Plumbing Connection 2-2015

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3 0 PLUMBING CONNECTION WINTER 2015
CHARGED BY THE METER
WATER METERS PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN DETERMINING HOW MUCH WATER IS USED BY INDIVIDUAL
HOUSEHOLDS; HOWEVER, THEY CAN ONLY DO SO IF FUNCTIONING CORRECTLY. ANTHONY BAUDUCCIO OF PROVE
STANDARDS & ENGINEERING EXPLAINS.
PROVE STANDARDS
W ater is a precious commodity; however, due to its
accessibility in most areas, it is often taken for
granted. Water meters are accountable for how
much water we use and its indication determines our usage
and how we are charged. Perhaps this explains why meters
are known as the cash registers of the industry...
The concept of the water meter is to only pay for how
much water households actually use. The question is: how
do consumers know that these meters are accurately
measuring their water consumption? The thing is, not
a lot of people consider their water meter to be reading
incorrectly. In contrast, if water prices fluctuated like that of
petrol, consumers would definitely want to know if they were
being over-charged.
There are national standards
and procedures in place for the
compliance and testing of water
meters, as well as all measurement
devices intended for trade purposes
(E.g.: petrol bowsers, supermarket
food scales, etc.) The National
Measurement Institute of Australia
(NMI) appoint Utility Meter Verifiers
on their behalf to verify/re-verify all
water meters intended for billing
purposes and use in Australia.
The regulators in each state
and territory are responsible
to ensure the water
authorities maintain
acceptable levels of
accuracy for water
meters. To ensure ongoing compliance,
water meters need to be routinely
tested by an accredited laboratory
which has been deemed competent
to perform the testing by the
National Association of Testing
Authority, Australia (NATA). It
is important for water meters
to maintain their accuracy over
their life span, for the benefit
of not only the consumer but
also for the water authority,
as accountability of water is also
vital for our future needs. Future growth planning for large
cities and towns rely on correct water distribution of their
networks for investing into new large capital projects.
Home water meters can be used if your customer
suspects a leak in their premises. A simple suggestion asks
that they take a meter reading before they go to sleep,
ensuring that no water will be used
by any of their appliances (including
their toilet). In the morning they
should take the reading once again.
Any change of the reading on the
water meter can mean that they
may have a leak which you can
rectify once the leak has been found.
READINGWATER METERS
Most common domestic meters
have two distinguishing colours
on the indicating dial typically split
between black and red. The black
numbers denote kilolitres (kL) 1 kL
= 1000 litres and the red numbers
represent litres. The diagram above
shows an indication of 126 kilolitres
and 487 litres. This is the amount of water that has passed
through the water meter. The kilolitre dials (black) are only
read for billing purposes and there is no rounding up or down
involved, so the usage would be based on 126kL assuming
the meter at the previous reading interval (last billing cycle)
was an indication of zero.
For further information regarding your water meter and
its expected performance please contact PROVE Standards
& Engineering Pty Ltd via
Prove Standards & Engineering Pty Ltd.
THE REGULATORS
IN EACH STATE AND
TERRITORY ARE
RESPONSIBLE
TO ENSURE THE WATER
AUTHORITIES MAINTAIN
ACCEPTABLE LEVELS OF
ACCURACY FOR WATER
METERS
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