Why is my economy 7 smart meter switching to peak rates for 30 minutes every morning whilst still connecting my off peak circuit?

Hi,

I’m Blastoise186, one of the forum volunteers who helps out on the OVO Forum. :)

I don’t think there’s much to be done here. It sounds to me as if the meter is delaying the disconnection due to the random offset - but you will also have had roughly the same time ahead of the connection where the off-peak started before the circuit went live.

It’s done this way to prevent millions of Economy 7 loads being disconnected all over the UK at once, which would cause a massive shock to the grid. The same applies when the E7 period starts and it’s all done to prevent a blackout across massive areas.

I can try to ask @Tim_OVO if it’s possible to adjust the timings though as it may be possible to better align the two with each other.

Sorry, but you are wrong Blastoise.

That random timing means that the changes occur around 1 ½ minutes after the set times on my meter.

Disconnecting the off-peak circuit 30 minutes late is not a random error, it indicates that the rate change and off-peak disconnection have erroneously been set for different times by OVO.

If you have been told otherwise, you have been mislead.

Doing it in a 90 second window is still too much of a shock to the national grid, you can’t just yank such a huge load on and off the grid that quickly because you’ll break it.

If memory serves, each smart meter has its own random offset and suppliers don’t tend to define how big it can be. No matter who you’re with, it’s the same offset if you keep the same meter. @PeterR1947 is a retired electrician and he probably knows more about how it all works that I do though.

Wrong again, but even if such a large window were required, there is no reason why the meter’s peak/off-peak price change should occur at a different time.

Years ago I visited one of the facilities which enables the off-peak switch-on/off to take place over a very short length of time. Very impressive! Smart meters have changed nothing.

Sorry, but you are typing utter rubbish, and I shall ignore any future. messages from you.

Goodbye.

Ultimately, that’s how Economy 7 has always worked, both pre and post smart meters. I’ve always known the control signals on older RTS controlled E7 meters never match up precisely to the actual advertised switching times. As far as I’m aware though, you are not entitled to the cheaper rate outside the posted hours and I think you’re still responsible for making sure any high energy items are powered off on time, regardless of whether some kind of time switch or smart meter is helping out.

When you’re using this kind of tariff, the onus is on you to adjust your routines, lifestyle, usage patterns and habits around the tariff and switching times, not the tariff and switching times to adapt around you. I’m just going off of what multiple sources say and you can find them as well with a bit of research.