San Juan Water District | How To Read Your Meter

Meter Face
The meter face contains all the information required to accurately read your water meter.

Reading Your Meter
SJWD reads your meter electronically every other month, but not always on the same day of the month. Here’s how water use is calculated:

Your usage is the difference between the current meter reading and the prior meter reading.
Water meters are read from left to right in units of 100 cubic feet.
Read only the four numbers on the far-left side of your meter. These represent whole units. One unit represents 100 cubic feet or 748 gallons.
The number of units shows you how much water you have used. For example, if the left four digits of your meter read 0090 and the prior meter read was 0080, this means you have used 10 units or 7,480 gallons of water.

Water Leak Detection
The triangular-shaped water leak detector spins when you are using water. Use this feature to investigate water line problems. If all faucets, spigots and other water devices are turned off both inside and outside your home and the leak detector is still spinning, you probably have a water leak. If you can’t locate the leak, please contact SJWD at (916) 791-2663.

Remember, it is not necessary to lift the concrete lid on your meter box to read your meter. In fact, doing so could disconnect the wire that connects the meter to the outside touch pad used by SJWD staff. To read your meter you will need to use a large screwdriver to lift up the box’s metal lid. If you have any questions, please call our conservation department at 791-2663. Automated Meter Reading
SJWD uses meter wands to read meters electronically and record water use.

A small wire connects your meter to a touch pad (black plastic disc) on the outside of the meter box. When a meter wand touches this pad, water use data transfers to the wand.

To help speed meter reading, it is important that the small connecting wire remains intact. If damaged, the meter will still register use, but the meter reader will need to manually read the numbers, which takes additional time.

Meter Box
The meter box holds the water meter. It is made of concrete and lies flush with the ground. With all San Juan Water District customers now billed on a metered rate, it is more important than ever for customers to maintain their meter box by keeping it clear of landscaping and other obstructions at all times.

Keeping the meter box clear of obstructions allows customers to more easily check their own meters to monitor water use and check for leaks. It also enables district staff to easily read your meter for accurate billing purposes and provides easy access for maintenance.

Meter box obstructions can be much more serious than limiting access, however. Many customers do not realize that root intrusion from their trees and shrubs can severely damage their water line and service box. Such intrusion can eventually cause the service line to break, which would force the district to shut off water to your home.

Please keep the landscaping around your meter box trimmed or removed at all times. If you would like the district to trim or remove the surrounding landscape to provide a two-foot clearance, we will be more than happy to accommodate your request and will make every effort to keep the impact on the appearance of your landscape to a minimum. To request this service, call us at (916) 791-0115. Please note that once the landscaping is trimmed, it is important that you continue to maintain the clearance.

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9935 Auburn-Folsom Road, Granite Bay, CA 95746
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