PG&E smart meter communication failure – lessons for the rest of us

First I’m not a PG & E customer. I would think that they probably published the tariff schedule just like Portland General Electric and other utilities in order that we consumers can make informed choices. I have not seen any mention of what information PG&E provided customers but am interested. Certainly I’m sure that customers were told that their meters would change because it would disrupt their electricity in their home and because PG&E may have required access to their property. Or maybe Portland General electric is the model to follow.

Most people I know throw out the inserts included with their monthly bills and just pay it unless it looks wrong (sudden increase). Similar behavior with installation instructions and assembly instructions. So, did PG&E provide examples to their customers? Were they incomplete? All things being equal in terms of consumption behaviors, I would think that a customer would be able to calculate the impact given their monthly bill because the format breaks things down fairly clearly.

So before I decide that PG&E botched this, I want the rest of the data. And yes I realize that even if they did provide information, there is always room for improvement.

That said, I don’t think that a smart meter provides sufficient information to allow customers to modify their consumption behavior. Insufficient data resolution. I’m thinking that the analogy is how to modify your spending behavior by simply looking at your daily checking account balance – it is just an aggregate, point-in-time measurement.

For consumers to benefit from lower rates AND for the utility companies to benefit (not by making more dollars but by avoiding expensive capital investments), a consumer needs to understand which appliances use the most electricity and when. You can buy expensive software and meters, but will it pay back when simply using paper / spreadsheet and common sense can probably give one a good starting point.

I hear that Heating, AC and water tanks are the most expensive factors in electric bills. The US Government claims that most energy usage in commercial buildings is from lighting. How much energy do I lose because the hot water piping is uninsulated and it is 40+ feet from the tank to the kitchen sink where I have to waste water (pay for in and going out). How much energy usage can I shift to cheaper hours? Is it a better investment to change my windows to triple pane or re-insulate. Impact = ? I need to know before I invest which implies simulation, models and then validation. My house is heated to 64 F in winter and the AC starts at 84 in summer. I only have Energy Star appliance (better ones now available). I have – in theory – an energy efficient home built to 2006 norms; but as I feel the air leeks around electrical, doors, double pane windows, etc, I realize that our greater savings probably don’t come from smart meters but from the good old basics.

I don’t think that a smart meter is helping me change my behavior. It does help the utilities in many ways and it provides (maybe) infrastructure for smarter energy usage in the future. But for now I’m doing the calculations and modeling using pen and paper in the sunlight. I want to globally optimize my energy costs, my impact on the environment.

Sorry for the long comment. While I’m not anti nanny state, I just find that we jump on organizations way too easily and with biased / incomplete facts. Sometimes companies just can’t win for losing. But I think that it is time to address real issues and move away from the hype of new stuff.

Just my perspective and meant to be a constructive interaction

Class Action Bottom Feeding lawyers.

The problem isn’t with the smartmeter, the problem is with the rate hike (during daytime / peak usage period).

But since providing electricity is the most expensive during the daytime / peak usage period, then it makes sense to bill accordingly. Until smartmeters, this wasn’t possible. In the long run, this could mean lower bills … for those willing to adjust their usage patterns.

Though since we ALREADY pay well above the national average rates ( http://www.neo.ne.gov/statshtml/115.htm ), I would rather have seen any rate increase for peak usage matched by a rate decrease for off-peak usage.

This should be an easy enough problem for the consumers to solve. Whatt you do with the power on your side of the meter is your business. A few consumers ought to buy old analog meters and install them just inside of the “Smart Meter”. (Now that the digital ones are rolling out, the old ones can be had on the cheap.) Log discrepancies. Pursue recourse.

I still did not get a “Smart Meter”. I am still trying to understand the various views for this new technology. As far as I know, while these meters alloe you to monitor your energy consumption and then you can decide to decrease your consumption level. If so, I don’t understand how people can increase their bills.

In an article I read that there will be visual monitoring systems as the next feature of the Smart Meters. May be it can help people to lower their bills.

Cheers