Smart Meter Fires Part 1

Smart Meter Fires Part 1

SEPTEMBER 27, 2012

Could it really be the homeowners fault for every single one of the piles of smart meter fires that have happened globally?

Could it really be always attributed to something the homeowner did or didn’t do after the meter was installed when there was no fire previous nor any electrical problems?

Could it really be a ‘faulty base’ that they homeowner is never allowed to touch, inspect or see behind ‘magically’ became faulty right after or soon after install?

How does the homeowner damage the base without ever touching it?

If it is that they are finding ‘damaged’ or ‘faulty’ bases… why are they installing the meters?

If it is that the ‘qualified technicians’ (many of whom are under 20 yrs old and getting paid speed commissions for piece work) are missing these issues, why aren’t qualified Electricians doing the work?

Are plastic Meters really less flammable than metal?

So many questions, so few answers (from utilities) so we as the public are forced to solve this problem ourselves, for if the solution were to come to light, we might be looking at the big ‘L’ word and that is…Liability. This is the only thing the Utilities care about, not safety, not ‘inspections’ simply placing the blame on homeowners. If the concern was for safety, why would the installers be installing under load, risking their own safety, and the integrity of the grid by causing arcs at the base where the meter goes in and where ALL the power to and from your house goes in and out?

For most  fires, it is the opinion of this writer, electricians, electrical engineers and of course electricity itself and the laws it obeys, that faulty installs of the meters will be the primary cause.

Why is this a concern? You can see why…

This is from a fire/electrical failure in Victoria BC. The red arrows are what you are looking at. Specifically the separation between the two points on the burned meter base vs the tightness of the non burned base and of course the rest of the jaws in the burnt meter base.

When you have separation like this, which is very hard to think the installer, (who I and other have personally witnessed ripping and tugging the meters off and ramming the new ones in) has not caused such damage. It is hard to conceive that the homeowner did this. Even harder to believe that there would not have been a fire in the decades that the old meter was there and further that this fire occurred so shortly after installation. You can see the same in the next pic:

Now you see what happens when you install under load. The meter base is compromised and you get arcing, which is also what surely caused the fire from above. The connections are ‘loose’ this causes the current to ‘jump’ or ‘arc’ over/through the air to the connection, this is very bad news, causes tremendous amounts of heat, and is a timebomb since the meter on your house is now plastic vs metal. Once this arcing occurs (either at install or throughout time of the meter on the building) you are simply waiting for the inevitable electrical failure. Here is a look at arcing in action:

Getting back to some of the questions above, if the base was faulty pre-install, why would the installer put in the meter? Answer: They really don’t care, they are getting paid to go as fast as they can and the faster they go the more money the utility saves. This is part of why they install the meters under load. Can you picture the logistical nightmare of having to arrange 100′s of 1000′s or millions of people being home to shut off their grid, install and turn back on? While this would be of course the safest way (perhaps to even slowly roll out smart meters replacing the worn out analogues which would be a true savings in maximizing equipment life) it cannot be done. Too much money to be made selling private info, the sooner the meters go in the sooner new ones will have to be bought, software upgrades, data storage costs etc, all to be passed onto the consumers. Keeping in mind the pulses will inevitably self destruct the meters (up to 190 000 pulses per day or more/per meter) this does not even include pulse the meter will receive which will go right into your grid.

Your grid is not designed for this. It operates at 60 Hz. Typical smart meter pulse that it will send and receive will be 928 000 000 Hz. Most will also have a Zigbee chip in them to collect other data and communicate with smart apppliances. So you will have RF going in and out of your 60 Hz grid 24/7 at random pulse of 2 separate frequencies of 928 000 000 Hz and 2 400 000 000 Hz (Zigbee)

Topping it all off is the studies done here showing the problems with RF and corrosion which, as stated, is exactly what you don’t want at this critical juncture of your grid yet massive amounts of pulses, daily, yearly etc. will be pulsed into your entire grid.

https://www.corrdefense.org/Spotlight/2011%20Corrosion%20Conference%20Presentations/Electromagnetic%20radiation%20effects%20on%20corrosion.pdf

Sage and Associates,  http://emfsafetynetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/Smart-Meters-Risk-for-fire.pdf

Electricians, Electrical Engineers, are trying to educate the public to  this  absolute nightmare. ZERO wiring on the planet is capable of withstanding these pulses, let alone 100 000′s of times per day at 2 separate frequencies, none of which are compatible with your grid. (see why they are pulsing like this in previous posts on this site). Sure, the wiring or anything inside may not have problems the second the  meter is on, it is the slow, advanced degrading of materials that is of concern. Problems also occur with RF causing advanced corrosion and breakdown of materials, now think of your home and YOU being bathed in RF all day, and what the smart grid will add to it:

Here  we can see what it looks like when electrical problems are causing heat that while a huge problem, are not to the point of ignition:

As you see, things can appear ‘normal’ to the naked eye, when in reality there are big problems festering. This is a concern because some time may pass before a fire or failure occurs with smart meters, and the longer away from installations, the more ‘leverage’ the utility will have against homeowners to blame them (which they are already doing no matter what anyway)

Here you can see examples of fires right around the amateur installations of meters (these are just a few)

The above example is a classic case of greed and sheer idiocy. First, without warning or consent, they put on the smart meter, there are blown appliances and damage to the electrical grid. They take it off and replace with an analogue, all is well, they come back in again (no permission, unannounced) cause a 2nd fire and more blown appliances!

Above you can see the meters nearly burned the place down and without hesitation, the utility comes right back and puts new ones on!

Now we are getting a broader example, keep in mind Chicago is using the same meters as BC:

No, I didn’t get mixed up with cities, here now is Philadelphia:

Wait… there’s more, after the ‘halting of the program’ there were more fires! Now it is 29 ‘overheating meters’ which of course as with all fires are ‘being investigated’ or ‘homeowners fault’ with assurances that ‘safety is the #1 priority of the utility”

I will write a second part to this piece, with more example, and more of the story  behind the fires. Again, for the global readers, this is what is happening where you are also, as in almost all jurisdictions, the meters are being installed the same way, by the same ‘qualified technicians’ with grids that are the same (60 Hz) and so on with the similarities.

I am hopeful that I have cleared up a few things, taught you roughly about electricity/arcing and the meter installs. Perhaps also now (if not before already) you are more concerned about that thing on the side or your house, or maybe you don’t or aren’t getting a meter because of your refusal for other reasons (see other posts) but are concerned for a family member etc. This is not to scare, just to inform, which is what the utility should be doing, or of course not doing the above in the first place. This may compel you to consider action vs ‘oh well, their gonna do what they want’ when you know beyond your skyrocketing bills, health, privacy, there may be a fire waiting to happen to jeopardize that home, the items in it, injury to you or worse.

This is where it is ugly that instead of owning up, they are not concerned of keeping safe from burns and loss, merely avoiding liability, stonewalling etc.

This is a travesty, one that our group and groups across the globe are calling for an end of, and if you didnt think so before, with good reason. Peoples’ homes and lives are being compromised for profit and greed, which is in the end the true reason why this doesnt matter to them is there is too much money to be made, and  burned houses is only in the way of that.

I and others hope this propels you to action, if nothing else send this to people you know, to help others get educated on the risks top their home and lives

http://bcfreedom.wordpress.com/2012/09/27/truth-about-smart-meter-fires-part-1/