Many Atlanta residents complain about the high cost of water. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Atlanta residents pay 108 percent more than New York City residents and 144 percent more than San Antonio residents for water. A water meter calculates total water usage in cubic feet, and it doesn't reflect the amount of water you have used per billing cycle. Instead the meter reflects the total cubic feet of water used since the installation of the meter. To figure out your day-to-day usage, you will need to subtract the previous day's total from the new reading.
Read the number of cubic feet on the meter. The first four digits are in white boxes, the last two digits are in a black boxes. For example, if the first four digits in the white boxes are 0627, and the last two digits in the black boxes are 10. The correct reading for this meter is 062710 cubic feet.
Read the dial. The dial is numbered from "0" to ".9." If the dial hand is currently on the third marking between the "0" and ".1," then the current reading for the dial hand is .03. If the dial is pointing toward the second marking after ".9," before "0," the correct reading is .92.
Add the dial units to the meter reading. For example, if the meter reads 062710, and the dial is pointing toward .92. The total cubic feet of water used is 062710.92.
Read the meter again the next day to get an idea of how much water you consume on a daily basis. Subtract the original reading from the new reading to get the total cubic feet of water used for that particular day.
Divide the number of cubic feet by 748 to get the total number of gallons used.
Tips
Your water bill will escalate if you have a leak or your water meter is somehow inaccurate. If the digits and dial hand on the water meter continue to move when you have no water on, you most likely have a water leak that will need to be addressed.
References
Tips
- Your water bill will escalate if you have a leak or your water meter is somehow inaccurate. If the digits and dial hand on the water meter continue to move when you have no water on, you most likely have a water leak that will need to be addressed.
Writer Bio
Si Kingston has been an online content contributor since 2004, with work appearing on websites such as MadeMan. She is a professional screenwriter and young-adult novelist and was awarded the Marion-Hood Boesworth Award for Young Fiction in 2008. Kingston holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Mills College.