§ 65.8. Meters.
(a) Allowable error. No water meter which has an error in registration of more than 2% may be placed in service, nor may a water meter which has an error in registration of more than 4% be allowed to remain in service, when water is passing through it at approximately the following rates of flow:
Meter size (inches) Gallons
per minute5/8 6 3/4 10 1 20 1-1/2 30 2 50 3 90 4 180 6 300 (b) Periodic tests. No public utility furnishing metered water service may allow a water meter of 1 inch or less nor a water meter of more than 1 inch to remain in service for a period longer than 20 years and 8 years respectively without testing it for accuracy and readjusting it if it is found to be incorrect beyond the limits established in subsection (a). Upon a customer’s request the public utilities shall also perform a meter test without charge if a meter has been in service, and has not been tested, for a period greater than that specified in the following table:
Inch Meter Years 5/8 10 3/4 8 1 6 More than 1 4 (c) Meter test records. Whenever a water meter is tested, the original test record should be kept indicating the information necessary for identifying the meter, the reason for making the test, the reading of the meter before being disturbed, and the accuracy of the meter together with data taken at the time of the test. This record shall be sufficiently complete to permit the convenient checking of the methods employed and the calculations made. A record shall also be kept, preferably numerically arranged, indicating the date of meter purchase, name of manufacturer, its size, its identification, its various places of installation with dates of installation and removal, and the dates and general results of all tests.
(d) Installation and removal of meters.
(1) Installation of meters. A water meter whenever installed shall be inspected by the public utility for proper connections, mechanical condition, and suitability of location within 60 days after installation. In the case of a new meter or a meter reconditioned by a manufacturer, the test results of the manufacturer may be accepted as the installation test if the utility has verified the manufacturer’s reported test results by testing the greater of 10% or ten meters of a shipment of meters. In case of emergency, a meter not meeting the requirements of this section may be installed temporarily.
(2) Removal of meters. A water meter which is removed from service shall be tested within 30 days for accuracy to complete that meter’s test history. When a meter is removed from service, it shall be properly sealed to secure registers and measuring devices until it can be properly tested for accuracy. Meters permanently removed from service and replaced by new meters utilizing remote reading devices are exempt from this provision.
(e) Facilities for testing. A public utility shall provide and keep available suitable and adequate facilities for testing its meters, and shall maintain these facilities in good condition and in correct adjustment so that they are capable of determining the accuracy of a service meter within .5%. A public utility not maintaining a standardizing laboratory may, upon written permission from the Commission, have its meters and instruments certified by a standardizing laboratory approved by the Commission. The accuracy of testing equipment will be established and checked annually by representatives of the Commission. After making final adjustments, the tester shall seal and date tag the testing facilities and furnish the public utility with a certificate of accuracy properly dated and signed.
(f) Meters in service without test records. A water meter of a public utility which does not meet the requirements with respect to tests and records of tests shall be immediately removed from service by the public utility and may not again be placed in service until the requirements are met.
(g) Request test. A public utility shall make a test of the accuracy of registration of a water meter upon written request of the customer for whom the meter is furnished, upon payment of the fee specified in § 1.43 (relating to schedule of fees payable to the Commission). If a customer desires personally or by a representative to witness the testing of a meter, he may require the seal of the meter to be broken in his presence or that of his representative. If the meter tested upon the request is found to be accurate within the limits specified in subsection (a), the fee shall be retained by the utility; but if not so found, the cost shall be borne by the utility and the fee paid by the customer shall be refunded. A report of the test shall be made to the customer.
(h) Schedule of fees for testing water meters. The schedule of fees for testing meters is as follows:
(1) For a water meter having an outlet not exceeding 1 inch—$10.
(2) For other water meters having an outlet not exceeding 2 inches—$20.
(3) Rates for testing other meters, including those which are so located that the cost is out of proportion to the fee specified, will be furnished by the Commission upon the receipt of complete specifications.
(i) Fees for testing facilities of public utilities. The Commission will charge and collect from utilities for the testing of their meter testing facilities and water meters the following fees:
(1) For testing meter testing facilities at the utility plant—$15.
(2) For a water meter tested at the Commission laboratory—$3.
Authority The provisions of this § 65.8 issued under the Public Utility Code, 66 Pa.C.S. § § 317, 501, 1301, 1304, 1501, 1502, 1504, 1507, 1508, 1702 and 1704; amended under the Public Utility Code, 66 Pa.C.S. § § 501, 504, 505, 506, 1301 and 1501.
Source The provisions of this § 65.8 adopted March 25, 1946; amended August 15, 1980, effective August 16, 1980, 10 Pa.B. 3356; amended October 11, 1985, effective October 12, 1985, 15 Pa.B. 3648; amended February 13, 1998, effective February 14, 1998, 28 Pa.B. 804. Immediately preceding text appears at serial pages (225759) to (225762).
Cross References This section cited in 52 Pa. Code § 65.9 (relating to adjustment of bills for meter error).
No part of the information on this site may be reproduced for profit or sold for profit.
This material has been drawn directly from the official Pennsylvania Code full text database. Due to the limitations of HTML or differences in display capabilities of different browsers, this version may differ slightly from the official printed version.
