( WARNING!!!! Doing the electric meter “hacking” methods stated herein is PUNISHABLE under existing laws.)Tampering the electric meter is not new or at least in our lifetime we heard it once. There are many ways to hack or tamper our meter in order to get a cut on our electricity bill.
But most if not all forms of tampering the electrical meter are considered illegal. Thus, tampering our electric meter is punishable under RA 7832 which provides for both fine and imprisonment up to 20 years.The various ways of electricity theft ranges from actual tampering of the electric meter to using devices that electronically or electrically slows down or even stops the meter. The following “hacking” methods are the most commonly-known but prohibited under Philippine Law.USING A MAGNETThe electric meter is an electro-mechanical induction device.
It uses electricity ( consumes about 2 watts to operate itself), moving parts ( like the aluminum dial), and an electromagnetic (induction) motor. The electric meter uses eddy current to regulate the rotation of the dial in accordance with the actual consumption of electricity.Hence the meter uses electromagnetism (induction) it is also possible to interfere its movement by using magnets. The magnets of considerable sizes should be placed directly at the sides of the meter.
But the porous security leaves the meters open to a range of abuse including under reporting or re-assigning usage to someone else. 'With more work it might be possible to find a way to seek out meters and cut off the power they are supplying, they said,' the BBC wrote. The Spanish work sets a cautionary example for the rest of the world. Four Ways to Hack the Smart Grid. If the meter hasn't been built with protective features, a hacker can use syringes to insert a needle into each side of the device's memory chip. The needle serves as a probe to intercept the electrical signals in the memory chip. By analyzing these signals, the hacker can deduce the device's programming.
Here’s a video clip on how to use a magnet to hack an electric meter.BORED HOLE & NEEDLEThis method involves direct tampering by boring hole or holes anywhere in the meter’s plastic casing. The tiny hole is then inserted with a needle which will stop or slows down the spinning aluminum dial.
This tampering method can be easily spotted by the meter readers of the power company.SALT & SUGARSalt can enhance the conductivity of water while sugar isn’t. See about it. But the properties of salt and sugar have nothing to do about tampering electric meter. Salt and sugar are placed or slip through the slit of the electric meter to distract the spinning dial. Worst, ants will swamp inside the meter for the thirst of sugar.
🙂BREAKING THE SEALIf putting a magnet and filling in salt & sugar on your electric meter is not enough, a breaking in is possible by cutting or removing the seal that locks the meter from tampering. This will lead to the next method– using a jumper.JUMPING ALL THE WAY TO VECOUsing a jumper to skip the electric meter is an old-fashioned tampering method but it’s the easiest. It’s done by disconnecting the line after the meter and instead connect it directly to the service line of VECO (Visayan Electric Company). This tampering method is easily detected by authorities.TURNING THE METER UPSIDE, DOWNIf enough of the aforementioned is not enough, then turning your meter upside down could be a way to stop the meter. But this is very obvious and will be short-lived because the company’s meter reader shall call the maintenance to fix it.REVERSING THE METERThe meter can be stopped from running or even reverse its motion to reduce the actual consumption reading.
This can be done by using the so-called CURRENT REVERSING TRANSFORMER which are sold in the form of a power-saving device. Someone told me of a bulb which has almost no effect on the electric meter. Somewhere inside that bulb maybe a current reversing transformer.DC LOADThe most sophisticated way which i could not decipher is the use of a rectified DC load to prevent eddy current production in the meter. This will slows down or stop the meter. However, i haven’t seen a demo on how to do this.I had a discussion on electric meter tampering during my radio show–“ Pangutana” last Sunday (Dec, 11) over DyAB1512 and here’s the audio clip:Again, the use of the aforementioned methods of hacking the electric meter is PUNISHABLE by Philippine laws. There are ways to reduce your electricity bill by not risking yourself to jail and damage your reputation. VECO has these and also this to us consumers.
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Up to 35% Off UmiDigi Phones,Replace lighting with energy efficient light bulbsLighting points believe it or not are one of the highest contributors to your monthly energy bill. So if you are serious about saving money on electricity you should take lighting serious. Those 40w, 60w, 100w and 200w incandescent bulbs that you are currently using consume lots of power and are very inefficient. The larger or brighter they are the more electricity they consume.You can feel an immediate reduction in your electricity bill if you simply change your inefficient incandescent bulbs with energy efficient light bulbs. For example if a house has five 100w incandescent light bulbs that are turned-on an average of five hours/day, the bulbs will be consuming 2.5 units (Kwh) of energy per day. Assuming a rate of N12.89/unit of electricity in Nigeria, the cost will be 22.23 Naira/day.
