Some 5,500 of Ontario’s 4.8 million smart meters are being removed and replaced because of a risk they could heat up, cause an electrical short and possibly spark a fire.
SASKPOWER
In Saskatchewan last summer, SaskPower removed a model of Sensus Corp. smart meter from homes and businesses after eight unexplained minor fires.
Some 5,500 smart meters in Ontario are being removed and replaced because of a risk they could heat up, causing an electrical short and possibly spark a fire.
David Collie, president and CEO of the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA), will brief reporters Thursday afternoon at Queen’s Park about the precautionary measure.
The ESA is issuing a “safety bulletin” to Ontario’s electrical utilities, alerting them to the potential risks.
It’s the latest snag to hit the controversial $2-billion smart meter program, which auditor general Bonnie Lysyk criticized last month for cost overruns and poor performance.
Lysyk found one in six of the meters, which are designed to promote conservation, had not yet transmitted any readings of electricity use.
The system was supposed to cost $1 billion, but that has doubled.
In Saskatchewan last summer, SaskPower removed a model of Sensus Corp. smart meter from homes and businesses after eight unexplained minor fires.
Thirty of Ontario’s 77 utilities use the same brand of meter, but it was not immediately clear if those are the same devices subject to the ESA warning
Smart meters enable utilities to charge fluctuating prices at different times of day, meaning electricity will be more expensive at peak times of day.
That’s to encourage conservation because consumers should be able to save money by using their dishwashers and other appliances at night.
The Ontario Fire Marshal’s office has said smart meters have been linked to 13 small fires since 2011.
There are about 4.8 million smart meters installed in the province.
www.esasafe.com/assets/files/esasafe/Newsroom/ESA-Meter-Release-FINAL-ROP-Jan.22.2015.pdf
5,400 smart meters recalled over safety concerns
01/22/2015 01:36 PM Kevin Misener and Toronto staff
http://www.citynews.ca/2015/01/22/5400-smart-meters-recalled-over-safety-concerns/#__federated=1
Thousands of smart meters are being recalled across the province because they could overheat, short circuit and cause fires.
The Electrical Safety Authority (ESA) said the move affects about 5,400 smart meters.
Officials told 680News none of the affected meters were installed in areas serviced by Toronto Hydro or Hydro One, but seven are in Oakville.
The ESA said at Queen’s Park on Thursday afternoon that the affected meters have a very specific design not used in the remainder of the 4.8 million meters used in Ontario. The authority will be ordering Ontario utilities to remove and discontinue the use of Sensus 3.2 meters by March 31.
Local utilities will advise homeowners if their meter needs to be replaced.
The ESA said affected meters are susceptible to arcing and possible fire. There have been no reports of faults in Ontario, but there have been cases in Saskatchewan.
Last month, Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk criticized the $1.9-billion smart meter program for coming in at twice the original estimated cost, failing to meet targets for reducing electricity demand and failing to reduce hydro bills.
Kevin Misener @Misener680News Follow
Dr. Joel Moody says water, moisture contamination is what causes the current to arc within the faulty meters. #ONpoli
Fear of fire hazard causes removal of thousands of smart meters
Saskatchewan removed more than 100,000 meters last year because of fires
The Canadian Press Posted: Jan 22, 2015 2:58 PM ET Last Updated: Jan 22, 2015 4:31 PM ET
Ontario’s Electrical Safety Authority is directing local utilities to replace a certain model of smart meter “as a preventative step” after reviewing reports of problematic metres in Saskatchewan.
Last summer, the Saskatchewan government ordered SaskPower to remove more than 100,000 newer model meters that had already been installed after reports of nine fires related to the equipment.
An investigation in Saskatchewan found that rain water and contaminants getting into the meters appeared to contribute to them failing.
In Ontario, the Electrical Safety Authority says no local utilities are using the model installed in Saskatchewan.
It says “no serious safety events” have been reported in Ontario but still wants a certain smart meter model removed by March 31 as a precaution.
There are 5,400 of these meters in Ontario, which is a tenth of a per cent of the 4.8 million meters in the province. The ESA has posted a list of how many of the affected smart meters have been deployed by power companies around Ontario. Bluewater Power Distribution, which covers Sarnia and other communities in southwestern Ontario, has the most with over 3,400, followed by 449 with Waterloo North Hydro.
The province’s auditor general criticized smart meters in her 2014 annual report, saying the $2-billion program has so far spent double its projected cost and has not led to the government’s electricity conservation goals being met.
The Ontario environmental commissioner has said the gap between peak and off-peak prices needs to be much higher in order to encourage people to conserve.
Video Coverage
http://toronto.ctvnews.ca/thousands-of-smart-meters-to-be-removed-over-safety-concerns-1.2200999
#1 by Helpless in Welland on February 13, 2015 - 3:55 pm
Anyone familiar with electromagnetic pulses that go through my house when my neighbour is running something, either home security, solar pv inverter, wifi or everything hooked up to home security through wifi, possibly overloading smart meter which faces mine? It also interferes with sine waves and throws my furnace off and other electronics. I have heard the pulsing on AM station, very distinct. RF detector doesn’t pick up but my ears sure do and causes sleep deprevation. The noise pressure has also caused major cracks in walls. Hasn’t been fun for year and a half now. I need someone to help with spectrometers, etc. to record this garbage at 2a.m. No one will help me, not even Hydro.
#2 by Helpless in Welland on February 13, 2015 - 4:04 pm
btw this started same time Hydro did work on the street and at neighbours house, I believe when they installed solar panel on workshop roof. I have pole with transformer on my front lawn which maybe now I’m being used as a substation to redirect and downstream dirty electricity through my house. I’m grasping at straws but there is definitely something very wrong going on here. I’m hypersensitive and it is causing me unnecessary health issues on top of existing ones.