Why my smart meter does not work ! The Issue With Smart Meters No ONE Is Talking About

In this video about, ✅ Why my smart meter does not work ! The Issue With Smart Meters No ONE Is Talking About
I delve into the perplexing issue of why my smart meter isn't functioning properly and provide you with effective solutions. From troubleshooting common issues to unravelling technical glitches, I'll guide you step-by-step through the process of identifying and resolving these problems.
Additionally, I unbox the Octopus Home Mini, a revolutionary device designed to simplify energy management and enhance home efficiency. Join me as I explore its features, showcase the unboxing experience, and demonstrate how easy it is to set up and integrate into your smart home ecosystem.
Whether you're experiencing smart meter woes or curious about the Octopus Home Mini, this video is your ultimate resource for practical solutions and a firsthand look at this innovative energy-saving device. Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more informative content on optimizing your home technology!
Why the Smart Meters in the UK are in a state of chaos !
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[@Kevin-dp1vy]

We switched supplier 18 months ago and they insisted that we had a smart meter fitted. The engineer arrived, looked where the meter was fitted, next to the other six meters, and said this will never work, there is not a signal in the supply room. I replied I know that, we don't have a mobile signal in the village! He fitted it anyway because that was what he was told to do and left. The electricity company have replaced it twice since as "we are having trouble getting a reading from your meter". I keep telling them that we don't have a mobile signal in the village, but the "help desk" don't seem to understand that parts of the UK don't have a mobile signal.

[@stevendavidson5808]

they don't use mobile signal any more that was 1st gen. 2nd gen use radio I believe.

[@stevendavidson5808]

actually ,think it mind depend where you are in the country 😊

[@Kevin-dp1vy]

@@stevendavidson5808 that's true, but because of the location of the meter cupboard inside an 18th century concerted mill the engineers have said the signals cannot penetrate the stone walls. They don't even reach the little home hub units so we cannot see our energy use at any given time.

[@bobp6742]

​Every meter roughly north of Manchester uses wireless and every meter south of Manchester uses mobile phone signals.

[@yesihavereadit]

We are in middle of large town but our road for some reason has very poor mobile signal.

[@davidrunnalls3039]

Couldn't agree more about Octopus, so good to talk to a real person who knows what is going on. Brilliant customer service and support.

[@JonathanPorterfield]

Thanks for watching and your comments 🙂

[@Richardincancale]

Smart meters do seem to be pitiful in the UK! In France we all have the same type of smart meter (Linky), made by a variety of companies but functionally and visually identical. They deliver 10 minute readings without fail using ‘power line carrier’ to send the data over the power network itself back to a concentrator at the sub-station. It works on underground and overhead delivery. Been installed for a decade, no problems!

[@simontillson482]

Wow. That’s so obvious. Use the electricity network. 😂 In this country though, a bunch of crooks got together to work out how to make the maximum amount of cash out of the roll-out process, for as long as possible. They knew 2G and 3G were not going to last forever; they chose it deliberately so they could make even more cash replacing equipment. The UK really sucks nowadays..

[@dieseldragon6756]

Yet again; Conclusive proof that French technology stands vastly superior to British equivalents in every way. Just like the TGV (200km/h faster than anything we British had at the time) and Minitel (Which bought France into the Internet Age 15 years in advance, while we neanderthals were still flicking through telephone directories). 🚄🇫🇷💯 To be honest about the whole situation: The only authentically *Smart* meter the UK has ever had is the sort that's 100cm long. That was also invented by the French. 📏🇫🇷❤ I rest my case... 😇👍

[@spankeyfish]

Powerline was briefly fashionable for home LANs before wifi took over but you can still buy the adapters. The fact that you need to upgrade the substations will be what's stopping the UK from doing it.

[@Richardincancale]

@@spankeyfish Yes in the mid 1990s it was tried, but data rates are only suitable for telemetry in today’s world! The substation doesn’t really need upgrading - just add a hub that is tapped in to the low voltage side and connects home via fibre, xDSL or even 4G/5G depending on what’s available. At least this way there’s only one point per neighbourhood to upgrade when 4G gets turned off or whatever…

[@dieseldragon6756]

@@spankeyfish I think anybody who looks at the UKs approach - A networked device (With its own IMEI) at every home in the country - And compares it to the French (One UK setup per substation) will immediately see the French way of doing it is far more cost-efficient. 👍 The reason why the UK wanted a mesh-capable cellular endpoint on *every* meter is to try and make the system or any endpoint impossible to disconnect or otherwise „Hide away“ from HMGs -carefully selected slavemasters- _Centralised monitoring system_ ... 🤔

[@katmarmalade9846]

As you're in the north, your smart meter will use the Arqiva transmitters rather than the phone network. We had the same issues and I fixed it by installing a pair of passive antennas linked by coax. Arqiva transmitters are usually located on tv transmitter masts, so point one antenna at the tv mast and put the other near the meter. I used a basic dipole, but slimjim antennas have more gain, buut are more directional. Installed the antennas, then rang octopus remote comissioning to get the to resend the start up command to the meter and was working shortly after. The guys at octopus were helpful but didnt seem to have come across the concept of using a pair of passive antenna to propogate the signal But, yeah - its a system designed to be silly complex in terms of the umber of organisations involved

[@davefiddes]

Neat! I've not heard of anyone else doing that before. I used a pair of 2.4GHz passive antennas to join together my gas meter and electricity meter. The house has super thick stone walls and the meters are about 15m apart. Works perfectly and we get 30 minute readings of gas relayed to our energy supplier.

