In recent years, several utility companies have opted to either start installing wireless smart meters or to replace regular analogue meters with wireless smart meters — but before we dive into further details, you need to know that, with smart meters, comes a change in the energy industry.

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The phenomenon in which electromagnetic waves, such as light waves, vibrate in a preferred plane or planes; or the process of confining the vibrations to certain planes. In unpolarized light the vibrations are equally distributed in all directions perpendicular to the direction of propagation of the wave. If all the vibrations are confined to one plane, the light is said to be plane-polarized (or linearly polarized). If the light in one plane is out of phase with the light in the plane at right angles to it (i.e. if the peaks and troughs of the waves are not in step), then the light is said to be circularly polarized. If all these phenomena occur together, the light is said to be elliptically polarized. Plane polarization is usually caused by scattering, and circular polarization by strong magnetic fields. Circularly and elliptically polarized light can also be produced by a wave plate. See also stokes parameters.

Other people may be concerned due to smart meters being potential fire hazards. In 2015, thousands of smart meters were removed from Ontario due to fire hazard concerns. As stated by a CTV news article this was a problem with a particular smart meter model (Sensus 3.2 meter) and other similar meters rather than all smart meters as a whole.

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A smart meter, also known as an advanced metering system, is a digital electricity metre that’s able to measure how much electricity is used and when it is used. These devices can send this information directly to your utility company. In contrast, regular or analog meters simply log how much electricity is used and are checked by a utility company employee once a month.

According to NB Power, more than half of Canadian households have smart meters. An article from Statistics Canada indicates there are approximately 12.4 million households in Canada – that means there are more than 6.2 million households with smart meters.

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If you have questions about smart meters and how they work (e.g. What is a smart meter and why should I use one?), this post will walk you through some of the most frequently asked questions regarding smart meters and how smart meters can affect you personally. Plus, we will also be debunking some common myths regarding smart electric meters.

According to the United States Department of Energy, the smart grid is the outcome of modernizing the electric grid with “cutting-edge technologies, equipment, and controls that communicate and work together to deliver electricity more reliably and efficiently can greatly reduce the frequency and duration of power outages, reduce storm impacts, and restore service faster when outages occur.” A modernized grid benefits both consumers and utility companies. It enables consumers to better manage their energy consumption and costs due to easier access to their usage data while utility companies will benefit from reduced peak loads, as well as lower operational costs.

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Smart meters emit RF (radiofrequency) energy, just like cellphones, pacemakers and wireless routers. When absorbed in large amounts, RF energy can lead to burns and body tissue damage. However, you don’t need to be concerned about the RF energy emitted from your home’s smart meter for a few reasons, according to the Government of Canada. Unlike the RF radiation emitted from cell phones, the RF radiation is usually transmitted at a greater distance to the human body and results in low RF exposure across your entire body.

If you’re been wondering “How far away from a smart meter is safe?”, you don’t need to worry. Again, the levels of RF energy released are well below the human exposure limits in Canada, so you won’t need to take special measures to distance yourself from your smart meter.

The amount you owe on your energy bills is based on factors like the amount of energy used and administration fees – not whether your energy usage is being recorded by an analog meter or smart meter. If you do note that your bills increase significantly after switching over to a smart meter, you can contact your utility company to ensure that your smart meter is calibrated correctly.

Furthermore, smart meters aren’t constantly transmitting data – outside of the short bursts where smart meters transmit data and emit RF energy, smart meters don’t emit any RF energy.  According to My Health Alberta, most smart meters only make these radiofrequency waves for around one minute per day.

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It’s also worth noting that the human exposure limits outlined by Safety Code 6 have a wide safety margin and are therefore still far below the amount of RF exposure threshold for adverse health effects.

Misinformation, a lack of information or a fear of new technology, in general, all contribute to people worrying about possible smart meter dangers.

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For example, there are health risks associated with RF energy, provided that the amount of emitted RF energy is high enough. While smart meters do emit RF energy, the amount they emit is well below the human exposure limits outlined by Safety Code 6 in Canada.

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You’ll have to contact your utility company to know for sure. Some utility companies charge an extra fee to opt-out of using smart meters, such as EPCOR.

Customers are free to purchase natural gas services or electricity services from a retailer of their choice. For a list of retailers, visit www.ucahelps.gov.ab.ca or call 310-4822 (toll free in Alberta).

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As with everything, there’s a good side and a bad side to smart meters. Below, we have listed some of the smart meter pros as well as some of the disadvantages of smart meters.

With smart meters around, utility companies won’t have to hire meter readers to manually read your meter every month – that also means less administration fees. As such, utility companies can pass down the savings onto their customers.

Smart meters send information about your utility usage (e.g. water, gas, or electricity use) right to your utility company using RF waves. Unlike regular meters, smart meters don’t need to be manually read each month by a utility company employee, which makes the meter reading process much more accurate.

Introducing smart meters as an alternative to regular meters helps both consumers and utility companies better understand our energy consumption habits. This is because smart meters can provide more detailed information about energy usage in real-time, whereas non-smart meters only tell us the total amount of energy used at the end of each month.

In short, while smart meters emit RF energy, the amount they emit is much less than the amount it would take to harm us.

Something else that people may be concerned about is their privacy when it comes to smart meters. After all, smart meters would be transmitting specific data about your energy usage from your home to your utility company every day. However, there doesn’t seem to be any need to worry. According to an article from the CBC, utility companies like Epcor state that the only information that’s transmitted is the usage amounts and the meter number – there’s no personal identifying information such as an address. Even still, all transmitted information is protected and encrypted.

In addition to this, you can use the information from your smart meter to adjust your habits and to help manage and reduce your energy use.

Even when your smart meter is transmitting data, the RF energy released has been found to be far below the human exposure limits in Canada.