# Home water meter mystery



## HermanHymer (Dec 5, 2008)

Got my water bill for my SA home today.

Consumption as per water meter for 31 days - 24 KL. Even when home full-time - using all mod cons - under 10KL. When I'm away just a couple of KL for garden etc,

However no-one home. 

Ive checked EVERYTHING and this exceptional consumption is a complete mystery:

1. Meter reading is correct last month and this month.
2. Nothing dripping or dribbling, no soggy patches in the garden, on the paving or indoors.
3. Appliances have water isolation taps in off position.
4. The meter numbers aren't moving at all, and do move when tap turned on, stop when tap turned off again. 
5. 24KL is a huge volume of water to "lose" without trace.
6. I've checked the accuracy of the meter recently by comparing metering with physical output of the washing machine.
7. Daily consumption monitored last 6 months +- 300 L per day verifiable normal domestic usage. 
8. I do have outside taps but live in a secure environment. Have made enquiries nobody knows nutting. It would not go unnoticed if someone rolled up with a water tanker and connected to my tap.


Is it at all possible that the meter (16 years old) could be doing something funny. It certainly looks in good nick and ticks over smoothly. 

Or has a neighbour hooked up their hosepipe to my tap and filled his swimming pool, or has ET come down to fill his interplanetary tank.

OR could there be an occasional, spontaneous leak, caused perhaps by fluctuating water pressure that has flushed away into the ground under my garage.

Any ideas??? Thanks for your thoughts.


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## raynipper (Aug 4, 2008)

Dunno about your specific situation Viv but pilfering would be my first choice if the meter is not moving when you are there. Take a pic of the numbers before and after being away.

Ray.


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## eurajohn (May 9, 2005)

I take it that 24KL is 24000 litres, that's a lot of water, my guess is you've supplied someone with a swimming pool full.
There ought to be an isolation tap just before and after the meter, would it not be possible to either securely lock off the valve or if not practical enclose the area within a locked environment?

A faulty meter is far less likely than theft.
.


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## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

Chris says it is possible that it could be leaking somewhere into a drain of some sort (land drain type thing) or under a building and so no damp patches.

His preference is, though, for those already mentioned above 

Options would be to encase the tap and secure it with a lock, or, preferably, take the tap off and put a cap on the pipe. You may, also, have an isolation valve for that tap, as we do over here, that can be turned off.

Once this was done it would prove the first point.


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## Drew (May 30, 2005)

HermanHymer said:


> Got my water bill for my SA home today.
> 
> Consumption as per water meter for 31 days - 24 KL. Even when home full-time - using all mod cons - under 10KL. When I'm away just a couple of KL for garden etc,
> 
> ...


If you have been at home this last month and from what you have explained, the meter must either be faulty or the reading must be a mistake.

For there to be a leak of that proportion it must be still leaking, is you meter registering continued usage at the present moment? For someone to steal that amount of water with an ordinary hose pipe it would take a considerable time.

If you suspect a leak:

Isolate the incoming mains water at the stopcock in your home, normally in the kitchen or utility room, check to see if the meter is still turning, if so you have a leak between the meter and your home.

If there isn't an outside leak, open the stopcock in your home and check the meter once more. Again if the meter remains static, then you don't have a leak in your home.

Either someone is stealing your water or you have a faulty meter. I would suspect a faulty meter as I cannot see someone stealing 24,000 litres of water.


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## dghr272 (Jun 14, 2012)

Given the extreme usage outside your normal consumption surely your water supplier would check the meter accuracy and any possible leaks.

Terry


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## Penquin (Oct 15, 2007)

Our swimming pool contains 44000 litres or 43 cubic metres and it takes 4 days with two 15mm hoses running continuously 24/7 to refill.

Error would be my thought, if a leak it would still be losing that same volume and would chow as the meter would not stop even with everything turned off.

Ask for the meter to be professionally checked to verify it's accuracy and for the highly excessive use to be investigated for accuracy. Meanwhile ask for a stay of execution and got the bill to be set aside until it can be justified as being totally accurate.


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## Mrplodd (Mar 4, 2008)

A thousand litres weighs a tonne, so that 24 TONNES of water.

Andy


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## HermanHymer (Dec 5, 2008)

Well 2 tap locks now in situ. Let's see.


We have an unusual situation in our village. There are 21 homes, but one meter/account with the municipality. There is a ring main going round the village and each house has its own subsidiary meter. The home owners association reads everyone's meters, submits an account to each homeowner. The treasurer pays the communal bill and reconciles the homeowners readings with the municipal reading. There is always an excess which represents water usage on the common property. I've asked them to check the recon and see if there are any anomalies. e.g. the total homeowners billings being closer than usual to/ or greater than the total municipal billing.


So it will be up to me to get my meter checked. The meter is not turning at the moment. I've left the isolater on for the moment to see what if anything happens. My neighbour will check the meter on her daily walks. 



It seems impossible that a water leak of the magnitude of 24KL could just stop completely by itself. Such a quantity of water could possibly perhaps escape into the foundations of the garage. The property is on a slight slope, There are no wet patches on the lawned downward side of the garage, neither have the moleholes turned into fountains.


My neighbour over the wall has a swimming pool but I just cant credit that he'd refill it at my expense. I wonder if he's just had it repaired??? Even if I call in the Leakfinder, I think the water has to be running away to be traced. I guess I'll email my plumber and see what he says about the meter.


Thank you for your thoughts and suggestions.


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## kabundi (Feb 14, 2011)

Is there any possibility that there is a connection through your meter to a tap on an adjacent property.

I had this situation in Zambia where I had a tap on the rear fence, but in my garden, which was connected to the meter of the neighbour behind me. It was only found out when I was getting work done at my house with my main water valve isolated; there was still water flow at the garden tap.


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## GMLS (Dec 2, 2010)

HermanHymer said:


> Well 2 tap locks now in situ. Let's see.
> 
> _My neighbour over the wall has a swimming pool but I just cant credit that he'd refill it at my expense. _
> 
> Might be worth having a quick undercover measure up to see if that gives a clue?


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## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

To recap you have been charged for 24KL. This means your meter must have a reading that shows it has come through your meter (assuming someone, at home, has re read the meter to make sure it has not been mis read). 

If it has genuinely come through your meter it seems it must be either.

Faulty meter. This can be checked by turning off all taps etc until meter is stationary then and drawing off a measured amount of water and checking the meter to see if it tallies.

A leak. Very unlikely given that the meter is not running when all taps are off.

Theft. Tap locks should prove this unless -

A previously unknown outlet, that someone has stumbled across and used, which goes through your meter. Could any of your neighbours, for instance, have stumbled across a, previously unused, garden tap and used it? Need not be for a swimming pool, of course, but seems the most likely. Could be for watering the garden/cleaning cars etc and then left running by accident??


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## Penquin (Oct 15, 2007)

My guess is still filling the pool as that is a pool-sized quantity and I suspect a worker saw the tap, connected a hose and left it got a few days without even thinking about where it came from.... until the pool was full, then the tap was turned off and the hose rolled up and put away.....


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## Mrplodd (Mar 4, 2008)

Worth asking _a different_ neighbour if the one with a pool has had any work done on it or filled it lately?

Andy


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