Smart meters. What's all the fuss about?

[98tls]

Got a leaflet in the mail today re all the supposed bad things that go with the new "smart meter" inclusive of making you crook/bigger bills etc.Am supposing these things are already in use in the big citys and i havent heard any new articles etc about them.Just a group wanting to save the planet or is there any truth to there ramblings about sickness etc.Surely if the things gave people a rise in the power bills there would be an uproar,there claiming some farmers have had price hikes of 200-400% and when complained were told there old meters must have been inaccurate.

[Mike.Gayner]

The anti smart metre brigade are the weirdest crazies out there, with the most bizarre reasoning and crazy weirdo pseudo-science. Personally I'm looking forward to having a smart meter.

Have a look here to have a laugh at these nutcases:
http://www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz/

There are two basic health concerns with “smart” or “advanced” meters.
1) They use radiofrequency radiation in the microwave spectrum to transmit data about electricity use. (In NZ, according to the Electricity Authority the main frequencies used are the 900MHz or 1800 MHz bands.*)
2) “Smart meters” in use overseas have been shown to produce significant amounts of “dirty electricity” that is, high frequency spikes and harmonics. As this “dirty electricity” can travel through the wiring in a home or other building and radiate out up to two meters away from the walls, this can be a significant cause of electropollution in people’s living or working environment. (NB: “Smart meters” are not the only electrical devices that can produce “dirty electricity”; many other appliances do this including some computers, compact fluorescent light bulbs etc.).

Of course anyone with two brain cells to run together sees right through this loony nonsense.

[george formby]

Of course anyone with two brain cells to run together sees right through this loony nonsense.

We declined to have one installed purely because of the likelihood of meter readers being laid off. Most of the benefit from smart meters seems to be for the power companies.

[oldrider]

I have lived in the electrical generation and supply industry for most of my working life and have been subjected to all of the EMF dangers! [stop]

Now you know what the problem is - don't yah!

I have a smallish malignant growth on my left ear lobe - thought it may have been from having to use the telephone against that ear most of that time!

Turns out other family members have had the same but not exposed to any EMF's etc. - some shit just happens!

I am too looking forward to my impending smart meter installation and keeping better track on my power usage which by comparison is wayyyy cheaper than Spark!

[Akzle]

they fuck bees up. And if the bees fuck off, you all die.

Rf also fuck up your cells. But most people bathe in it every day. Fact is, the ghz frequencies havent been in use long enough to observe any impacts (presumably negative) on any population.

Probably no worse than having another cellphone/wifi router bolted to your wall.
Afaik, they operate as a mesh network for reporting back to teh co, burst transmissions once or twice a day.

Big brother is watching. They can now get a closer reading on whats plugged in during what hours, inductive or resistive loads, etc. To what use this meta data goes......

[Akzle]

The anti smart metre brigade are the weirdest crazies out there, with the most bizarre reasoning and crazy weirdo pseudo-science. Personally I'm looking forward to having a smart meter.

Have a look here to have a laugh at these nutcases:
http://www.stopsmartmeters.org.nz/



Of course anyone with two brain cells to run together sees right through this loony nonsense.

wrt to that "dirty electricity", it exists now. The main thing *with the new implementation is piggybacking frequencies (think EoP) to snoop shit, and the ripple control spikes they already push through (hwc control)

if you want to see how much electricity you're absorbing, check your capacitive coupling to earth, ground one end of a multimeter, and grab the other, volts ac.


*etc

[mashman]

Ontario Pulls Plug on 36,000 Rural ‘Smart’ Meters: Is Big Energy Imploding?... I guess they found a willing buyer

[Paul in NZ]

Most smart meters we have in NZ are actually the cheapest least smart meters you can buy...

[TheDemonLord]

I tested a Smart Meter once...



it couldn't tell me what the answer to life, the universe and everything was.

I didn't think it was very smart.

[Drew]

I have lived in the electrical generation and supply industry for most of my working life and have been subjected to all of the EMF dangers! [stop]

Now you know what the problem is - don't yah!

I have a smallish malignant growth on my left ear lobe - thought it may have been from having to use the telephone against that ear most of that time!

Turns out other family members have had the same but not exposed to any EMF's etc. - some shit just happens!

I am too looking forward to my impending smart meter installation and keeping better track on my power usage which by comparison is wayyyy cheaper than Spark!

Grew up down the street from this rooster. No on in my family have any cancer at the minute...but we all smoke and drink a lot. Mibbee HT lines are good for ya?

Edit. Work high tension for a while, would have thought 'bonding on' would be as bad as you could get, but here I am.

[Grumph]

Well for once I'm safe...we're in a dead spot and can't have a smart meter.

It is a bit of a pain having to escort the reader in past the dogs though - but it's now one of my few social interactions so i suppose it's good for me....

The cockies who got bigger bills I'd guess were those whose meters hadn't been read for years and had been getting estimates...karma will catch up eventually. Doesn't matter how many dogs you put out to stop access, they'll get a reading eventually.

[pritch]

When I was with Genesis they installed smart meters. Then I found out that Genesis were the most expensive power company bar none, so I switched. The new company doesn't have the equipment to read the meter from outside so I'm back to getting visits. It's a minor piss-off because I had the house rewired before the switch and it would have been relatively inexpensive to move the meter outside the house then.

There was an uproar about high prices at one stage, in the central North Island I think. When the company, whichever it was, installed the new metres they would look at each customers usage and then charge the whole month at the most expensive rate used by that customer during the month. I'm sure the company thought that was a brilliant idea but if there's any justice the bright bastard who dreamed it up is now sweeping streets for the local council. I've heard nothing since the TV3 news item maybe three or four years ago so assume somebody saw sense.

Smart meter or not, my last power bill was about $74 and change from memory which doesn't seem outragious.

[caseye]

Got a leaflet in the mail today re all the supposed bad things that go with the new "smart meter" inclusive of making you crook/bigger bills etc.Am supposing these things are already in use in the big citys and i havent heard any new articles etc about them.Just a group wanting to save the planet or is there any truth to there ramblings about sickness etc.Surely if the things gave people a rise in the power bills there would be an uproar,there claiming some farmers have had price hikes of 200-400% and when complained were told there old meters must have been inaccurate.

I walked the streets reading meters for a wee while a year or two ago, the old ones aren't great, but the electric companies love the new "smart ones" No one who had one installed got their power any cheaper, in fact without fail they ended up paying more. I refused to let them onto the property to install the new one.

[haydes55]

My place has a smart meter. 2 bedroom unit, 2 of us living here. Paying weekly, our biggest bill so far was $12 last week.

If smart meters are more expensive, what would I be paying for an old school meter?

[jonbuoy]

Ionising vs non Ionising radiation. Gotta love the people that panic about a wifi router or cellphone tower near their bedroom but knock back litres of neurotoxic carcinogenic liquids on a weekend. Don't think anyone's ever had a hangover from using their cellphone?