The new “Smart Electrical Meters” Do you have one on your home?

SeaMaiden · ‎03-10-2010

I have been reading up on these over the last couple of years. Many power companies are changing from the older analog meters on your home to the newer Smart Meters. They use a pulse form of radiation....SUPPOSEDLY at a safe level....but many people had all kinds of Heath issues once they are installed on the side of their home. AND THE AMOUNT OF RADIATION IS NOT ALWAYS AT SAFE LEVELS when measured..it varied a lot. To me it is concerning.

Of course there are those who are against them...and those who go along with it. Plenty of information out there if you want to look it up.

I called my power company today and OPTED OUT for the change over to the new smart melters that will happen over the next few weeks in my neighborhood. We have that option where I live. Not everyone does.

Maybe I am just a weirdo and am over stressing about this.....but to me it is important that I do not have this new meter on my home on the wall next to my bed.

I know I have radiation now in my home...and I try to cut back buy turning off my WiFi at night....and not having phones or such near where I sleep....

BriggsiePeawiggle · ‎03-09-2010

Here you could opt out if you wanted, but the smacked a fairly large extra charge on your bill.

SeaMaiden · ‎03-10-2010

@BriggsiePeawiggle wrote:
Here you could opt out if you wanted, but the smacked a fairly large extra charge on your bill.

Yes. I suppose it depends on how much it concerns you about your health VS the extra charge.

kitcat51 · ‎09-15-2016

I have one but didn't want it, sadly the fine & the additional monthly charge for opting out wasn't in my tight budget.

ValuSkr · ‎03-15-2014

I've had them for about five years, and appreciate the additional information they provide regarding usage of gas and electric. We weren't given a choice; in fact they were required by state law. The utility provided reassuring information about RF:

1) The meters transmit less than one second every ninety minutes and during emergencies.

2) The total volume of RF transmitted by these meters is lower than the existing meters and in fact extremely low - lower than many household devices, including cordless phones, cell phones, and microwaves.

3) The FCC limits RF exposure to 1 milliwatt per square centimeter.

RF exposure.JPG

Of course, your situation could be very different. I think you're smart to turn off your wifi at night; I do the same.

blackhole99 · ‎08-22-2013

We've had the Smart Meter for quite awhile and the fact that there was a radiation concern was never discussed.

sunshine45 · ‎03-09-2010

to opt out in our area it costs an initial $75 then an extra $5.50 a month.

we have had the smart meter for probably 4 or 5 years now.

"the ERT radio devices must be certified to the rules of the Federal Communications Commission. The RF intensity of smart meters while transmitting is below 1percent of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Maximum Permissible Exposure (MPE) limit. Again, given the difference in the RF power, the RF intensity of an ERT would be below 0.25 percent of the FCC MPE limit.."

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"The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing." - Albert Einstein

Nightowlz · ‎03-11-2010

We have a Smart Electric Meter & Smart Water Meter. The Gas company has not changed theirs yet. Nothing we could do about it. We did not have an option to Opt out.

I know our water bill sure went up with the new meters.

Only good thing about it is our water meter has a picture of a faucet on it. If the faucet shows a drip that means you have a leak.

If you are using a DECT Phone in your house it's like having a mini cell phone tower in your house. Google it. Even if you don't have one & your neighbors have one the radiation is going thru their walls & thru your walls so you are still getting it.

Jersey Born · ‎03-10-2010

Thank you for posting about this, SeaMaiden. When these meters come to my neighborhood, I will be opting out, too. I don't care about real time information about my energy usage. These meters are not only a health hazard; these meters give rise to some serious privacy issues, too. The energy companies actually sell your usage data (and they can tell the energy signature of every single appliance you use and when you use it -- or when you don't use it, too) to data mining companies who make a profile about you. If you take a shower every day at 6 PM, because you are a dog groomer and you want to wash off the dog smell on your person, your big data profile might indicate you are a partier who goes out at night and that is why you are taking your showers so late in the evening. That erroneous profile, allegedly describing what you do with your days and nights, is sold to countless other third parties whom you have no knowledge about. That means that your energy company is not only making money from you due to your energy usage, they are also making money of the energy usage data in real time that they get from their/your Smart Meters. (That was stated in the video I am about to mention.) The video is called "Take Back Your Power", and I highly recommend that anyone who is interested in this topic should watch it. There is no cost associated with watching it, and the video is easily found online.

Additionally, "smart" meters are not grounded like the older analog meters are, so the Smart Meters present a fire hazard, too. Everyone should have the option to opt out, if only for this reason, even if they do not believe that Smart Meters constitute an Electromagnetic Frequency (EMF) health risk. Google "Smart Meter Fires"and "Smart Meter explosions" and see what you find. The more you read about them, the more concerned you become.