Main Stopcock Shared - Require Info

[Nige F]

Well if it is Southern Water then there is a £75 charge including initial assesment - there is a form on their website . Looks to me like the most straightforward option . and cheaper than litigation

 

[adlplumbing]

southern water have made mistake their fore they have to correct
water meter should not have been fitted their for they owe the op money
giving independant supply could be a form of compensation

 

[Agile]

If the hexagonal nut adjacent to my water meter (under cover in pavement as seen in photo above ) is turned off, then this stops water to both properties.

I did not know that my water meter had a valve in the meter chamber so have never tried to turn it off to confirm.

So should my neighbour ask to have a water meter fitted to their branch of the water supply? Is that the best/easiest option? Would installing a water meter be free or would that incur a cost?

If I called my water supplier and asked them to send someone to come out and have a look in order to assess the situation, would the water supplier do this?

Cheers

Your neighbour is nothing to do with you!

All you need to do is to tell the water co the meter has wrongly been fitted to supply both properties!

Ask for ( at least ) half all the metered charges to be returned to you!

Get them to get it corrected ASAP and that will then enable their property to be isolated on its own.

Tony

 

[willmington]

Nige F said:
Well if it is Southern Water then there is a £75 charge including initial assesment - there is a form on their website . Looks to me like the most straightforward option . and cheaper than litigation

For clarity it is Thames Water.

adlplumbing said:
southern water have made mistake their fore they have to correct
water meter should not have been fitted their for they owe the op money
giving independant supply could be a form of compensation.

Agile said:
All you need to do is to tell the water co the meter has wrongly been fitted to supply both properties!
Ask for ( at least ) half all the metered charges to be returned to you!
Get them to get it corrected ASAP and that will then enable their property to be isolated on its own.

adlplumbing & Agile, you are both clearly stating that the meter has been incorrectly fitted and that I have been incurring costs for both households.

When I call Thames Water and report that the meter has been wrongly fitted is the procedure that they will send someone initially to investigate and report back. Would this visit incur a fee.

Presumably, if Thames Water accept that it was wrongly fitted, this will be corrected free of charge.

Lastly, as regards being billed for 2 households. I now recall that I carried out the following experiment some months ago. I asked my next door neighbour (ie the one linked to me) to turn on her kitchen tap while at the same time checking whether my water meter was registering any consumption. She turned the tap on for 10-15 secs and turned it off. In all of that time my water meter never budged.

On the basis of the above experiment, I cannot see how I can be paying for 2 households.

Also with this in mind, would it still be the right to say that the water meter is not correctly fitted.

Many thanks for your invaluable help to date.

Cheers

EDIT: As regards my water meter and the stopcock and in the event that it makes a difference, the flow of water is from right to left ie the terraces are on the left of my water meter (as per pic below)

View media item 35754

 

[Agile]

Suppose you neighbour never actually turned on her tap ??? To make you think it was not measuring her use?

We only have what you sat to go on. You dont seem 100% sure.

The meter and its valve are an integral unit. IF the neighbour is turned off by your meter valve then her consumption MUST be going through her meter!

Another test. Turn off ALL your water use including WCs etc. Keep a full bucket for flushing. The read your meter. Wait several hours when they would use water and then read your meter again.

If you have got this wrong, then I suppose the water co would be entitled to make a charge but I doubt they would ever bother as its more trouble than its worth.

Tony

 

[willmington]

Agile said:
The meter and its valve are an integral unit. IF the neighbour is turned off by your meter valve then her consumption MUST be going through her meter!

I am getting confused here which happens more often nowadays.

1. I have never tried to turn off my own water meter since I never knew it had a valve in the meter chamber. Hence I do not know whether turning off my meter only would stop the neighbour's water supply.

2. If the stopcock (ie the hexagonal nut to the right of my meter) is turned off, then this does stop water to both properties.

Apologies again for being so obtuse.

Cheers

 

[adlplumbing]

[quote="willmington";p="2052146I/] am getting confused here which happens more often nowadays.

1. I have never tried to turn off my own water meter since I never knew it had a valve in the meter chamber. Hence I do not know whether turning off my meter only would stop the neighbour's water supply.

2. If the stopcock (ie the hexagonal nut to the right of my meter) is turned off, then this does stop water to both properties.

Apologies again for being so obtuse.

Cheers[/quote]
the hexagnal nut in the chamber with the water meter
does that turn off yours and next doors property yes or no
if yes you need contact your water supplyer as you are paying for two houses yours and next door
if no could start question again as you got us confused some where along they way

 

[Charnwood]

There seems to be a lot of referrences to "my water meter".
Is the meter in the picture we've all seen on here the meter you refer to as "my water meter", or is there another closer to or within your property?

If not, then the stopcock next to that turning ALL the terrace's water off also means that ALL the terrace's water is metered by that meter. Simple.

What's the reading on your last water bill and what's the reading on the meter?

 

[adlplumbing]

charn it atplas box on outside
hex nut is new type stop tap

 

[Hugh Jaleak]

As has been said, those meter/stopvalve boxes are an integral unit, there is an inlet and an outlet. No other connection is possible between the stopvalve and the meter in the box.

Therefore, if turning the water off using the hex key in the box turns off both yours and the neighbours supply then both yours and neighbours supply is being measured by that meter. You are paying for water consumption in both properties!

You should have some comeback against Thames Water if this is the case, they should have identified this was a shared supply before putting the meter in!

Water Co's can make mistakes! Anglian water came to survey for a meter at a friend's property. The guy said she needed 2 meters as there were 2 supplies. (There wasn't!) Had this not been pointed out they could well have fitted 2 meters, and some water usage would have been charged for twice! Simple matter of turning off stoptap under the sink and checking would have told surveyor there was only 1 supply. He thought the outside W.C. had a seperate supply, it didnt!

 

[Charnwood]

Atplas, as in Atlantic Plastics. One of our customers. Screwed gunmetal fittings by the thousand, amongst other things.

Atplas underground boundary box:
View media item 35766Water enters from the left, passes through stopcock, then meter, gets metered, exits right and goes to property. (Or properties, possibly.)

 

[Agile]

Why has this thread apparently been abandoned and a new one started?

 

[Charnwood]

Coz the OP had everyone confused....even himself.

 

[willmington]

Sorry I do apologise, yes I have probably confused everyone in this thread and started a new clearer thread.

Please do not add your comments here any more

New thread

//www.diynot.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=282788

 

[Nige F]

I`m amused - not confused