[@richardstreet7605]

@katmarmalade9846 Absolutely correct. They also own other towers but the more rural the area the more true this will be. Octopus DO know this is an option. It was built into the original smart metering specifications but your average customer service agent won't necessarily know this.

[@chrisw3771]

We switched 2 weeks ago to octopus, everything worked instantly. Including the smart meters that were fitted 5 years ago by SSE, they never worked as soon as OVO took over SSE & we expected they would need to be replaced. There is a degree of if the energy provider is actually bothered about their customers. Octopus seem to want to keep them & are helpful.

[@balshazer]

Here on the Isle of Skye my smart meter has never worked. I've heavily invested in renewable technology to be let down by the WAN network, costing me a fortune. They say there is a 'new development proposal' to allow the smart meters to use the internet or mobile network for those without WAN signal, but goodness knows how long that will take to be designed, approved and operational

[@dieseldragon6756]

I live in a part of the UK that still has very reliable 2G signal - I know this as I'm still using a 2G-only mobile phone, and get excellent signal because mine's the only _non_ smartmeter device using it - And even with this, most smartmeters around here are about as much use as Nigel Farage at a Pride march... 😋

[@paulphillips3783]

Thanks for taking the time and effort in raising this issue. Sadly we've had a very different experience with Octopus support. It came to light a few months back that they've been charging us for 30-40% more electricity than we've actually been using for well over a year. We've handed over all the information and have had one response in the last three months. The issue could be smart meter related - who knows. Another Octopus team member did respond to a message I left on one of their videos which started off promising, saying they'll raise the issue - then heard nothing since.

[@nozzinthenog3633]

It sounds very similar to my experience with Octopus. I suggest you lodge an official complaint. They then have 8 weeks to put it right. If they fail to sort it, you can take it to the Ombudsman. It's very easy to do, FREE and all online. That's what I did and suddenly Octopus managed to fix the problem. Up until then their "customer service" was very friendly and polite and absolutely useless.

[@jennyearl5194]

We are in the same position with them as they miss configured our smart meter. They admit they have done it but won’t re bill or acknowledge any impact on the bill. Lots of promises of sorting it in days then nothing. Went to ombudsman who were next to useless as could only rule on the poor customer service £60. Doing a sar and then county court sadly. Apparently engineer has seen miss configured meters before and the CS say the new meters cannot be set to do split eco7 correctly. Maybe 1000,s affected.

[@Dibblah1900]

Raise a formal complaint through Resolver. It took me 3 months of chasing, but they finally corrected the billing

[@bertiesworld]

@@Dibblah1900 When I switched they managed to get the low and normal meter reading mixed up. When I saw what had happened, I contacted CS via email. Had a reply the next day. Sorted within a week although it didn't stop them taking a huge amount of money out of the bank account. I use very little day time but charge the batteries up overnight. Yes, that got corrected very quickly with compensation paid out for the mix up. I now have real time billing via variable Direct Debit. No large amounts of money sitting idle in Octopus's account. I pay for what I have used each month.

[@ianemery2925]

A neighbour has a 1st gen smart meter from British Gas - it hasnt worked in around 4 years; but BG refuse point-blank to replace it; even after OFGEN ordered them to get it sorted OVER A YEAR AGO.

[@darthgardner]

Nothing about british gas works especially there billing system,and lack of humans to sort it.

[@ianemery2925]

@@darthgardner Too true, they spent 10 years sending me a bill for 2p of gas; I'd had a new gas main and meter fitted, while my drive was dug up for new water and sewage pipes, but never actually USED it - and their system refused to accept 0 as a new meter reading. I was forced to enter 999999.9; which their system rounded up to 0 the next time it was read.

[@dieseldragon6756]

Under those circumstances, I think I'd just have it removed. If the supplier refuses to provide a safe and reliable metering device on the supply, then they arguably lose any right to have a meter on it at all... 🧑‍⚖

[@ianemery2925]

@@dieseldragon6756 My neighbour has had enough, and has been trying to switch provider - but BG is blocking all attempts because they cannot generate a final bill - and they cant generate a final bill because the fucking meter is broken !! They really are utter wank stains, and OFGEM are being useless about it.

[@ianrob4760]

I switched to smart meter in Feb, no problem at all I have to say and export is just key for me as I have solar panels. Hower I am in a very good signal area nd still waiting for my home mini !

[@thetreeoflife3452]

Same here, been on a smart meter for the past 3 years because of solar export, no problems.

[@DavidJohnson-yg8qm]

Yes, I have been with Octopus for 4 years, moved house, no problems. The only gripe I have is the extortionate costs of energy but there's nothing they can do about it.

[@gu1tarman233]

Have to agree regarding Octopus. They are very good, with humans to talk to.

[@paulsotheron710]

I moved into a new build house seven years ago and brought my old supplier with me and soon found out that my supplier couldn’t connect to the installed “smart meters” as they were set up for British Gas, to which I replied “these meters aren’t that smart then, are they?” This meant that I had to send readings on a regular basis. Not too long ago I had a message from my supplier to say that they had managed to get a connection to my meters so I didn’t have to send readings anymore. Again, recently I had another message to say that the meters had stopped communicating again and they couldn’t fix the problem this time. What they did say was that the meters could be changed but they couldn’t guarantee that the new ones would work anyway, so I said don’t bother then and I am now back to sending readings in again. What a joke, how much has been wasted on these things, I wonder? Almost Seven years with no smart meters working.

