Counters for water what to choose

The tendency to increase the rates for provided utilities, alas, has become a familiar matter. An increasing number of consumers, realizing that there will be no return to the times when cheap prices for energy carriers and water allow them to spend them in uncontrolled quantities, begin to introduce a mode of prudent economy in their homes and apartments. And in order not to pay too much, they switch to calculations solely on the testimony of consumption meters. The tap water supplied to the houses is not an exception.

In some regions or settlements already on a legislative basis, residents are required to install water meters, in others - to it sooner or later, but still come. Therefore, installing meters for consumed water is the problem that will inevitably affect every owner of housing, and many do not wait for "solutions from above," deciding to take this step on their own. But before that you need to decide on the question: what kind of water meters to choose, so that the device will work as long as possible, and does not create misunderstandings with employees of the local water supply organization. Let's try to understand more in detail.

What gives the owners the installation of a water meter?

For sure, there will be found "skilful" skeptics who will begin to object that, they say, it is perfectly possible to do without a water meter, until it becomes mandatory for everyone. Indeed, it is possible, however, the installation of water meters still gives the owners a number of significant advantages.

• It should be assumed that no public service in our time will not work at a loss. Therefore, in order not to remain in vain, tariffs for water consumption without the use of water meters are calculated in such a way as to minimize the likelihood of loss of self-interest.

The existing so-called "consumption norms", according to statistical research, are often two or more times higher than the actual water discharge by one person. No one in Vodokanal is interested in whether all the registered tenants were at home during the past month, whether the whole family went on vacation, whether the host in the apartment "clean" receives a shower twice a day, or, conversely, a person,which you can not force once more to go into the bathroom. Accounts will still come with frightening amounts to pay.

• Many owners of private houses connected to the central water supply system are familiar with the situation when the norms of consumption per person are supplemented with the volumes "for irrigation" - from the land plot area, and if there is a garage- that also on washing the car. And in this case, to prove that you are watering the garden with collected rain water, and washing the car exclusively on a car wash - is almost impossible. The only way out is to install a water meter.
• With the installation of a counter for water, another "attack" is being decided. On subscribers who continue to pay "in the old manner", often scatter all possible losses. These can be purely technological losses, or "hanging" payment debts, accumulated at the expense of always and everywhere available malicious defaulters for services. Do you want to pay for this too?

Tariffs for water and so considerable and grow from year to year, but at least the owners of apartments with installed water meters pay only for actually used volumes!

• There is one more component. In addition to tariffs for water consumption, there are also corresponding rates for water disposal, that is, sewerage, and they are often even higher, but are calculated from the same volumes. That is, after putting in order the calculations for consumed water, the owner also receives a "reactive" savings effect on the payment for sewerage.
• We note one more positive effect of the installation of water meters - this measure is usually well disciplined. It means that the consumer begins to treat the water carefully, treating it as a truly valuable natural resource. Usually in such houses and apartments do not find a faucet with incompletely closed faucets or a constantly flushing toilet bowl. And the water will be spent at such owners reasonably, prudently.

Not many people think about this, but clean water is a valuable natural resource, the reserves of which in our region are large, but still have a certain limit. It is clear that in the consumption of an apartment the overall picture is perceived with great difficulty, but even in the scales of the district, the city, not to mention megacities, the effect of the economical attitude to water gives amazing results.

In a word, whatever one may say, from the metering devices of water consumption is only a benefit. You should not spare money for the initial costs associated with the acquisition of equipment and its installation - these funds will quickly pay off - the average family after 5 ÷ 6 months "goes into a plus."

Which water meters are suitable for an apartment? Their device

There are many varieties of water meters that work according to different principles. However, not all of them are suitable for the conditions of an apartment or a private house.

Tachometric counters

The most simple and understandable in the device and principle of action - tachometric counters. The water flow rotates the turbine or the impeller( impeller), the torque is transmitted to the shaft in one way or another, or to a mechanical or electronic type counting device. Each full revolution of the shaft corresponds to a certain volume of water passed through the device.

• In domestic water meters installed on small diameter pipes, an impeller is usually used. It has, however, a certain inertia and dependence on the turbulence of the flow, but with small volumes of pumped liquid this does not lead to significant errors.

