Water meter woes

Boycey0211

Boycey0211

Boycey0211

Soldato
Joined
27 Apr 2011
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UK
Evening,

So, bit of a shocker today. Got my first water bill after moving in in October, was put on their minimum rate of £22 pcm as I work away during the week and decided to up it if I ever used more than the minimum amount. Didn't worry about it in the slightest and was just awaiting the request for a meter reading in january.

Skip forwards to today. I arrive home for the weekend to find a letter from the water company, inside is included a rather large bill which I thought was covered anyway, and some interesting readings.

Estimated - 1012
Actual - 1040

Now the meter is outside the property on the pavement, so in a good turn of events I do not have to supply said meter reading, they come round and do it themselves, winner. I think that this must have led to a misreading and would be a simple fix.

First thing I do is pop out and have a look, reading was taken on 8/1 and in 11 days it now reads 1042. I haven't been home since the 6th. And the bloody meter is spinning.

Naturally I think I've got a leak so search the house all over, nothing.

Phoned the water company and they ran me through their leak fault finding thing. Managed to find the internal stopcock and its jammed open, so no luck narrowing it down there.

Went outside to shut off the water supply, and the external stopcock closes, but the meter STILL SPINS.

So, water company coming round next week to have a look. I'm desperately keeping my fingers crossed that its the main meter area thats at fault as otherwise the pipe runs under my house all the way to the back before popping up into the rear of the house into it, so it looks like potentially I'm going to have to dig up the whole house if it isnt.

Not really sure what I'm asking for here, maybe some advice about what to do or just a vent, safe to say with this lemon of a house I feel like I've ruined my own life buying it.

And also, I think its a bit bizarre that they assume in 5 weekends I've lived there that I've managed to use 28000 liters of water
 
If you can get the internal stopcock closed then you'll be able to tell If its in the property or the supply pipe running from meter.

If once closed the dial still spins then its between the meter and internal stopcock. If it stops then its in the property. Check ball valves in the CWS tank in the loft, if you have one and any toilets not over flowing into the pan.

Either way its your responsibility from the meter into your house.
 
Dougall321 said:
If you can get the internal stopcock closed then you'll be able to tell If its in the property or the supply pipe running from meter.

If once closed the dial still spins then its between the meter and internal stopcock. If it stops then its in the property. Check ball valves in the CWS tank in the loft, if you have one and any toilets not over flowing into the pan.

Either way its your responsibility from the meter into your house.
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Yup stopcock is completely jammed open so that needs sorting anyway, but when you close the meter off it continues to run. I'm hoping that its leaking just on its way out of the meter tbh before it goes under my property. No leaks whatsoever and nothing overflowing inside.
 
Soak the spindle of stopcock in WD 40 - leave it a day and do it again - then use a wrench and very gently try turning tap - if it doesn't go spray again and leave and so on. - if you get it moving just turn a bit then spray and keep doing it till it feels like it will move easier - always close tap half turn from full open when you get it moving. That way if it sticks again you can move it either way.

You don't have to run water pipe under house - take it round the side unless you are terraced
 
DXP55 said:
Soak the spindle of stopcock in WD 40 - leave it a day and do it again - then use a wrench and very gently try turning tap - if it doesn't go spray again and leave and so on. - if you get it moving just turn a bit then spray and keep doing it till it feels like it will move easier - always close tap half turn from full open when you get it moving. That way if it sticks again you can move it either way.

You don't have to run water pipe under house - take it round the side unless you are terraced
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Yeah didn't even think about WD40 initially as I was too ****ed off. Cheers.

And its an ex-terrace now detached, which is why the water runs under the house.

Cheers Kutter, everything about this house has been bodged into eternity and just not maintained so its getting me more and more down finding things non stop.
 
Are you sure it's your responsibility after the meter? My parents recently had the entire run from the meter in the street and 30m under a lawn replaced free of charge as there was a blockage in there somewhere that was severely reducing the pressure.
 
Caged said:
Are you sure it's your responsibility after the meter? My parents recently had the entire run from the meter in the street and 30m under a lawn replaced free of charge as there was a blockage in there somewhere that was severely reducing the pressure.
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Thats what they told me over the phone. Any idea how to check further?
 
Do you know what material the pipe is under your house? If it's HDPE (polyethylene) and was installed correctly it should last ~200 years without leaking. HDPE was only introduced to the UK in the 1960s - by my Chairman as it happens -, so doing the maths, you could argue it was poor installation if you find that's where the issue is.
 
