Smart Meters For Our Homes – Will They Really Help Lower Energy Costs?
Recently there’s been a lot of talk with regards to installing smart meters in all homes. These so called smart meters are essentially advanced electric meters which have the ability to identify power consumption in far greater detail than the old regular meters. This information is then relayed back to the utilities company for monitoring purposes as well as billing, but the question remains, will these meters really make any difference as far as reducing power consumption is concerned. In order to shed some light on the topic, let’s take a look at exactly what one can and cannot expect from the new smart meters.
Traditional power meters regulate only the energy consumed, and not when it was used, meaning that it’s hard to match consumption with production. Smart meters are one of the more economical methods of measuring not only consumption, but times other information. This allows power companies to set different prices according to when the power is used. This will allow customers to save money by using power at nonpeak hours and avoiding paying too much for energy. It’s hoped that this will keep electricity prices down.
These smart meters are already in use in numerous countries such Italy, where the main energy supplier currently provides electricity to more than 27 million customers, all of which have smart meters. These meters which communicate via low voltage power lines make it possible for the electric company to monitor usage and unauthorized usage. Electric companies are now also able to turn power either on or of remotely.
Smart meters have also been implemented in Turkey, Canada, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Scandinavia and Australia. In the United states, a number of jurisdictions are actively pursuing smart meter technology, such as Northen California, Los Angeles, and Austin, Texas. Implementation is imminent in the UK and in Ireland. Energy experts have noted that it’s important for meters to allow homeowners to make choices such as buying their power when it’s cheapest and selling wind turbine and solar panel electricity to utilities when they choose to.
Of course for smart meters to function properly, they need to be able to communicate information to a central command, and this is without doubt the biggest problem yet encountered. However, various proposals to have been put forth with regards to this issue, some of which suggest the use of cellular networks, power line communications, and even radio.
Just recently, the U.S. president openly called for 3,000 miles of transmission lines and a total of 40 million smart meters to be installed, making it the most ambitious upgrade the country’s electrical grid has seen in the last 40 years. In fact, many people believe that it will have such a significant influence on society, that it could be compared to the Internet. Furthermore, because this project promises to be able to make use of power which originates from clean power projects, it has received a great deal of support. Additionally, it is widely accepted that such a project will help to curb the need to for additional power production centers.
With the price of smart meters ranging from 100 to $300.00 each, it’s apparent that the price depends largely on the quality of the meter being used. Even though this could be considered a significant investment, when one considers that there’s been a lot of investment into this technology, it may very well be possible sooner rather than later. In all likelihood you will soon be choosing when you want to use electricity, based on the various prices, and hopefully this will allow you to reduce your average monthly energy bill.