Show All Answers

1. How do I know if I have a water leak?

Make sure all water is off in the house and is not about to come on. Open the meter box and look at the register on the water meter. On the meter dial will be a leak detector, either a small red or black triangle. This dial turns when water is passing through the meter. It is geared low enough to detect a very small leak. It should not be turning at all. If the meter has no leak detector, you will need to watch the big hand closely for a few minutes. If the dial indicator moves you may have a leak.

2. How do I turn off my water meter?

Down inside the meter tile usually on one end of the meter, there will be a valve located. Sometimes they can be covered by dirt and/or debris. The valve has built in stops. Using a “meter key” or crescent wrench, turn the valve right to turn off and left to turn back on. Sometimes these valves may be a little stiff to turn.

3. My meter box is full of murky water. How do you read the meter?

The meter readers have a plastic tube, which is sealed with clear plastic on one end. The meter reader places the tube on top of the register to get the read. It also has a built in light to light up the meter dial.

4. My meter is buried with dirt. How do you read the water meter?

We dig out the box just enough to expose the register, wipe off the register and get the reading. It doesn’t matter if the meter itself is buried.

If you don’t believe your meter is being read, read it yourself and compare the results to the reading on your bill. Be sure to make allowances for any difference between the day you read the water meter and the day it is read by the meter reader.

5. How do I read my electric meter?

The Electronic Meter- with digital meters, all you have to do is read the meter like the mileage odometer in your car. Every time the number increases, that’s another kilowatt-hour used. The Dial Meter- Electric meters have either four or five dials. They turn in alternate directions- some clockwise, some counter clockwise. To read your meter, record each arrows position on a sheet of paper with a drawing of the dials. After you’ve filled in the meter dials, write the number represented by each arrow’s position. 

The reading on this dial is 73256. 

When an arrow is between two numbers, always use the smaller number. The only exception is if the arrow is between the 9 and 0, then you record the 9.

6. Can water meters over register or record more water than is actually used?

All of our residential water meters are positive displacement meters. We use this type of meter because when they fail, age, or with extended usage, they either maintain their accuracy or slow down.

7. Can electric meter’s run fast because my bill is higher than usual.

Most generally no. Electric meters are reliably accurate devices that generally slow down to some degree with age, heavy usage, or will completely stop. Most high bills can be traced back to either extremely hot or cold weather, the addition of new electric devices (i.e. using electric space heaters, window air conditioners, etc.) faulty electrical devices, leaving on high usage devices, or even a change in living habits.

8. Can I landscape around my meter?

It is extremely beneficial to both you and the City of Miami Utilities to keep your meter locations clear of landscaping material. In the event of a leak or electric meter problems, it is essential that the meter is accessible for shut off, maintenance, and reading efficiency. Also do not park on top of water meters. A good policy is to keep meters clear of trees, shrubs, etc. for up to a five foot radius.