The meter records the amount of water used by the residents of the house or apartment.
Installing a meter reduces payments for water by 2-3 times.
From the article you will learn how the counter works, why it fails, how to repair it, how to choose and install a new one correctly.
Water meters are distinguished by the following parameters:
Water counting method:
Installation option:
Moisture resistance:
Maximum water pressure.
Maximum water temperature.
Way of indication (informing):
Nominal water flow (water transmission) and thread.
Before buying a meter, count the number of water consumers (hot and cold water, toilets, dishwashers and washing machines), then calculate the total consumption per minute (based on the consumption of one consumer of 3 liters per minute). Then multiply the expense by sixty and divide by a thousand. You have received the water consumption in cubic meters per hour.
Do not take a meter with a lower rated water flow. This will reduce the pressure in the faucets.
Meters that are sold in Russia are certified in accordance with GOST R 50601-93, so the accuracy and service life of meters of any model are the same. When choosing a meter, consider not the brand, but the characteristics - maximum pressure, maximum temperature, nominal water flow, meter location. For operation, electric meters must be connected to a 220 volt network through the power supply supplied with the meter. Such devices are not used for installation in rooms with high humidity.
The cost of water meters is from 500 to 6000 rubles. The accuracy of water flow measurement of expensive models exceeds the accuracy of cheap ones by tenths of a percent.
The advantage of some models of expensive meters is the ability to connect to a server for automatic collection of readings. Expensive counters have no other advantages over cheap ones.
Pay attention to the marking and passport of the counter. If the delivery set of the meter does not include a passport in Russian or the serial number, manufacturer, water flow and pressure are not indicated on the meter body, refuse to purchase. This meter does not meet the standards adopted in the Russian Federation, so you will not register it with the water utility. If you do not know which meters are best or which one to choose, contact the water utility.
The cost of a meter in a water utility store is 3-5 percent higher than in other stores, but all documents are properly executed, so you will register it without any problems. In the same place, order the installation (if you decide not to connect it yourself) and sealing the meter.
When connecting the meter, use the following diagram:
common house water supply manifold → central valve of the apartment → valve of the leakage protection system → coarse water filter → meter → non-return valve.
If cold water is supplied to the apartment, which is heated by gas or electric water heater, use the following schema:
common house water supply manifold → central valve of the apartment → valve of the leakage protection system → coarse water filter → water heater → meter → non-return valve.
Install adapters on the counter, then connect the output of the coarse filter to the input of the counter. If you are using a metal mesh filter, position it with the filter element housing towards the meter. Installing a filter will keep the meter from jamming and damage and extend its life. The diameter of the water pipes must match the diameter of the adapters. If the diameter is different, install additional adapters. Do not connect water consumers in front of the meter. Otherwise, the water utility will fine you.
Use sealing materials during installation. Details about the choice and application of sealing materials in the article and the correct use of each of them). Follow the meter manufacturer's recommendations, do not mount horizontal meters vertically and vice versa. Pay attention to the direction of water movement, which is indicated by an arrow on the body.
If the meter's passport says that a check valve is built into it, then do not install a check valve. If the meter is without it, install. This will save you from incorrect operation of the meter when the water supply is turned off.
After installing the filter, take the meter passport to the water utility to register it and apply for sealing there. Without registration, the water utility will not accept meter readings for payment, and you will have to pay at the rate. To connect and authorize meters with a radio channel or pulse output, contact the management company or organization that services these types of meters.
If water does not pass through the meter, reconnect the central valve and disassemble the connection between the filter and the meter. Open the valve. If water comes out of the filter, the meter is jammed. In this case, buy a new meter, install it instead of the damaged one, and write an application to the water utility to replace the meter. Or call the water utility workers to replace the meter. In this case, there will be less nitpicking on the part of public utilities workers.
If the adapter nut burst on the meter during installation, buy and replace it at a hardware or hardware store. If "licked off" the thread on the counter, change it. If, after sealing, the nut of the adapter bursts, contact the water utility for advice, because after replacing the nut, sealing will be required.
