Solved

Enough space for a smart meter to be installed?

M
Rank

OVO are unable to fit a Smart Meter in the utilities department in the building of my flat due to heritage meters and apparently the whole building would need to be rewired.

 

Apparently I might be able to have the Smart Meter fitted inside my flat and I was wondering if anybody knows whether or not this the case?

 

OVO say it is not possible to book a further appointment with an engineer to view my flat (he did not do so in  the original visit) he only viewed the utility cupboard in the building of my flat.

I was wondering if  anyone could advise me whether or not it is possible for a Smart Meter to 

be fitted inside my flat?

 

 

icon

Best answer by Lukepeniket_OVO 7 July 2023, 09:56

View original

39 replies

Blastoise186
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +1

Hey @matthewkevin84 ,

We can probably figure this one out as forum volunteers, but we could do with seeing photos of the current setup first.

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way!
M
Rank


Here is a photo of the meter in the utility cupboard. 
 

Is there an email address for OVO?

Blastoise186
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +1

Hmm… That’s just a bog standard Itron meter from 2012. Nothing heritage about it.

If you’d like to send that to OVO, Live Chat via https://help.ovoenergy.com is the fastest way. Email won’t work for this.

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way!
M
Rank


 

There is no space for a smart meter. Meter cupboards and heritage meters fitted between isolators with no spare space.

 

 

 

 

This is the reason why the engineer says a Smart Meter is not possible and also these are further photos of the utility cupboard.

 

Blastoise186 Do you feel that the engineer is wrong and that it is possible to fit a smart meter, please advise?

 

 

Blastoise186
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +1

There’s loads of space. I actually know one of OVO’s engineers. He’s able to squeeze them into much smaller gaps than that!

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way!
M
Rank

Thanks for that, I will tell OVO this but I have a feeling that they will say the engineer is correct, 

if OVO tell me this do you have any advice as to what I should say?

I spoke on WhatsApp and the advisor on there basically confirmed that another appointment won’t be possible.

Blastoise186
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +1

I can put this to the forum moderators if that helps.

Also… I’ll see if @BPLightlog @Firedog and @Jeffus are around for their thoughts.

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way!
M
Rank

Yes please tell the forum moderator re my problem and also I will be grateful if you can tell the users who you mention.

 

Also when I tell OVO  if they tell me the engineer is correct and what you have told me is incorrect I don’t suppose you know the name of a manager whom I could ask to be involved with my issue?

BPLightlog
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +5

The only thing on that specific meter is the minimal distance between the cable feeds and the meter. I don’t know if the engineer would have access to the trunking but the current meter has been fitted rather close to it. 

Independent volunteer - Sitting in a Faraday cage, waiting for a signal
M
Rank

Perhaps that is the case, he did seem rather sure that a Smart Meter could not be fitted in the utility cupboard.

 

He said that the whole building would have to be rewired in order to cater for a Smart Meter to be placed in the utility cupboard.

 

Although like I say he didn’t view my actual flat to  see if a Smart Meter could be fitted in there.

Jeffus
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +2

Interesting that none of those meters in the first photo have been swapped. 

That seems unusual to me given the smart meter rollout.

To me, that points to an issue of some sort. 

If possible i would ask the other flat occupiers if they have ever tried getting a smart meter.

The meter is a snug fit width wise @Blastoise186 . How does that meter compare to the regular smets2 meter ovo currently install? Maybe worth measuring the width of that meter. 

The comment about the whole building needs rewiring does seem a strange thing to say on the face of it. I wonder if the engineer meant the whole cupboard. Still a big job

 

Blastoise186
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +1

I think an S2 Aclara would fit, along with almost all S2 Single Phase. But not 3 Phase or certain E7 arrangements 

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way!
Jeffus
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +2

I think an S2 Aclara would fit, along with almost all S2 Single Phase. But not 3 Phase or certain E7 arrangements 

Then a quick measure of the with of that gap would help.

Also the height just to confirm what we are looking at. 

