Electrical consumption B,C

[mikeross]

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[Reverend Mojo]

The RCMP ( and other police forces) has a memorandum of understandings with the various hydro companies for "unusually high" rates of power consumption. This in itself will not permit the police to obtain a search warrant, however it does land you on their radar which is not a good thing.

You have to follow the number 1 rule of all grower... Tell NO ONE! and unless you provide the police with the evidence to obtain a search warrant (e.g throwing out cannabis leaves in the garbage, strong ordor of cannabis eminating from your home, blacked out windows or someone snitches on you) you can relax.

Edit.. NEVER STEAL POWER. that is a sure warrant.

 

[mikeross]

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[Reverend Mojo]

I thought the 93kwh per day rule was turn over. i read a couple weeks back that since this ruling BChydro has already withheld the electrical records of all of north vancouver from the rcmp. If they did it for north vancouver I would assume it applies to all bchydro residential customers..

The police can still apply to the courts for a warrant to seize this information. BC hydro would be compelled legally to provide this information. I can guarantee you 100% that this would be one of the investigative avenues used by the police.

Bringing you on to the police's radar is more common with informants than with high power consumption which could be easily traced back to "legal" activity (e.g welding shop, ceramic kiln)

Power consumption has always registered real low on my security protocols (e.g no light leaks, smell, sound of multiple fans/exhast). However, I am in no way a large scale or commercial grower.

 

[mikeross]

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[Dr. Buddington]

That seems fairly big, but it all depends on the place you use. As in too much for a 1 bedroom apartment but should be doable in a 2500+sqf house. To many variables, give some details.

 

[.clunk]

use 600w digital ballasts; cut down on power, heat and get nearly the same results.

 

[Guest 150314]

use 600w digital ballasts; cut down on power, heat and get nearly the same results.

This. I think 10k is fine in a 3-5 bedroom house, dry your clothes somewhere else/ use natural gas for heating and cooking.

 

[Reverend Mojo]

That is a fairly large set up and I can understand your concern because of such.

I wonder what bells and whistles that would set off with a "Timed" meter like here in Ontario.

Imagine all your lights coming on at 12 pm for a 12 to 12 run... Wierd time for such a large power usage.

I think the reality of the situation is the same. Pay your bill on time, DONT STEAL and you will be fine.

If anyone asks just say you have 3 teenaged daughters.. That will explain the power right right away

Just watch you have no smell leak or that you have no clearly covered windows and I am sure you will be fine if you tell no one.

 

[Guest 150314]

It's only big if your trying to pull it off in a residential area, if you have a long driveway and no neighbours go for it. In all honesty 10 lights isn't that big by BC standards if your really worried call BC hydro and tell them you have a hobby workshop with glass blowing/pottery kilns or maybe you make surfboards? Make sure you tell them it's not commercial or they will bill you at the commercial rate. From what I have seen BC hydro does not give a shit if you have a high bill if you pay it, I am sure it's different on the mainland though.

 

[mikeross]

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[G.A.66]

you need to know what the neighbourhods average usage is to be safe...most in the city is only 3k before hydro makes a report to police about the heavy use,. that is enough to get the warrant on the hydro meter guys word. and each municipality has diff rules on how they do it.
i used to live in a reg 3 bed house...no grows and bils on average with wife n 2 kids was only 250 every 2 months. i now pay by my self in a 1 bed apt 200 every 2 months. with 1k a 430 and 4 x 40 watt t-12, but im legal so dont care. my neighbour uses more than i do and he dont grow. all computers and servers. nobody has questioned him

so it has alot to do with the neighbiours use..

 

[prophecy]

throwing out cannabis leaves in the garbage

What do you do with your leaves?

 

[Dr. Buddington]

What do you do with your leaves?

Check this thread out
http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=110157

 

[danks]

93kwh was the law around but a judge found that it was against the law for the police to go inside the home without a search warrant with the hydro guys. so now the hydro guys dont want to go alone. 93kwh is about 550 every 2 months so u could run 6 1000s and use laundry and stove . if its just a grow house about 8-10 1000s and be safe. now if your running one of those new smart meters then you cant run ur lights at night as that could be very suspicious. Most bust now are people running huge ops and or stolen power as its really hard for the judge to give a warrant to anyone for using too much gas or hydro or water thats just fascist.

 

[apartmentblower]

not all of BC is serviced by BC hydro, there are local municpality hydro services as well as fortis and also private power delivery suppliers are emerging in BC and in some of these systems all units run off of one BC Hydro meter so although power is supplied and delivered by BC hydro , there is no way for them to access individual usage records. what i just described is more for urban townhouses and multi-family dwellings though. just a little bit of info for you though

 

[CanadianFog]

Hard to read this since TS deleted his posts. But being in BC as well, that 93 KwH per day definitely made me scale back things. I use a 1hp chiller so even with 4 600's, I was right on the edge. I've only read about it being possible, never personally heard or read instances in the paper where that was the reason somebody got caught. It isn't really a sure fire way to get caught either. I know some businesses and a few folks that don't grow that have way bigger bills than that and more usage per day, and there has never been an issue A guy could always register a business at your home address that uses a lot of electricity, as they have to have some method of weeding out the legitimate users and can't go to every single user that is over their limit of excessive. Like that guy said as well, neighbors usage compared to yours. It can't help your cause when your elderly neighborhood only uses 15 KwH and your bill is up wards of 100. Your only gonna stick out and give them a reason to check further into why.
Home heating is also something like %50 of a guys electrical bill, so I ran my lights/chiller during the night to mimic electrical heating, and just used a fireplace for heat.

My understanding of it as well, was that they were saying it was for safety reasons. I may be thinking of some other instance that they were able to come into your house. But I'm sure it had something to do with this. Does anyone know about that? Or am I talking out my ass? I was sure I read about instances where hydro would flag you for excessive usage and then youd get a note on your door giving you 24 hrs then hydro guys and fire dept guys or maybe home inspector would come in and you wouldn't get arrested, but youd lose your gear as they had some way of saying that it was unsafe.

Something like that. Feel like I'm making it up, as I can't remember exactly how it worked.
Maybe someone here can add to that??