This figure might look small but by the time you calculate the cumulative cost over 30 days, it will add up to N966.75 (75 units). This figure is just for five bulbs, you have not added other gadgets and the monthly fixed charge.If however, you replace the incandescent bulbs with energy efficient light bulbs significant savings will be made. Domestic energy efficient light bulbs consume between 6w and 36w. Assuming, you replace the 100w bulbs with 2 x 20 w energy efficient bulbs, 2 x 20w fluorescent tubes, and one 26w energy efficient bulbs your consumption per day under similar conditions will drop to 0.53 units or N6.83. Monthly cost for your energy will drop to 204.90 Naira (a 78.8% drop)Well, you can see the huge savings that is achievable simply by being smart.
Although energy efficient light bulbs are more expensive, they last longer and will eventually pay for the cost many times over. Hence they are good value for money. Buy energy efficient gadgetsAlthough replacing your light bulbs with energy efficient ones is the fastest, easiest and cheapest way to reduce your electricity bill you should not stop there.
When buying gadgets in the future be mindful of power ratings. Always buy gadgets that are competitive in energy consumption.Gadgets that consume lots of energy include: electric heaters, refrigerators air conditioners, and electric pressing iron. When buying this devices look for models that are efficient. There are ratings like EnergyStar and EnerGuide to help you. Gadgets with these ratings are certified to be energy efficient.Televisions, computers and DVD/VCD players have a potential of consuming lots of energy as they are usually operational for longer hours. TVs and VCD/DVD players are available that use less than 20w, buy those. If you are using one of those old 80w to 90w TVs it is surely having a big impact on your electric bill.Buying energy efficient gadgets is a smart way of saving energy.
Such systems are more expensive but are good value for money. Ensure your thermostats are workingHeating and cooling gadgets that consume lots of energy, like refrigerators, air conditioners, electric heaters and electric pressing irons usually comes with thermostat. One important function (although not its main function) of the thermostat is to stop these gadgets from operating continuously. Once the target (preset) temperature is reached, the thermostat automatically switches off the gadget. The gadget is switched back on when temperature rises or falls below the preset temperature by a threshold. This intermittent on-off switching saves energy.If the thermostat fails, these gadgets operate continuously, increasing energy consumption and hence increasing your electricity bill.If you notice that the thermostat in any gadget is faulty replace it as soon as possible in order to continue benefiting from the energy saving. Security lightsSecurity lights could also be contributing to your high electricity bills.
For example if you have two security lights of 100w each and you leave them on for eight hours/night, it will contribute N618.72/month (48 Kwh) to your electricity bill.If you always forget to turn off the security lights in the morning, this figure may rise to up to N1,856.16/month (144 units). If you are using the high energy consuming halogen lamps your energy consumption will be much higher.To save cost on energy, look for energy efficient lamps and light bulbs for your security light. If you always forget turning off your security lights you should look for automated systems that will contain sensors that will automatically switch on at night and switch off very early in the morning. You can add switching off your security light in your to do list on your mobile phone so that it reminds you.More energy savings may even be achieved with systems with motion sensors that will turn on only when movement is detected.
Look for technology options that suites you. Stop bad habitsYour habits may be contributing to your current high electric energy bill. As mentioned earlier lighting points contribute a lot to your electricity bills. Some households have the habit of switching almost all lights in the house on at night. Some lights that are almost never turned off include toilet, bathroom, kitchen lights, and so on.You should start by changing all your lighting points to energy efficient lights or florescent tubes.
Then you must ensure that lights are turned on only when required. If you find this difficult, technology will come to your rescue.There are systems that will automatically switch on a light only when there is someone to use it. These systems are great for the bathrooms, toilets, passages and so on but can also be used in any room.Of course, it will cost you some extra cash.You should also ensure that only gadgets in use are turned on. Do not leave the TV on if you are not watching. Buy an automatic on-off switching security lighting system before travelling on a holiday, say Christmas.We hope this will help you cheat your energy meter and save money on electricity.
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