Old Secure LIY / LIT dual-source meters failing? Your replacement options

Many housing societies across Gurugram, Noida, Ghaziabad and Faridabad installed dual-source prepaid meters, often Secure's LIY or LIT series, when their buildings were handed over. Those models are now discontinued. As the meters fail, committees and facility managers can no longer replace them like for like, and face a question they haven't had to answer before: what do we replace them with?

A dual-source meter does more than measure electricity. It has to know when the building is on DG, bill that consumption at the DG rate, and often limit how much load a flat can draw during a power cut. That makes the choice of replacement more involved than it looks.

1. Find out how your building signals DG supply

Every dual-source meter needs to know whether supply is coming from the grid or the generator. Older installations usually do this in one of two ways:

• Injector-based indication: a signal injected into the supply by the DG changeover system, which each meter detects.
• SMPS DG signal: a separate low-voltage DG indication wired to each meter.

Your electrician or facility manager can confirm which one your society has. It matters because a replacement meter that cannot read your existing signal needs new wiring run to every meter, which is expensive and disruptive in an occupied building. Secure's newer meters detect the supply source on their own, but that detection does not work where an injector is installed, so societies with injectors have to lay SMPS DG wiring to every meter to switch to them.

2. Check whether you give full or partial DG backup

Some societies back up the whole flat on DG. Many give only partial backup: a limited load per flat, enough for lights and fans. If yours is partial, ask whether the replacement meter can enforce the DG load limit by itself. With Secure's newer meters, societies with partial backup have had to add external contactors.

3. Plan how balances and recharges carry over

Older systems often use token or card recharges through their own vending software. When you change meters, residents' existing balances need to move across, and the recharge method usually changes. The token software for Secure's newer meters is not compatible with the older LIY / LIT meters, so the two cannot run on one system. Ask for a clear migration plan: unit list, resident contacts, tariffs and opening balances set up before the changeover, and a simple way for residents to recharge from day one.

4. Compare the full cost, not just the meter price

The newer Secure meters are considerably more expensive than the ones they replace. Compare proposals on the total: meter price, installation, any rewiring or contactors, software and annual maintenance. A cheaper meter that needs new wiring to every flat can cost more overall than one that works with your existing setup.

5. Check whether you can replace only the failed meters

Most societies cannot afford to replace hundreds of working meters at once, and should not have to. But with Secure's newer meters, a partial replacement is not possible: they cannot work with the injector the older meters rely on, and their token software cannot manage the older meters. In practice, moving to them means replacing every meter, including the ones that still work. Ask any vendor whether their meters can run alongside your existing LIY / LIT meters on the same DG signal.

How Innologix approaches it

Innologix dual-source prepaid meters work with SMPS DG indication. In injector-based societies they use a soft DG signal: the DG status is taken once in the DG or LT room and sent to the meters by software, so there is no DG wiring to every meter. They also handle partial DG backup without external contactors. Because the injector stays in place for the older meters, you can replace only the meters that have failed and keep the working LIY / LIT meters in service. Balances are migrated into SmartCommunity, and residents recharge online through the app. See how replacement works, or book a free site survey anywhere in Delhi NCR.

Secure, LIY and LIT are names and trademarks of their respective owner. Innologix is not affiliated with Secure Meters Ltd.