Accessing Your Electric Meter

Why it's important that your electric cooperative has access to your electric meter.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Walton
• Electric
• Membership
• Corporation
• EMC
• Meter
• Safety
• Access
• Service

[maybachlover15]

aluminum wires? really? how cheap.

[emctv]

Actually, economy is why aluminum wire is used in this case. The wires coming in and out of the meter base are very large and would be quite expensive in copper. When proper technique and and an anti-oxidant is used, they are completely safe.

[hardtoremember]

You stated that no one but the power company and/or a licensed electrician needs to access that area and they would call to inform the tag is going to be cut. Is there a law against a homeowner accessing behind his meter and cutting the tag?

Thanks for your response.

[emctv]

Think of the meter seal as a padlock on private property. Just as you can be prosecuted for cutting the lock on someone's gate and entering their property, you can also be prosecuted for cutting the seal and entering the meter base, which is your electric company's property. It is also a safeguard to keep you out of danger.

[quickfreeze45]

how old is this video? Great work thank you for the vid

[emctv]

It was done last month, February 2008. Thanks for your comment!

[mikeandtiff]

Mr. Brown had a bit to much coffee that day huh? Great instructional vid

[bladedspokes]

@bobbysam232 because an arc flash or other failure event can propel objects such as the meter cover or even the meter itself, into the worker.

[meterdatamanagement]

amazing how easy it is to take them off

[electricianjoel]

The company I work for replaced around 12,000 of the analog meters for the new smart digital in Nebraska a couple of years ago.

[bobbysam232]

why do you need a hat :P

[DragonUltraMaster]

Cute helmet he has, lol

[rhblakeman]

Depends on the company - some own the base and meter, some control the base but own the meter. Some prosecute for tampering, some do a max charge, some investigate the difference between present and last reading and look for internal tampering since they know people maliciously break the seals off. It's dumb t get into the meter base - two hots with 120v on each and usually nice damp ground under your feet makes for a nice reeactment of death by electric chair. Stay out and stay alive.

[rhblakeman]

Most places the meter has to have 2 ft to either side and 3 ft to the front clear and accessible, and it's supposed to be between 4 and 6 ft off the grade (dirt, sidewalk, driveway, etc) but electric co's and coops dont make this known to people and if a reader sees a condition like those they are suposed to notify the company who is supposed to dispatch a field tech, or mail a notice. I see someone went nuts with the insulation stripping when they installed the two ungrounded mains. Good vid