Hydo setup busted by power company?

[greenstuff]

Hey guys and gals. I got a question for all you ppl growing indoors. Has anyone heard of the Power Company finding out somehow by their meter on your power box that would signal that there is a grow in process. Or tip the cops off. Can they see patterns when your lights are going on and off 12/12 or 18/6. I'm going to build a hydo setup grow room and I've been thinking about this and its worrying me that some way they could find out. I'll be in the country (in the woods) but I dont guess that makes a difference because they have installed the new digital meters that sends the info back to the Power company. Of course I want be pulling a significant amount of power..maybe the bill will be 100 dollars a month. But it will be a power box that has been add on my property...its not a residintial power box.. I told them it would be for a shallow water pump for animals and gardening... I know that most of you grow in your homes and the power company doesn't really think twice about it since a residential meter. Sorry to write so much but this is a important matter concerning growing indoors. If anyone could give me some direction on this subject, I would in your debt. Thanks!

 

[godspeedsuckah]

I think alot of it is if you are using MUCH MORE power than anyone else, or if you are stealing it they will look into why.

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

I have personally never heard of anyone getting busted because of their power company tipping off the cops. Selling power is how the electricity companies make their money after all.

I don't quite understand your setup. Not residential? Are you building a structure out in the middle of nowhere (the woods)? Is your residence on the same piece of property? Where is the meter?

 

[BuddyLuv]

a $300 electric bill is not alot. The bill for our home in the summer is close to that running the A/C at 72. I know some of my neighbors have larger floor plans and probably keep there A/C lower so their bill must be higher.

 

[BuddyLuv]

Also the red flags would be things like not paying the bill on time and stealing power. Those are the things that would get you caught.

 

[NorCalHal]

My bill last month was $700, this month it is $599/ I run 4k watts and always pay my bill on time. Been YEARS with no issues.

On stealing power, there is NO WAY to tell. It would never cause a red flag unless you ran EVERYTHING in your home on it and had no regular bill.

I am not condoning stealing power, I just know how it works.

 

[greenstuff]

I have personally never heard of anyone getting busted because of their power company tipping off the cops. Selling power is how the electricity companies make their money after all.

I don't quite understand your setup. Not residential? Are you building a structure out in the middle of nowhere (the woods)? Is your residence on the same piece of property? Where is the meter?

I'm adding another meter onto a existing residential power account. Yes its kinda back in the woods from where my house is. On the back side of my property. About 1000 feet away from my actual house. Nobody lives around me. I live in a quite and peaceful part of the country. USA. I'll have to get the power company to run power back to where I want my power pole to be. (Meter that is.) It want be a residential meter meaning that they will know that the meter i'm adding is not going to a house. Its just extra power for other things.. like a water whale and just little stuff. Sorry thats the best I can explain that. I've done the math on what kind of system I will have and how many watts I use a day, and by the month. It want be alot.

 

[TheEnhancementSmoker]

If you are that worried about the power, and are that far in the woods...

Why not just grow outside?

 

[greenstuff]

My bill last month was $700, this month it is $599/ I run 4k watts and always pay my bill on time. Been YEARS with no issues.

On stealing power, there is NO WAY to tell. It would never cause a red flag unless you ran EVERYTHING in your home on it and had no regular bill.

I am not condoning stealing power, I just know how it works.

Oh no!!..I don't want to steal anything..muchless power. I don't want to get caught at all...

 

[greenstuff]

If you are that worried about the power, and are that far in the woods...

Why not just grow outside?

Well....I do that already ...But...I want a hydo setup underground and I didn't mention it, but I"m going to build my house over it and it will be a room underneth my home. Its all a plan in the process...I would like just to grow indoors safely and go to my plants whenever I want and not worry about anything and have total controll over them. Not to mention it will be better bud growing indoors..and I know that is a argueable subject...

 

[KGB30]

Hey guys and gals. I got a question for all you ppl growing indoors. Has anyone heard of the Power Company finding out somehow by their meter on your power box that would signal that there is a grow in process. Or tip the cops off. Can they see patterns when your lights are going on and off 12/12 or 18/6. I'm going to build a hydo setup grow room and I've been thinking about this and its worrying me that some way they could find out. I'll be in the country (in the woods) but I dont guess that makes a difference because they have installed the new digital meters that sends the info back to the Power company. Of course I want be pulling a significant amount of power..maybe the bill will be 100 dollars a month. But it will be a power box that has been add on my property...its not a residintial power box.. I told them it would be for a shallow water pump for animals and gardening... I know that most of you grow in your homes and the power company doesn't really think twice about it since a residential meter. Sorry to write so much but this is a important matter concerning growing indoors. If anyone could give me some direction on this subject, I would in your debt. Thanks!

