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ClichéGuevara
Legendary Member
- Location
- Kingston upon the River Hull
It's Yorkshire Water.
Any inventors/engineers on here?
- Thread starter ClichéGuevara
- Start date
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It's Yorkshire Water.
lazybloke
Ginger biscuits and cheddar
- Location
- Leafy Surrey
Not uncommon for a single supply pipe to branch and feed more than one house.
(our leccy supply does something similar and branches off to next door before it arrives at our meter).
Don't know whether to believe it, but I once heard of a house with an "over-enthusiastic" water meter caused by air bubbles in the main; the house was at the top of a hill, so bubbles would be pulled through the meter and drive it mad.
Worth considering if you ever see airbubbles spluttering out of your cold tap!
(our leccy supply does something similar and branches off to next door before it arrives at our meter).
Don't know whether to believe it, but I once heard of a house with an "over-enthusiastic" water meter caused by air bubbles in the main; the house was at the top of a hill, so bubbles would be pulled through the meter and drive it mad.
Worth considering if you ever see airbubbles spluttering out of your cold tap!
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ClichéGuevara
Legendary Member
- Location
- Kingston upon the River Hull
I'm planning on pushing the waste of resources/environmental angle.
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ClichéGuevara
Legendary Member
- Location
- Kingston upon the River Hull
A branch supply isn't that unusual, and it wouldn't be a problem if it occurred before the meter. I think the highest 'hill' around here's an ill fitting kerb.
ColinJ
Puzzle game procrastinator!
- Location
- Todmorden - Yorks/Lancs border
A friend of mine discovered that the water supply for his late sister's house came through her meter, then split into 2 pipes. One fed the house and the other went through the wall into the small factory next door. When he complained the water company discovered that they had been overcharging by over £1,000 a year! 
They never changed the pipework. Instead they bodge the household bill by subtracting the factory water meter reading from the house meter reading to get the true water consumption for the house!
They never changed the pipework. Instead they bodge the household bill by subtracting the factory water meter reading from the house meter reading to get the true water consumption for the house!
slowmotion
Quite dreadful
- Location
- lost somewhere
We're not on a meter, but I was curious about how much water we used. I thought it might have been worthwhile to get billed by our consumption rather than the rateable vale of the house (or whatever it's called). You can buy your own water meter for about £30, and it's a doddle to plumb it in where the main comes into your house. I would do that, and compare it to the water company's meter. It could be a leak between the company's meter and your house, or it could be that "your" meter is being used by other properties. If you have a meter in your house, you will know which.
I think it's pretty unlikely that a meter will over-read, BTW. It could of course be that the meter reader can't read a rotary dial meter.
I think it's pretty unlikely that a meter will over-read, BTW. It could of course be that the meter reader can't read a rotary dial meter.
classic33
Leg End Member
If there's a leak and the meter isn't on the property, it'll be measuring any water that may be leaking. Or if there's a joint after the meter.
They've(YW) not got a good record when it comes to finding leaks. And most of their maps are out of date by over a quarter of a century.
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ClichéGuevara
Legendary Member
- Location
- Kingston upon the River Hull
[QUOTE 5111009, member: 9609"]meters often read down to the litre, if you have a large container you know the capacity of fill it up and compare with reading. If your wheelie bin has a size on it use that.
If not, let a hose pipe run for an exact amount of time, during that time work out the flow rate by how long it takes to fill a 10 litre bucket (time the bucket fill at various intervals to make sure flow is steady) from this you should be able to work out how much you have used and compare with reading.
I doubt the meter is inaccurate, but if the meter is not moving when the stop cock is shut off and you can't hear flow through a listening stick then what else could it be?[/QUOTE]
Doing that, the meter may read correctly, or it may over read, depending on whether the other outlet is running or not. The meter is seemingly working okay according to the tests, it's the excess water that's in question. I've used a listening stick, and there was no flow at my mams house.
If not, let a hose pipe run for an exact amount of time, during that time work out the flow rate by how long it takes to fill a 10 litre bucket (time the bucket fill at various intervals to make sure flow is steady) from this you should be able to work out how much you have used and compare with reading.
I doubt the meter is inaccurate, but if the meter is not moving when the stop cock is shut off and you can't hear flow through a listening stick then what else could it be?[/QUOTE]
Doing that, the meter may read correctly, or it may over read, depending on whether the other outlet is running or not. The meter is seemingly working okay according to the tests, it's the excess water that's in question. I've used a listening stick, and there was no flow at my mams house.
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ClichéGuevara
Legendary Member
- Location
- Kingston upon the River Hull
I've toyed with fitting a meter, but whilst the plumbing is a doddle, the logistics of the pipework would make it a pain the arse. It's partly why the meter is so far away.
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ClichéGuevara
Legendary Member
- Location
- Kingston upon the River Hull
Can you get your mum a big supply of bottled water and then turn the valve off at the meter? I would imagine sometime relatively soon after this the water company will start getting calls from someone who's tap has stopped working
I've suggested the bottles, or turning it off and going away for a bit. They weren't keen for reasons of their own.
classic33
Leg End Member
What about something like this?
https://www.osmotics.co.uk/products...MI3IWZ97HM2AIVlDLTCh1zqQJTEAQYASABEgJ7a_D_BwE
raleighnut
Legendary Member
- Location
- One of the 'Elite'
If they think someone is getting free water then it's up to them to find out who and sort it PDQ I would take the view that anything over what a normal one or two person household uses means your mum has been over charged. Maybe for years.
That sort of thing is not uncommon. We had a meter fitted donkeys years ago when we paid water rates as a percentage of your council rates. We actually paid them to install it in the path outside. Job done and I had a look. Very neat but................the meter wasn't clicking over. Made a note of the numbers (close to zero anyway) Check again a few days later and ...............the number was the same.
So a decision had to be made, free water, or get them back. Well I knew the free water option would eventually come back to bite me so I called the water board.
''No, no you must be reading it wrong sunshine, it's the black and red numbers on the dial'' After a bit of argy-bargy it was agreed a 'bloke' would call round.
Two weeks passed and said 'bloke' turned up. Much scratching of head, taps on and off, calls from the house phone. Another vist by about 5 'blokes' all stood around and looked at the non functioning meter muttering. Two weeks further on a crew turned up and dug up the path again.
It seems they had put the meter on a disconnected pipe. The live one to our house was about 18'' to one side. So they fixed the meter onto that instead.
Years later whilst refitting the kitchen I found a cut off gas pipe in the corner of an old cupboard. Plugged with an old rubber hot water bottle cap.
Took it out and sure enough it was still 'live'
The gas board obviously thought I was an idiot but did send someone round 'just in case'. Once he tested it there was an almighty panic to get the pipe capped off and to discover how it could still be connected.
The drive was dug up, as was next doors and the pipe was being fed from next doors mains feed. Who disconnected it in the cupboard in our house and stuck a rubber stopper in it is anybody's guess.
But I keep thinking of all the years of free central heating we could have had if only I had kept schtum.
We had a new gas meter fitted (by British Gas) that never moved, when we discovered that by checking the meter to query an 'estimated' bill' we notified them. They then tried to bill us based on 'estimated use' but on checking with Citizens Advice we found out they couldn't do that so Maz was refunded all the money she'd paid on standing order.
Paid for a holiday.
