Water Meters

Norfolk is committed to providing accurate and efficient water metering services to ensure fair billing, promote water conservation, and effectively manage our water resources.

Water meter location

Water meters are usually inside your house on the incoming water line after the shutoff valve.

Types of water meters

Several models of water meters are currently being used in Norfolk County. The most common types in residential homes are magnetic and positive displacement meters.

On both types of meters, the amount of water that has run through the pipe is constantly tracked. The information is transmitted via wire to the communication box outside your house.

Magnetic meters

The Sensus iPerl uses magnetic technology to measure water flow. On the top of the meter box is a flap that you can flip up to see the digital reading. The meter shows total usage since installation on the number display and is recorded in cubic meters. (There are approximately 220 imperial gallons in a cubic meter.)

When the meter registers flow, the flow indicator will have a plus sign in the centre of the circle. If there is no flow, the circle is empty, as shown in the photo. If there is a negative flow, there will be a negative sign.

Positive displacement meters

A positive displacement meter mechanically tracks the amount of water passed through it. Several different types of positive displacement meters are used in Norfolk. 

On the positive displacement meter model, one rotation of the large flow dial counts one cubic meter on the number display.

The low-flow dial is handy for visually assessing whether water flows through the meter. The dial spins when water is moving through and is still when no water is flowing. Also note that on this meter, the number display has one decimal place.

The low flow dial is located below the number display on the positive displacement meter model below.

The number display has three decimal places. The low flow dial will spin when water passes through the meter, with one full rotation causing the last decimal place to count up by one.