Any inventors/engineers on here?

[ClichéGuevara]

My mother is having an issue with the water board, who are charging her a fortune based on the meter reading. The meter is very remote from the house, and the most likely situation is that there's either a leak between the meter and her house, or another house(s) is connected through her meter.

They seem a bit primitive with their investigation, relying on trial and error and keeping a diary, as well as talking to my mam as if she's thick, which is always a mistake, because she certainly isn't.

The stop tap in mams house is buried in the wall, with wipe joints either side to the lead pipe, so it's not simple to get to or work on the pipework, but the valve head can be accessed to remove it.

I can't help thinking that there's either a non-intrusive gismo that can detect water flow, or some mechanical doofer I can put in place of the head gear/spindle, that could then measure, or at least detect a flow into her house.

It wouldn't be impossible to tap a hole on the lead and insert something I'd guess, but it's an oldish house and I don't think she'd want the upheaval if my wipe joint skills are rusty and it needed new pipes when I'd done, plus it'd be me that had it to do.

Any suggestions?

 

[colly]

Might be a little incovenient but shut off all taps, even the main stop cock if you can get to it. Find the meter and see if there is any movement at all. Even a trickle should show some movement.
If you have a leak and you or your mum have to pay for it then it might be easier to put a new pipe in completely rather than trying to find the leak.

The metre could be faulty but I'm not sure that is very common.

Not all that helpful I'm afraid.

 

[Levo-Lon]

The simplest way is to turn off at the main stop valve.
Then take the reading at the meter.
If its a standard water meter in the path lawn round lid in a square frame approx 200mm 200mm
Some prise off with a big screw driver and a lid with 2 big slots in it unscrews.
Pull out the polystyrene if its there and take a reading .
in a while? Hr should be plenty of time take the reading again

If the reading has gone up you have a leak between the box and your stop tap , quite common in a path or lawn area after a heavy truck has rolled over it..skip lorry etc.
Its usually at the box where the pipe exits.
Leaks at the box are quite common .

See how you get on.


There is also a stop tap in the meter box ,black tee shape.
Try that aswel for a reading after turning it fully off..

 

[twentysix by twentyfive]

Wot they ^^^^^ said.

 

[ClichéGuevara]

Might be a little incovenient but shut off all taps, even the main stop cock if you can get to it. Find the meter and see if there is any movement at all. Even a trickle should show some movement.
If you have a leak and you or your mum have to pay for it then it might be easier to put a new pipe in completely rather than trying to find the leak.

The metre could be faulty but I'm not sure that is very common.

Not all that helpful I'm afraid.

We've tried that. There are definitely no leaks, I checked that myself. Sadly, the water board keep offering different scenarios and solutions.

 

[Levo-Lon]

Ohh and a new water main connection can be very pricy ..so be warned.
You may get help if its all lead?

 

[ClichéGuevara]

The simplest way is to turn off at the main stop valve.
Then take the reading at the meter.
If its a standard water meter in the path lawn round lid in a square frame approx 200mm 200mm
Some prise off with a big screw driver and a lid with 2 big slots in it unscrews.
Pull out the polystyrene if its there and take a reading .
in a while? Hr should be plenty of time take the reading again

If the reading has gone up you have a leak between the box and your stop tap , quite common in a path or lawn area after a heavy truck has rolled over it..skip lorry etc.
Its usually at the box where the pipe exits.
Leaks at the box are quite common .

See how you get on.


There is also a stop tap in the meter box ,black tee shape.
Try that aswel for a reading after turning it fully off..

Done that. We really do have a bizarre set of people working at the water board here, hence why I want some definitive proof. They make all sorts of bizarre claims and suggestions. Mam requested they stick the meter at the stop cock where it enters the house, but they reckon they can't do that, even though I've offered to dig and reinstate the path.

They don't take her (our) word for anything, and will only 'investigate' their way, and their way defies logic.

 

[screenman]

How much is a fortune?

 

[ClichéGuevara]

Ohh and a new water main connection can be very pricy ..so be warned.
You may get help if its all lead?

This started when they altered the pipework in the street to put the meters in. For some reason, mam's meter's in the next street, along with a bundle of others in a hole in the ground. It's not straightforward to work out whose is whose. If it was where the main was, I could pick up the leg to hers and renew it, but that wouldn't resolve the problem anyway.

 

[ClichéGuevara]

How much is a fortune?

More than several large families pay for theirs.

 

[classic33]

http://www.instructables.com/id/Low-Cost-Water-Flow-Sensor-and-Ambient-Display/

 

[colly]

I don't know your set up but usually the water board's responsibilty ends at the meter. Up to the meter is their problem. If you are sure there is no leak then have them check the meter.

 

[ClichéGuevara]

I don't know your set up but usually the water board's responsibilty ends at the meter. Up to the meter is their problem. If you are sure there is no leak then have them check the meter.

They've checked the meter. It was okay, they take responsibility beyond it, because of the distance it is from the property, and they've admitted that there's a problem, and even paid some compensation, but they haven't paid what they owe, plus, they can't explain what's happened to the water. One plumber on site agreed that there's no leak in mam's house, and was pretty sure some other house(s) are getting free water, but was more vague in his report back.

The logical things people suggest are more than welcome, but we really have tried them, and hit a brick wall with the water board. They really are pants, which is why I was looking at something to give unarguable proof.

If it was mine, I'd simply refuse to pay any more than what would have been the non-metered rateable value, and have my day in Court.

 

[ClichéGuevara]

[QUOTE 5110809, member: 9609"]So with the stop cock turn off at the house the meter does not go around ?

if so do you think it is over reading ? you could quite easily check to see if it is reasonably accurate[/QUOTE]

We've done that, it does go round. How can I check it's accurate, if I don't know where most of the water passing through it is going? The latest event is that they've compared the meter reading to a written log of water use, and agree it doesn't tally, which is what they were told a year or two back.

 

[ClichéGuevara]

http://www.instructables.com/id/Low-Cost-Water-Flow-Sensor-and-Ambient-Display/

Cheers. I'll ponder to see if there's a way of getting that to count the amplitude. I suspect an issue could be the potential for it to pick up the vibration from the flow of water that is going 'elsewhere'.


I was thinking I could take the spindle and washer from an old stopcock, and replace the washer with some form of wheel with a counter.