Hey guys,
I am looking for a good electrician to swap my analogue meter for a digital one. With a digital meter you can reduce your electricity bill during winter months by 70% using the different rates plan. The problem is that is really difficult to find an electrician that's licensed to change meters.
I don't want to sound paranoid, but the reason for this is Energy Australia not wanting people to reduce their bills.
Think about it, up until 2 years ago was completely free to swap your old analogue meter for a brand new digital meter. This way you can change your rates.
If anyone has experience with this, please share.
Cheers,
Mike
Yes you can save money if you use your power in off peak times , if you cant like the majority a smart meter will cost you more , don't believe a 70% REDUCTION that is crap. A good way to save is use less
Before you do you need to ask yourself,.. does the energy company really want you to pay them LESS money than you do already?
The answer is NO.
Now this might come as a complete surprise to you because you probably read the glossy brochure which said they wanted to save you money.
It was a LIE.
They don't want to save you anything.
In fact they would like to charge you more. And if they can then they will. It's a business, not a charity.
What they also want you to do however, is use less power in the peak periods so they don't have to install more generating capacity.
I think you will find that after you install the new smart meter, you will pay less for the power you use in off peak peiods but it will be neutralised by the higher rate they will charge you for the power you use in peak periods.
You might win out if you have electric hot water or something like that which you can re-time to off peak, but if your power is mainly used for things which can't be retimed for off peak, then you wont save anything at all. 
Mmm not sure about NSW but the meter is usually the property of the supply authority and can only be changed by them, usually fitted with an anti tamper seal to stop anyone else from mucking with them.
Ok. I moved houses last January. At my old property I've changed through Energy Australia (at the time when this was free) the meter from an Analogue to a Smart meter. I've reduced my bill from 879 AUD to 368 AUD. I am pretty sure in my case this would make a great difference, because I leave everyday at 7AM and come back after 7, as the rest of my family. So every bit of energy we use happens during night time or weekends.
Select to expand quoteDunkO said..
How does a meter save you money?? Unless it's stopped working :)
It's not the actual meter that saves you money it's the plan. Because moving to a smart meter you will be able to change your plan from a standard plan (being charged 45 cents per kw all the time) to a time of day plan. For example, from 7:00AM to 15:00PM you are being charged 50 cents per kW, from 15:00PM to 21:00PM you are being charged 80 cents per kW, and from 21:00 PM to 7:00 AM your are bing charged 10 cents per kw.
So if you are not at home during the day much (which most of us aren't), it makes sense to choose this preferential plan. But in order to change it, you need to have a meter that allows you to do so, which is the smart meter.
So that's how you can save the old buck!
I have a "time of use" meter and have the dishwasher, washing machine and pool filter all on timers to run in off peak and saved about $40 a bill. (on a $500 quarterly bill.)
If I didn't have a pool, I would not have any real advantage.
If you have gas cooking and heating, then you could do even better, as I still have to cook dinner at 6pm at high price with my electric stove and oven, and my kids bake a desert almost every night too.
What company charges 45 cent per kw/h? The plan we are on charges about 25 cents per kw/h and this is with an analogue meter. There is no way I'm going to a digital meter unless its forced on us or I get photo voltaic panels on the roof. The electricity companies would not be encouraging consumers to have digital meters if it saved the consumers money.
Select to expand quoteMobydisc said..
What company charges 45 cent per kw/h? The plan we are on charges about 25 cents per kw/h and this is with an analogue meter. There is no way I'm going to a digital meter unless its forced on us or I get photo voltaic panels on the roof. The electricity companies would not be encouraging consumers to have digital meters if it saved the consumers money.
Most of them. Please tell me who you are with, I will change over tomorrow!! 
The electricity companies do not lose any money, as they are also able to buy the electricity cheaper from the power stations at off peak times, so they still add their margin. It also saves them money as they are able to build less new transmission lines and cables if the demand at peak times is reduced, which ultimately leads to lower price rises.
Do not go solar. It's a total rip off. You might save on average 200aud per qrt. But your inverter will die. Then all the money you save goes back into purchasing another inverter and your back where you started. Zip. I know first hand cause I install new inverters for customers where there supplying company s have gone bank rupt
Select to expand quoteHarrow said..
I have a "time of use" meter and have the dishwasher, washing machine and pool filter all on timers to run in off peak and saved about $40 a bill. (on a $500 quarterly bill.)
If I didn't have a pool, I would not have any real advantage.
If you have gas cooking and heating, then you could do even better, as I still have to cook dinner at 6pm at high price with my electric stove and oven, and my kids bake a desert almost every night too.
