Water Meters

staffordjas

Well-Known Forumite
Are you supposed to take the readings yourself and send it to them , or do meter readers come around and read them twice a year for the bill?

Not got one ourselves , but son has got one at the house he's bought. When he moved in they wanted his readings and asked for his readings again a month after in July for the bill.

He finally located his meter under the pavement in front of his house (at least we hope that's his... after searching everywhere on his property I noticed a grid on the pavement on a photo we took of him outside when he first got the keys). Took him ages trying to get the lid open , but he did manage to photo the meter and send it to them.

Now got his next reading due at the end of January.

Do they really expect you to get down on the pavement fiddling with the grid to get it open and try to read the readings below?
 

Cue

Well-Known Forumite
Newer water meters are read remotely by a van driving round. We’ve had a meter for 3 years and never had anyone read it

Ours is under the sink, there used to be a wire running round the front-accessible side of the house that had a little puck on the end that can be read from. But now it just has a wireless module embedded in it, presumably kinetically charged by flowing water, that will emit the current reading at intervals.
 
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Noah

Well-Known Forumite
Twenty years ago, in my previous house the meter was under an inspection plate on the pavement outside, it had a device that on the plate that could be read by a device carried by the man who came round twice a year. Never read it myself.
 

staffordjas

Well-Known Forumite
Twenty years ago, in my previous house the meter was under an inspection plate on the pavement outside, it had a device that on the plate that could be read by a device carried by the man who came round twice a year. Never read it myself.
Thank you for all the replies :up: Sons sounds like it's the one like @Noah as it's under the pavement out the front . A little circular one , about 5" or 6" diamater. The houses were built about 8 years ago. Hopefully then he won't be asked to read it himself again.

(The houses by us that have had water meters installed have got a little round thing on the side of their walls which the meter readers seem to look at)

Is it just the one meter for water going in and going out? ......got another little black grid (about 6"x 6" ) just visible under the pebbled path in the back garden but no idea what that's for :hmm:
 

Noah

Well-Known Forumite
There was just the one meter for use, direct charge for water and sewage charged was based on the idea that what goes in must come out. There was an assumption that if your water consumption went up in the summer the extra water was being used for watering the garden and you got a discount on the sewage charge.
 

staffordjas

Well-Known Forumite
There was just the one meter for use, direct charge for water and sewage charged was based on the idea that what goes in must come out. There was an assumption that if your water consumption went up in the summer the extra water was being used for watering the garden and you got a discount on the sewage charge.
Thanks @Noah. Hopefully he will just get a bill through with their reading then .

Maybe when we rang , when moving in, the operator assumed it was easily accessible, and not having to crawl on hands and knees out in the street with a screwdriver trying to prise the grid open and read the meter about a foot below...
 

MilleD

Well-Known Forumite
Newer water meters are read remotely by a van driving round. We’ve had a meter for 3 years and never had anyone read it

Ours is under the sink, there used to be a wire running round the front-accessible side of the house that had a little puck on the end that can be read from. But now it just has a wireless module embedded in it, presumably kinetically charged by flowing water, that will emit the current reading at intervals.

Ah, so that's why they somehow manage to get an accurate reading of my meter despite not being able to access the black thing on the wall any more??

I did wonder.....
 

staffordjas

Well-Known Forumite
Twenty years ago, in my previous house the meter was under an inspection plate on the pavement outside, it had a device that on the plate that could be read by a device carried by the man who came round twice a year. Never read it myself.
Turns out they have been out and read his meter on the pavement. He queried his extortionate bill today , and when they looked into it found the meter readings showing a MASSIVE spike in use , and the meter readings 'going the wrong way' or something like that. His bill has been cancelled, account put on hold for now , and sending someone out to put a new meter in to replace the obviously faulty one.
 

c0tt0nt0p

Well-Known Forumite
Our 12 year old house has the "puck" thing at the front of the house and for the first time since moving here we've been given an estimated bill....I need to speak to them to see if the meter needs replacing
 
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