More precise instruments of the tachometric principle of action have a turbine instead of an impeller - inertia in it is practically not noticeable, that is, the readings will be taken with much smaller errors. Turbine meters are usually placed on pipelines with a nominal diameter of 25 mm and higher( the larger the flow, the stronger the inertial rotation of the impeller), although there are instruments for smaller diameters. The device is somewhat more complicated because of the need to change the direction of the transmission axis of the torque.

• With the phenomena of turbulence of the water flow one more way is struggling - the separation of the jet into several. Hence the name - single-jet counters and multi-jet. The second, of course, is more complicated in the device, however, the accuracy of the indications is much higher.

• Compressors are also available. In them, the built-in valve system switches the flow of water from the turbine to the multi-jet vortex meter and vice versa. At "low revs" a more accurate reading will be given by the impeller, and with increasing head pressure, the turbine enters the course.

Such metering devices can be marked with a monoblock design or can be assembled in a separate circuit. They are installed on water mains, where a wide spread of head indicators is possible. In a domestic environment with such a face, most likely, do not have to.

• There is one more division of tachometric counters - on "wet" and "dry".The principle of this division is clear even from the name of the instruments.

- In the "wet" counters, the turbine itself( impeller) and the counting mechanism are in the water. This greatly simplifies the transfer of torque from the wheel to the counting mechanism - no additional devices are required, just an ordinary axis, gears, etc., in a word - pure mechanics. The advantage of such devices can be considered low cost and absolute insensitivity to the external magnetic field. The drawback is obvious - the constant contact of the exact mechanics with water inevitably reduces its operational resource. In addition, even slight contamination of the flowing water can cause the counting mechanism to jam.

- In counting devices of "dry" type, the counting mechanism does not contact the water in any way - it is separated from it by an impenetrable septum. The torque is transmitted by a special pair of permanent magnets, one of which stands on the impeller, and the second - on the main shaft of the counting mechanics.

It is clear that the absence of contact with water dramatically increases the viability of the counting device, which, by the way, can be not only purely mechanical, but also electronic, equipped with a digital display. The drawback of such a scheme is the vulnerability to an external magnetic field of high tension, which is often used by unscrupulous water consumers. Manufacturers take this moment into account, and therefore modern meters are equipped with special inserts( couplings) that protect the transmission from external magnetic interference.

These kind of tachometric dry type counters occupy a leading position among consumers - they are not so expensive, reliable, durable, easy to install into the system. It all deserves to dwell on their basic device a little more.

The body of the "water" part of the meter( item 1) is made of metal alloys that do not have magnetic properties. It can be copper alloys( brass, bronze) or aluminum( silumin).There are counters in strong polymer housings. On the body there are two branch pipes with a threaded part - for inserting the device into the water supply. The direction of the water flow is usually indicated on the body by an arrow. In the branch pipe at the inlet there can be a filtering mesh, which prevents accidental entry of large solid inclusions into the impeller. In the outlet branch pipe of some models you can find a check valve - this makes it possible to do without the mandatory installation of this element when installing the meter.

In the body there is an impeller-impeller( item 2), which has its own centering system. So, in qualitative water meters, the wheel axle rests on watch stones, which minimizes friction and contributes to the high accuracy of the instrument readings.

The upper part of the wheel has an annular permanent magnet( key 3), which rotates together with the impeller.

The top of the water block is hermetically sealed with a lid( item 4) made of a magnetically transparent material( polymer), which is lowered around the circumference by a sealing ring. A cylindrical projection is provided centrally on the lid - a rotating magnet will be located inside it.

Modern models of such meters are equipped with a special clutch( item 5), which completely from all sides closes the magnetic transmission unit of rotation, protecting it from the influence of external magnetic fields.

The pressurized threaded nut( key 6) or the retaining ring provides complete sealing of the lower water block.

The upper part is a counting mechanism( pos.7), which is also located in a sealed plastic housing. It can be completely transparent, as in the figure, or have only a top transparent window for taking readings. Between each other, the water block and the counting mechanism are connected in different ways, but often it is a plastic belt-clamp, which makes it possible to rotate the counting mechanism relative to the water meter body-to establish a convenient location for reading the scale. This belt is sealed with the factory seal of the manufacturer.

Inside the counting mechanism on the main shaft, exactly the coaxial with the impeller, the same ring magnet is installed. Thus, when the impeller rotates, the magnetic pair accurately transfers this torque to the counter shaft. Further, the system of gears, something similar to a mechanical clock, transmits the rotation to the flow indicator, a small-point switch, and to a roller digital scale.

