While the frigid winter may be producing some beautiful sights with snow and ice formations, they also may pose a hazard to your home. Many homes in NOTL have had their meters encased in ice and in some cases, the ice got inside the meter. The ice poses a potential hazard for arcing which may cause equipment failure (leading to an outage) or potentially a fire. While a small amount of ice is normal in the winter, a large build-up of ice can be a cause for concern.
While NOTL Hydro uses a system that notifies us when there are potential issues with individual Smart Meters, we also rely on customers to notify us of potential hazards. If you are concerned about your meter please do the following:
- NEVER break off any ice on a smart meter or the meter base. You could damage the meter which can cause other safety hazards.
- If the meter is encased in ice, please call our offices at 905-468-4235. We will ensure that it is checked for potential safety issues.
- Divert any water from coming into contact with the meter. Remove long icicles in the area of the smart meter to prevent unnecessary accumulation of ice. If there is an issue with ice build-up, a temporary cover could be erected.
We also appreciate any other notifications of potential hazards including branches and other foreign objects that are hanging on wires.