Meter readings

How we know how much water you use

We read most meters once a quarter so we know how much water to charge our customers for. You’ll see this amount referred to on your water bill as usage charges. Usage charges are different from your fixed charges, which are for your connections to our water and wastewater systems and other systems we manage.

What happens if we can't access your meter

How to read your own meter or standpipe

3 ways to tell us your meter reading

How to request monthly bills

What happens if we can't access your meter

We’ll leave a card and ask you to read the meter for us. This might be because your meter is:

  • behind a locked gate or door
  • buried in concrete or dirt
  • hidden by trees, plants or grass
  • on a property that's unsafe to enter, for example, if there's a dog.
     

How to help us read an inaccessible meter

There are 2 things you can do:

  1. Install an Abloy utility lock
    If your meter is behind a locked gate or door, you can give us access by using an Abloy utility lock. This lets us read your meter while you still keep your property secure. Find out more about how to install an Abloy utility lock.
  2. Apply for a remotely read meter
    For a fee, we can install a remotely read meter. This lets our meter reader read your meter anytime without needing to enter your property. Find out more about remotely read meters.
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How to read your own meter or standpipe

Water meters

If we've asked you to read a meter, you'll need to tell us:

  • the date of your reading
  • your contact number
  • your unique meter serial number
  • all the black numbers (or white numbers reversed out of black).

The whole black number is the kilolitres (kL), and the red numbers or dials are the litres. We only need the black number to calculate water use.

Note that the location of the meter serial number varies depending on the meter brand. These are the meters we're installing now.

Metered standpipes

When you read your metered standpipe, you'll need to tell us:

  • the date of your reading
  • your contact number
  • your unique meter serial number
  • all the numbers on the dials (if your metered standpipe has a black pointer, you also need to provide the number it points to – you don't need to read the red pointers).

The location of the meter serial number varies depending on the brand of the meter.

3 ways to tell us your meter reading

If we've left a self-reading card, please tell us your meter reading within 3 days. If you're unable to read the meter yourself when we ask, we'll estimate your water use based on your past usage patterns. If it's not possible for us to estimate your past usage, then we may base the estimate on usage of similar properties in your council area.

  1. Tell us your reading online.
  2. Call us on 1300 314 834 Monday to Friday between 9am and 5pm.
  3. Send an SMS or MMS to 0478 308 922. Include your account number, meter serial number and meter reading in your message.

How to request monthly bills

If you'd rather receive your bills monthly instead of every 3 months, you can arrange it by calling us on 13 20 92. The fee for receiving monthly bills is $39.47 a quarter. This will appear on your first monthly bill each quarter.