How to read your water meter
Water meters are precision instruments built to accurately
measure both large and small amounts of water for many years. Although yours may
look a little different, the dial pictured here is typical of most residential
meters.
1. Leak Detector
A triangle or blue star that rotates, even with very small amounts of water moving through the meter. If the triangle or blue star turns when all water is off in the house, you have a leak that should be investigated further. You may wish to hire a professional to help you find “mystery” leaks.
2. Sweep Hand
Each full rotation of the sweep hand indicates one cubic foot, or 7.48 gallons
of water, has passed through the meter. The markings around the outside of the
dial indicate tenths and hundredths of one cubic foot.
3. The Register
Just like the mileage odometer on your car, these numbers keep a running total
of all water that has passed through the meter since it was new (this one shows
36,810 cubic feet total). Subtracting the last read from these numbers will
tell you how many cubic feet of water have registered. Multiply by 7.48 to get
gallons.
What’s in a UNIT? Water charges are based on increments of 100 cubic feet of water delivered, or what we call a billing unit. One unit equals 748 gallons. When the meter reader record the numbers on your meter, he or she disregards the number in black, recording only the numbers in white (multiples of 100). In the example above, the read shows on this customer’s water bill should be 368.
.
.
.
.
.
Water Equivalents Table
| 1 cubic foot |
= |
7.48 gallons |
= |
62.4 pounds of water |
| 100 cubic feet |
= |
748 gallons |
= |
One billing unit |
| 1 million gallons |
= |
3.07 acre feet |
= |
1,337 units |
| 1 acre foot* |
= |
325, 851 gallons |
= |
Covers 1 acre of land, 1 foot deep |