water meters

Go for it!! The rule of thumb is that if you have fewer people living in the house than bedrooms, then you will probably save money! You can have a year's trial and revert to the old system if you are not saving money.

Our bill is approx 40% of what it used to be and we haven't changed our usage at all!

Unless you have a water meter your water bill is based on the old Rateable Value of your property, which was used when we paid Council Rates (superseded by Council Tax). It is usually beneficial to opt for a water meter where there is low occupancy of a property and hence lower usage. Most water companies will give an estimate of the relative costs over the 'phone so try ringing the customer service line for further advice.

You also have a year once it is installed to change your mind. If you have a large house would it make a diffence later if you wanted to sell to a family?

My neighbours have a water meter and save a lot more money than I do. The reason that I have held back is that any any problem that I have here is water related. I have had a seriously dripping shower head for many days and could not get a plumber until today. The previous problem was also water related and the tank had to be drained, losing many thousands of litres of water

My emergency house insurance policy does not cover it as it obviously has a drain in the shower.

That is the only downside.

Sorry repeated kitty's advice!

There's a low threshold for some people, where having a water meter gives them no benefit despite the guidance. I live alone in a small two-bedroomed house, so in theory, my bills should reduce with a water meter. However, the charges would cause an increase in my bills, even though I use a relatively small amount.

Same here, when. I filled in a questionnaire on the United Utilities web site and it came back with the information that it wouldn't be worthwhile having a meter. Living alone in a much bigger house, I found it to be a great saving.

It made a huge difference to us when we moved to a house with a water meter even though we have, at times, watered our lawns with a hose pipe. We do have 2 water butts which we use for other watering and having a meter does make you think about usage so is much better for the environment.

I say go for it and give it a try.

Charley you would be surprised at the savings and I doubt if one off issues would amount to very much over a year. I think it is the day to day usage which makes a difference. I doubt a dripping shower head would have much affect. Why not give it a try?

Not sure water charges are still based on rateable value as one of our calculations changed recently from rateable value to type of house e.g. detached, semi etc. It means we now pay less!

Nonnie my water issues are not yearly, this is the 3rd this year and it is only March. I live on my own with a cat but I appear to wash clothes and dishes for the entire neighbourhood. I filled in a survey recently for a water company and it was thought that I was a high water user, which I knew.

We saved loads when we moved to meter (when still in the UK)- wish we had done it sooner.

Just completed the United Utilities online questionnaire and we'd be £156 worse off with a meter

Changed to a water meter 2 years ago, and have saved lots of money.It also makes you think about your use of water, although I still have long showers and we water the garden all Summer.Only 2 of us living here, with some visitors to stay from time to time.

we said no thanks, because it takes 2 1/2 large bowls of water to get the water warm, then a bowlful to wash up, also they would have had to put it under the kitchen sink, and my kitchen is already too small thanks to modenisation

I've saved a fortune since changing but have become paranoid about using water [although have eased off a bit recently]. It was pointless when my son and his girlfriend stayed here a lot but now it's just me with the S.O. coming over at weekends I'm only paying about £15 a month. However, last week I had to do my daughters washing [loads and loads of it] and I had to drain all of my water because my shower was leaking and I was fretting over the amount of water I was using . I wish I'd switched to a meter sooner; as with energy switching I advised everyone else to do it but didn't do it myself .

Thanks everyone. Aka - I know you also have a dog/dogs. is that a factor in your estimated water use? One of the things we're considering, is that my doodle dogs are mud magnets. Throughout the winter, I don't think there has been one day when the dogs haven't been showered when we get home from our long morning walk. I'll find the United Utilities questionnaire and see what our estimated use is.
Thanks again folks

Yes, the dogs need a mini bath everyday in this weather and then we have the grandchildren most days and some nights, so more baths, washing their clothes and bedding. So it's really like us having four children.

Thanks Aka, I did wonder about the impact of the daily dog showers (sometimes twice daily). Our 18 year old grandson brings his washing regularly (he does it himself…) and currently we have one of our daughter's staying, meaning an extra shower at least once a day. We had another daughter and her partner here for a month recently.
We do have water buts for the garden, but I suspect we do use more water than most couple's.

I changed in October and looking at my first bill I'll be paying half the amount paid in water rates. Only me at homebbut I do have to hose the patio down every day after the dog goes out.

Just did that UU thingy and it said it would cost us more! Its rubbish we are loads better with a meter than we were without. Ignore it and get a meter for 12 months to see what works for you. You will find that washing the dog or doing the extra odd load of washing does not use as much as you think.

On the other hand, if you all stay without meters does that mean that my water stays cheaper?