On top, the counting mechanism can be closed with a protective cover with a cover( item 8), but many household water meters do not provide this option, as it does not represent a special value when operating under "clean" conditions.

The flow of water through the counter is signaled by a rotating indicator( item 9).A small dial gauge( item 10) shows small flow rates-each integer division corresponds to 100 ml of water passing through the instrument, and a full turn, respectively - 1 liter.

The digital roller scale usually has a number of black and red numbers. Black indicates the total cubic meters, and the red ones represent numbers after the decimal point, up to one thousandth. That is, the red scale shows liters, from 1 to 999 - until the whole cubic meter value is obtained.

There may be another layout of the scales, as shown in the illustration on the right side of the scale. The digital scale shows only integer values ​​of cubic meters, and four points - hundreds, tens, units and tenths of liters, by analogy with the example given above.

Tachometric meters are also available with an electronic digital scale.

Rotation of the shaft in a certain scaling is converted into electrical pulses, which are processed by an electronic circuit and displayed on a digital display. On the one hand - it is convenient, but if this innovation is designed solely to optimize the perception of indications, then it is not possible to overpay for such an instrument with special meaning - it is quite possible to do "mechanics".As for electronic counters it is required also to provide a food.

It's quite another matter if the meter has the option of pulse reading. Inside such mechanical counters there is a special reed switch, which generates pulses at each revolution of the shaft. Such a water meter is connected by a signal cable with a special meter, located on the wall or even taken out to the entrance of the apartment building. The signal cable can already be installed in the water meter, that is, to leave its housing, or for its connection a special socket( plug or other connector) is provided. In the electronic unit, the account is taken of the consumed water with the entry of indications in a non-volatile memory and( or) with simultaneous transmission to the information collection and processing center. At the same time, such a block can also show the amount that has run up to the payment for consumed water - many so it is easier to assess the level of economy of consumption at any time.

Even more interesting can be the case with hot water meters. They can also be equipped with a temperature sensor, that is, not only the amount of water consumed, but also the quality - the electronic unit will take water into account, as hot, only if the heating level corresponds to the declared parameters. Otherwise, if the temperature is insufficient, the consumption will be either at a reduced rate, or, generally, as for cold water. There are models that work in a complex way - signal cables are connected to the electronic module from both cold and hot water meters, and the owners always have information on all the quantitative and qualitative parameters of the consumed water.

There may be another solution. For example, in the Sayany hydro-meteorological complex, the electronic unit is an integral part of the hot tachometer meter. Accordingly, a signal cable from a cold water meter is connected to it.

Other types of water meters

Tachometric counters have been considered in detail, since they are mainly supplied to the end users of water. However, there are several other types of meters.

• In ultrasonic devices, the water flow rate is determined by the transit time of ultrasonic pulses. Special piezoelectric sensors serve as a source and receiver of oscillations, evaluating the passage of signals along and against the flow of water. The information is processed by the microprocessor, and as a result, high-precision flow rates are obtained.

In general, such a complex equipment is used for large water communications, however, there are devices designed for household use. Such water meters are similar in size and appearance to electronic tachometric ones, but on the panel it is indicated that this is an ultrasonic device - the designation is "Ultrasonic" or "Ultralyd".

Such devices are certainly very accurate and reliable, but very expensive, so in our regions at the consumer level have not yet received enough distribution

• In electromagnetic counters there is a coil that induces a magnetic field. Special sensors analyze the change in the generated electromotive force when moving the water flow and give an accurate value of the volume that has passed through the instrument.

At the household level, electromagnetic meters, as a rule, are not used - such devices are installed, at least, in a multi-apartment building.

• Another version, which also usually does not find use in a private house or apartment, is a vortex or superstatic resonance device. They assume the presence of a certain measuring area with the separation of the flow into three parallel channels. A special swirler redirects the jets along the channels, and by the frequency of such jumps special sensors remove and estimate the information on the speed of the total flow. Such devices are most often used on various production technological lines.

All electronic water meters are characterized by high measurement accuracy, regardless of the quality and quantity of water pumped through them. They are convenient for taking readings, for working in remote information collection systems, for use in differentiated tariffs for payment. For periodic verification, it is not necessary to dismantle the entire device - it is enough to disconnect and send an electronic analytical unit for testing.

