My fixed tariff with EDF just ran out, so I picked another. After a couple of weeks, they sent a mail to say this tariff "required" a smart meter, and if I don't book an appointment, I will be moved onto their "deemed tariff", which is of course more expensive.
They didn't make that clear before signing, I've been away so missed the cooling off period, and unsurprisingly I can't track down any new customer tariffs that DON'T require a smart meter anywhere (can anyone recommend such a thing?)
Before booking the install, I had a little wander around the webs - there seems to be a little chatter about smart meters possibly affecting home wifi, either at random intervals or at the time of sending a reading back to base.
If at worst my wifi were to drop out every 30 minutes, then I might elect to pay the higher deemed tariff rather than go through that pain. I also have a Nest, which uses its own wifi frequencies.
Does anyone here have Virgin broadband (with a Superhub 3) and/or a Nest, and a smart meter? If so, have you ever seen any issues? Or indeed, any issues with any other broadband provider?
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In terms of suppliers, SO energy, who I am with, are not yet able to supply SMETS 2 meters so I'd be surprised if they would insist on one for new customers.
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>> In terms of suppliers, SO energy, who I am with, are not yet able to
>> supply SMETS 2 meters so I'd be surprised if they would insist on one for
>> new customers.
Thanks - I might just have a look at that first, though in light of Zero's comments it might be easier to book the thing. But I always like to have options
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>> Does anyone here have Virgin broadband (with a Superhub 3)
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and/or a Nest,
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>>and a smart meter?
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I am your perfect example
>>If so, have you ever seen any issues? Or indeed, any issues with any other broadband provider?
I can honestly say I dont have any issues that I can attribute to the smart meter. My router jams up occasionally but did that prior to the smart meter install, My nest thermostat loses contact with the control unit occasionally, cant say if that due to the smart meter, because it came afterwards, its possible because its nearer the meter than the control unit, moving it will fix it.
I would say that chances of smart meters screwing up other stuff, is remote, no worse than using your mobile phone in the house, and its probably an offshoot of the "smart meters are a con, will give you cancer, are spying on you, spread coronavirus theories.
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A perfect example indeed. My Nest sometimes loses connection with the central controller, though not often. When it does, it sometimes takes a number of resets at the controller to get it to talk again. then it will run for months cleanly again.
That's very encouraging - I was half expecting a chorus of "known problem, don't do it" answers, so I guess I will go ahead as the least hassle route here.
This really feels like change for change's sake. I can see no benefit to me whatsoever from having the darned thing, but there we are.
Thanks.
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I also have Virgin SUperhub3 with a SMETS1 smart meter from Octopus since Nov 2019. They are supposed to be upgrading them to SMETS2 over the air at some point (it may have already been done).
I have a fairly extensive range of WiFI connected devices (real ones as well as IoT - currently 47 WiFi devices attached to my BT Whole House thingummies plus a few connected directly to the hub) and I seem to have my fair share of WiFi problems but I've also not seen any WiFi problems I could attribute to the electricity meter. Most devices are rock solid and are more reliable than the supporting Virgin connection has been recently!!
As you know I have enjoyed the smart meter experience, being able to closely monitor my electricity, but even if I hadn't, I don't have the joy of a meter reader tramping in every few months and I really cant see any downside to it.
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I have a Superhub with Virgin and I also have a smart meter. Never had a problem and I have had the smart meter for about two years.
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I don't have the joy of a meter
>> reader tramping in every few months and I really cant see any downside to it.
>>
I don't think meter readers are much of a thing anymore. Not had anyone round ours and we've not got a smart meter. Nor the house before that or the one before that.
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They do still exist, I get one every two years who checks my solar panel generation meter. ISTR that's a legal obligation but might be wrong.
Before I went onto the smart meter it felt to me like they'd nearly always come round a week after I'd entered a reading online.
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Must be the suspicious looking type ;-)
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In an exciting update, the nice man came to fit my unwanted smart meter, took one look and said "no way", so that was that.
There's a mass of wires, and the property used to be three phase. It's not now, and all certified safe and so on, but the "other two connections are still live, mate, you won't get anyone to put a smart meter in there, hardly anybody left qualified to work on any three phase stuff".
So there we are. No idea if that's true.
If I'd thought about it at the time maybe I could have had a 22kw charger for my EV over the 7kw one.
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Haha... I've read on the Octopus forum about houses with 3 phase having smart meters so it is possible, just maybe a bit out of reach of your average installer.
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I'm hoping they will now leave me alone - this only came about because they told me I had to have a smart meter on my newly fixed tariff AFTER I'd picked it and been on it a month.
I think I can bear eight seconds looking at the numbers once a quarter and typing them into a website.
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>> I'm hoping they will now leave me alone - this only came about because they
>> told me I had to have a smart meter on my newly fixed tariff AFTER
>> I'd picked it and been on it a month.
They can, if they wish, close the matter by moving you to a standard varibale tariff as you dont qualify.
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Nah, they said they'd move me to a "deemed" tariff if I refused the meter, which I didn't do.
But in the small print of that communication they said they wouldn't do that if they were unable to fit the meter. And their man said they were unable to fit the meter. So, if they try that I think there will have to be, shall we say, an encounter.
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....or multiply his current fixed tariff by three....
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We've just had a new install here, smart gas and electricity meters and two Hive thingies. No problems so-far. The meters work off SIMs don't they so not connected to the WiFi ? Never had a moment's problem with the Nest/Oil combo in the last place.
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They don't use your WiFi, they have their own private network.
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Smart meter and home wifi - Bromptonaut
