Smart Meter Installation

If you’re in Oncor territory — which is most of Dallas–Fort Worth — you already have a smart meter; Oncor finished its rollout years ago. So when homeowners ask us about “smart meter installation,” they usually mean one of three real projects: fixing or upgrading the meter base on the house, adding home energy monitoring that actually tells you something, or preparing the service for solar, batteries, or an EV. Let’s untangle all three.

What the Utility Owns vs. What You Own

The line surprises people: Oncor owns the meter itself. You own everything it plugs into — the meter base (the socket enclosure on your wall), the mast and weatherhead above it, the service conductors on your side, and the grounding. When a meter base rusts out, when a storm bends the mast, when the socket jaws lose tension and overheat (a genuine fire risk we find on older homes in Irving and Garland), that repair is the homeowner’s — done by a licensed electrician coordinating an Oncor disconnect. Storm-bent masts are one of our most common calls; see storm electrical damage.

Home Energy Monitoring: The Smart Meter You Can Actually Use

Oncor’s meter data (viewable at SmartMeterTexas.com) shows whole-house usage in 15-minute intervals — good for choosing a retail plan, useless for finding the culprit. Circuit-level monitors (Emporia Vue, Sense, or monitoring-equipped panels) install in or beside your panel and show exactly which circuit eats what, in real time. In DFW homes we install these for three reasons: hunting phantom load and a mystery $80 on the bill, verifying free-nights plans actually pay off, and load-planning before adding an EV charger or pool equipment without oversizing the service.

When the Service Itself Needs Modernizing

Solar interconnection, battery backup, a standby generator‘s transfer switch, or a 200-amp upgrade all happen at the service entrance — meter base included. If your equipment dates from the Carter administration, one coordinated project (new base, mast, panel, grounding, surge protection) beats three separate Oncor outage windows; the budget math is in our panel upgrade cost guide, and the warning signs are here.

Frequently Asked Questions

My smart meter shows huge usage — is it wrong?

Meter errors are rare; undiscovered loads are common. A circuit-level monitor finds it in a week — typical culprits in DFW are aging AC capacitors, pool pumps on old timers, water heater elements, and attic fans that never turn off. We diagnose these as a standard repair visit.

Who do I call when the meter base is damaged — Oncor or you?

Both, in order: us first. We assess, quote, schedule the Oncor disconnect, replace your equipment, pass city inspection, and Oncor re-sets the meter. If it’s storm damage, our documentation supports the insurance claim.

Meter base rusty, monitoring wanted, or service due for this decade? Call Bright Way Electrical Contracting at (817) 932-1099 or request a free estimate — licensed master electricians serving 22 DFW cities since 1998.