Sooner or later in the life of every owner of a living room there is a need to make repairs. Sometimes some cosmetic measures are enough, but it also happens that a major overhaul is required (especially in old houses), which, among all other things, may include such an element as replacing the electric meter.
What to prefer?
Before you go to the store for the device, you need to decide which electricity meter is suitable for this particular residential building. There can be a ton of options depending on particular housing features, the frequency of energy consumption, etc. In general, a meter can be induction or electronic, single-tariff, or keeping records at several rates. The latter can provide an opportunity to save money, since they take into account energy resources at the basic and preferential tariffs.
Electronic models electricity metering devices also differ in the principle of the reading mechanism, which can be mechanical or liquid crystal. By the way, experts are inclined to believe that replacing old electricity meters with new electronic models is justified because such devices are more reliable and consider energy consumption with greater accuracy than mechanical ones.
Further, before buying, it is necessary to determine the desired, permissible load that the device can withstand. If only a refrigerator and a TV will work in an apartment or house, then a five- or ten-ampere counter will be enough. If there is much more equipment (and there is usually more of it - you have a washing machine and a refrigerator, a freezer and several TVs, a computer and a microwave, a kettle and a crock-pot), then you need to pick up the device with a larger load, preferably with a margin.
Well, in addition to all of the above, you should not buy cheap devices. In such cases, there is always the possibility that the meter is not reliable enough and accurate.
Legal nuances
Most often in multi-unit buildings, single-phase power supply. Consequently, a single-phase meter is also needed. The market for electrical goods is now quite extensive, and electricity metering devices are presented in large quantities on it. But here you should know that replacing an electric meter in an apartment or a private house will entail the need to officially register the device. So: the meter that attracts the buyer should be present in the register of electricity metering devices that have passed certification and are approved for operation in the Russian Federation.
Immediately before replacing the old device with a new one, you should invite a representative of the organization that is in charge and supervising the consumption of energy resources. This is necessary to obtain permission for such a procedure as replacing an electric meter. Petroelectrosbyt, a guaranteed electricity supplier in St. Petersburg, may in some cases give such permission by telephone, without the direct visit of its representative. After obtaining this permission orally or on paper, the replacement procedure is carried out as soon as possible. If this is done after some time, then for the entire time period, energy consumption will be calculated according to the established tariffs, and not after the fact. And all this amount will have to pay.
Replacing an electricity meter: at whose expense?
When a permit or work order is received, sometimes the question may arise, but what is the replacement of the electric meter at whose expense, in fact, is made?
According to the Russian Civil Code, any homeowner bears all financial costs for its maintenance independently. If the electric meter is installed in the apartment, then, according to the regulatory documents of the Government of the Russian Federation, the owner of a dwelling in an apartment building will bear the full amount of financial costs for the following items:
- installation of an electricity meter;
- its replacement due to the end of its useful life or premature failure;
- maintenance (verification, calibration).
All of the above is relevant if the dwelling is privatized. If the housing is the property of the municipality, then the replacement of the electricity meter in the apartment is made at the municipal expense. If there is an agreement with various management companies, then the entire financial burden of installing, replacing and maintaining metering devices falls on their shoulders.
If the meter for energy consumption is located on the landing, then it refers to the property of the house. And here the responsibility for all installation, replacement and maintenance work should be borne by the management companies (this should be stipulated in the contract concluded with them).
If replacement of the electric meter in a private house is required, all financial issues will be decided at the expense of the owner of the private property.
Many regional organizations engaged in the supply of electricity to consumers, in order to facilitate the financial costs of the acquisition, replacement and commissioning of new metering devices, offer their customers the opportunity to put a multi-tariff meter with installment payment and monthly maintenance payments. The big plus of this proposal is that the consumer will not have to pay the entire amount (and not small) for the device and installation at once, but will be able to make payments in equal installments over 5 years, taking advantage of all the advantages of multi-tariff metering of electricity consumption.
Dismantling of the old device and installation of a new one should be carried out only with the permission of the energy supplying organization and its specialists. In any region of Russia, the replacement of an electric meter (Ufa, for example, is provided with electricity through the Bashkortostan Energy Sales Company) without prior notice is a violation of the electricity supply agreement and may be fraught with serious financial penalties.
Mandatory replacements
In addition to repairs, owners and tenants of housing may have other reasons for the mandatory replacement of electricity meters. So, for example, today everyone should replace meters with an accuracy class of 2.5, because by a government decree they were removed from the register and banned for use. Next, you will have to say goodbye to devices that have overdue state verification.
Mandatory replacement of the electric meter, which does not operate the counting mechanism, there is mechanical damage to the case, the disk does not rotate or rotates unevenly. It is unacceptable to use a device whose seal is broken or the viewing window is damaged, the error in calibration exceeds 2.5%. The use of metering devices of inadequate quality leads to the fact that customers overpay for electricity. Network organizations that provide energy supply services suffer heavy losses, which ultimately will still put a financial burden on ordinary consumers. The use of obsolete electricity meters makes it impossible to apply multi-tariff metering, which will allow consumers to reduce the amount of money spent on electricity.
Documents required to replace the device
In the old housing stock, energy surveys are periodically conducted with the participation of qualified specialists. During such raids, old devices that are subject to dismantling are identified. In this case, the rules for replacing the electric meter require the submission of an application from the owner of the house to the organization supplying the house with electricity.
The application shall indicate the addresses of the customer and the facility where replacement is necessary (in case they do not match), information about the old device and requirements for the new one. Required details of the contract for energy supply. In addition to the application, the homeowner must have documents on the right of ownership of real estate, where he will change the meter, passport with a mark on registration. If the replacement is not requested by the landlord himself, a power of attorney from him is required.
