By Ruth Carol Atieno

Water is a necessity in a person’s daily life routine. The process of measuring water use at a particular time is know as water metering. Water meters are used to measure the volume of water used by residential houses and commercial buildings.

A good meter helps you save money and detects any leakages that might occur. Accuracy is also key when selecting water meters. The water level should have an accuracy of +/- 5% in any condition.

What are the types of water meters

Turbine Meters

A turbine meter is a volume sensing device. When liquid or gas pass through the turbine, the freely suspended turbine blades rotates. The velocity of the turbine rotor is directly proportional to the velocity of the fluid passing through the flow meter.

• These kind of meters are heavy duty
• Used in distributing hot water
• They record water flowing in a single
• Such meters can be used in large a apartment complex and commercial buildings

Compound Meters

• These meters have multi-measuring abilities as they able to measure high, medium and low level of water.
• Compound meters are very accurate and easy to read.

Electromagnetic Meters

Electromagnetic meters use electromagnetic properties to determine the water flow velocity. The meters function by the use of Faraday’s law of induction for measurement.

Magnetic flow meters require AC or DC electricity from a power line or battery to operate the electromagnets.

Ultrasonic Water Meters

Ultrasonic water meters use ultrasonic transducers to send ultrasonic sound waves through the fluid to determine the velocity of the water.

The cross-sectional area of the meter body is a fixed and known value, and because of this when the velocity of water is detected, the volume of water passing through the meter can be calculated with very high accuracy.

Ultrasonic water meters can also measure the water temperature as a component of the volume calculation.

Factors To Consider Before Selecting A Water Meter

Quality of the meter

Almost all of the times pricing is always a determining factor when buying any commodity. Most importantly, quality should never be substituted.

A good meter is one which has a long lasting warranty and not a cheap one but with a very short termed or limited warranty. Money will be eventually saved when the high quality meter is put to use.

Water Usage

The amount of water to be measured is also a determining factor when selecting water meters.

When you choose a small water flow meter where there is heavy water usage will result to inaccurate readings which will in turn lead to erroneous monthly bills and dissatisfied clients or tenants in the case of rental apartments.

Tamperproof

A good water flow meter is one that is tamper proof. It should be in a position to detect tampers and even give warnings of the same at any given point in time.

The best water meters are also wind resistant.

Easy to read

When you buy a good water meter you will not have troubles doing the reading.

Finally, have in place good maintenance for your water meter once installed. Replace in case of any leakages or in the event of outrageous readings.