Hi All, we have just had our 5th Smart Meter installed and once again, it is not communicating with "Big Brother"....
A little history, we had our first Smart Meter installed when we were with Robin Hood Enery of Nottingham, nice clean install, and within a few minutes a Display in our front room, showing all the data we needed to see what we were using etc, great. Thanks to this we saw our Fridge Freezer was drawing a lot of power, so new one installed, so we were already seeing a benefit. Then after about 6 or so months the Display just froze, no live data and no idea of anything else, it was just frozen, could not communicate. Called them, they said it was the Display, so got a new one in the Post, no change, not a thing. Called again, "Oh it must be the Meter that has gone bad, we will change it for you". In all fairness they did, new meter installed, well, he tried 3 actually and he said none were communicating, so there was nothing that could be done, until I either went to another Supplier, who might just have the next generation of Smart Meter or just accept it.
A few years go by, Robin Hood Energy close down, we are moved to SSE, so we give it a few months and make the call to say, Display not working, tell them the history, which they did not really care about and a service call was generated to fit a new, up to date latest and greatest Smart Meter and another Display. Sure you can guess, guy arrived, meter installed, removed, another out of the box, installed, repeat one more time then he concludes that it is the Communications "module" that is the problem, so he changes that, then changes it again, nope, nowt works, it can't make contact, so here we are, with a Smart Meter installed, then is not, can not be read by SSE/OVO, whoever. We send readings every month but I just want a working display, showing live or almost live usage.
So after all that preamble, my question is, Does a device exist that can be put at the consumer unit or wherever that can supply me that live(ish) Data? In my mind a simple (OK not simple but you get the drift) device that goes between the Consumer unit and the Breaker, that can be addressed by ? and displayed in home. Do things like this exist?
A little history, we had our first Smart Meter installed when we were with Robin Hood Enery of Nottingham, nice clean install, and within a few minutes a Display in our front room, showing all the data we needed to see what we were using etc, great. Thanks to this we saw our Fridge Freezer was drawing a lot of power, so new one installed, so we were already seeing a benefit. Then after about 6 or so months the Display just froze, no live data and no idea of anything else, it was just frozen, could not communicate. Called them, they said it was the Display, so got a new one in the Post, no change, not a thing. Called again, "Oh it must be the Meter that has gone bad, we will change it for you". In all fairness they did, new meter installed, well, he tried 3 actually and he said none were communicating, so there was nothing that could be done, until I either went to another Supplier, who might just have the next generation of Smart Meter or just accept it.
A few years go by, Robin Hood Energy close down, we are moved to SSE, so we give it a few months and make the call to say, Display not working, tell them the history, which they did not really care about and a service call was generated to fit a new, up to date latest and greatest Smart Meter and another Display. Sure you can guess, guy arrived, meter installed, removed, another out of the box, installed, repeat one more time then he concludes that it is the Communications "module" that is the problem, so he changes that, then changes it again, nope, nowt works, it can't make contact, so here we are, with a Smart Meter installed, then is not, can not be read by SSE/OVO, whoever. We send readings every month but I just want a working display, showing live or almost live usage.
So after all that preamble, my question is, Does a device exist that can be put at the consumer unit or wherever that can supply me that live(ish) Data? In my mind a simple (OK not simple but you get the drift) device that goes between the Consumer unit and the Breaker, that can be addressed by ? and displayed in home. Do things like this exist?