Disadvantages are taken to read the high cost of the devices themselves - it can be 5 ÷ 6 times higher than the price of conventional mechanical water meters. In addition, a vulnerable place is to ensure their uninterrupted power supply - from the network or batteries( batteries).

How to choose a water meter for an apartment or a private house

If the task is to purchase water meters for your apartment( private house), then you need to be guided by certain criteria for choosing the device.

Organizational issues

• First of all it would be reasonable to clarify in the local company engaged in the delivery of tap water to consumers or the operation of apartment houses, whether all existing models are allowed to be registered - there are some possible limitations. By the way, they are by no means always justified - this will be discussed below.

If a system of electronic centralized reading and / or multi-tariff calculation for water consumption has already been implemented in the settlement( or it is planned to introduce it soon), it is natural that a water meter with a pulse output should be purchased. By the way, such an acquisition can be justified, and in the long term, sooner or later the "wind of change" will come to you, and you will not have to buy new devices.

Very often in water supply organizations, implementation of certified instruments is organized, or there it is possible to obtain efficient advice about specific trading or servicing companies engaged in this type of activity.

• If the device is purchased independently, it is necessary - new and in a proven trading( service) organization. Never - not "out of hand" and not in a spontaneous market, no matter how the sellers assured us that there will be no problems with the "vodokanal".The situation is not ruled out that after the purchase and installation of such a device the controller simply refuses to register and seal it: at a modern level of polygraphy, to forge a passport with seals and quality control stamps - nothing stands.

When purchasing a water meter in a reliable organization, it is necessary to check the product's passport, in particular, the presence of marks on the passing of the factory control check, about the established intertesting terms, about the manufacturer's warranty obligations. Each meter must have its own serial number. In the store, you must put the date of sale of the device with the appropriate assurance.

By the way, if you purchased a certified device that meets all the requirements, including a differentiated system of water consumption accounting, and employees of the management company or Vodokanal refuse to register it and accept payment according to its testimony, you can easily appeal, guided by RF Government Decree No. 354from 06.05.2011, enacting the "Rules for the provision of public services to owners and users of premises in apartment buildings and residential buildings," in particular paragraph 31, theserules. Below is a rather large extract of the subparagraphs "t" and "y" directly relating to the questions that are debatable in this publication:

So, in accordance with paragraph.31 of the said Resolution:

executor( that is, a legal entity regardless of the legal form or individual entrepreneur providing utilities to the consumer) is obliged to:. ..

t) not create obstacles to the consumer in the realization of his right to install an individual, general( apartment) or roomthe metering device that meets the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation on ensuring the uniformity of measurements, including the meter, whose functionality allowsdetermine the amount( amount) of consumed communal resources differentiated by the time of day( established time periods) or by other criteria reflecting the degree of use of public resources, even if such individual or common( apartment) meter for functional capabilities differs from the collective( general house) meter, which is equipped with an apartment building;

) to implement, at the request of the consumer, the commissioning of an installed individual, general( apartment) or indoor meter, in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation on ensuring the uniformity of measurements, even if such individual or common( apartment) meter for functional capabilities differs from the collective) of the meter, which is equipped with an apartment building, not later than the month following the date of its installation, and also proceed to calculate the sizepayments for utilities based on the readings of the commissioned meter, starting from the 1st day of the month following the month of commissioning the meter;...

These were, so to speak, organizational moments, and now we turn to technical and operational ones.

Evaluation of the technical and operational characteristics of the

• It is not necessary to purchase water meters in cheap silumin cases - the strength of this alloy is small, the material is gradually corroded by oxygen corrosion. Much more reliable - brass or bronze, or, with "wet" counters - stainless steel cases. Electronic meters in a solid polymer case justify themselves.
• Counters are calculated to account for cold( up to +40 ° C) or hot( usually up to +90 ° C) water. In addition to the inscriptions on the front panel, all clear color coding is used: blue - red.

You can purchase and universal devices that are suitable for both water pipes. Their usual color markings are gray.

