How to Read Your Water Meter

Some of our customers like to occasionally read their own water meters, either to see how much water they have been using during a particular period or to double check their bill. We encourage you to do this — it's easy.

Finding Your Water Meter Normally in town, your meter is located in a small, concrete box in the ground near the street at the front of your property. In rural areas and some, older in-town areas, the meter may be in a different spot, but it will practically always be near the edge of your property along a street where the main water line is located.	An open water meter.
Units of Measure You will find that your meter registers in cubic feet, not in gallons. Each cubic foot equals 7.48 gallons. You are billed in increments we call "billing units", which are 100 cubic feet (or 748 gallons) of water. Look at your monthly water bill to find the number of billing units you have used since the last billing.	Close up of the water meter dial
Reading the Meter The register on your water meter reads very much like the odometer on a car. On most of our meters, the last two digits on the right side are a different color from the rest of the numbers on the gauge and are not read by our meter readers. You don't need to worry about them, either.
The next series of numbers to the left is the number of billing units (the number of 100 cubic foot increments of water) that have passed through the meter. In the illustration, the meter shows that 235 billing units of water have passed through the meter. To determine the number of units of water that have been used, subtract the number shown in a previous reading from the current number. For example, using the illustration to the right, if the previous reading had been 200, subtract that number from the current reading of 235, and you will know that 35 billing units of water have been used.

Do You Have a Leak?

Here's an easy way to let your meter tell you whether you have any leaks that are costing you money and that you should have fixed.

Most meters have a sweep hand much like the second hand on a clock. Some meters also (or instead) have a small diamond or triangle set in the face of the meter.

Turn off all water faucets and water-using appliances on your property, indoors and out. When you are done, look at your meter. If the sweep hand or the diamond/triangle is moving, there is water passing through your meter, and that means either you've forgotten to turn something off, or you have a leak on your side of the meter.

EMWD does not repair leaks on your side of the meter. That is your responsibility. You may wish to call a plumber, because hidden leaks can be very expensive.

EMWD employee reading a water meter
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