Smart energy meters are meters that have been developed to help you keep track of your energy usage in your home as well as eliminating the need for meter readings.

The meters work by collecting and storing information about your energy consumption and therefore you can see in almost real-time how you are using energy. It is hoped that this type of meter will make us more aware of our energy usage and allow us to see how savings can be made by using energy at different times of the day; and because the meter readings will also be more accurate it is felt that our energy bills will also be more accurate.

It is envisaged by the Government that all homes in England, Wales and Scotland will have a smart energy meter installed by 2020 to help people identify ways of saving energy and help the UK become more energy efficient. It is also thought that they will help the country cut its carbon footprint as the environmental impact such as emissions from transport previously used to aid the of reading households meters will be eliminated.

But this type of technology, even with all its benefits, is being questioned as to whether it will actually save energy. The consumer group Which? recently announced concern regarding the installation of these meters. They felt that the top six energy companies would use the installation of smart energy meters as a way to sell more household energy gadgets and tariffs to consumers and were calling upon these companies to “don’t sell, just install”. So, this is something to bear in mind when installation of your smart energy meter occurs. You need to be extra vigilant over the sales persons ‘upsell’ tactics.

There is also concern over the data that is collected and stored in these meters as energy companies will be able to analyse this data and possibly use it to their advantage. This could make it questionable as to how much control people will have over their energy usage and efficiency.

However, it is felt that the smart energy meters will help individuals monitor their household energy usage in the future as the smart meters will ensure that we have a better understanding of our utility and appliance usage. Also, the benefits that are trying to be introduced to the environment is only a positive step forward to a lower-carbon economy and ensuring that we become energy-efficient and savvy towards the long-term needs of the environment.

Guest Article by Sarah Wain

British Gas the largest installer of new boilers in the UK has recently bought a stake in AlertMe, which makes smart meters. These meters are used in homes and commercial premises to measure gas and electric usage. They take multiple readings everyday and report back directly to the energy supplier resulting in far more accurate billing.

This new acquisition by British Gas is a well-timed move because the government has announced it is aiming to have a smart meter installed in every home by 2020. The energy saving market is still relatively new in domestic terms but the potential is huge and the market continues to grow with new and exciting developments.

How Can Smart Meters Help Me?
Well, for one thing no more gas man visits! For most of us receiving a visit for a meter reading is an annoying inconvenience. Smart meters send automatic readings back so there is no need for manual readings.

Most people have received a shock bill at one time or another and there has been no shortage of negative press. These bills can be really bad news for people on low fixed incomes such as OAPs and single parent families. With smart meters the bills are much more accurate as you are only billed for what you actually use.

If you are environmentally conscious, and take an active interest in reducing your carbon footprint, you can even purchase a smart meter that measures CO2 emissions.

How Do Smart Meters Work?
Most of the current smart meters such as the ones British Gas provide use a SIM card that uses the GPRS GSM network to send and receive information, similar to a text message.

How much do Smart Meters Cost?
Although at this point it seems smart meters are going to be provided for free to homeowners. The utility companies and the government are expected to cough up about £7 billion to install them, this expenditure will no doubt be passed on to the rest of us somewhere down the line. However, the long-term environmental and financial benefits are worthwhile.

Other Energy Efficient Gadgets
The energy efficiency market is becoming a huge global market. LG has recently launched its new ThinQ range which includes washing machines controlled via Smartphones which can be set to run when electricity is cheapest. The range also displays current energy consumption readings which are relayed to PCs to help homeowners analyse energy efficiency.

GE is about to offer its own version of smart home appliances that will actually be able to reduce demand for power in response to changing energy prices which is particularly interesting in terms of energy efficiency.

Germany is currently testing Smart Grid technology on a model city. It is a two way technology which will relay detailed information about power. The benefits are huge as the grid can tell home appliances and commercial machinery to run at the most energy efficient times. This is ideal for washing machines and factory machinery that do not need to run at specific times of the day.

Home energy efficiency is moving into a new exciting era and who knows hopefully we will soon see gas boilers that can actually use and store grid power and home generated renewable energy for later use.

Guest Article by Louise Goldstein

British Gas energy saving initiatives continue to be launched and at the heart of their strategy to get everyone more conscious of carbon emissions, is the smart meter.

It may not be the most innovative of the British Gas energy saving initiatives – remember the idea of solar panels on Church roofs – but the smart meter is the most effective weapon when it comes to making people realise their energy usage and wastage.

The national rollout of smart meters doesn’t kick off until 2012, but British Gas is keen to take every opportunity to promote their widespread use. The devices represent a huge step forward, allowing users to track their energy usage, save money on their heating bills and help cut carbon emissions on a national scale. And gone will be the days of ‘approximate billing’, when consumers don’t always fully understand how much energy they have used and the money it costs.

Smart metering is the future say British Gas, not least because consumers will be able to truly see which of their appliances are responsible for draining their cash. People are understandably mostly in the dark when it comes to the energy consumption of their appliances. The focus behind the recent campaigns to switch appliances off when not in use – rather than relying on standby mode – was to make people aware that electrical appliances have a healthy thirst for power even when not being used.

It’s likely that most people will be surprised when they see the energy consumption of their appliances. Computers tend to use less than people think, whereas televisions – especially the older models – use far more than people think.

