Hey ​@larkwood ,

If you can grab some snaps for us, we can see what you’ve got - this will let us give you more accurate advice.

Thanks!

Thanks for your reply..here’s the pics..top is outside meter box with present teleswitch…bottom is the contactor that clunks on when it gets the signal from the teleswitch 

im wondering how the smart meter will control the system and whether the contactor will still be needed 

Thanks.

Please bear with me - research may take a little time.

That depends a bit on the overall layout of your system. Some models of the smart meters currently being installed have a big contactor inside them which does the job of your current external one. Some have only a little switch which can energize an externa; contactor. I would suggest you take some photos of your system, then contact Support via webchat to ask for the photos to be attached to your account. With any luck, the meter engineer will see them beforehand so he knows what he’ll need on the day.
  

Photos to take:

• Close-ups of the meters and the teleswitch clear enough for their display and markings to be legible;
• Overall views of the backboards the meters, contactor and teleswitch are mounted on, showing the cabling to and from them, including the service head (the unit at the end of the big cable that comes into the property) and the consumer unit(s) (‘fuse boxes’);
• Close-ups of the consumer unit(s) with the lid propped open, clear enough for any labels on the individual breakers to be legible. 

If the teleswitch is in a different location from the meters (e.g. inside the house while the meters are in a box on an external wall), please say so. A simple sketch showing where the various bits of equipment are located would help; you should also say if any of it isn’t reachable from floor level (e.g. above a doorway).

Armed with this information, the engineer‘s chances of being able to complete the meter exchange at the first attempt are much higher. 

Many thanks for your advice here……the external meter is back to back with the internal electric cupboard so are very close to each other..

OK, thanks for the pictures, which arrived while i was typing … 

If it’s a three-phase supply, the situation changes a bit, because three-phase-trained smart meter engineers are a rare breed. It’s also a bit of a postcode lottery, so it would help if you told us where you’re located - the first part of the postcode is enough.

DT10 is the post code….

thanks 

It looks like a strange 2 phase supply which might complicate things but the circuits are each working on single phase so I wonder if the additional phase was wired to get the different timings.

As far as I understand, the teleswitch not only switches the meter from daytime to off peak but also triggers the contactor..you hear a clunk at switch over time.

the storage heaters didn’t come on last night..I’m checking tonight to monitor to see if the teleswitch changes the meter from day to night..it could be a problem with the teleswitch..it’s happened before..or the contactor or the individual storage heater…I will await info from ovo on the smart meter installation meantime.. thank you very much for replying….

That's just what would happen with a new smart meter, although I’m not sure about your specific polyphase set-up. Let’s hope someone who knows what he’s talking about chips in after Easter to enlighten us all.

Hey ​@larkwood 

I’m glad to see a few of our volunteers have already stopped by to help out here, I’m glad they were able to help. 

Do keep us updated on how you’re getting on. I’m not sure if they’re around, we may need to wait until next week for a replay, but I am going to tag one of our engineers who might be able to help with some advice, ​@Lukepeniket_OVO any insight on this one?