[@JonathanPorterfield]

Painfull Paul , shouldn't be happening in 2024 !

[@Electrowave]

Octopus are great, I'm with them as well. I won't be having a smart meter in the house though. The current system works so there's no need to replace it. If smart meters work through the mobile network then they won't work here, there's no mobile signal.

[@BigKelvPark]

My supplier keeps emailing me about the signal going off and I need to update my meter. They occasionally call to warn me of this and to book an appointment. The thing is - i have an electromechanical meter and it has no effect. It's internet hackproop and self calibrating. Works just fine. I send them a meter reading once a month, pay the bill. I don't trust them with direct debit with their random withdrawals. Some suppliers will say it's a legal requirement to have one. Not true. BTW, I'm an electrical electical engineer.

[@garrycroft4215]

After watching this I’m amazed that my SMET1 meter connects every 30 minutes on Octopus Agile as it’s built into a wall and surrounded by a heavy steel fireproof cabinet. But it does somehow.😅

[@stevendavidson5808]

ha, you must have a cellmast in your garden lol

[@mb-3faze]

I have a similar issue. My meter is in a solid metal box with a metal door. The only holes in it are where the wires come in. Somehow Octopus reads the data every 30 mins

[@benbocc1549]

Octopus Energy customer service is exemplary. Truly better than any other supplier I have had. I'm a very happy customer. Great vid again, thanks

[@doubledutch13]

The issue is SMETS1 and SMETS2 standards and how the government were hoodwinked into believing this was any solution. The tech wasn’t ready. The suppliers weren’t ready. All a complete nonsense. I too have had superb support from Greg and Octopus 🙏

[@JonathanPorterfield]

So so true 👍 Greg is a genuine CEO whos passionate about their customers too !

[@user-wg7gf1bz7t]

maybe i should try to get Greg when i try to contact Octopus as our smart meter has not worked from day one so we never know what we use everyone at Octopus are not interested

[@richardstreet7605]

@doubledutch13 Blame British Gas. SMETS1 was all because of them. Government could have been stronger... but BG was the reason for the SMETS1 SMETS2 nonsense.

[@timomarkson]

The meter behind you looked like the one I had before I’ve got my new one six months ago, my old meter stopped working eight months before they noticed that the meter was not going up in the counter of how much energy I had used according to the meter, I had used zero electric for eight months

[@JonathanPorterfield]

So did you get 8 months of free electrons?? 🤔

[@kinross24]

Couldn’t agree more Jonathon. I’ve had teething issues with signal at times and that caused billing corrections but I always get someone to remedy this and swiftly. Even had remuneration for the inconvenience without asking. Great company and ethos and would stay with them whatever the cost, albeit I’ve save many ££££’s with their amazing tariffs. 💚🐙👍

[@Dibblah1900]

I did the same as the comment below (passive antenna), it works well (after the meter is properly provisioned!). One hint which helps somewhat is in positioning the antenna - the Arquiva SMETS transceivers are co-located with the television transmitters. So if you look at what direction your TV antenna points, you should put that end on that side of the building (as high up as you can manage) and the other end next to the smartmeter. Tuning is not that critical, the thicker the wire you use on the antenna loop, the wider the bandwidth. I used 2.5mm^2 stripped mains cable and low-loss co-ax. This, of course, assumes that your installer wasn't an idiot and actually registered your smart meter. Looking at the LEDs, I see the blinks which we were seeing - 5 seconds = I can see the network. But it didn't work until the meter was fully registered which required another engineer visit.

[@richardstreet7605]

@Dibblah1900 You are absolutely right about the colocation of much of the Arquiva kit. They also own some other towers though. But it's broadly true. Especially in less populated areas.

[@BJ_MBA]

Hi Jon my I have solar and was on the fixed export tariff but change to the Fuze tariff a few months ago. The smart meter has worked successfully but has stopped working twice most recently in May and its still not working.

[@JonathanPorterfield]

Sounds familiar 😬

[@BJ_MBA]

@@JonathanPorterfield I meant to say Flux tariff but being a plonker said Fuze

[@JonathanPorterfield]

@BJ_MBA you can edit comments after you've left them, but i knew what you meant 😉

[@handyandy6050]

Didn't get these problems when the meter reader used to come round!

[@chrissmith2114]

UK made the wrong choice to use mobile phone network, most sensible countries used the power lines themselves to carry signals too and from meters.... Like those 'power line' internet adapters that work so well. The signal will not pass through a transformer though, but it is easy to bypass transformers if they need to.

[@steveknight878]

I agree with you about Octopus. Service personnel are excellent - and not just Ryan (who has been very helpful).

[@charliecarpenter2840]

Service personnel might be ok, it's a pretty low bar though. They have made a total mess of my billing. Random amounts taken and deposited every month into my account making it very difficult to track. I now submit monthly and pay for everything used. They can't be trusted with a normal meter reading, there is no way I'm getting a smart meter where an unknown demonstrably untrustworthy entity can change the software at any point.

[@DaveJones79]

Interesting to hear that Octopus are allowing you to stay on Go without having a reliable DCC feed of half-hourly meter readings. How do they determine your peak and off-peak usage to bill you?