A spokesman from the British Gas Smart Commercial Team, Jim Ebbs, said: “British Gas has been ahead of the curve in all aspects of smart metering: we’ve already installed over 100,000 meters, we’ve substantial trialling activity underway and we’re driving the industry on the meter specification and the approach to rollout. It follows that we’d want our customers to know about Smart meters as early as possible.”

Expect many more British Gas energy saving initiatives in the future, but also expect them to keep banging on about the rollout of the smart meters; afterall, it does represent the biggest and most meaningful step forward in energy conservation for many decades.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

The UK’s largest energy supplier, British Gas, has announced that it plans to step-up its smart meters installation programme and get two million of the devices in-situ in their customers’ houses by 2012.

British Gas say that this will allow more British households to take advantage of all the benefits that smart meter technology offers them, including real-time usage information, which helps to cut energy use and therefore reduce carbon emissions, and thus cut fuel bills.

And to show its determination to reach the target by 2012, it has partnered with a number of leading companies to put together its smart meter system. These include mobile phone company Vodafone; billing systems group SAP; two software and communications firms OSIsoft and Trilliant; and, smarter meter manufacturer Landis+Gyr. Also, the Zigbee Smart Energy global wireless home area network standard will be used to link up the in-home devices.

Each of the firms have roles to play in the British Gas initiative. Vodafone is going to provide the network which will carry the signal from the smart meter and allow it to talk to other devices. Landis+Gyr is responsible for developing the smart metering system for the home. It will be designed to monitor both gas and electricity meters, together with an energy usage facility displayed on a colour screen. Managing all the smart meter communications is a “head end” software application from Trilliant which will link-up the smart meters and help integrate other companies’ devices. The system that will store the smart meter data will be provided by OSIsoft. Delivering smart functionality for the IT systems provided by British Gas will be supplied by SAP. And providing the Smart Energy global wireless home area network standard is ZigBee which will link-up the in-home devices.

For British Gas, creating a common smart meter standard is vitally important, so that all suppliers can potentially operate the meters without compatibility problems.

Phil Bentley, Managing Director, British Gas, said:
“At British Gas, we already have the largest smart meter trial in the country. We want all our customers to have smart meters as soon as possible, so they can take advantage of this technology and use it to help them cut their energy use, carbon emissions and fuel bills.

“This is why we recently launched our new smart metering business, and began recruitment of our 2,600 new smart energy experts who will support the roll-out. And this is why we are today announcing a partnership with a group of world-leading companies, with whom we will work to deliver our ambitious target of two million more smart meters in customers’ homes by 2012. We are also sharing our smart meter standards with the rest of the industry.”

Cameron O’Reilly, Chief Executive Officer, Landis+Gyr, said:
“This partnership represents a major breakthrough for smart metering in the UK. Together, we will pioneer the technical and practical standards that will see every home and business in the country switch to smart metering within the next decade. British Gas is actively seeking to transform the market, and we are proud and pleased to have been selected for such an instrumental role in this major deployment.”

And Peter Kelly, Enterprise Director, Vodafone UK said:
“We are focused on making our customers’ lives easier by continuously improving our products and services on the UK’s best network.
"We’re pleased to be working with British Gas on this pioneering trial to accelerate the roll-out of smart meters into British homes. Consumers can count on our fast, reliable network to help them manage their energy costs with British Gas and do their bit to help reduce carbon emissions.”

Guest Article by Neil Camp

British Gas is asking for volunteer customers to join a 20-strong panel which will help write a report on how the company is operating. Advertisements were today placed in a number of national newspapers outlining their intentions.

At the same time, and as part of a much publicised move, British Gas is offering its customers the chance to pay accurate energy bills, rather than paying an amount based on an estimated meter reading.

Bills based on estimated readings have been the thorn in the side of many energy companies and research by British Gas has shown that such bills are very unpopular amongst its 16 million customers.

Instead, the energy giant is asking for customers to send their monthly readings either by text, or online. And people who opt for this service will receive a monitor, provided free, which accurately displays their use of electricity on a minute-by-minute basis.

A British Gas spokesperson said:
“Instead of issuing you with a bill we will contact you by email or text and ask you to submit a reading from the normal meter. Estimated bills were seen as a source of frustration by customers as they didn’t accurately reflect the energy they had used.”

British Gas apparently were at pains to point out that the new monitors are different from those currently being recommended by the Government.

The monitors from British Gas are designed to be installed by the user and come in two parts. One gets attached to the house’s existing meter and this communicates, via a wireless link, with the second part, which is the display. This is powered from an ordinary plug socket. And the display not only tells the user how much they are paying for their electricity on a daily, weekly and monthly basis, but also tells them how much C02 they are generating.

Although readers of this blog might remember a story a few weeks back about an Eaglestone pensioner who opted for a free gas meter upgrade found herself with a bill of £168.

And what made matters worse, she was left with no heating, or hot water. The 73-year-old responded to a British Gas offer to update customer’s technology which is part of a countrywide initiative.

An engineer made the visit, fitted the new meter and then tried to relight the pensioner’s boiler. After three attempts he gave up and left, saying it was no longer his responsibility, leaving the boiler unlit and the house cold, and without hot water.

The problem was eventually sorted out and to be fair to British Gas, it appears that the boiler might not have been regularly serviced, which meant that when it came to relighting, it would not operate properly.

But it does alert user’s to the fact that although modern monitors and meters are the future, some care should be taken as to what might happen if, after their installation (and this new one is to monitor electricity, not gas), systems don’t work as before.

Guest Article by Neil Camp