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Permalink Reply by Oldman on November 7, 2011 at 12:19pm

There is a growing probability of this in the US also. Although none (that I'm aware of) have been proven to be the smart meters themselves, there is the probability that these meters are frying appliances, and may be causing fires in older homes by overloading the wiring.

One local provider even denies responsibility for the meters themselves, stating to a local news report that the meters are "owned" by the customer, thus they (the customer) are responsible for any repairs. I can't speak for down under, but I'm willing to bet the court system here will soon be inundated with private and class action law suits.

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Permalink Reply by Fireyladd - Retired Chief Sharp on November 7, 2011 at 2:06pm

Very interesting! There has been a major change over in our area of installation of this type of electric meter. I have not heard or had any problems as of yet. However, we will follow this. Interesting!

 

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Permalink Reply by Ron Briggs on November 7, 2011 at 6:38pm

There have problem in my area with them shorting out after a short amount of time, but no reported fires as of yet that I am aware in my response area.

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Permalink Reply by Vic Silverfish on November 8, 2011 at 7:37am

Interesting.  Looks like the investigation is into the way they were installed more than anything else.  For those of you in the US, the electrical systems and fuse boxes in Australia are VERY different than in the US.  I've actually had a small fire in mine from a short that developed over the years. 

 

I'm very curious to see how this turns out.

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Permalink Reply by Mike Schlags (Captain Busy) Retd on November 11, 2011 at 4:47pm

 

I know that I'm not the only one questioning the power companies installation of smart meters. Folks in the San Francisco Bay Area have been actively working against the power companies, noting that no one has seen a reduction in the cost of power use with smart meters, but instead, the opposite.

I've been looking for a reason to justify getting rid of the smart meter that was installed on my house, without my permission. It just appeared one day by a company that made money installing the meters, whether the customer wanted it or not. You have the option of "opting out", but this means a different fee if you don't elect to allow them 24/7/365 access to your smart meter.

 

What I have seen is one hell of an increase in my power bill with the "smart meter" now knowing when I am using the electricity and charging more for peak hours. There is nothing good for the consumer about this device that provides the power company with all of your families energy consumption data.

I have also heard but have not been able to verify that one of the smart meters puts off the same amount of cancer causing problems associated with cell phone towers. The only difference is that this one is attached to your house. It would make me nervous to have my children sleeping on the other side of the wall from a smart meter not knowing whether or not it is an actual hazard. Too much is not known, nor shared at this point besides the company line, it's safe...

I question just how safe this is, and now with a potential fire hazard...

 

I will be curious to see how others feel and if they have taken any action(s) toward having their smart meter replaced with the good old fashioned stupid ones. I'm also very curious to hear if anyone else has had any fire issues in conjunction with the new smart meters.

CBz

 

Disclaimer: I do not support or endorse either of turn.org or stopsmartmeters.org. The graphics are used only for supporting the text and content for the reader. I will say that my electric bill the month following the new smart meter installation skyrocketed. Big Brother is here and he knows when and how you are using your electricity. Just sayin'

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Permalink Reply by Russ on November 11, 2011 at 10:20pm

i'm suprised by the picture that the device was not UL tested. those folks have a tendancy to find flaws that the builders miss

FORGOT TO ASK- can anybody shed any like or speculate on what the specific cause(s) are? the article didnt go into specifics

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Permalink Reply by lutan1 on November 11, 2011 at 10:31pm

Here Down Under, there's no choice. You're getting one whether you like it or not....

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