OT: Water Meters

[Clive Arthur]

Good point, yes that could be significant.

[charles]

our waste water is treated by a different company from the one that supplies our water,

[polygonum_on_google]

A few years ago, we had to accept a water meter after a significant leak on the mains.

Yes, our bills wernt down. Have now moved house and new house already had meter fitted.

But the concern I have is that most meters are down holes and do not invite regular checking. I'd be much, much happier if they could send an email or a text (or some other approach) so that we would know if our usage changed significantly - e.g. because of a leak.

There have been some horror stories of unnoticed leaks resulting in huge bills. Quite often there is some agreement to discount the one huge bill but I don't want to have to rely on decent behaviour by a company.

[Dave Liquorice]

waste

How does that work with a metered supply?

OK our waste water is "treated" by a different company, if you can call emptying the septic tank of sludge every few years "treated".

[Bob Eager]

Agreed. When ours was fitted (but before they started reading it) I took a look and found it whizzing round when all taps etc. were off.

They found a leak that was losing several cubic metres a day. They fixed it free of charge and didn't charge us for that, or the water.

I had thought the ground was a bit soggy but it was difficult to tell. Turns out the builders who demolished the brothel to build a house had damaged it when they (sort of) sealed off the tee-piece to the brothel.

[Chris Hogg]

My late mother had a leak, and the water company notified her of an unusual increase in her meter readings. She was insured against such things and didn't have to pay to have it fixed. I don't remember how much rebate the water company gave her, but it was significant, and independent of the insurance.

[Bob Eager]

In our case (East Kent) we are charged by volume - assumed to be 92.5% of our water intake.

We saw no real change in costs initially. Then son's live-in girlfriend split up with him and moved out. Then son moved out separately. One son left but we are seeing a saving now.

[Spike]

One feels bound to ask what biocides T i m would use in such a system, or how he would deodorise his garden.

[Spike]

One of my offspring and spouse lives in the SW, which has the(?) highest water/sewerage charges in the country. Ten years ago I fitted flow restrictors to the showers, reducing the measured flow from 12 litres/min to 8 with no noticeable reduction in shower performance.

Two 4-minutes showers/day saves (12-8) * (2*4) = 32 litres/day

In 10 years that gives 10 * 365 * 32/1000 cu m of water saved = 116 cu m

Water/sewerage is £7 per cu m, for a total saving of £817

Dual-flush toilet cistern valves were installed, possibly saving as much water again.

It can pay to see where the water's going as well as how much it costs.

[Jim Stewart]

mingin'

[Jeff Layman]

Makes you wonder why they don't do a simple check when they fit meters. Just ask the consumer to make sure all the taps are closed, turn on the supply and see what happens. Or maybe they just /don't/ want to know!

My father-in-law worked for the Water Board for several years in the early 50s. He said it was amazing where water went to underground - a leak of thousands of cubic feet a day for months would disappear without a trace, until discovered by accident or something collapsing when the foundations had gone.

Ours was by the builders not checking where they laid the polythene pipe. It was on some pieces of broken flint which, through the years, had worked their way into the pipe.

[Dave Liquorice]

But presumably to the same company as the supply so they know how much you've used. With waste water handled by a different company how do they know how much you have been supplied with?

[Harry Bloomfield, Esq.]

Dave Liquorice pretended :

They charge for waste based on a fixed amount for rain water and an extra sum for grey water based on actual metered water in. I pay for all three as a combined single bill to YW.

[Brian Reay]

While we had ours fitted a long time ago, I think they did do such a check. I certainly recall them checking something which required all the taps etc to by off.

[Harry Bloomfield, Esq.]

polygonum_on_google submitted this idea :

I log my E, G and water readings every Sunday, feed the numbers into an annual spread sheet . That then calculates consumption each week, plus each year, plus calculating weekly and anual costs of each.

[Max Demian]

Until the bathroom fills with bubbles (from washing up/washing machine waste).

[Harry Bloomfield, Esq.]

My meter is inside the house, under the kitchen sink, concrete raft throughout, so any leakage is quickly obvious indoors.

[Mike Clarke]

Round here the water is supplied by United Utilities. Wherever possible they install meters inside the premises and have done so for a number of years now. So we only need to look in the cupboard under the kitchen sink to read the meter and if we have a leak in the underground supply pipe it won't affect the meter reading.

[williamwright]

I agree entirely. It rains a lot in GB. All it needs is the political will to organise the water supply properly.

Bill

[Robin]

I can only speak from personal knowledge of 1 property in East Anglia where the meter was read once for the purposes of both companies.

I don't know the regulations/rules but Ofwat ain'tn't /that/ stupid.