Become a smart meter installer..

[Pssst]

I keep reading in trade mags and elsewhere about the apparent shortage of smart meter installers. I wonder if anyone on the forum has considered getting involved and if not,why not?

 

[Dan-HybridHeat]

Most of them want you to train and fit the dual fuel meters from what I've heard, may be part of the problem.

 

[Riley]

It's an interesting one it could be quite a good little sideline I would be interested if anyone has any direct experience

 

[AWheating]

The wage has dropped a lot in last 2-3 years with sub contractors getting involved as well. My best mate is a senior fitter at major energy supplier and he tells me horror stories about how bad some of the installers are leaving soldered leaks, squashed lead tails etc..... That's what you get when they train electrical meter fitters for 2 months and put them on gas meters.

if your looking to get into the area they will give you some basic electrical training to change electric meters and it's not a hard job. Probably harder if you work for a sub contractor due to price work. There will be overtime and call out to cover.

 

[Pssst]

Its true that the gene pool of installers is generally poor. No one seems to care as all HM Government want is for it to be a success but they want it done quick and they want it cheap. A lot of the fitters are lazy incompetent fecks who walk away from tricky jobs/butcher others/dump rubbish on the grid who just come and either cut the customer off or walk away.

 

[mfgs]

Ive see jobs on the cards offered for smart meter installers for around the 20k a year mark. So doubt it will be worthwhile subbing to them to do any work.

 

[Pssst]

I guess its the same old story mfgs,,pay peanuts,get monkeys. Smaller companies are now jumping on the smart metering band waggon,,seeking to recruit metermonkeys for peanuts and creaming off the profits whilst hoping to dump a certain amount of fallout and carp on to the gas emergency services who are duly mostly walking away from it.

 

[newcastle phill]

I got offered a contract to fit em for place down midlands.
They paid crap.
Didnt bother as they would not commit a workload.

 

[newcastle phill]

SSE are taking on. 29k to 33k i think i seen. Maybe wrong

 

[mfgs]

SSE are taking on. 29k to 33k i think i seen. Maybe wrong

That's a decent wage for meter fitting.

 

[REDSAW]

spoke to a recently qualified installer today, £27k plus bonus-3 weeks training course.
3 jobs a day

 

[newcastle phill]

Yeh starting is 29600 up plus incentives . Just had a look.
If your still there for year 4 you get a £7000 one off bonus (less tax)

 

[Pssst]

spoke to a recently qualified installer today, £27k plus bonus-3 weeks training course.
3 jobs a day

£ jobs a day ?? Blimey,what are they ? U40's ? I think if you have a UP1/1A ticket at one of these companies you are a GOD !!

 

[mfgs]

Yeh starting is 29600 up plus incentives . Just had a look.
If your still there for year 4 you get a £7000 one off bonus (less tax)

That sounds like a good gig. Lets face it meter installs are pretty easy.

 

[REDSAW]

£ jobs a day ?? Blimey,what are they ? U40's ? I think if you have a UP1/1A ticket at one of these companies you are a GOD !!

thats gas n elec combined most of the jobs.

he will pop in sometime, he can fill you in.

 

[Pssst]

The dodgy jobs being done by the new crop of smart meter fitters continues unabated. Sa one the other day where he had bodged the mounting brackets and worst of all had fitted it with the regulator on the outlet ! It had been done a week or so previous.

 

[goz666]

Might be a daft question but why are they soldering pipework on meter installs ? Are the meter unions at different centres ?

 

[ShaunCorbs]

Might be a daft question but why are they soldering pipework on meter installs ? Are the meter unions at different centres ?

no as they dont touch your side of the pipework

and no not normally if they are new bracket and new anaconda

 

[Pssst]

The difficulty is that they may have to modify outlet pipework as the previous install might not be up to standard. Sometimes instead of altering the pipework to bring it up to BS standard, they just bodge it. As for lead outlets, well thats a whole other story.