Caged said:
Are you sure it's your responsibility after the meter? My parents recently had the entire run from the meter in the street and 30m under a lawn replaced free of charge as there was a blockage in there somewhere that was severely reducing the pressure.
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The supply pipe is the responsibility of the property owner but some water companies are repairing/replacing for free because it's an easy way to bolster their leakage reduction stats.

From Ofwat:

Supply pipe repairs
You are responsible for the drains, water pipes and plumbing fixtures on your property. You are also responsible for ensuring that the plumbing in your property conforms to the required standards. We are not responsible for regulating plumbing.

You must maintain the supply pipes that are your responsibility. This includes leak detection, repairs and replacement. You should contact your water company to find out if they offer help for subsidised or free repairs.

Each company must have a code of practice which sets out how they address any leakage from household supply pipes.

If you have a water meter and your bill was abnormally high because of leakage that has since been repaired, you may be able to claim an allowance for the cost of water lost. You should contact your water company for more information. Companies have specific responsibilities to check supply pipes for leakage when meters are fitted and to carry out repairs where no further excavation is required to do this work.

If your company has recorded leakage in your area but cannot source the leak to their pipes, they may issue a legal notice under the Water Industry Act 1991 to inform you of a potential private leak and your legal requirement to fix it. This notice will advise you of timescales. If you do not fix the problems in the time allowed, the company can carry out the works and pass on the costs to you.

Water companies are responsible for the maintenance of communication pipes and mains which includes leak detection, repairs and replacement where necessary. If the company carries out work on pipework for which they are responsible, including laying new mains, they must follow a code of practice, which is available from the company.
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Edit - ffs, by the time I've posted via my phone, you've linked it yourself :p
 
Every house has issues mate, im still finding issues after living here for nearly 5 years. My neighbour discovered they didnt put a ridge vent in his house he kept getting mold in his attic. They plumbed my upstairs toilet upto the hot water, so the tank fills with hot water when i flush it lol.
 
:D

Yeah I suppose, I knew it was a doer-upper but the extend to which things have been hidden from both the viewings and the surveys is a joke and I think this leak is another thing that was just ignored trying to sell the place.

At least most of it is stuff I can sort out easily like the 8 satellite aerials, wallpaper over major structural issues and the phone line extension to nowhere.

This is the first 'oh ****' thats really turned up though and at the end of a long week its not what you want to hear or find.
 
doofski said:
Every house has issues mate, im still finding issues after living here for nearly 5 years. My neighbour discovered they didnt put a ridge vent in his house he kept getting mold in his attic. They plumbed my upstairs toilet upto the hot water, so the tank fills with hot water when i flush it lol.
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Surprisingly common for a while it stops condensation forming on the outside of the cistern when it fills with freezing cold water in winter!
 
Internal stpo cocks are ******** for seizing up, basically the minor amount of crud in the water slowly builds up around the internals of the valve

There are numerous guides on you tube on how to free them up. They respond to a few different things and trying them all in kind of a rotation is the best way I found historically.

First to try is tightening, and learn lesson number 1 on stopcocks here, never fully open, always turn back a little, just a little like 1/8 or 1/4 turn. This way when you need to shut it off you can turn both ways to try to break any seal thats formed. They tend to be easier to open rather than close if a bit gunked up.
Then lesson number 2, every so often, like every 6 months or so, tighten and open the valve a couple of times. This helps remove anythings thats building up.

As far as othe options for breaking the seal on a seized valve.
You need to look this up, but loosening the packing (internals to the valve) a little can help as it allows the internals to move a bit more.
Light taps with a hammer can help
Lastly a little heat, I personally avoid this one as its harder to do and I think the least effective.

My stopcock was seized when I had to isolate in my house, I don't think it had been turned off in 10 years. I now do it every so often, there is very little resistance now. Its one of the simplest and yet most important bits of maintenance you can do keeping this free, its your first line of defence should you have a leak.

Everything is just to break the crud up a bit, it will go but can take persistence, try to avoid brute force but you will need to apply some reasonable force. Persistence!
 
To add to the post above - I turn every shutoff valve on and off that I can find in the house - twice a year if I remember but at least at end of summer and this includes all radiator valves.

I had a mate years ago who had both valves seized - in end he had to change valve unit in the one in house live - he said biggest mistake was not turning cold taps on before starting ??
 
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