Here in California we are experiencing a severe drought and have been ordered to reduce our water usage by unheard of amounts.  As real estate professionals, I think that we can help our clients, customers and prospects learn about, understand and comply with the new water usage rules.

In the area that I live, EBMUD is the water district that provides our water.  They have installed smart water meters at the curb and can remotely read our consumption.  I can also go out to the street, remove a heavy cover and “read” the meter. 

I want to be a good citizen and have undertaken some very drastic steps at my house to conserve water, but I also like to be able to quantify the results of my steps. You would think that all I had to do was to read the meter before and after a water usage event to see how much water I used.  Good idea, but the utility provided meter only read usage in units, not gallons.  A conversation with a helpful person at EBMUD revealed that 1 unit of water is 748 gallons!  How in the heck can I judge my conservation efforts by using the main water meter?  Simple.  You can’t.

So I had a plumber come out and install a meter on my main supply line shortly after it enters the house and before the line goes to any taps, appliances etc.  This wasn’t cheap, but the meter that I had installed reads in GALLONS and not Units.  Now I am in the process of creating baselines for how much water gets used around here and because of that knowledge I’ll be able to adjust usage as necessary to comply with the new water usage rules.  I’ll also be able to double check EBMUD to make sure that they are billing me correctly!

Here is the unit that I had installed: https://www.neptunetg.com/Water-Meters/Residential/T-10-Meter/ It comes in two models, one that reads in gallons and another in cubic feet.  I opted for the one in gallons.  You’ll need to know the size of the supply line coming in as well.

One of the FREE things that you can do to conserve water is to take the Water Footprint Calculator at http://www.watercalculator.org. This will not only give you an idea of what you are using at home, but also how lifestyle choices affect the amount of water that you use.

I’m thinking that this would be a good resource for you to pass along to clients to help them get with the program! Take a quick look and see if you agree!