By Scott Harvey
Commerce – The City of Commerce will soon begin replacing all water meters with new, more accurate, radio read system meters. Beginning Wednesday, November 19, and lasting for 10 weeks, crews from energy conservation company Noresco will begin swapping out the old meters.
Earlier this year, Noresco conducted an audit of the city's current water meter system, and concluded that the money the city would save on the new meter system would help pay for the project in 10 years.
The new system would allow crews to simply drive by and receive a meter reading without having to check each individual meter. Utility billing clerks will also be able to monitor water usage electronically to see if customers have problems. They will be able to tell if water has been running in the middle of the night or if it's running while a customer is calling to inquire about their bill.
Depending on the accuracy of a resident's current meter, the new meters may result in an increase or decrease in a customer's monthly water bill. The new meters are said to be 98 percent accurate.
Replacement of the meters will occur between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5 p.m. but could extend into the evening under some circumstances. Workers will not require entry into your home or business, but will knock to notify you that work is about to begin.
Each meter replacement is anticipated to take approximately 30 minutes. Commercial water meter customers will be notified of water shutoffs in advance. Anyone having special needs for water should notify the Commerce Water Department at 903-866-1134.