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Irish Water Smart<de><del>Dumb meters

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    #32
    Andy From Sligo
    Registered Users Posts: 11,714 ✭✭✭✭Andy From Sligo


    RainyDay wrote: »
    A half-decent camera with a half-decent zoom and flash should do the job.

    being a contortionist and without that lump of a sender unit on top obscuring the digits would be better! :) - even better supply the customer (FOC or small charge) with a remote portable unit with LCD display so they can wirelessly read their water meter with ease!


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    #33
    DeVore
    Business & Finance Moderators, Entertainment Moderators Posts: 32,387 Mod ✭✭✭✭DeVore


    Why would the red numbers be *lower* the second week then? *confused*


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    #34
    transistor
    Registered Users Posts: 27 ✭transistor


    Think, man. Think!
    DeVore wrote: »
    nd it read (Black Numbers) 00055 (Red) 790
    1 week later I checked it again, it read (Black Number) 00058 (Red) 492

    Reading 1 = 55.790 m³.
    Reading 2 = 58.492 m³.
    Difference = 2.702 m³ = 2,702 litres.

    The red numbers roll over to zero and bump the blacks by one (least significant) digit.


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    #35
    Andy From Sligo
    Registered Users Posts: 11,714 ✭✭✭✭Andy From Sligo


    went out yesterday and flipped the lid and read the meter (or rather wife bent down and read meter cause i cannot see the digits) before i done power washing. Power washed drive/paths id say 2 hours. The digits were 22(black) 963(red) (22963) and today just read it agian and it says 23(blk) 694(red) (23694) - have i used 731 ltrs of water using the power washer and how much that will cost in monetry terms? - i was never any good at maths at school! :rolleyes:


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    #36
    transistor
    Registered Users Posts: 27 ✭transistor


    Half a cent / litre.
    731 litres x 0.5c = 365c = €3.65.

    It costs €4.88 for 1,000 litres - say €5 / 1,000 litres = 0.5c / litre.


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    #37
    Andy From Sligo
    Registered Users Posts: 11,714 ✭✭✭✭Andy From Sligo


    transistor wrote: »
    Half a cent / litre.
    731 litres x 0.5c = 365c = €3.65.

    It costs €4.88 for 1,000 litres - say €5 / 1,000 litres = 0.5c / litre.

    oh, thats great, not too bad, cheaper than buying jeyes or mossgo - dont make me feel too guilty for power-washing now, thanks :)


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    #38
    championc
    Registered Users Posts: 6,063 ✭✭✭championc


    Andy From Sligo wrote: »
    went out yesterday and flipped the lid and read the meter (or rather wife bent down and read meter cause i cannot see the digits) before i done power washing. Power washed drive/paths id say 2 hours. The digits were 22(black) 963(red) (22963) and today just read it agian and it says 23(blk) 694(red) (23694) - have i used 731 ltrs of water using the power washer and how much that will cost in monetry terms? - i was never any good at maths at school! :rolleyes:

    Possibly something wrong here. Assuming the average home copper cylinder is about 200 litres, this means that you used the equivalent of nearly 4 of these - surely not. 731 litres is a massive amount of water.

    I have a 210 litre water butt and recently connected my power washer to it. I used about 30 litres. On this basis, I would expect that you maybe used 73.1 litres.


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    #39
    Anchises
    Registered Users Posts: 582 ✭✭✭Anchises


    Should you wish to read your meter, please follow the following guidelines:

    To obtain access to the meter box, there are three recesses on the surface of the meter box lid. You can open the lid using a flat headed screw driver. Ensure that you insert the screw driver correctly as there is a rubber seal which protects the meter from rainwater. You then remove the lid and the frost plug.


    Are the meters damaged by the ingress of water ? What if one did not replace the rubber seal properly ? Would the meter suffer and would the homeowner be responsible ?
    Stupid way to access the figures !
    Imagine if you had to do that at a garage to see if you were paying the right amount !
    Is there some consumer legislation that gives us the right to access this meter without having to do contortions ?

    A.


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    #40
    liamf
    Registered Users Posts: 176 ✭✭liamf


    Actually in the meantime I have had my meter installed.

