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S2 smart meters in the Northern Territory using the Arqiva network - why isn't the meter able to connect to the WAN?

Forum|Forum|5 years ago
February 23, 2021
76 replies
7176 views

It’s been a long story… Some while ago we were offered a SMETS1 smart meter, but we delayed until a SMETS2 was available. Then an engineer came to install a SMETS2 meter, and left saying something about no signal, leave it a while. The meter is in a lower ground floor area, with a mobile signal.

Finally, July 2020, new SMETS2 meter installed - not talking to the network, but wait a bit and it’ll ‘probably’ be OK. No IHD left. I thought that even if the thing couldn’t talk to Ovo at least an IHD would allow me to read the meter easily, so I requested one, which eventually arrived. Silly me, I didn’t realise that the meter - supposedly installed for MY benefit - wouldn’t talk to my home network if it couldn’t talk to OVO first.

After a while we got back to Ovo who said there was nothing they could do and we would have to move our meter, at our expense (approx £250) and hope the new position had a better signal. No guarantee of that. Then I asked for a smart gas meter, reasoning that the gas meter - in a higher location - may have a better signal. I didn’t know then that the gas meter unit will only talk to the electricity meter unit.

A really nice and helpful chap came round to fit the gas meter, but actually spent all his visit trying to get the electricity meter unit working. After every possible effort he was forced to admit defeat and we are back to zero. But he did give us lots of interesting information.

Apparently the SMETS1 communication unit didn’t HAVE to be fitted right onto the meter and had a little aerial to help communication, seemed a good idea, why did that not make it to SMETS2?. Also the country is split in 2, the southern half has meters that talk to the mobile network - but up here in Morecambe the meters talk to a network run by Arqiva, who don’t talk to Ovo’s customers. Apparently signal problems are reported by the engineer to Arqiva, who should solve them - so why did Ovo ask US to move our meter?.

But why can’t the stupid thing pass the data to Ovo via our home network?. Our home is full of things that talk to the world and don’t need Arqiva to do so. At the least it should send it’s reading to the IHD, I’m totally capable of taking all the data I need about saving energy from a meter reading thanks.

So finally I’m going to fit a camera up to send me the meter readings, and when Ovo decide they would like the smart meter working then they can come and install a unit designed a little bit more intelligently and with a bit of flexibility. It might be more expensive , but would save them money in repeated engineer visits, and certainly cheaper than moving the electricity meter.

Our meter, or the comms unit, is an EDMI standard 420.

I hope this helps someone.

Best answer by Jess_OVO

Updated on 10/11/25 by Ben_OVO

I’m afraid it’s not possible for smart meters to use the internet to submit readings. As part of the specs, it all has to go through dedicated and purpose-built networks. There’s more details about how it all works over at SmartMe. We use this resource on the forums a lot, as it helps us out a ton!

As you mentioned Arqiva, that confirms you’re in the Northern Territory. Unfortunately, the EDMI comms hubs used up there don’t support external aerials.

There doesn’t seem to be a set process of what happens when the meter doesn’t talk to Arqiva, which to me is wrong, there should be a defined fault recovery process which always ends up with a satisfactory outcome.

We’ve taken this one to team who’ve confirmed the usual process following us installing a smart meter which can’t receive a signal on the Arqiva network. In this scenario we should report this as an incident to the Data Communications Company (DCC) who are then responsible for contacting Arqiva to improve the WAN signal in your area. The issue is then between the DCC and Arqiva to improve the signal coverage, all we can do is flag it accordingly - the infrastructure is not within our control.

Once we’ve raised the issue to the DCC it can take up to 6 months for them to investigate. We may be able to schedule an engineer’s revisit once the 6 month investigation period is up, however there’s no guarantee things will be working at this point. It’s worth mentioning that even without a signal your meter will continue clocking your usage and readings can be taken manually and submitted on your online account.

Sorry to hear of the advice you were given to pay for a meter relocation to resolve this issue. We should only be suggesting this as a really last resort option if the meter is in a particularly poor signal location, and all other attempts to improve the signal to the meter have failed.

Whilst we’re really interested by the discussion this topic has sparked, it's worth mentioning that as a supplier, we are limited in terms of the way smart meter networks function and the security implications of using alternative methods to receive your usage data.

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bingbongovo2021Author

Rank 2

So no surprise that our smart meter is still not connected, we get emails from ovo with laughable comments about it. Another customer with an electricity meter in the same location has been persuaded to have a smart meter fitted - although she informed her supplier that it would probably not work., sure enough, no connection. So now 800 pounds worth? of kit wasted. Our money.

