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I opened up my main panel and saw that there aren't actual wires coming into the main breaker as they describe in their installation video. The top half of my panel is behind the PG&E meter, so I suspect the wires coming from the street are behind that top half of the panel.

My question is, do I work with the power company to remove the meter, or do I hire an electrician to do that top half? Or is there another option to make it work based on my existing panel?

I'm comfortable doing the install myself based on the videos but I fear it's become more complicated.

enter image description here

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  • you you have to intercept the line, or can you vampire tap into it?
    – dandavis
    Commented Dec 31, 2017 at 15:50
  • The utility likely won't let you install CT's ahead of the meter. You'll need to ask. In most states anything before the meter you'd talk to the utility, anything after the meter you'd call your electrian.
    – Tyson
    Commented Dec 31, 2017 at 16:03
  • Wait. I don't understand. This cabinet looks like a combination meter-pan and main service panel. It is expected that the upper half of this thing is the utility company's electric meter wich they would put a seal on. I can see the bottom edge of a meter in that pan. Is that not a live, active meter? Is that meter location deprecated/obsolete and they are using another meter pan?
    – Harper - Reinstate Monica
    Commented Dec 31, 2017 at 21:22
  • @Harper yes this is the bottom half where the top half of the active smart meter. It's locked off
    – Shygar
    Commented Jan 1, 2018 at 19:29

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Based on Tyson's response I called my power company. They came out, cut the power to the house and removed the meter for me to get access to the top half of the panel. I was then able to complete the Neurio install and it seems to be working fine. Thanks to all who have answered.enter image description here

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The CT clamps don't have to be around your main feeds, they can also be around all of your hots instead. If all your hots from one leg go through one CT clamp, and all the hots from the other leg go through the other CT clamp, then your home energy monitor will work.

It may not be possible to do this while still following your electrical code though.

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    I don't see any codevios other than "neat" 110.12. It's legal to splice inside a panel, but it's going to make for an awful lot of crisscrossing the panel. Keep in mind that a new person may look at that panel, see a fat busbar on the left, a fat busbar on the right, a column of breakers on the left, a column of breakers on the right, and and reach an obvious but wrong conclusion. You should probably explain that.
    – Harper - Reinstate Monica
    Commented Dec 31, 2017 at 21:13

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