• An important selection criterion is always the setting parameters of the device. It is meant on which conditional diameter( DU) of the pipe it is calculated( usually in a condominium condition pipes of 15 or 20 mm are used, at the entrance to a private house it can reach up to 25 - 32 mm).The second parameter is the mounting length of the water meter. This is a standardized value: for flat meters it is 110 or 130 mm, and for larger meters it is 25 or 32 - 190 or even 260 mm. It is necessary to estimate in advance the place of the proposed tapping of the device.
• The capabilities of the water meter must correspond to the actual water pressure in the system. Usually all meters have a very solid margin of safety. Thus, meters at DN = 15, as a rule, can withstand a pressure of up to 10 atmospheres( 1 MPa), and with DM-20, even up to 16 atmospheres( 1.6 MPa).In reality, there are practically no such pressures in the water supply.
• The next parameter is the parameters of the permissible water flow, that is, how much the meter can pass through itself without loss of accuracy of account.

Several indicators are used to evaluate this characteristic, which are indicated in the product passport.

- Qmax - the maximum permissible volume of water passing during an hour.

- Qn - nominal flow rate, which guarantees long-term operation of the instrument with normal measurement accuracy.

- Qmin is the minimum flow rate at which the specified measurement error will be retained.

- Qt - the value of the so-called transient flow, at which the level of error of the instrument varies.

All domestic water meters are designed for ample consumption. Thus, for meters under the DNU-15 pipe, the maximum flow rate is usually 3 m³ / h, the nominal flow rate is 1.5 m³ / h, which is quite sufficient even for intensive expenditure in a given situation. But exceeding the maximum level can lead to a malfunction of the device.

• Any measuring instrument has its own permissible error. The lower it is, the higher the accuracy class of the instrument( from increasing "A" to "D").Most household water meters have an accuracy class "B" with their normal, horizontal arrangement, and a slightly lower but acceptable class "A" with vertical mounting. Some counters of electronic type can have a higher class "C", moreover, regardless of the method of installation of the device.

Most of the parameters important for the user can be found on the meter itself:

1 - serial individual number of the device.

2 - icon icons for the presence of state certification of this model of the meter

3 - model name. In this case, the name immediately mentions the conditional diameter of the pipe - 15 mm.

4 - temperature range of operation. The illustration shows a universal water meter. The same is said about the gray color of the shell design.

5 - Nominal flow rate Qn. The maximum flow rate, as a rule, is two times higher.

6 - this meter has the ability to take pulse readings. Therefore, the value of the volume of the passing water corresponding to the production of one pulse is indicated. The indicator is necessary for fine-tuning and checking of metering devices.

7 - water meter accuracy class. In this case: the class "A" with the vertical position( "V"), and the class "B" - with the horizontal( "H").

• When purchasing the device, the completeness of the delivery must be checked. Most of the meters come with nikednymi nuts-Americans and appropriate seals - it will greatly facilitate the installation of the device. Instruments with a pulse output can also be attached to the sensor itself with a signal cable. However, for some models there is a separate purchase of such a sensor if necessary - this should be indicated in the product passport.

The list of all items included in the kit should be indicated in the technical documentation of the device.

• Finally, the price and brand of the device - interrelated parameters become an important parameter of choice.

- The most reliable models are considered to be imported models - Sensus, Viterra, Valtec, Actaris, Siemens, Zenner, Elster Metronica. All these brands are distinguished by high reliability, a very small number or a complete absence of production rejection, increased periods of the intertesting interval. Many of the models are manufactured under license and at production facilities in Russia.

The disadvantage can be considered a high price: in comparison with the products of domestic development, it can be even several times larger.

- Russian-made water meters are usually not so expensive, and fully justify their purpose. The advantage is that the instruments are often adapted to local conditions, for example, to traditionally hard water in our water pipes. At the same time, some Russian water metering devices are quite capable of competing with Western counterparts in their manufacturability.

From domestic manufacturers it is possible to allocate "Econom", "Pulse", "Meter" "Beregun", "Betar", "Staroruspribor", "Gazelectronica", "TPK" and other companies. With a rating of pre-selected water meters, it makes sense to get acquainted on the Internet at consumer forums.

Installation of water meters and all activities related to their registration and commissioning in this article will not be considered - this has already been discussed in the relevant publication.

Can I install a water meter on my own?

The installation operation itself is not so difficult, however, there are also rather complicated cases related to the peculiarities of the pipe arrangement. How to install the water meter yourself , and what needs to be done after this - read the special publication of our portal.

And at the end of the article - a traditional video with recommendations for the choice of cold and hot water meters:

Video: what to pay special attention to when choosing a water meter