If the counter arrow does not spin or it leaks, remove it yourself and install a new one. Repairing a broken meter will cost more than buying a new one. Immediately contact the water utility about replacing and sealing the meter. If the water utility workers ask you to provide a damaged meter, bring it. Or call the water utility workers to replace and seal the meter.
The water meter protects you from overpayments for water. From the article, you learned how to choose, install and seal the counter, what to do when it breaks. Now you can choose and install a meter that matches the water consumption of your apartment.
*information posted for informational purposes, to thank us, share the link to the page with your friends. You can send interesting material to our readers. We will be happy to answer all your questions and suggestions, as well as hear criticism and wishes at [email protected]What to do if the water meter is broken? How can you avoid overpaying for unused water? The answers to these questions will depend on several factors:
Important! In order to avoid unpleasant situations with regulatory authorities, it is good to independently conduct a regular check of your water meter.
What to do if the malfunction is detected by authorized persons?
Such a situation is not pleasant. Controllers have the legal right to recover from the owner to the fullest extent of the "Rules" for the provision of public services to individuals. But even here there is a small, but important nuance in favor of the owner. Some organizations make huge charges for supposedly consumed and unpaid water. Why is there such a large amount?
It directly depends on the number of registered citizens in this apartment. They will have to pay even if they did not actually live there during this period of time. An exception may be made by persons who are on inpatient treatment in a hospital, on a business trip, boarding school, etc. Then it is necessary to provide a list of supporting documents. In addition, a fine will be issued.
But any consumer should know that in this case the calculation must be made after the date of the last verification. It can be three months or a maximum of six months before the discovery of a device failure, but no more. Therefore, it would be good to take it into service, to control whether water meters are checked on time.
Fault detected by homeowner - procedure
If the owner of the apartment detects a malfunction of the device, it is better to immediately come to the local housing office and write a statement about the revealed fact, with a request to take readings by the controller.
Attention! After these actions have been taken by the management company, the owner of the apartment must have a copy, which indicates the date of acceptance and the last name of the person who accepted the application. Now the owner, according to the Law, has 30 days, during which he is obliged to repair / replace the device. During this time, the controlling organization will calculate the average monthly consumption of this subscriber for the last month.
Another option is how the subscriber can act. The consumer is not required to know the "symptoms" of breakdowns, or to be an expert in this field. Therefore, if his conscience allows, then you can write an application for replacing the meter with an invitation to the controller to take the last readings. The whole process must be confirmed by an act indicating all the actors.
It remains to install a new counter
When choosing a device in a store, be sure to inspect it for chips, cracks and other mechanical damage. Make sure that the seller in the passport put the date of purchase, the stamp of the trade institution that carried out its implementation and his signature.
To install the meter, it is better to invite a specialist. After that, the owner must contact the managing organization in order to check and seal the water meter.
How to check the operation and correct reading of the water meter fluid?
To do this, inspect the body - whether there are any damages, cracks on it. Does the impeller rotate in it when the water is turned on. The correct reading of the consumed liquid is determined as follows. Take a container of known volume, for example, a liter mug. Before opening the tap, record the readings of the device. Open the tap and fill it with liquid. After turning off, note the new readings. They should increase by exactly one unit.
Everything related to individual metering devices should not be left to chance. You can avoid a lot of trouble if you follow the above tips.
All recent new buildings are rented equipped with meters for water consumption (cold and hot), gas and heat. The duration of the operation of these devices depends on the quality of the water. Not surprisingly, counters break periodically. To save the family budget, you can repair the water meter with your own hands .
It should be noted that all cold water metering devices are sealed by the water supply organization and are registered with it. And if you notice that your counter is somehow not working properly, then, without delay, you need to solve this problem. What should get your attention:
All of the above visible signs indicate a breakdown of the device. In this case, you can try to repair the counter. If this fails, then it will have to be replaced.