There seem to be so many of these things not working I simply can’t believe Arquiva’s claim of 99.5% coverage. But since they can’t be forced to fix the problem why should they care?.

Meanwhile our meter in France, that sends the data back down the power lines is fine, as are all French smart meters. And they don’t seem to having regrets about security. And they are charging people who refuse to have one installed.

I am aware that an aerial can be constructed to relay the signal, but I’m not ready to do that yet, although I am increasingly upset about being unable to profit from some tariffs. I recently tried to explain this to someone on ovo chat and he was either too stupid or unwilling to understand.

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tony1tf

Rank 4

So no surprise that our smart meter is still not connected, we get emails from ovo with laughable comments about it. Another customer with an electricity meter in the same location has been persuaded to have a smart meter fitted - although she informed her supplier that it would probably not work., sure enough, no connection. So now 800 pounds worth? of kit wasted. Our money.

There seem to be so many of these things not working I simply can’t believe Arquiva’s claim of 99.5% coverage. But since they can’t be forced to fix the problem why should they care?.

Meanwhile our meter in France, that sends the data back down the power lines is fine, as are all French smart meters. And they don’t seem to having regrets about security. And they are charging people who refuse to have one installed.

I am aware that an aerial can be constructed to relay the signal, but I’m not ready to do that yet, although I am increasingly upset about being unable to profit from some tariffs. I recently tried to explain this to someone on ovo chat and he was either too stupid or unwilling to understand.

It’s such shame that no common sense can be injected into the system. I’m sure it’s not OVO’s fault directly, but it would be great if they could exercise more control over the installers. We had problems when a smart meter was first installed with our solar panels causing systems to crash, because it looked like we were bypassing the meter. There was an awful lot of money wasted in new smart meters. It took months to get it sorted. If I lived a bit closer to you I would be happy to experiment with external antennas, although there seems to be some misinformation around on what frequencies they are actually using. As a radio amateur I am against Power Line data transmission in principle - those transmission lines are awfully long antennas which can send out interference to those of us searching for weak signals.

Tony

Firedog

Super User

… there seems to be some misinformation around on what frequencies they are actually using.

The LRR used for the SMWAN is in the 420MHz band, except for an area near the RAF Fylingdales early-warning radar station on the N Yorks moors, where 450MHz is used to avoid interference. This is from the EDMI 420 communications hub user guide:

SM WAN specification

Standard : ETSI EN300 113-1

Frequency Range:

Transmit: 412-414 and 422-424 MHz
Receive: 422-424 MHz

TRP: 1W Maximum.

Modulation:

Transmit: 2SFSK, 4SFSK, 4SFSK-HB
Receive: mPass2, m4Pass2

This is the only communications hub being deployed in Scotland.

What misinformation have you seen about frequencies?

Noel | I have no official status; I'm just a volunteer who comes here to help other customers. My gear: Aclara SGM 1416-B Electricity-only E7 meter; Chameleon IHD3-PPMID-AAA | It may look as if I know what I’m talking about, but don’t let that fool you. |

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tony1tf

Rank 4

Thanks Firedog, I've only been looking at the posts and links here, and I'm sure I saw that the 900 MHz band was also in use, but maybe that was a possible future option. I apologise if the word 'misinformation' is a trigger word.

Firedog

Super User

I'm sure I saw that the 900 MHz band was also in use,

Not in North Britain, I’m afraid. That’s the GSM (2G) band, which comms hubs further south will revert to if 3G fails, so different wireless technology altogether.

A 710mm dipole up top and a fraction of that by the comms hub, connected by as short a length as possible of the lowest-loss coax cable you can find, is the recipe that works, I gather.

I apologise if the word 'misinformation' is a trigger word.

Not at all, and no apology needed!

Noel | I have no official status; I'm just a volunteer who comes here to help other customers. My gear: Aclara SGM 1416-B Electricity-only E7 meter; Chameleon IHD3-PPMID-AAA | It may look as if I know what I’m talking about, but don’t let that fool you. |

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806cat

Rank 1

So no surprise that our smart meter is still not connected, we get emails from ovo with laughable comments about it. Another customer with an electricity meter in the same location has been persuaded to have a smart meter fitted - although she informed her supplier that it would probably not work., sure enough, no connection. So now 800 pounds worth? of kit wasted. Our money.

There seem to be so many of these things not working I simply can’t believe Arquiva’s claim of 99.5% coverage. But since they can’t be forced to fix the problem why should they care?.

Meanwhile our meter in France, that sends the data back down the power lines is fine, as are all French smart meters. And they don’t seem to having regrets about security. And they are charging people who refuse to have one installed.

I am aware that an aerial can be constructed to relay the signal, but I’m not ready to do that yet, although I am increasingly upset about being unable to profit from some tariffs. I recently tried to explain this to someone on ovo chat and he was either too stupid or unwilling to understand.

I have the same problem connecting to the Arqiva network. With the Comms Hub placed in the usual place (on top of the electricity meter), I could not get a WAN signal.

One thing you could try is to use a Kaifa FL100 adapter (the suppliers’ installers have access to these) to separate the Comms Hub from the electricity meter. This has a 75 cm cable that can put some distance between them. This is occasionally used because an electricity meters could produce enough interference to cause problems for a Comms Hub in close proximity, especially in a marginal reception area. I tried this, but it didn’t help my situation.

The next thing to try would be to extend the cable on the FL100 to allow you to move the CH even further away from the electricity meter. This could then allow you to position it where you do get a reception. I tried this as well but it still didn’t work.

I eventually solved it solved it by having the Comms Hub separate from the electricity meter, moving it high up at the back of the house and powering it from a separate 12V supply coming from the loft. Yes, I know I’m paying to power the CH but it’s 12V @ 100mA so I don’t think it’s going to significantly affect my bill. Note the Comms Hub communicates to the electricity meter through Zigbee, not the cable; the cable only supplies power from the electricity meter to the Comms Hub.

This worked, much to the installer’s surprise, who was convinced it wouldn’t as he thought the communications between Comms Hub and electricity meter was through the connector.

Blastoise186

Super User

Just a word of caution. Attempting the above may trigger tamper alarms to your supplier. ALWAYS get permission first.

Securing energy by zapping security bugs... For that is The Blastoise Way! Remember, I'm just like you - AI Powered Evil Geniuses aren't Staff!

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806cat

Rank 1

Just a word of caution. Attempting the above may trigger tamper alarms to your supplier. ALWAYS get permission first.

I wasn’t suggesting the homeowner tries it themselves. If it wasn’t clear: all of this was done with an official installer present.

Emmanuelle_OVO

Retired Moderator

Just a word of caution. Attempting the above may trigger tamper alarms to your supplier. ALWAYS get permission first.

I wasn’t suggesting the homeowner tries it themselves. If it wasn’t clear: all of this was done with an official installer present.

Thank you for confirming @806cat & thank you for the below advice:

I have the same problem connecting to the Arqiva network. With the Comms Hub placed in the usual place (on top of the electricity meter), I could not get a WAN signal.

One thing you could try is to use a Kaifa FL100 adapter (the suppliers’ installers have access to these) to separate the Comms Hub from the electricity meter. This has a 75 cm cable that can put some distance between them. This is occasionally used because an electricity meters could produce enough interference to cause problems for a Comms Hub in close proximity, especially in a marginal reception area. I tried this, but it didn’t help my situation.

The next thing to try would be to extend the cable on the FL100 to allow you to move the CH even further away from the electricity meter. This could then allow you to position it where you do get a reception. I tried this as well but it still didn’t work.

I eventually solved it solved it by having the Comms Hub separate from the electricity meter, moving it high up at the back of the house and powering it from a separate 12V supply coming from the loft. Yes, I know I’m paying to power the CH but it’s 12V @ 100mA so I don’t think it’s going to significantly affect my bill. Note the Comms Hub communicates to the electricity meter through Zigbee, not the cable; the cable only supplies power from the electricity meter to the Comms Hub.

This worked, much to the installer’s surprise, who was convinced it wouldn’t as he thought the communications between Comms Hub and electricity meter was through the connector.

Does this help @bingbongovo2021?

Renewable Energy? Big Fan.

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bingbongovo2021Author

Rank 2

Does it help?. It could if an official installer came along and did it, Or, if the aerial idea is so simple and effective, why don’t official installers try it?. I can imagine the derision if an official installer came along and saw my lash up - “oh you’re another amateur who has tried that one, sighs”.

Meanwhile momentum gathers on this. Panorama did a decent report (without mentioning the actual devious route via DCC that your data gets from customer to supplier). They did mention the dreaded word CAPITA as a company involved. A person involved with the initial design pointed out that there were huge defects in the it, as we see. And we also found out that suppliers CAN install mobile network comms hubs in LRR areas. So why make people use DIY solutions?. The 99.3% coverage becomes more and more meaningless when this (mobile) solution was installed in the middle of Glasgow. Martin Lewis has written a scathing letter to Ed Milliband. We await further developments.

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S2 smart meters in the Northern Territory using the Arqiva network - why isn't the meter able to connect to the WAN?

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