Infrastructure Leak Detection Using ‘Water Balancing

Photo Courtesy of Advantage Homes

by Matt Laird

Meter reading systems are continuously advancing, providing new benefits to park owners. Systems now compare the water metered at the inlet, to the entire park, then to the combined usage of all the meters on homes and other meters on common areas, sprinklers and swimming pools. The difference between main park meters and the sum of downstream meters is the water lost to leaks within the park’s infrastructure. This is known as “water balancing”. The easiest and cheapest way to get started is to compare the water consumption from your current bill from the utility to the total usage of all the downstream billing meters

over the same period. Your utility bill should show three necessary ingredients: current read date, previous read date and water usage over the billing period. The next step is to have your submeter reading system totalize usage of all your downstream billing meters over that same billing period.

Accuracy is Key

The accuracy of the water balancing is dependent on two major factors. First, it is critical that the totalization period from the submeters match the billing period on your utility bill, otherwise the calculation will be inaccurate.

Secondly, the assumption is that all meters involved are reasonably accurate. It is common for large utility meters that serve manufactured home communities to be inaccurate sometimes as by as much as 20% to 30%. But think twice before calling your local utility and requesting a calibration because the inaccuracy is usually in your favor. If the main meter is repaired your utility bill could increase considerably. If you suspect the utility meter may be inaccurate (as is often the case), then consider installing your own master meter, downstream of the utility meter to get an accurate water balancing calculation to allow you to assess the health of your water infrastructure.

Similarly, if the submeters you are using are past their accuracy life, they will generally report lower than actual usage skewing the results of water balancing to suggest infrastructure leaks that may not even be there. And, the quality of certain water submeters varies greatly. Some can hold their accuracy for five or even 10 years. Others lose accuracy quickly or use pulse counters that are notoriously unreliable for delivering consistently From both an economic and environmental responsibility point-of-view, water submetering is demanded by most mid-sized and large MHP ownership group. –Matt Laird accurate data. Many sophisticated park ownership groups upgrade submeters regularly knowing that their accuracy is crucial.

As long as all meters are at or near their rated accuracy, the water balancing exercise should yield no more than a 5% to10% difference between the park’s main meter bill and the addition of all the downstream submeters. Anything more than 10% difference suggests potentially material leaks in the internal piping of the park. As a side note the park owner is paying the utility for that water but not billing the tenants. Historically we have seen leaks cost owner’s from $5,000 to $10,000 per month in various parks around the country.

Submetering systems can’t fix the infrastructure leaks but it can quantify and pinpoint them. A few well-placed zone meters will help the park owner to “zero in” on the biggest leaks and minimize

repair costs.

Understand Your Utility Bill including Tiered Billing, Wastewater

Many water utility customers review their bill each month see the cost of water = $x per thousand gallons. Those charges range from $3 - $15 per thousand gallons depending on the rates of the local utility. They are usually tiered with the amount of water used, penalizing higher usage. There is an incentive to manage and reduce peak consumption as it is the most expensive water.

As well, many utilities bill for wastewater based on water usage. Wastewater rates usually are higher than the water rates, sometimes two to three times higher, so this can add significantly to the economics of submetering. As the community owner pays wastewater charges on any infrastructure leaks (leaks before the meter at the homes) and even irrigation and pool usage (if those are not separately utility metered), there is even greater incentive to understand water usage, water loss and accurately pass on the cost of water to those who are using it. »

Submetering is ‘State of the Art’ not ‘The Way of the Future’

Advances in meter communication, data collection and data analytics have changed submetering at manufactured home parks from simply being a way to pass on costs to residents to a powerful tool in water and utility management. Mobile home park owners and residents alike now have the information to understand their water usage, fix leaks, change behaviors, and better manage this precious resource. All of this is now available in a cost-effective and user-friendly platform, giving park owners capabilities previously only available to the largest municipal utilities.

From both an economic and environmental responsibility point-of-view, water submetering is demanded by most mid-sized and large MHP ownership groups, and the value of any property is impacted by the quality of the submetering system. MHV

Matt Laird is CEO of Metron-Farnier and its subsidiaries Metron Sustainable Services and Transparent Technologies. He holds a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering and an M.B.A. in Finance, both from the University of Colorado and has 30 years of experience in water metering.

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