New water meters are leaking with problems
The municipality said they know about the shut-off valve problem.
The newly installed water meters in Del Judor have a huge flaw.
The meters do not have an outside shut-off valve to shut the water supply in the event of an emergency leak, pipe break, or geyser packing up.
The valve is the control for the water supply from the public mains.
Residents in Steenkamp Street contacted WITBANK NEWS last week and voiced their concern should an emergency occur, and they have to shut their water off.
“This is frustrating because working with meters all my life, I know that this is going to become a huge headache. There is no way you can shut the water supply to your house,” a resident who wishes to stay anonymous said.
A walk down Steenkamp Street showed that most of the meters were ‘upgraded’ but there were no shut-off valves seen anywhere.
“The new smart meters have a few plus points. An app is used from your mobile phone. It has a leak indicator and the counting mechanism only counts when water is flowing through the meter, and it stops when there is no flow. Monthly reading is done remotely,” another resident added.
Emalahleni Local Municipality was approached for more information about the new meters and the question of why no shut-off valves can be seen.
“The concerns of the valves are noted. The project scope is aimed at replacing the old asbestos cement pipes, isolation valves and water meters. Upon completion, all the water reticulation components should be new. The old water meters that are of concern will all be replaced with the new smart meters. The delay in delivery of the smart meters resulted in when the connections were transferred to the new line, old meters being returned to measure consumption until the smart meters arrive,” is the response from the municipality.
The municipal media desk indicated that a team is on standby for any emergencies that might occur while awaiting the smart meters for the remaining houses.
In Polokwane smart meters are used and the municipality rolled out an awareness campaign on being water-wise.
#DidYouKnow | Polokwane Municipality is rolling out a programme to install smart water meters across all areas falling within the municipality. pic.twitter.com/2CZxUyO4YH
— Polokwane Municipality (@PolokwaneMuni) October 6, 2023
Over 200 households have already been installed with smart meters the anticipation is to finish by the end of October with the remaining households.
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