the meter, shows me how much I'm using, but when I spoke to Scottish Power, they confirmed it does read it and show you the reading, but its not submitted officially for 3 months, or when you request it in the app.

So how come I can see my half hourly consumption from yesterday and months back on my Octopus account on the web or in the app?

 

[Tonybvi]

I get my half hourly readings from the SMETS2 in my EDF app on a rolling three days later basis. Before the app shows the half hourly readings (ie on days 1 and 2 after the actual reading date) it only shows the total daily consumption.

 

[Stranger Dings]

Smart meters don't save anything for the customer - which is how they seem to be marketed

I’m guessing that you don’t own one then Glyn? This is utter nonsense I’m afraid. If you get an off peak tariff, they can save you a lot and by helping you to understand which appliances are costing you the most money, they help you economise.

Charging at 5p KWh has saved me plenty, as does scheduling tumble drier, dishwasher and washing machine to use the cheap rate. At a time when electricity rates are sky high, shifting things into off peak charging can make a big difference.

 

[Leejmoff]

So how come I can see my half hourly consumption from yesterday and months back on my Octopus account on the web or in the app?

You can, that is the point of them. So that you can see the energy consumption, but they don't actually submit meter readings every day. Its done every 3 months, I'm told. You can do it manually if you wish.

 

[Tony Hoyle]

You were told incorrectly. Smart meters submit readings as programmed - every 30 minutes in the octopus case. In others it may be monthly, daily, hourly.. depends on the requirements of the tariff.

It's an entirely automated process, you don't do it manually - that would be completely pointless unless the meter communication had failed for an extended period of time.

 

[Adopado]

You can, that is the point of them. So that you can see the energy consumption, but they don't actually submit meter readings every day. Its done every 3 months, I'm told. You can do it manually if you wish.

If they are only submitted every 3 months then how can I see them on the Octopus website for yesterday? Electricity readings are clearly sent daily. The 3 months issue is that smart meters CAN store readings for 3 months if there is a temporary coms problem that stops them operating normally .. which is every day.

 

[MrBadger]

I’m guessing that you don’t own one then Glyn? This is utter nonsense I’m afraid. If you get an off peak tariff, they can save you a lot and by helping you to understand which appliances are costing you the most money, they help you economise.

Charging at 5p KWh has saved me plenty, as does scheduling tumble drier, dishwasher and washing machine to use the cheap rate. At a time when electricity rates are sky high, shifting things into off peak charging can make a big difference.

Yep. Our average energy price for last reading was 9.55p/kWh. This compared to peak at ~13p/kWh. OK, for a dual tariff like Octopus Go, its similar in complexity to a dual tariff E7, but with an eclectic tariff like Octopus Agile where you can get different prices 48 times a day, its rather past the capabilities of a 'white' meter.

 

[MrBadger]

If they are only submitted every 3 months then how can I see them on the Octopus website for yesterday? Electricity readings are clearly sent daily. The 3 months issue is that smart meters CAN store readings for 3 months if there is a temporary coms problem that stops them operating normally .. which is every day.

I think there is some confusion between 'submitted' for a meter reading, or available by the supply company for other purposes, such as web view etc.

You could say that Octopus only 'submit meter readings' every blue moon (as meter readings are naturally cumulative only the one reading is sufficient for a non variable rate tariff) that they use to generate a bill, but the half hourly readings are normally available in 24 hours or so. With Octopus, you can, or certainly use to, manually submit a reading, but whether this is the actual one used to trigger a bill run is a different matter.

I suspect Scottish Power are simply using the term 'submitted' to keep consistent with the traditional method of billing, when the reality is that they can take their choice over 4000 odd readings over the 3 month period. They may well simply choose the same reading every quarter in which to base the bill on (as above, for non variable tariffs it needs just to be the single reading at a known point in time, for variable tariffs, it needs to be the 1/2 hourly ones over the billing period), where as Octopus seem to chose a random and highly variable point in time. Whether the chosen one (or in the case of a variable tariff, set of readings) is actually 'submitted' is probably down to semantics. Certainly without 1/2 hourly readings, the choice of smart tariffs become somewhat limited (iirc British Gas started off with cheaper weekend rates), and without them Scottish Power are either significantly behind the curve or simply running that tariff like a traditional non smart meter tariff. We have one such tariff on Octopus where a variable rate would not bring huge benefits so do not bother, but we still have the 30 minute readings available.

 

[Tony Hoyle]

For Octopus, they need the half hourly readings because of the time of day tariffs, so they can't just take one number and multiply it by a rate, they have to add up readings taken during the different periods to calculate the bill.

The same with dual rate tariffs on most providers.. only if there's a single rate can the number be just picked at the end of the set.

 

[init6]

You can, that is the point of them. So that you can see the energy consumption, but they don't actually submit meter readings every day. Its done every 3 months, I'm told. You can do it manually if you wish.

You were told incorrectly. Smart meters submit readings as programmed - every 30 minutes in the octopus case. In others it may be monthly, daily, hourly.. depends on the requirements of the tariff.

It's an entirely automated process, you don't do it manually - that would be completely pointless unless the meter communication had failed for an extended period of time.

I think it's a case of terminology. The meters do send the data every 30 minutes (or whatever), but that data only gets fed into the billing cycle every 3 months (or whatever)

For example I can see my daily data, but if I look at meter readings it says this:

Your last meter reading

27315 We read this on 10 January 2022

So meter reads and data are two different things if you're a supplier, but really the same thing if you're a user.

 

[Leejmoff]

If they are only submitted every 3 months then how can I see them on the Octopus website for yesterday? Electricity readings are clearly sent daily. The 3 months issue is that smart meters CAN store readings for 3 months if there is a temporary coms problem that stops them operating normally .. which is every day.

they are sent, you can see them. BUUUUT, I'm told by Scottish Power that they are submitted officially. So they are readings, but not actually submitted into the system as used for billing purposes until they are force read or done on a certain date.

That's what I was told. I was surprised, because it makes having one a bit pointless. Only the fact you can see the readings.

 

[Leejmoff]

For example I can see my daily data, but if I look at meter readings it says this:

So meter reads and data are two different things if you're a supplier, but really the same thing if you're a user.

yeah probably this. Its a reading for the user, but supplier only uses the actual official/forced meter readings when billing. I think this is what happens. It makes sense as the app I use shows me how much I'm using, but the estimate cost is incorrect, because it doesn't realise I have Economy 7. But when I get the bill, the official readings/cost is correct.

Does that make sense?

 

[Adopado]

they are sent, you can see them. BUUUUT, I'm told by Scottish Power that they are submitted officially. So they are readings, but not actually submitted into the system as used for billing purposes until they are force read or done on a certain date.

That's what I was told. I was surprised, because it makes having one a bit pointless. Only the fact you can see the readings.

Every Octopus bill I receive (thankfully as pdf because there are lots of pages!) includes the price of every half hour segment!! I receive those bills every month. What Scottish Power choose to do is up to them but their description of how SMART meters work may be two different things. See below:

 

[Adopado]

Every Octopus bill I receive (thankfully as pdf because there are lots of pages!) includes the price of every half hour segment!! I receive those bills every month. What Scottish Power choose to do is up to them but their description of how SMART meters work may be two different things. See below:

Apologies, I should have shown a day that's well within 3 months:

 

[phil4]

Wow, you actually get billed by Octopus! I'm impressed.

 

[Leejmoff]

Apologies, I should have shown a day that's well within 3 months:
View attachment 765936

yeah this is really good. I also get something similar online from SP. My problem is, what they show online is incorrect, compared to their bills which are correct. So it makes the whole thing pointless.