GLENDALE, CA, Feb. 16, 2011 -- Glendale Water & Power's new installation of smart meters has many benefits to customers, one being the identification of water leaks on private property. Recently, two water leaks were quickly discovered -- one at a multi-family apartment complex which was losing about 250 gallons of water per hour, and the second one at a commercial property that was losing about 450 gallons per hour. Neither property owner was aware of these leaks until their new Smart Water meters were installed and raised an alert.
Glendale Water & Power officials notified both property owners that there may be a large water leak on their properties, as the meters were registering running water 24 hours a day. It is uncommon to have a steady use of water for such a consistent period of time. The old water meters did not have the ability to communicate information back to the utility. A water leak could run undetected for a long time until receipt and review of a high water bill. If a leak began near the start of a billing cycle, the time frame could be as long as 30-60 days. The new Smart Meter communicates usage back to GWP and sends a signal if something is wrong.
In these two cases, the Smart Meter performed as intended and quickly registered the high use of water, allowing GWP officials to contact the building owners who then conducted an investigation on their properties. The apartment building owner discovered a toilet leaking and the commercial building manager discovered an underground leak. Had it not been for the Smart Meter's two-way communication, these leaks would have cost the customers hundreds of dollars and wasted thousands of gallons of water. As Smart Meters are getting installed daily, Glendale Water & Power is currently running a special report to review steady flows of water running over a consistent period of time to determine if more customers can be alerted of possible water leaks.
Glendale Water & Power is the City of Glendale's utility. Glendale Water & Power provides water to 33,500 customers in Glendale, California. The city-owned utility also generates, transmits, and distributes electricity to 84,800 residential, commercial, and industrial customers. www.GlendaleWaterAndPower.com.
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