    The meter is deep (at least 60-80cms or so) down inside the enclosure, presumably as a guard against frost.
    It is nearly completely impossible to read from the surface.
    It is possible to put your phone in and take a photo of it.

    ... however ... the clip on radio module which is clipped onto the top of the meter obscures all the red digits and the right-most black digit.

    So, basically, if I kneel down, do some contortions and put my phone into the enclosure and take a picture, I can tell to the nearest 10m3 how much water I have used.

    W. T. F.

    I actually, for the fun, had my local TD write to them to ask if remote reading of meters was possible for punters.
    No, they said. Waffle about "protecting the IPR of the meter vendors" (total BS) and "data protection" (also total BS, unless the total muppets are using the same encryption key for each meter, in which case somebody should be fired immediately).

    However they also said that the National Council on Disabilities is "consulting" with them. Presumably on the contortion aspects.
    So it is not utterly impossible that remote reading may be enabled as some stage ...


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    #41
    Andy From Sligo
    Registered Users Posts: 11,714 ✭✭✭✭Andy From Sligo


    liamf wrote: »
    Actually in the meantime I have had my meter installed.

    The meter is deep (at least 60-80cms or so) down inside the enclosure, presumably as a guard against frost.
    It is nearly completely impossible to read from the surface.
    It is possible to put your phone in and take a photo of it.

    ... however ... the clip on radio module which is clipped onto the top of the meter obscures all the red digits and the right-most black digit.

    So, basically, if I kneel down, do some contortions and put my phone into the enclosure and take a picture, I can tell to the nearest 10m3 how much water I have used.

    W. T. F.

    I actually, for the fun, had my local TD write to them to ask if remote reading of meters was possible for punters.
    No, they said. Waffle about "protecting the IPR of the meter vendors" (total BS) and "data protection" (also total BS, unless the total muppets are using the same encryption key for each meter, in which case somebody should be fired immediately).

    However they also said that the National Council on Disabilities is "consulting" with them. Presumably on the contortion aspects.
    So it is not utterly impossible that remote reading may be enabled as some stage ...

    anyone would think IW dont want customers to check/keep an eye on how much water they are consuming ... just their employees! :rolleyes:


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    #42
    Andy From Sligo
    Registered Users Posts: 11,714 ✭✭✭✭Andy From Sligo


    id have the same qualms if i couldnt go outside and check my electricity meter to see how much electricity i am using, i dnt have to contort for that, its very easy for me to check, and there is none of this security breach of data BS in that situation so why should reading the water meter be any more difficult for the consumer to read - in fact my electricity bill provider has given me an indoor unit to see how much electricity i am using so i dont even have to step outsie in the cold to the electricity box, and they also supplied it free of charge which was nice of them .... Irish Water its over to you, any comment on that one? are you still going to make people get down on their hands and knees to read their meters?


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    #43
    bdo
    Registered Users Posts: 227 ✭✭bdo


    liamf wrote: »
    ... unless the total muppets are using the same encryption key for each meter ...

    Liam, you know in your heart of hearts , that is exactly what has happened.

    And therefore it has to be guarded now like the secret of fatima.


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    #44
    liamf
    Registered Users Posts: 176 ✭✭liamf


    bdo wrote: »
    Liam, you know in your heart of hearts , that is exactly what has happened.

    And therefore it has to be guarded now like the secret of fatima.

    Indeed I would not put it past them at all.


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    #45
    adrian92
    Registered Users Posts: 563 ✭✭✭adrian92


    Have they even encrypted it ? (!)

    (I wonder has anyone tried to pick up on the frequency someone previously mentioned)


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    #46
    RainyDay
    Closed Accounts Posts: 6,925 ✭✭✭RainyDay


    bdo wrote: »
    Liam, you know in your heart of hearts , that is exactly what has happened.

    And therefore it has to be guarded now like the secret of fatima.

    What's the odds that the encryption key and process is posted online somewhere?


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    #47
    liamf
    Registered Users Posts: 176 ✭✭liamf


    adrian92 wrote: »
    Have they even encrypted it ? (!)

    (I wonder has anyone tried to pick up on the frequency someone previously mentioned)

    I'd say its a certainty they are encrypted.
    There is code online to use rfm22b boards and a raspberry pi to read smart meters in general which use m-bus... I might add that to my list of nice-to-try projects ...


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