Repair of the meter is carried out directly at the installation site. To do this, you need to study the internal design of the counter. Mostly such devices consist of an impeller through which water passes. She turns it, this rotational movement is transmitted to a system of gears, which, in turn, are connected to a counting mechanism. The whole structure is placed in a metal casing on the bottom and transparent on top. Therefore, the reasons for the incorrect operation of the counter may be the following:
If a poor performance of the meter is detected, the first thing to do is to contact the water supply company for permission to remove the seal. Unauthorized removal of it will lead to a large fine.
After receiving written permission, you can proceed to dismantle the device. To do this, turn off the water using a valve installed at the water inlet to the apartment / house. Such a valve must be placed in front of the counter. Moreover, if there is a central hot water supply, then the hot water valve must also be closed at the input. Then open the cold water in order to flush the remaining water from the system. Only after that we unscrew the union nuts on the water meter and remove the device.
To resume water supply, put a metal insert in place of the meter, specially designed for this.
Now you can start troubleshooting. First, blow out the counter. Just forcefully blow into the inlet. If it remains motionless, then try washing the device under strong water pressure. It will wash out the blockage or rust deposits, if the reason for the poor performance of the water meter is in them. If the wheels spin during the purge, then the malfunction has been eliminated.
When flushing does not help, it means that something is broken inside and you will have to remove the case. To do this, you need to disassemble the counter itself. Carefully separate the upper transparent part from the metal case. We remove the top, scoreboard, counting mechanism and impeller. When the device is disassembled, it is not difficult to establish the cause of the breakdown. Then the matter is small: just change the worn parts for new ones and collect everything back.
If the repair can be done on your own, then you yourself will not put the stamp of the state standard. Therefore, it must be preserved in any way so that after the assembly of the water meter it remains in its place.
If the metal part of the body is damaged, most likely, you will have to change the water meter or find a faulty water meter with the whole body and swap them.
At the end of the repair work, the device must be installed in place. The work algorithm is as follows:
Although it is quite possible to repair a water meter on your own, some nuances should be taken into account:
So, in such a simple way, you can repair a water meter. Do you have personal experience in this matter? It will be interesting to read your comments on the article.
From this video you will learn how the water meter works:
Nothing terrible happened if the hot water meter broke down and what to do - you will learn below. Breakdowns are quickly reparable and repairs can be provided even without contacting a specialist. To understand what exactly your problem is, consider all possible problems and reasons why the device fails.
The hot water meter can break for various reasons
A very common problem for which there is a whole list of reasons.
The hot water meter can break under the influence of a magnet
The sooner you start repairing your water meter, the more likely you are to save money. If the water meter is broken, then before searching the Internet for “how to disassemble the meter”, understand that if you do not have the proper skills, it is better not to disassemble anything. Self-disassembly of the water meter has already hit the pockets of many craftsmen, because, due to the inexperience of the repairman, he brought even more losses or could stop again.
The first and main advice is to transfer to the minimum utility rates, notify the company about what happened and call the master.
You will be offered a replacement instead of a repair. Repair is not much cheaper, but unlike a new device, it does not guarantee long-term service. In addition, it will take a lot of time to eliminate the shortcomings (we are talking about the formation of an act and the conduct of appropriate examinations that the meter was not broken intentionally, the conclusions of the commission, etc.). You can even make a new device for controlling hot water with your own hands - it's really not difficult, but you need registration and sealing. Therefore, it is easier to turn to specialists, because they "force" to do it.
Basic knowledge is needed to install a water meter. There is nothing complicated, so all that is required of you is to follow the instructions. Repairing a water meter is a more tedious task, because there are a lot of reasons: you need to find out what exactly is not working. The kit includes the following components:
When you have acquired the necessary components, follow the sequence of connecting auxiliary components to the counter. Often this is the key to problems with water devices. On each component part there are arrows that show the direction of water in the device. Based on these arrows, you need to assemble the device. Now, after this information, collect your counter.
Once the meter is assembled, introduce it into the plumbing system. The main thing is not to stop following the instructions. In order for the device to take its rightful place, it must be literally embedded there.
This maintenance and installation manual will save you some money as you won't have to pay a handyman. Still wondering what to do if the meter breaks down? Deal with the problem yourself!