The methods available for metering are:
A. Standard Metering - A water meter on the water Service Line for measuring all water supplied to the user with the sewer service charge being applied to one hundred percent (100%) of the water usage.
B. Alternate Metering is a system that is used to reduce sewer charges for commercial/industrial accounts that are not eligible for winter averaging. It is the addition of a meter or a combination of meters that will account for water that is not returned to and treated by the Sanitary Sewer System.
1. A "Sewer Meter" is not a traditional meter. It measures the sewage volume.
2. A "Deduct Meter" measures water that does not go to a sanitary sewer but is added to a product, evaporates into the atmosphere, is removed from the business site, etc. This volume of water is deducted from the main water/sewer meter volume to determine the actual volume received by the sanitary sewer.
3. "Cooling Tower Metering" measures the water lost in evaporative cooling. The first alternate meter (deduct meter) measures the "make up" water added to the cooling tower. A second alternate meter (add water) measures the "blow down" water that is removed from the tower because of contaminants, which is sent to the Sanitary Sewer System. The first alternate meter volume is subtracted from the main meter sewer volume and the second alternate meter volume is added. This accounts for the water lost to evaporation.
4. "Downstream Metering" is where the main meter is used to measure the total amount of water coming in, thus it is billed for water only. A second meter is downstream and measures water that is returned to the sewer and is billed for sewer only.
5. "Split Metering" is when two (2) meters are set in parallel at the same location. One is billed water and sewer. The second is billed water only. This is essentially the same as a lawn sprinkling meter.