[@grahamleiper1538]

Fixed hours are easier. I could do a manual reading on my last smart meter that stopped communicating. It split into peak and off-peak usage. Bulb (as was) weren't happy and changed it out after about 6 months.

[@computerbob06]

There'll be a mark on his account at Octopus, that he's an 'influencer' and needs to be treated differently! 20 years ago I was a rep for a holiday firm abroad and there were markers against certain customers who were the original influencers (journalists) so we could treat them extra specially!

[@MattEMaddock]

Having the same problems for the past 3 years. My most recent communication with Octopus they said that the meter holds the readings locally so when they do manage to get readings that they can access the half hourly readings from the meter to calculate the usage.

[@steveknight878]

@@MattEMaddock That makes sense - I wondered whether they did that, as it would seem to be the only workable way of doing it. I wonder how long the buffer is.

[@MattEMaddock]

@@steveknight878 Not sure, my last proper bill was 192 pages long!! 😂

[@chipxtreme]

My smart meter stopped working on 1st November last year. Octopus took MONTHS to send someone out and they finally arrived 28th June, reset meter, still no connection. Now i've got to wait another 6 weeks + for the meters to be replaced. This is a new build built at the end of 2019 so meters aren't that old really

[@keithwesley2471]

I live in London and British Gas have twice tried to install a smart meter and failed. Signal issue!

[@dieseldragon6756]

British Gas couldn't find a signal on the railway... 🚥🛤😉

[@bertiesworld]

I'm with octopus and have a Smart meter. And I get a bill every month that is paid off via a variable Direct debit. i.e. I pay only for what I have used each month. Works flawlessly. But bad signal areas have always existed. Nowt new!

[@DogsBAwesome]

Octopus after a lot of faffing with my none reporting smart meters sent someone round who installed new SMETS2 meters, I also have an octopus mini which works fine for me.

[@damianbutterworth2434]

I want to change to Octopus due to the fact I fitted my own solar panels and Octopus give you the option of sending in your wiring diagram and paying for any energy feedback. At the minute they get it for free but I do save as much energy as I can sending any spare energy to the hot water tank.

[@mb-3faze]

I'm on Agile Octopus and I see half-hour readings on my octopus account. I'm pretty stunned that the smart meter works because it's installed in a solid metal box with a metal door. (It used to be where the (really) old style fuses were.) I've often wondered how any EM signal gets out at all.

[@radiotowers1159]

Feel your pain, every time I change my Octopus tariff it stops working and thats where I am just now, 1 week till the next bill and the apps not showing a lot apart from my Octopus mini readings. And talking about the mini , if you change your WI FI password its a pain to get it working again requiring another phone call for a reset.

[@WilliamLeigh-cl9bq]

My son bought a house with pre pay meters fitted, tried getting normal meters fitted but British gas would only fit smart meters. Engineer changed electric meter and found no signal so had to swap back to pre pay. His house is in a 5G area and he has ultra fast fibre broadband fitted. Its a joke that the smart meters cannot use these.

[@stevendavidson5808]

I suspect that will be an option in future as there's to many meters that won't connect

[@captainfantastic9238]

I have had three sets of smart meters. None have ever worked as advertised. The problem is two- fold. 1) the gas meter is too far from the electricity meter and through too many walls to communicate reliably with the electricity meter. 2) the electricity meter doesn't connect to the WAN. We live in an area where mobile communications are poor - I barely get a mobile signal inside my house, despite living in a 5G area! The electridty meter won't even communicate with the usage monitor. So we have to submit meter readings every month.

[@BROOMEngineeringTMIET]

Octopus bear some responsibility here. They are encouraging and promoting the fitting of devices which it is well known are not performing correctly in various scenarios. Personally, I don't have a smart meter, but around 2 years ago, my then 97 year-old grandfather was being bombarded by OVO, and had one fitted. It has never worked correctly, of which OVO are fully aware, but have done nothing. The meter was pushed on the basis of helping the consumer, but there is minimal interest when they fail to do that.

[@Lewis_Standing]

Same here. I had an issue with going to octopus intelligent with a smart meter not playing game. Sadly got it fixed and replaced and £1000 added to my bill eeek.

[@catielakeradio]

Arqiva (pronounced Arch-eva) manage a large number of transmission towers. I agree with you that they should come up with a box that connects to your wifi or available mobile service other than Virgin/O2.

[@cingramuk]

You can already get a comms hub that uses cellular, they use them down south on the non-Arqiva part of the network. What they need to do is change the rules so that people in the north can have it. I get marginal LRR/Arqiva reception, but perfect 4G (even 5G!) in Cumbria, but they can't do anything about it. I've had to make a passive repeater from some coax cable to get the signal reliably to/from the meter. I would recommend to Jonathan does the same too.

[@catielakeradio]

Typical narrowminded thinking of the provision. I didn't know it was restricted by technical guidance. Radio Ham solution to the rescue though! 😉

[@healinghaven]

@cingramuk I'd appreciate knowing how to make the passive repeater. Can you explain more? :)

[@RWL2012]

"ArCEEVa".

[@waynecartwright-js8tw]

My octopus smart meter install went without a problem as did my home mini. So had no problems with going on Go and then intelligent Go and 2 years later its been reliable on data and meter readings.