Qualification Requirements and Necessary Tools
Replacement of the meter should be carried out by an electrician with the appropriate qualifications and tolerance of at least 3 electrical safety groups. Those interested can get such knowledge in the centers of training and knowledge testing. In principle, if a person graduated from a technical school with an electrical engineering direction or an appropriate university, then the knowledge gained will be enough to carry out all the work of dismantling the old device and installing a new one. Otherwise, it is best to contact the Housing Office or the same organization that supplies electricity to consumers.
If qualifications are enough and the work will be done independently, then the procedure for replacing the electric meter assumes the existence of a certain set of special devices. It is imperative to have a low voltage indicator or a digital multimeter. The tool kit is specific, but simple enough: screwdrivers (Phillips and flat), pliers, wire cutters. Marker and electrical tape will not be superfluous.
Basic installation rules
Replacing an electric meter, at whose expense it would not be carried out, always implies compliance with certain rules. The device must be mounted in a place where it will be easily accessible for technical inspection, maintenance and reading. The room should be dry, and the temperature in it should not fall below zero in winter. It is permissible to mount electric meters on shields made of wood, metal or plastic. The optimum height at which the electricity metering mechanisms are placed is from 1.5 to 1.7 m. In the event of an emergency, you must be able to shut them down in a timely manner. The power supply to the device is carried out using any switching device, whether it is a packet switch, automatic machine or switch.
The procedure for replacing the electric meter in the apartment is such that, at the same time as installing the meter, the installation of circuit breakers that distribute the power supply lines within the premises is also carried out. When choosing machines, you should focus on the load characteristics of the power lines.
Instrument Connection Procedure
Do-it-yourself replacement of the electric meter begins with the installation of the device on the shield and its reliable fastening. With respect to the vertical axis, the counter must not deviate more than 1 degree.
Further, if an electric stove is installed in the apartment, then a jumper from the phase contact is transferred to the input terminal of the machine that supplies it. If there is no electric stove, the jumper is connected to the distribution machine closest to the switchboard. To bring the phase to the input terminal of the meter, they usually use a red or blue wire. The same wire conducts the phase from the output contact of the device to the input terminals of one of the machines.
When conducting such work, wires are laid horizontally or vertically. Wires with red-brown insulation are fixed at one end to the electrical contact of the appliance, and the other to the terminal of the machine.The input contacts of other machines are connected by jumpers with the same color insulation and are well tightened.
For wiring "zero" use blue-insulated wires. This is done as follows: the "zero" contact of the meter and the "zero" bus are connected by a piece of wire and are securely fixed.
If the meter is fixed to a steel electrical panel, then its case (shield) must be grounded by a conductor connected to the grounding circuit, and the free end connected to the contact of the "zero" bus. If the shield is plastic, then the grounding cable is connected directly to its contact plate.
Actions after replacement
Installed new electricity meters must be checked and sealed by specialists of regional organizations involved in the supply of electricity. For example, after completing a procedure such as replacing an electric meter, Mosenergosbyt sends its inspector upon request from the department that serves the residential area.
The following information must be attached to the application for calling a specialist:
- technical passport of the new electric meter;
- indications from the old dismantled device, or, if necessary, the meter itself;
- sometimes require a seal removed from the old meter, although this is not mandatory;
- documents confirming ownership of the premises.
However, if there is a written order of the inspector on the mandatory replacement of the meter, then no applications with a mass of additional information are needed. After the replacement, you just need to call and call a specialist of the organization that supplies electricity to the population.
After the installation of a new device is completed, the act of replacing the meter must be drawn up and signed by both parties (the contractor and the customer). This document should reflect the following information: address of the house and place of installation, characteristics of the old and new meters (model, number, year of manufacture, current readings), date of installation of the new device and details of the legal entity that made the replacement.
The amount of payment has increased: how to check the correctness of accounting?
Imagine that the replacement of the electric meter in a private house or own apartment has been made. But suddenly the owner notices that the amount of payment for the consumed electricity has increased, although in theory it should be the other way around. Doubts creep in whether the counter was chosen correctly and whether it is as good as it was praised by the seller or the representative of the company in which it was acquired.
There are verification methods with which you can verify the accuracy (or inaccuracy) of accounting. The simplest is to disconnect the apartment or house completely from the power supply. In this case, the meter must remain energized. Next, you need to note the time and observe the disc of the induction device or the light indicator of the electronic electric meter. Within a quarter of an hour (15 minutes), the disc must not make more than one revolution with the induction device, and the electronic indicator must not emit more than one pulse. If the “activity” of the meter is much higher, then there is a so-called self-propelled gun, and the landlord pays for the “air”.
A more complicated option is to determine the error with which the electric meter works. To do this, all electrical appliances in the house are turned off. A device with a known power (for example, a 100 W light bulb) is taken as a reference, it is turned on and the time of one turn of a disk or one pulse is calculated using a stopwatch. The error can be determined by the formula:
E = (P x t x n / 3600 - 1) x 100%
P is the power of the "standard" in kW; t is the time of one revolution or one impulse, n is the gear ratio (as a rule, it is on the counter display, and it must be in the passport of the device). If the calculated error is with a minus sign, then the device works with a leading effect.If the error value is positive, the device slows down. For reliability, it is possible to perform calculations with several “standards” and derive the arithmetic mean value. An error within 10% is considered normal.
Another way to verify this is to simply call a specialist from the energy supplying organization. In this case, you will have to pay for the procedure from your own funds. The results of the audit will be reflected in a written opinion. If it turns out that the device is faulty, then replacing the meter can be challenged, which will make it possible to require the installation of another meter instead of the previously installed one.
