What Is A Smart Meter?

Between 2014 and 2019 the UK will be rolling out smart meters to every home and small business around the nation. But what are smart maters, why are we switching, and have they anything to do with smart grids?

What Are They?

They are a new type of electric meter (There are equivalents for natural gas but it doesn't look like we'll be getting them in Britain) and will be replacing our existing meters. They have the ability to store our daily electric usage in great detail and communicate readings back to the energy companies automatically.

Why Are They Being Installed?

Initially the main benefits to the consumer will be to end estimated readings and the need for someone to read the meter, so bills will be more accurate (no more estimates) and you don't get bothered by men wanting to read your meter. The power companies will make savings from streamlining the meter reading process e.g. staff reductions.

Have They Got Anything To Do With Smart Grids?

Eventually the meters may become an important part of a smart grid, a kind of intelligent electrical grid.

Smart grids know what the demand and supply is in real time and can smooth out the spikes, thus reducing the need to build extra power stations that spend most of their lives idle.

They are also more reliable, with improved fault detection and 'self healing'; they are better at handling intermittent power sources like wind turbines and solar panels, meaning that they can make up a higher proportion of the total mix, and reduce our carbon emissions; more efficient (e.g. by actually managing the demand from our household appliances without us noticing); and many other features besides.

The bottom line is that smart grids can reduce our bills (by being more efficient), cut carbon emissions, be more reliable, and improve our energy security.

Smart meters are an integral part of that because they can be used to manage our appliances, inform the power companies of demand in real time, and when there's a local problem like a power cut.