[@FancyaBevMate]

Mmmm sorry mate but 5-6 days between emails isn't good IMO ps any idea why my actual smart meter in our kitchen is still registering £0.00 since swapping to octopus whereas with Eon it was showing the correct tariffs? 😢 Cheers

[@user-tx1rr3rb1q]

Had issues with them regarding refunds which was like going to hell and back but with the right person it was sorted 90 percent are good staff but there are some who definitely need training more

[@alanwalker6185]

I live in south Devon, and apparently there is no WAN at my property so I can’t get a smart meter. My previous electricity provider, E.On Next, basically just said “computer says no” when I periodically asked for an update. I’ve recently moved to Octopus, who indicated that they could get a surveyor round to check, but now that I’ve signed up they’re now saying they have “no appointments available in the area just now”, so they’re almost as bad so far. It’s quite frustrating, as a lot of energy tariffs require a Smart meter, and although I export quite a lot of PV power I just have to give it away for free.

[@steve64464]

I keep getting junk spam email demanding i upgrade to a "smart meter" but i figure resist it as long as possible?

[@chriswinter7787]

I've been in contact with the DCC as I get no signal at all. They are working on a project to get around the issues we face in Scotland with poor or no signal at all........hopefully, something will be available next year! It will involve wifi somehow. Fingers crossed

[@DigwellGreenfingers]

There are no useful benefits to having a (not so) SMART meter.

[@sjaguartype]

Sorry are you expecting these to magically change your life?? They are there to encourage consumers to start realising the cost of energy they use.. Oh and to introduce 30min billing 🤣🤣

[@edc1569]

Can you fit an antenna upgrade to your meter?

[@davidwilson4468]

We had antennas fitted to the 6 smart meters in out building. 3 worked, 3 didn't. Since Vodafone switched off the 3G signal at the start of the year none of the meters now work as the 4G signal is not strong enough to penetrate the 2 feet thick stone walls of the building to reach the meter cupboard.

[@spikerusty1710]

my home mini works great, so much better than before

[@cingramuk]

Also dont be so sure that meter problems are not the fault of Octopus either (highly unlikely in this instance). They mis-configured my replacement meter which meant readings weren't coming through as DCC was showing 2 active meters on the MPAN, which of course it doesnt like. Octopus actually couldn't work out the issue, and it took the CTO of Bulb to spot the issue and send me what they needed to correct. But I do agree it's a mess, and clearly too easy for anyone involved to mess things up!

[@EverydayLife621]

You can register with the DCC, and download the data yourself. At least it will tell you if its working, in my case it was my supplier, not the DCC at fault

[@EverydayLife621]

🔆 = bright

[@dieseldragon6756]

Perhaps the DCC need to consider offering the reverse, too. Given the issues we have with British¹ meters around these parts, an SMS endpoint and a monthly look in my meter cupboard is going to prove far cheaper, quicker and more reliable than putting an electrically dangerous _UKCA_ marked box on my connection that doesn't work anyway... ⚡🇬🇧🔥😉 (¹ - I refuse to use the word „smart“ in reference to any UK-targeted SMETS-x meter. They're made for the UK market and describing them as „smart“ clearly goes against the Trade Descriptions Act...So „British“ seems like a more appropriate choice. 🙃)

[@nickrudd2568]

I was chatting to a mobile phone expert the other day, He was telling me why my villages signals so bad now, Its the Cloud seeding operation they are doing over the UK, Its not just us, its everybody, all the networks are struggling everywhere the cloud seedings happening. These minis are a god send as the signal dont have to go far.

[@stewartlancaster6155]

cloud seedings eh ? the earth is flat and the moon landings were faked , Elvis works in a chip shop and there is a Spitfire on the moon.

[@regisdumoulin]

Strange that they rely on some form of radio to communicate... why not send data over the electric wires instead BPL-style?

[@essexandy189]

I’m with octopus not had a meter reading for 6 weeks hope it doesn’t last that long

[@grahamleiper1538]

I had similar with Octopus. They didn't take any payments for about 7 months. Was eventually sorted. No Comms issues with smart meter, just presumably something with the Bulb takeover. (I used to be on Bulb) Been fine last few months. In North of England and Scotland SMETS2 Comms use old analogue TV frequencies rather than mobile signals and it was an absolute nightmare for a start. Am on my third smart meter so far. They're not the most resilient. Mine is in the middle of the house and old TV signal needed a massive aerial on a pole and masthead amplifier to get a picture. I wonder what the issue is with a box near ground level inside without an aerial. 😁

[@JonathanPorterfield]

Wow ! The signals used look like a real 'mish mash' of tec !

[@EverydayLife621]

Your IHD will tell you whether your meter is working (under system status)

[@grahamleiper1538]

@@EverydayLife621 my IHD doesn't work (never did). Everything else is working so I'm leaving well alone, otherwise I'd be on my 4th smart meter. Was always able to see live data via the app (Bulb, then Octopus) so wasn't worried it had lost connection with DCC like my first SMETS2 meter did. I was able to get onto Intelligent Go even before the billing issue was resolved.

[@keithw7777]

Same area location as you, am also on my 3rd smets2 meter after the first 2 stopped for no identifying reason. One happened when I changed suppliers when the new supplier said cannot see your smets 2 meter although it was sending data to the previous supplier, when I queried this was told oh they must have set it up incorrectly so no other supplier can see it, do you believe that story!!! Can we ask a potential new supplier if they can communicate with our existing meter BEFORE you commit to change over , if not why not!