I had a smud guy out & he stated and he read my meter by plants that they only care if ya steal power....

 

[The Hemp Goddess]

I'm adding another meter onto a existing residential power account. Yes its kinda back in the woods from where my house is. On the back side of my property. About 1000 feet away from my actual house. Nobody lives around me. I live in a quite and peaceful part of the country. USA. I'll have to get the power company to run power back to where I want my power pole to be. (Meter that is.) It want be a residential meter meaning that they will know that the meter i'm adding is not going to a house. Its just extra power for other things.. like a water whale and just little stuff. Sorry thats the best I can explain that. I've done the math on what kind of system I will have and how many watts I use a day, and by the month. It want be alot.

Gotcha. I wouldn't worry about it, especially if they do not come out to read your meter. The last place I lived we had outbuildings and we had two separate meters--one for the house and the other for the outbuildings (where the grow was). I don't think that it is unusual at all to have that kind of set up and I don't think it will raise any eyebrows, especially if you build a structure to house your grow. You could be doing welding, which uses a lot of electricity.

 

[aslan king]

I have heard a few stories of the cops using high bills to justify getting warrants. I have heard about meter readers reporting theft when they see a line going in bypassing the meter.

These are real stories and the folks are in jail. :holysheep:

You right to ask. the best why to learn is from the mistakes of others.

 

[greenstuff]

Oh ok... Well my power bill want be high and I wouldn't even think of stealing power from the Power Company.

 

[massproducer]

On stealing power, there is NO WAY to tell. It would never cause a red flag unless you ran EVERYTHING in your home on it and had no regular bill.

I would have to disagree with this... In order to steal electricity you have to open your meter box, breaking the special tag that the power companies lock it with. So yes you can get away with it for a bit, but as soon as there is any significant change in your bill, especially if it decreases, the power man will come and check your meter, at which time if your seal is broken, say hello warrant, not to mention the charges that come from stealing the electricity. So infact it is very easy to get caught stealing electricity, and it will be the cause of you getting busted from growing. There are actually people that their job is too only monitor meters.

The only other way i know of is producing electricity so that it floods back into the grid, in turn making your meter turn in reverse as you are now selling electricity back to the power company.

 

[clanchattan]

info on electric distribution.

the elec. provider's property *usually* ends where the meter is including the meter and somtimes the meter box. the provider cannot, in most cases, check any wiring below the meter. the line from the bottom of the meter to the main lugs in your breaker panel (service entrance cable, or s.e.r.) is usually considered the property of the owner/landlord/tenant.

if the power company comments on excessive usage, and most wont cuz they like their money, they may suggest you hire an electrician to, pardon the pun, check your shorts. it's up to you to do it, if the bill is in your name.

this applies only to america, as this is where my experience lays, but when their property ends so does their responsibility and if your burning wattage they dont care. they do love their money.

 

[massproducer]

Well I am in Canada, and I can tell you for a fact that the power companies own our meters, in Canada you are not allowed by law to open the meter, it is a felony. I misworded things first, we are responsible for the meter box, if damages occur, but this is just the wiring that brings electricity into your home. The actual meter can not be opened and is controlled by the power company along with the supply line.

The meter box does not help you steal power though, it will however prevent you from recieving power. It is the actaul meter, that i was talking about, and you need to get into that in order to steal power, trying to get into that is a felony, and I think this is true in the USA as well. WE are talking about power companies here and being in business myself, I can tell you that they are for sure going to take steps to protect their investment

 

[massproducer]

This is will explain what you would be responsible for if you lived in Georgia

hxxp://www.georgiapower.com/storm/meter/meterbox.asp

 

[massproducer]

and this:


Ownership

Due to the deregulation of electricity supply markets in many countries, the company responsible for an electricity meter may not be obvious. Depending on the arrangements in place, the meter may be the property of the electricity distributor, the retailer or for some large users of electricity the meter may belong to the customer.

The company responsible for reading the meter may not always be the company which owns it. Meter reading is now sometimes subcontracted and in some areas the same person may read gas, water and electricity meters at the same time.

hxxp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watt-hour_meter#Ownership

 

[clanchattan]

we cut those tags at work all the time to make sure that the supply is good in cases of power outage on our properties, but at home if your not having work done the power co. can get really pissy really quick.