Water Main Leakage
Water Main Leakage
(OP)
I currently live in a community that is connected to a single water main and meter for approximately 300 units. At some point the water bills have increased to a point that it now averages three time that of a normal "single" family home for each unit. It sounds to me like a pipe is leaking. Is there a way to check the pipe for leaks. What options are there for fixing the problem?
Cgwilson2
Ocean Eng.
Cgwilson2
Ocean Eng.





RE: Water Main Leakage
Have you considered the possibility that the meter is malfunctioning and giving incorrect readings?
RE: Water Main Leakage
RE: Water Main Leakage
I suspect that you are situated in granular or porous soils, otherwise a large leak would have surfaced or there would be some nasty depressions/failures in the road (assuming the pipe is in the roadway.
I would firstly examine the types of water usage in your area, particularly if unmetered. Are there any residents with automatic spriklers? How often is watering (lawns, driveways, etc) taking place? What does your water bill look like in winter versus summer? Is there a dramatic difference (assuming of course that the bills are a function of total metered flow equally split based on number of hookups?
KRS Services
www.krs-services.com
RE: Water Main Leakage
RE: Water Main Leakage
If you are concerned about realistic consumption rates we would normally expect 150 litres per person per day plus alllowance for inductrial/commercial. On top of this consumption leakage should not exceed 25% in a decent network.
RE: Water Main Leakage
To give another perspective on systems, my experience on non-metered has been as high as 1000 litres/capita/day on some really hot summer days. Metered residential - anywhere from 235 l/c/d to 380 l/c/d. The major difference was the cost (per m3) of water. Am I correct in assuming that the systems you are referring to have a very high cost per litre of water. I would be very interested in sharing notes and looking at comparisons with you.
KRS Services
www.krs-services.com