[@JonathanPorterfield]

@keithw7777 The whole set up is a total shambles 😫

[@Ben1551]

Thats a small zigbee hub they give you, Its a shame there is no local API for getting the data straight from the meter, given its got zigbee it should be able to connect to any coordinator just like any other zigbee device

[@Whereswally606]

I have a very similar meter to yours on octopus and initially they couldn't wouldn't fit the gas meter. When they finally did it didn't integrate with the heads up display HUD. But it was sending data to octopus since it could be seen on the bright phone app as I was trying to get the gas reading to be uploaded to my home assistant via a 3rd party app. Anyway every so often they send a Morrison's data person around when we aren't home and so we end up having to enter the gas and electric meter reads onto a website anyway. Frustrating and meaning that the upgrade from digital dumb 2 rate meter to smart meter wasn't really much better.

[@imgrumpy5932]

So the mini box is using electricity and you have to charge your phone often due to the constant conection to the box. How much extra cost is that that over a year to run?

[@simontay4851]

Pennies. It uses 5W at most.

[@stuartandrews4344]

Had a lot of grief with my smart meter, found out meter could have external aerial, got supplier to fit external aerial to improve signal strength reception, found T1 aerial solve the problems, there is a T2 aerial available for really bad reception

[@keithw7777]

External aerials are not available for all types/ locations smets 2 meters and do not always help. Generally utility companies don't know what caused the failure and they just assume a replacement will solve the issue but that is not always successful

[@kellyeye7224]

When you start getting charged on a sliding scale you might regret using a Smart meter. These devices aren't made for 'your' benefit.

[@dieseldragon6756]

The only genuinely „Smart“ meter the UK has ever had is the 100cm long one that was invented by the French. 📏🇫🇷👍

[@-Muslims]

Funny when I and others with various suppliers admit “readings are estimated not factual, I know of customers who have been charged more than the meter say they owe because of the company’s claim as mentioned above

[@davidebacchi9030]

In Italy we have “smart” meters since ages (I think at home i have it since, at least, 2004), it does not communicate on cellular but on a sort of “power line” protocol to the cabin, only that is connected to the internet via wire or via high gain cellular (those get signals when a mobile is dead from kilometers). Only the “2.0” version has LoRa (or similar) sling with the old Powerline system. In 20 years I think only few month in the beginning we had to manually send the reading.

[@rtfazeberdee3519]

Only ever had one problem with my smart meter, every now and again it would default to being in Welsh

[@TheD4VR0S]

You can send data over the electricity connection its called homeplug

[@asamitchell7948]

Does not connecting you hub to your WiFi can they not gather readings that way my hub is connected to my WiFi

[@JonathanPorterfield]

You'd think they could 🤔 😏

[@vaughanellis7866]

These meters rely on mobile phone service to work properly. I live in a ground floor flat that was built in the late 1950's, in which they used Iron smelting slag under the concrete floor as a fill material, this is high in Iron and acts like a Faraday Shield that soaks up Mobile Signals, E.on have tried to install "Smart meters" three times which failed each time because the meter could not get a usable Mobile Signals, I'm staying on prepayment meters as long as I possibly can.

[@scm4284]

I had an electrician replace my smart meter and installed a normal meter without telling the electricity company now they are sending letters wanting to inspect it ! Any advice ? Shall i let them in ?

[@pjeaton58]

They would need a court warrant ! so NO and bury the smart meter !

[@jeffreycrawley1216]

@@pjeaton58 Mmm, and what happens if they DO get a court warrant and remove the non-standard meter leaving @scm4284 without electricity? Suppliers are obliged by Ofgen to inspect meters every so often good luck trying to avoid it!

[@johndoyle4723]

Yes, Octopus are very good. If your smart meter is not working then being on Go/intelligent will not work, which for an EV owner is essential. I suspect your problem is your location not the actual meter, it is of course essential that you have good communication, and the fitters should not install where there are problems.

[@javidpatel]

In your intro you had no wan signal. Could tell by the light flashing on the meter/hub. In the 2nd part of the video you had wan signal. Looks like the signal is cutting in and out. The wan signal especially in the North is the snag, it isn't the best

[@JonathanPorterfield]

Good spot 👌

[@leewright6101]

octopus were shit with me, we had same issue i ended up having to get meters changed but had to goto energy ombudsman, they were useless,, now moved back last week to another compamy,,

[@robthomas7232]

I wouldn't be surprised if octopus are using the data from the mini to validate the data at the DCC and prove how bad it is.

[@davefb]

my gas one stopped working around dec 2022... kept contacting them(BG). It was updating on the gas meter, but not forwarding the numbers..at one point their intervention made the meter revert to the dec 2022 value... 3 months it took em to fix it.... I'd complain more,, but I had 3 months of free gas. shrug.

[@thefoodiechannelcookingfro1822]

We have octopus mini and we have no problems with it at all matey, but that said my smart metre now seems to be talking to octopus anyway

[@user-wg7gf1bz7t]

never had any help from anyone at Octopus from day one of new smart meter being fitted the box to see what your use has never worked yet our monthly bill increased

[@computerbob06]

Smart meters are none of the sort! I had mine fitted 5 years ago and when they were installed the engineer said the gas meter wasn't communicating with the electricity meter (the meter that sent the readings to my energy company)! He gave me some BS about it sorting itself out usually within about a month and left - it has never worked! Countless calls to my providers asking them to replace the gas meter communication modules etc have never been rectified so I am left with having to crawl behind the TV to take a manual reading of the gas meter, every month for 5 years! The electricity meter sometimes doesn't send up to date data, so I then have to do the same with the electricity meter as well! They are both SMETS2 meters, so I haven't got the problem of the 1st gen 'so called' smart meters, but the energy companies will always try to blame this as the root cause of the problem! I should have stayed on a dumb meter because that's all my 'smart' meters are anyway and I wouldn't have had all the hastle of the last 5 years! Smart meters are complete Bull Poo!