Blastoise186
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +1

Height wise… Tons of space. And there are tricks to workaround that if needed. At most, some of those meters might just need to be moved down a bit, but no biggie there.

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way!
Abby_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 6

Hey @matthewkevin84 

 

Glad to see you’ve had some good advice from our volunteers so far! It does seem unusual that none of them have been exchanged for a smart meter yet like Jeffus mentioned.

 

 

This is the reason why the engineer says a Smart Meter is not possible and also these are further photos of the utility cupboard.

 

 

@Lukepeniket_OVO, Tim said you might know whether they should be able to fit the smart meters here or not? Any ideas?

Location: Electric Avenue
L
Rank
Userlevel 5

Hello, been a long time since coming here and I apologise!!

 

It definitely looks like there's not enough room to fit smart if I'm honest, @Abby_OVO is there any way I can get some customer details over so I can have a deeper look into this one? 

 

Our current meters are L&G, Aclara and Kaifa, the first two of which are our slimmest. But are still slightly wider than the itrons.

 

OVO Field Operations Team Leader
Blastoise186
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +1

Haha, welcome back Luke. And congrats on the promotion! XD

Just curious, but are there any meters out there slimmer than Aclara and L&G when you factor in the Comms Hub? I’m guessing there might not be, given the Comms Hubs seem to fit so snugly against an S2 Aclara.

I seem to recall that last time you needed info about a customer via the forum, Tim was able to have it sent to your work email. I guess that might work?

Oh, I should probably explain again actually. Luke is one of OVO’s Smart Meter Engineers, except these days he’s an OVO “Install Everything Everywhere” Engineer. He’s one of the experts we can call on when we get stuck. Unlike the forum volunteers, Luke does actually work at OVO and does an amazing job.

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way!
Abby_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 6

Thanks for getting back to us so quick on this @Lukepeniket_OVO!

 

You're able to send @matthewkevin84 a private message to take some details, but we’d recommend they do this via our Forum Support team so there's a record of everything. What would be the advice you'd give them if they reach out to us, Luke?

Location: Electric Avenue
L
Rank
Userlevel 5

I'll drop a dm now :-)

 

It's postcode and house number so I can see if the engineer took any other photos 

 

Ohh and @Blastoise186, taken another step and moved into a Field Operations Team Leader role, taken charge of 25 engineers and its every bit as exciting and engaging as installing!! 

OVO Field Operations Team Leader
Blastoise186
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +1

You do realise I met your boss last year, right? XD

Next thing I know, you’ll be after his job. :)

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way!
L
Rank
Userlevel 5

Hi guys and thank you @matthewkevin84 for the info, i’ve done some digging and found more photos.

 

L&G E470

Unfortunately the E470 is wider than the gap between the isolators so there is no room to fit it in there.

Also we would be unable to fit anything in the flat without the electric being fitted. You may have a Red Link Fuse in the apartment itself but we would be unable to move the meter up to that position.

Only solution i can currently see is to have a wider gap between each isolator but that would require an electrician to do.

​​​​​​​Apologies for this one.

OVO Field Operations Team Leader
Blastoise186
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +1

Thanks Luke!

Hmm… That’s going to be expensive… But at least you won’t have to pay that yourself.

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way!
M
Rank

So I would only be able to have a Smart Meter fitted if I paid an electrician so a Smart Meter for myself would cost me, am I correct?

Blastoise186
Rank
Userlevel 7
Badge +1

Nope. The building owner needs to do this at their cost. 

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way!
M
Rank


 

Thames Water recently fitted a Smart Meter on account of the fact that they could not locate a Meter that on or near the property that I could take a readings despite it looking to be almost certain that OVO can not fit a Smart Meter as previously discussed.

 

British Gas attended the property yesterday (8th) and confirmed they could not  fit a Smart Meter but nevertheless I thought that I would inform the good people of this forum on this development and see what people think re the potential for an OVO to be able to fit a Smart Meter?

 

Unsurprisingly the individual working for Thames Water who fitted the Smart Meter confirmed that it could not be used for OVO or Thames Water.

Reply


Terms & ConditionsCookie settings