Is it necessary to set the meter for water or not?

The rules for the organization and regulation of municipal water supply have undergone a number of changes in recent years. One of the innovations was the mandatory introduction of meters in all regions of Russia. Although recommendations for the installation of calculating devices have been in effect for several years, to this day, they have not all owners of residential buildings. In addition, questions remain about how beneficial the meter is to water, whether or not to install the device. In some cases, its economic feasibility is questioned, and not all are familiar with the procedure for its registration.

What does the law say?

The development of the draft law, which affects the need to install meters, was completed in 2013. At that time, the percentage of owners who provided communication with the settlement device did not exceed 60%. For this reason, no sanctions were imposed on other resource users. Since 2014, a project was launched in accordance with which obligatory installation of water meters (Act 261) was held with the support of municipal services. Tariffs for those who did not have metering devices were regulated in accordance with the regulations established by local authorities. By 2015, the presence of the meter was not only mandatory - in the event of its absence, interest allowances were allowed as a fine.

Sanctions against "deviators"

Since the current year, the amount of utility bills for citizens who have not shown their awareness of the installation of the meter has increased by 10%. This allowance refers to the consumer standard for each quarter. It is noteworthy that the absence of a counter adversely affects not only the water accounting system, but also bona fide citizens. This is the reason for the support of the law by many private consumers. The fact is that if the calculation is carried out according to the old model, the payment is, roughly speaking, based on average tariffs and does not depend on the actual volumes of consumption. That is, it is obligatory to put water meters on the water and in order to optimize the distribution of expenses among the tenants: each pays as much as it consumes.

Who should install the counter?

Equipping the communication infrastructure with individual counters for hot and cold water applies to all owners of residential properties in Russia. The only difference in the forms of conducting this operation relates to the category of the population represented by the tenants of state real estate. If the tenant has a contract of social hiring in his hands , then the municipal utilities should use the apparatus, using the budget funds. In other cases installation of meters on water is mandatory for property owners. It is important to note that in the first period of the law, assistance programs were provided in the technical and financial part of the renovation of the water pipeline. Today every owner takes all the expenses for himself.

How much will the meter cost and its installation?

Specific figures vary depending on the region and city. In large metropolitan areas, which include Moscow, Yekaterinburg, Krasnodar, Samara, etc., the devices for calculating the flow rate are 3-6 thousand rubles. Strangely enough, in the provinces and small towns, the cost increases to 8 thousand. Given that it is in these areas that people with the lowest income level live, the regional authorities provide for the possibility of an installment by which the meter is purchased for water. Whether or not to take the expenses in this part on oneself to pensioners and other beneficiaries is another controversial issue. In some regions, the installation for the owners of this group is paid from the budget, in others the coverage is carried out just from the interest collected in the form of fines.

Unfortunately, as the measures to combat "deviators" are tightened, the rates for plumbers' services are also increasing - high demand, accordingly, forms the conditions for the growth of tariffs in this part. Nevertheless, the question of whether meters are mandatory for water, is not even against the background of rising prices for equipment and disadvantageous installation conditions from local utilities.

Installation of meters by housing organizations

The abuse of local utilities is not uncommon in Russia. Almost every innovation in the rules of management and operation of housing stock is accompanied by a mass of rumors and the appearance of false information. In this case, there are examples where housing associations, partnerships and management companies notify owners that it is necessary to buy meters for water, it is necessary to establish and register them strictly up to a certain date. In part, this is a fair recommendation, but organizations have no right to impose their services, offering to conclude an agreement with them to purchase meters of a particular manufacturer. Moreover, installation through independent companies is cheaper.

How do I install the counter?

You can purchase a counter on your own or on the basis of a contract with a specialized company. The second option is more convenient, since the list of services identified in the contract, you can also make an analysis of the characteristics of the water supply system and directly installation. Modern installation of water meters necessarily includes a whole set of additional components with consumables - these expenses should also be prepared, otherwise the quality of the installed apparatus will suffer and it will not be accepted.

