Edison smart meters – solar compatible? Meters not ready till 2011?
According to this article they are not. Comments?
Smart meters and solar panels don’t mix: Software, systems won’t be ready until 2011, utilities say
Wednesday, June 2, 2010@ 9:47 AM
May 29 – North County Times
http://www.intelligentutility.com/article/10/05/smart-meters-and-solar-panels-dont-mix-software-systems-wont-be-ready-until-2011-utilities-say
Customers who add solar panels to their homes may be surprised when the utility takes their brand-new, computerized “smart meter” off their house and installs an old-school meter with a spinning dial.
After all, the utilities have been heavily promoting the meters for their ability to provide hourly data on electricity usage, to automate tasks such as meter reading, and to make the power grid more capable of handling the uneven electricity generation from solar panels and windmills.
San Diego Gas & Electric Co. and Southern California Edison have been swapping out old rotary electric meters for smart meters over the past year: At last count, Edison had installed 770,000 of the meters, though none yet in Southwest Riverside County, and SDG&E had installed 800,000, including those of almost all their North County customers.
But, because of how utilities have configured the new meters and their back-office systems, the meters can’t “spin backward,” or reduce the bills of customers who put electricity back onto the grid, via solar panels or other green technologies. The shortcoming undermines net metering, a key incentive aimed at persuading customers to install their own generation.
We have solar installations on several buildings with analog meters. Edison plans to replace these meters with Smart Meters starting next week. We do not want that to occur unless their meters do record our solar production and unless we can check that their readings and subsequent charges are accurate. Even more important is the health of all who will be exposed to the RFs which we read will be transmitted through the residential units via various substances.
The urgent question is: how can we postpone the replacement of the current meters till these questions are answered?
Barbara B. Fowler - September 4, 2011 at 2:25 am |
Call Edison and let them know you have solar. The solar tag on my analog meter kept them from replacing mine. Most don’t have digitals that work with solar some areas do. So call and find out if their meters are solar compatible.
dansolar - September 4, 2011 at 8:59 am |
I understand your dilemma. Maybe you can search for others in the same situation as yours online and meet. Or you could start a meetup group on going green or solar and meet with your peers that way.
dansolar - December 1, 2011 at 1:28 am |