[@DaveWalton-cn4tp]

I’ve got the same issues

[@sterlingtimes]

My Smart Meter stopped communicating electricity half-hourly readings on 14 July 2023. Octopus can still take spot readings for billing purposes. Octopus quoted me £400 to replace my SMETS1 meters, and offer that I did not accept. The Mini works perfectly, but Octopus can not use these readings. Octopus says that the nature of my problem cannot justify an engineering visit.

[@mikek4708]

With British Gas, customer service just changed my meter, that the engineer said wasn5 the issue. They changed it anyway. Their problem is customer service is so disjointed being I. India and all the do is fob you off and say they will change the meter. Bring back UK service centres where they actually give a damn and they know you could get a face to face meet. Once I get my 8 months bill sorted I will be looking at Octopus, if they match EV charging at night cost and duration, then it would be a no brainier. Thanks for the advice.

[@stevenickolls8016]

So you have to leave a device permanently electrically powered to give the suppliers your energy useage data...why?

[@culmalachie]

Ooooch, sounds like a reverse Horizon ... so how many are working the other way - overcharging and not found out. Can I even trust my standard electronic meter .. pity we had to get rid of the old multi clock meters - nothing wrong with them.

[@DaveJones79]

If you have a gas meter located some distance from the electricity meter and it struggles to reliably send half-hourly readings, then the home mini can help. The mini talks to the electricity meter using the HAN which is a zigbee network, which is also how the gas and electricity meter communicate. Our mini is located between the two meters and acts as a zigbee repeater, meaning the gas and electricity meter can now reliably relay readings. After years of manually submitting gas readings this is no longer required 🎉 We’ve also been able to move to the Gas Tracker tariff which is saving us about 25% on gas per kWh. Our smart meter manufacturer’s software doesn’t support live export readings, but we are able to see elec import and gas usage in realtime (albeit gas only updates every 30mins).

[@davidowen7793]

My smart gas meter has not worked for 18 months, I was quoted £75 to change it, like I'm going to pay for a new meter to save the supplier money

[@ElectricMikeEV]

2G won't be switched off anytime soon . But 3G has gone except o2

[@EverydayLife621]

my understanding is that in the south UK it uses 2.5G, so can still use 2G, we live in a very weak mobile area, with thick house walls - took ages to get it set up (4 attempts - with different aerials), was only resolved as the 4th meter fitter was from the next village, so knew how to commision it - needed local knowlegde to mesh it to another meter which he know had a clear path to the mast. No issues in the last 18 months, but to start with it was a complete pain.

[@ElectricMikeEV]

O2 3G is still live because of the smart meters. 2G+(E) has best signal coverage but pretty terrible data speed

[@lasersimonjohnson]

Of course its the energy providers fault. As an example....You wouldnt buy cable TV if there isnt cables in your street.... 😂 I live in a highly populated area and my smart meter has been changed multiple times and still doesnt reliably connect to the network. !!

[@colinrobinson7869]

Our smart meter, well long story short we live in a 1950 house of steel frame construction and the fuse / meter box is steel so with a smart meter the steel door has to be left open to enable the smart meter to communicate with Octopus we had 2 new electric/gas meters fitted (as they are paired units and have to be both fitted or changed as a pair) and the only answer is leave the intake door open but it's at the end of our hall ! and we live in London .

[@richardgreen8694]

Hi I own an apartment which I rent. OVO refitted a smart meter after a bad tenant.. but he said it may not work well as the silver 😊coating on the wall insulation is blocking the signal. The next tenant left paying an estimated bill . I took over for a short period. Then got a new tenant who shortly got an enormous bill which they corrected then I got a bill which is about £120 too expensive. I sent them photos to show it was wrong which they refused to. View . I now have a dept company after me which seem to be listening to., but OVO is slow with them Don’t use OVO . Do you know how I can get out of this nightmare

[@DTech101]

Ombudsman Service and it’s free that’s what they are there for but a complaint needs to be registered with the company and gives them 8weels to get it resolved before Ombudsman services can intervene

[@richardgreen8694]

@@DTech101 I have a complaint filed with SSE .i will ask their money reclaim people if they have been forwarded them a copy. It must be 8months old. I think I want a early leave on the contract without penalties on the house I live in as compensation.. Thanks for your advise.

[@DTech101]

@@richardgreen8694 doesn’t matter you can do it via the ombudsman and give them the original date of when you complained

[@johnshaw359]

They have to ensure all the onus is on the end-user, while making it seem helpful and useful...'of course we will send you something that plugs in to YOUR circuit, and you pay the bill for', I simply said NO thanks, not least because I am concerned that I might end up paying for someone else's bill.

[@aldoc2597]

There does not seem to be a quick resolution to your issue. Are you not able to take your monthly reading and send this to your provider the old fashion way. I know this is going against why the smart meter is installed, but in your case would seem to be the simplest solution. Or does your provider not have this facility.

