Re: Those PG&E Smart Meters (again) I was on the phone to PG&E (the California Based "Energy Provider", aka our Utility Company) yesterday asking for a Service Address Electricity Turn-On. No problems getting things set up and when I asked about providing access to the site... I was told physical access for restoring Electric and Gas Service was no longer necessary with the Smart Meter Retrofit in place.
Seems they can turn electric service on and off by remote control. And the Agent told me they can easily track energy consumption with time of day. Sure enough even the Natural Gas Meters now have "Smart Meter" boxes on them. I'll have to look/ask how the Gas Meters obtain electric energy. Probably a long life battery recording usage... only. Both good and bad depending on your opinion... The classic "no free lunch rule" applied when the Service Representative told me they still couldn't turn-on the electricity/account for a minimum 3-days because that function was done by another Dept he wasn't in direct communications with (one of the three days was a Sunday). Those meters are smart... and they have control to the On/Off Switch by remote control. cheers, s.