In my case the real advantage is because of the heaters. We are running 3 heaters. Each 2400 W. During summer it's not a great deal, but when the winter comes, my last bill got up to 1300 AUD per quarter. If I would've had the time of use plan, it would've been probably 500 AUD top.
I know a lot of people are reluctant to changing, but in some cases, it can be beneficial.
Select to expand quoteMikedobee said..
In my case the real advantage is because of the heaters. We are running 3 heaters. Each 2400 W. During summer it's not a great deal, but when the winter comes, my last bill got up to 1300 AUD per quarter. If I would've had the time of use plan, it would've been probably 500 AUD top.
I know a lot of people are reluctant to changing, but in some cases, it can be beneficial.
Hang on, when are you running the heaters? Most people would be running heaters at the highest cost time.
Select to expand quoteHarrow said..Mikedobee said..
In my case the real advantage is because of the heaters. We are running 3 heaters. Each 2400 W. During summer it's not a great deal, but when the winter comes, my last bill got up to 1300 AUD per quarter. If I would've had the time of use plan, it would've been probably 500 AUD top.
I know a lot of people are reluctant to changing, but in some cases, it can be beneficial.
Hang on, when are you running the heaters? Most people would be running heaters at the highest cost time.
Night time. That's the only time we're ever home.
Select to expand quoteMikedobee said..Harrow said..Mikedobee said..
In my case the real advantage is because of the heaters. We are running 3 heaters. Each 2400 W. During summer it's not a great deal, but when the winter comes, my last bill got up to 1300 AUD per quarter. If I would've had the time of use plan, it would've been probably 500 AUD top.
I know a lot of people are reluctant to changing, but in some cases, it can be beneficial.
Hang on, when are you running the heaters? Most people would be running heaters at the highest cost time.
Night time. That's the only time we're ever home.
Night time? The peak price goes until 8pm for me, and then shoulder cost is from 8pm to 10pm. That is because everyone wants to run they're heaters at this time, and demand is highest in winter around 6pm. You don't get off-peak rate until after 10pm. Be careful what you do. I don't think you'll get the saving you envisage, unless you are turning your heaters on rather late and leaving them on all night. If that was the case, you'd save more money by buying thicker dooners and turning the heaters off. 
Reverse cycle air conditioning is also another option you could consider, as it runs about 1/3rd the cost of normal electric heating.
The main reason for changing analogue meters is that they are not real accurate. In WA they were changed and enabled the supply authority to check that the meter box was wired correctly and force upgrades on old premesis's. Having a digital meter installed did not mean you had to go on the smart plan. All new connections have digital meters installed 
Select to expand quoteMikedobee said..
In my case the real advantage is because of the heaters. We are running 3 heaters. Each 2400 W.
3 heaters at 2400 watts each! 
That's the worst form of heating you can have.
Unless you are in a rent house and will be moving out next week you should throw them away and get 3 X 3KW output inverter aircons.
They will use about 750 watts power each running flat strap and ramp down to about 250 watts each once the room is heated up.
They are very efficient at low power settings with a COP of around 4. i.e four times more heat output than energy input.
It's one of the few things in this world that you get more out of than you put in. 
And your smart meter wont save you a cent.
When you get home at 7pm and the house is freezing cold in winter, you will be running the heaters at the most expensive rate.
When you all go to bed and the heaters are turned off, then the rate will come down, and you wont be getting it becaue you will be wrapped up snoring in bed. 
Select to expand quotepweedas said..Mikedobee said..
In my case the real advantage is because of the heaters. We are running 3 heaters. Each 2400 W.
3 heaters at 2400 watts each!
That's the worst form of heating you can have.
Unless you are in a rent house and will be moving out next week you should throw them away and get 3 X 3KW output inverter aircons.
They will use about 750 watts power each running flat strap and ramp down to about 250 watts each once the room is heated up.
They are very efficient at low power settings with a COP of around 4. i.e four times more heat output than energy input.
It's one of the few things in this world that you get more out of than you put in.
And your smart meter wont save you a cent.
When you get home at 7pm and the house is freezing cold in winter, you will be running the heaters at the most expensive rate.
When you all go to bed and the heaters are turned off, then the rate will come down, and you wont be getting it becaue you will be wrapped up snoring in bed.
Yeah, I know I know, but I am renting and I am not allowed to install any AC. The problem for us is at night, because this house doesn't have any insulation, so our heaters run pretty much the whole night.
I know for sure that I will reduce my electricity cost because I have done it in the past and it worked very well.
Select to expand quoteHarrow said..Mikedobee said..
In my case the real advantage is because of the heaters. We are running 3 heaters. Each 2400 W. During summer it's not a great deal, but when the winter comes, my last bill got up to 1300 AUD per quarter. If I would've had the time of use plan, it would've been probably 500 AUD top.
I know a lot of people are reluctant to changing, but in some cases, it can be beneficial.
Hang on, when are you running the heaters? Most people would be running heaters at the highest cost time.
You don't need digital power, you need thermal underwear.
Select to expand quoteMikedobee said..
Yeah, I know I know, but I am renting and I am not allowed to install any AC. The problem for us is at night, because this house doesn't have any insulation, so our heaters run pretty much the whole night.
I know for sure that I will reduce my electricity cost because I have done it in the past and it worked very well.
You run 3 x 2400W heaters ALL night???
Go and buy some decent bedding!!!
(and if you live somewhere really cold, put a timer on the heaters to come on 15 minutes before you wake up)
Mikedobee, sounds like you live somewhere very cold. I've lived a fair bit of time in towns with altitudes around 1000m and it does get cold. However I never had electric heaters running all night. Its a real joy to in a bed with plenty of blankets and quilts and be warm as the house cools down. Then you wake up with frost inside the windows in the morning...... That is tough. One place I lived in had a fireplace and we went out every couple of months to a friend's farm and collected a trailer load of firewood. It was a good day's outing and kept us warm in the house all winter. Another place I lived in had a big gas heater which warmed the house up. This house had no insulation so the heater was on when we were up. When we went to bed it was turned off.
Anyway my current electricity supplier is I think Origin and I pay about 25 cent per kw/h. As more electricity is used the rate goes up. That is kind of strange as usually when you consume more of something, the price goes down. Last year we bought a new fridge, an Electrolux that is rated at using 318 kw/h a year. This fridge replaced a ten year old LG fridge rated at using 600 kw/h a year. However I'm pretty sure it used more. After we swapped fridges our power bills went from about $500 a quarter down to about $320 a quarter. We don't have air conditioning and our cooking and heating is electric. Our place is fairly cool as its full brick and the building has a massive thermal mass. It never warms up, even in a heatwave of a few days the walls are still cool to touch. This is great in summer but is freezing during winter.
I do little things to save electricity, like run my laptop on battery at home and charge it up at work. Also turn appliances off at the wall when they are not being used.
To answer the OP's question, the meter has to be changed by a Level 2 accredited electrician. For a list of all those in NSW see this list http://www.energy.nsw.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/469850/level-2-asps.pdf Scroll down to your postcode and you should be able to find a few that are qualified.
Not so long ago if a customer wanted to change to Time Of Use metering the network owners would happily change the metering for free. Have you tried calling the your relevant network first? i.e. Ausgrid, Essential or Endeavour depending on where you live.
The very first thing to do at that rented house would be to get the ceiling insulated. If the landlord won't come to the party it may still be worth doing it yourself. The cost of tripping down to Bunnings and picking up a few bags of Knauf R3.5 (or higher) ceiling insulation will easily pay for itself within a couple of months. Pumping all that heat into a living space and having it disappear straight away is pissing money up the wall. This suggestion is not valid if the house has lots of halogen down lights - the job then has inherent danger and the effectiveness of the insulation is significantly reduced.
If the house was built prior to about 1980 it probably has several air vents in each room that are allowing all that expensive warm air to be drawn out very quickly. Blocking those off can significantly reduce the convection currents.
If it's a rented house, make sure you get the owners approval before you do anything.
It's really annoying for the owner when the tenants leave and they discover some half baked 'improvement' done on the place which costs thousands to have fixed up properly due to the shoddy job which the tenants did. 
Select to expand quoteHarrow said..Mobydisc said..
What company charges 45 cent per kw/h? The plan we are on charges about 25 cents per kw/h and this is with an analogue meter. There is no way I'm going to a digital meter unless its forced on us or I get photo voltaic panels on the roof. The electricity companies would not be encouraging consumers to have digital meters if it saved the consumers money.
Most of them. Please tell me who you are with, I will change over tomorrow!!
AGL:
351 / 1421 = ~ 25c
I've no idea even what convoluted plan that is on. I have an electricity plan. :\
Building is old, old, old so I assume a very analogue meter.
Select to expand quotepweedas said..
If it's a rented house, make sure you get the owners approval before you do anything.
It's really annoying for the owner when the tenants leave and they discover some half baked 'improvement' done on the place which costs thousands to have fixed up properly due to the shoddy job which the tenants did.
Example?
