What's a smart meter?
When you were a kid, you probably noticed your electric meter spinning away on the side of your house. Maybe you’ve even had your dog bark like crazy when the meter reader from your poles and wires company came into your yard to take your monthly meter reading. Now, new electronic meters called advanced meters or “smart” meters may just change all that.
A smart meter is a new type of electric meter that provides accurate, detailed readings about exactly how much electricity you're using and when you’re using it. They read smart meters electronically, so no meter-reader visit is required. Your dog may be disappointed, but you’ll be happy about all kinds of new information about your electric usage that was never before available. Traditional meters only measured your total electricity consumption, but smart meters can give you information at a very detailed level (in 15-minute intervals) and they can help you monitor and manage your electricity usage hour-by-hour, day-by-day or week-by-week.
The benefits of smart meters
The best thing about smart meters is all the information they supply. They call it two-way communication, but smart meters actually supply important information to three different parties:
- You will be able to get a detailed, constantly updated snapshot of your daily energy usage, either through an in-home energy monitor or an online portal.
- Your poles and wires company (also called your transmission and distribution service provider, or TDSP) will be able to use the information from your smart meter to detect outages to do an even better job of delivering electricity to your home or business.
- Your retail electricity provider (that's us!) will receive accurate usage information much more efficiently, which will help us provide you with even better customer service and offer you new features and services that give you more control over your usage.
What’s in it for me?
With all this detailed usage information, smart meters can help you know more about your electricity usage, and they also improve your electric company's ability to offer you better service. For example:
- You don’t have to wait for your monthly bill to see how much electricity you’re using. Now you can watch your usage by time of day, week or year.
- Your usage information is measured and transmitted to your poles and wires company electronically, which means you won’t have to worry about meter reading errors.
- Smart meters will help your poles and wires company locate outages faster, which in many cases will enable them to restore your power faster.
- You'll be able to pay for your electricity in advance. First Choice Power is the first electric company in Texas to offer a prepaid electricity service. Our Control First™ service lets customers sign up for electricity service with no credit check, no contract and no costly deposit.
HANs on
Smart meters also advance the way you control your electricity usage. A Home Area Network (HAN) Device is a high-tech add-on to your smart meter—it provides you with even greater visibility and control over your electricity usage. HAN devices can be thermostats, in-home displays or smart appliances. When you make the switch to smart meters, you will have the possibility of including these devices and creating your own home area network.
You’ll also have access to your smart meter right here through www.FirstChoicePower.com. We’ll provide rich charts, graphs and usage numbers online to help you track—and reduce—your usage.
How do I get a smart meter?
Texas poles and wires companies (TDSPs) are in the process of rolling out smart meters all over the state. Already, almost 1.3 million smart meters have been installed across Texas, with a total of almost 6 million scheduled for installation by the end of 2014. At this time, Oncor Electric Delivery, CenterPoint Energy, AEP Central and AEP North are all in the process of installing smart meters in different areas they serve. If you want more information, call your poles and wires company to and ask about the installation schedule for your area, or check their websites for deployment schedules.
Not sure which company serves your area? Your bill should tell you. Look under the graph in the YOUR USAGE section on the back of your bill. And here are their phone numbers: