As one of our most precious resources, water needs to be protected through efficient use. Meters put the monitoring and control of water usage in your hands. They also help detect leaks, which will save you money and water wastage.
Water meters are a valuable way to identify leaks on properties and adopt demand management principles. Best practice guidelines suggest metering all properties to better manage water, particularly as climate change becomes a more urgent issue.
Of our 12,615 water supply connections, 10,819 have meters. We will soon introduce meters to our remaining connected customers. We are also developing a water meter renewal programme to support people whose meters may need replacing, for example, due to high usage.
Facts about water meters:
- We own water meters and will fix or replace them when required
- Customers' responsibility starts on the property side of the water meter, even if the meter is outside the property boundary
- Where there is water on a shared property, private lane and/or right of way, there might be several meters at individual dwellings. Council is responsible for the meters, while property owners are responsible for the pipes that connect them
- Water meters are getting smarter with technology. In some cases, we install these smarter meters to better manage our water supplies
- We recommend turning off your water supply if you're away for an extended time, provided no internal fittings need water in your absence. Remember to turn it back on and flush your taps when you return.
If you're charged water-by-meter rates, we recommend checking your meter weekly. Please call us if you're not sure where your meter is.
For information on water rating, visit the water rates section.
An average household uses 5-6m3 per week. If you are using significantly more than this, you may have a leak on your property or be watering your garden excessively.
How to read your water meter
Most meters measure your water usage in cubic metres (1000 litres = 1m3). Some older meters use imperial measurement. Meters show two sets of numbers. The first set is in black and shows the number of cubic metres used. The second is in the red section and shows the litres. These figures are helpful for picking up changes in water use over a short time, such as overnight leakage. You can check whether you have a leak by the following methods:
Night Test
Read your water meter when everybody in your house has finished using water for the day, before you go to bed at night. Read the meter again first thing in the morning, before anyone in the house uses the water.
While you're taking the two meter readings:
- Be certain all taps are closed properly
- Ensure nobody uses water from a tap or flushes the toilet
- Do not use an appliance which uses water
If there is a difference in the readings, there may be a leak in your water system. The difference between the two readings will the show whether you have a leak or not.
Example 1
| Previous Night's Reading: | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 5 |
| Early Morning's Reading: | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 5 |
The leakage = 4251.355 - 4251.325 = 0.030 cubic metres = 30 litres
Example 2
| Previous Night's Reading: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| Early Morning's Reading: | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
4 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
The leakage = 4251.35 - 4251.32 = 0.030 cubic metres = 30 litres
Day Test
You can do a leak test during the day by following the same guidelines as above, and checking the meter reading is not recording usage. If usage is recorded when all taps, toilets and appliances are turned off, there may be a leak in your water system.
If a leak is detected, please arrange to repair the leak to avoid paying for wasted water and help to stop water wastage.
For other information or assistance, please contact the Rates Department of the Council to discuss by email or by calling 07 306 0500.
Water Leak Remissions Policy
If you have a leak, then you may be eligible to apply for compensation under the leak remission policy. The objective of this policy is to enable the Council to act reasonably and fairly to reduce accounts that are unusually high due to a water leak from piping that is within the ground or concrete foundation when there is evidence that the repairs have been carried out within 30 days of the water account being issued.
The amount that is remitted is half the total water consumption for the period less the normal water consumption, or 50 percent of the water consumption that has been attributed to the leak. Normal consumption is calculated from the average water consumption over the previous two years. Each meter is only allowed one leak remission every five years.
Want more information?
For more information about this policy and the possibility of getting a water leak remission, please:
- Call Customer Services on 07 306 0500
- Go to the Water Leaks Policy page on this website
- Complete the Water Leak Remission Application Form - (PDF, 424 KB)