Pro's and cons of getting a WATER METER

[BigonaBianchi]

I'm not on one yet...I get a bill IRO £50/m and I hardly use anything except for Tea, shower, wash machine...and it's not like there is a large family here either...just moi....so I'm wondering if a water meter might be better cost wise...certainly it seems fairer either way. So my question to the gallery is...has anybody switched recently to a meter (I'm on southern water)...and if so was it cheaper or more expensive generally?

...TIA...

 

[screenman]

We are on a meter, smaller family than both sides who have large above ground pools to fill. We pay twice as much as them as they do not have a meter. I also have a rainwater harvesting system that utilizes rain water to flush the toilets and for the outside tap.

 

[MattHB]

I'm on a meter and my bill dropped from £35/m to £12 so quite happy

 

[RAYMOND]

I opted for a meter 2 years ago, my bill halved.
Had no problems and now theyv'e fitted a devise so they don't have to enter the house to read it.

 

[SquareDaff]

When I was a single bloke having a water meter saved me a fortune. Used to cost about £30 (at todays rates) a quarter. Now with 3 women (including 2 teenagers), it comes in at about £80-90 / quarter. Still slightly cheaper than the water/sewerage rates my parents get charged!

 

[Edge705]

Easy if you DONTt use lots of water get a meter if you do stay as you are (without meter) One thing Ive done which has shed about 15 quid a month of the bill is fit a shower smart device especially if you have a gushing shower every 5 seconds I save a litre of water given that there are 5 in te household 3 teenagers taking 2 showers a day its been a good aquisition.

 

[ohnovino]

The usual estimate is residents v bedrooms: if you've got fewer people than rooms you should be better off on a meter.

 

[akb]

We are on a meter; pay for what you use is the general rule. We have found it much cheaper.

 

[summerdays]

We've just moved and the new abode has a water meter which was one of the things that put us off with 3 teenagers - they have suggested the DD each month is £51 but then last night on the local news they announced they were putting up their bills by 8% . Trying to retrain the kids currently - which based on my success at getting them to turn off lights/TV's etc is going to be a very long process.

If I had a choice (with a family) I wouldn't have a meter or at least not until I had kicked them out of the house . Reading all the literature you can change back within 12 months (need to check the exact wording) but if a new family moves in they can't change back.

There are calculators on line ... when I used it, it seemed to imply one or two people in a property it's a win to switch, any more and you start to loose out. In fact one of the sites suggested that my £51 DD was going to be an underpayment by a reasonable amount!

 

[AlexTheory]

I considered a water meter once... then i remembered the two fish tanks (240l and 180l) that requre a 50% minumum water change weekly. Yeah, i'll stick with my bill!

 

[Night Train]

I checked the water use calculators many years ago to see if it was worth getting a single meter to replace the four lots of rates that carried over when I bought the house (it was four flats originally) or argue for a single rate.

The calculators were not accurate to my water usage. Per week I use more to wash with and I use more to do laundry then the calculator suggested. They didn't even have an estimate for plaster and concrete mixing! Even using little and being careful I found that the meter would cost more then a single rate so I got my house re assessed for a single rate. The house is surrounded with water butts now to keep the garden going but I would also like to install a grey water system.

 

[threebikesmcginty]

If you're a single filthy unwashed greebo it'd be cheaper paying for what you use surely.

 

[BigonaBianchi]

well I'm actually a clean living single man lol!...yep...methinks a meter is best...have ordered one today.

 

[numbnuts]

been on a meter for years it is so much cheaper.

 

[fossyant]

Meter here - no choice. It's about £30-35 a month for a family of 4 and my car/bike cleaning obsession !