Again, for savings, it is desirable to avoid cooperation with the management company and utilities, since their services are often more expensive, and the quality is lower. The outside organization will perform the same list of works, give a guarantee and make the necessary adjustment of the device. At this stage, when examining in-house engineering, another question may arise: "Are water meters obligatory if there is no general house meter?" In accordance with the rules, this flaw is not the reason that the meter can not be installed.

In terms of formal nuances, it is important to note that the management company still needs to receive an appropriate application for installing the meter. By the way, utilities, partnerships and governing bodies are aware that in the house it is absolutely necessary to put water meters, therefore, there will most likely be no additional obstacles at this stage. The owner receives technical documents, according to which the specialists will select the model of the device and connect it. It is also necessary to agree in advance the time of shutdown and connection of the engineering system at the time of installation.

Registering the counter

All efforts to update the water consumption accounting system may be in vain if the meter is incorrectly designed for water. The device must be registered, since the result of its work does not matter, if the representative of the house manager does not draw up the relevant documents. The device must be registered within one month from the date of its installation. The examiner should record the results of receiving the meter in a special act. This document is made in triplicate - for the representative of the audit organization, for the owner of the house and the company that carried out the installation. The acceptance certificate is the basis for the transition to a new procedure for calculating payment for water.

Feasibility of installing a counter

New requirements for the operation of utility systems, and in particular changes in approaches to calculation by tariffs, rarely have positive feedback from users. The novelty regarding the metering devices was also adopted - many still do not know whether to install the meter on water. Is it necessary or not? Unfortunately, there is no alternative to citizens - sooner or later it will have to be installed. However, its availability will not lead to an increase in water costs. For the authorities, the introduction of this device will optimize the system for calculating resource consumption, but for an ordinary person this is a real saving.

According to different research companies, the meter, depending on the operating conditions, can provide a cost reduction of up to 48%. It is for this reason that many water utilities are slow to install meters, since their use will mean a reduction in revenues. But even despite these shortcomings, the question of whether installation of water meters is mandatory is not worth it. Federal and local authorities are still interested in the most accurate accounting of water consumption.

When is the installation of the counter unjustified?

In the usual schemes of calculation and technical organization of water consumption, the operation of meters provides savings. But there are cases when the effectiveness of metering devices is questioned. One of the problems is related to the difference in actual consumption and nominal, from which the amount of payment is calculated according to the standard. So, under the old scheme in an apartment where one person lives, the payment provides the sum charged for one consumer. If the fact of the house is home to 3 people, the fee will still be calculated on one.

The meter changes the system, causing the need to pay for the actual flow of water, that is, the number of people who live does not matter - the whole volume will fix the meter on the water. Is it necessary to install the device in this case? Yes, since actual accounting of the resource is important. Another thing is that problems can arise in communal apartments, where it is impossible to calculate who and how much water is spent, and the meter's readings will be presented in one figure.

Problems of the old housing fund

There are other problems associated with the exploitation of dilapidated communication systems. In the houses of the old housing stock, as a rule, the pipelines are unsatisfactory technical condition. In principle, this aspect does not change anything, but the cost of the installation of the accounting device is significantly increased. And again many doubt - is it necessary to put water meters in old buildings, if the pipes themselves and the basic infrastructure are in a deplorable state? The only way out here is to replace the water supply. Unfortunately, this will have to be done by our own efforts and for our own money. This is undoubtedly the main disadvantage of installing a counter, but the owner will be sure that the new system will not deliver problems at the most unexpected moment. Updating communications is not superfluous, but the risks of accidents are reduced.

Conclusion

An interesting fact, but even before the adoption of the law, which makes it a duty for water users to install meters, the number of adherents of the new accounting system was impressive. Its benefits have already been appreciated by many, although there remain doubts about the economic benefits that counters provide for water. It is necessary to calculate the technical capabilities of the existing water supply before installing, so as not to be disappointed in the transition to the actual calculation of water consumption. As the practice of operating gas and electric meters shows, this approach justifies itself. Of course, there are cases that show the low efficiency or even the impossibility of such an accounting, but the old system is by no means ideal.