[@RWL2012]

Ah yes, a "weird box thing" (also known as a QR code).

[@JonathanPorterfield]

I know, it's me im old !

[@kristinabelievesinfairies]

The issue with smart meters is no one bloody wants them but they're being forced upon us

[@jamiejones642]

Try bypassing one of them impossible sends singnal to them even if you breath on it but they cant get your usage 😂

[@johnjephcote7636]

I do not know why I have one. The information displayed is as incomprehensible as Br.Gas's modern online statements. (I could understand perfectly the old paper ones).

[@carlubambi5541]

The stupidity of the government stopping 2 g and 3 g is idiotic .It's a perfect band for low baud rate equipment

[@picobyte]

Those background wires would not pass dutch regulations.😆

[@JonathanPorterfield]

I live in the uk !

[@picobyte]

@@JonathanPorterfield America almost as bad. They don't allow ring cirquits.

[@over-engineered]

pronounced ar-key-ver. if smart meters were connected via home WiFi, then supply couldn’t be turned back on - if turned off remotely. Yes Smart metres can isolate your supply, they have a large relay in them.

[@soylentgreen326]

Secret Military Armament Residential Technology Yea won’t have one on health grounds, they can not get health insurance against future claims.

[@davidfalconer8913]

The BIG snag with ( SMART ? ) meters is they contain a bistable relay , this means a person in a remote office block can turn your electricity OFF ( or maybe a malign foreign hacker ? ) ..... with a simple certified digital energy meter ( cost £20 ) , you do NOT get this problem and you do NOT have to spend hours on the phone , trying to get the company to reset it ... but you DO have to submit a monthly reading ( takes 45 seconds ! ! ) ... ( tried - n - tested ) .... DAVE™🛑

[@dieseldragon6756]

The „encryption“ on these meters - 128-bit synchronous - Is so weak a _skript kiddie_ can break it with five minutes of Googling. So in my mind, the only genuinely „Smart“ meter the UK has ever had is the 100cm long one that was invented by the French. 📏🇫🇷👍

[@davetester100]

If you’re not being billed for your usage put the cash in a savings account and earn 5% interest until such time as they ask for it 😂

[@dieseldragon6756]

I want to know what happened to all of the previous generations of smart meters - The ones which *didn't* require any network connectivity and didn't rely on „encryption“ so weak a three year old could break it, and simply counted kWh consumed through ones supply like a meter is *supposed* to? 🤔 Too many back-handers to politicians in Westminster, I'd say... 💰🇬🇧😉

[@peterball8241]

I had a similar problem not getting an electric bill over winter, all sorted now. Then the battery failed on my gas smart meter so I couldn't even submit a manual meter reading, took 3 months to get a new meter fitted. Still overall happy with Octopus.

[@davidvincent5244]

You have installed metal foil and I expect this is the issue. Getting an electrician to relocate the meters to an external cabinet on the other side of the wall will fix the issue with the signal.🎉 Just to point out that the Smart meter has a SIM in the top of Smart 2 meters which is owned by DCC.

[@oliver90owner]

Don’t you know that the meter belongs to the DNO? They will not permit any old electrician moving a meter. They will demand a huge sum for the privilege of allowing any changes with their meter (and wiring to the consumer panel).

[@cingramuk]

Actually where Jonathan is, they will be using the Arqiva network which uses Long Range Radio, so no SIM card. But you are correct that the foil backed insulation wont be helping reception at all. One option is to make a 'passive repeater' but taking some good quality co-ax cable and making a dipole antenna at each end, one outside and the other by the meter. Sorted my reception issues as I'm in a marginal signal area.

[@barrieshepherd7694]

​@@cingramukWhat frequency should I cut the dipoles to.

[@cingramuk]

@@barrieshepherd7694 it something like 420-430MHz. IIRC the full wavelength is 70cm, with a dipole leg length of ~16.5cm. I have a full wavelength dipole on the roof and quarter folded dipole by the meter (~4cm legs but doubled over). I ended up making the dipoles from some spare 2.5mm2 T&E cable and used coax to join the two with some choc blocks (as a test but its worked that well, they're still up!). Also with a bit of weatherproofing (PVC pipe round them)

[@TroggyPB]

@@oliver90owner My smart meter was requested from and installed by Octopus, my supplier. DNOs do not get their hands contaminated by touching smart meters. IIRC DNO responsibility stops after the Service Head/Main Fuse. So, all tails, main isolating switches are not their concern.

[@drkitti2244]

You happy to pay more for fantastic communication 🙈 You've had to carry on using a faulty meter for a whole year 😆 🤣 Maybe an engineers visit after 2wks of knowing about the problem would have been able to fix it 🤔

[@JonathanPorterfield]

They came once (SMS , Smart meter solutions) and couldn't find any fault , and they suggested i parked further away from my outside wall , but only a few feet as i have to charge my evs !

[@dieseldragon6756]

@@JonathanPorterfield If you have foil insulation in the wall (As an image in your video implies) that will act as an RF shield, significantly impeding the reception...Especially if the foil is connected to the building CPCs (Earth). The solution would be to remove all insulating foil from behind the meter, or having an external (i.e: On the outside of the house) antenna fitted so your meter can „see“ the radio network it uses. 👍

[@3dmotormaker]

Who wired your pylontech earth like that ?

[@JonathanPorterfield]

My fully qualified electrician

[@pensiveidea]

Why wouldn't they be using LoRa?