Help me find my water meter so I can turn it off!

[midtownnewbie]

I know that I should know where it is, but I'm not sure where my water meter is located...  The temperature is supposed to get down to 21' tomorrow night and since the inside of my house is close to freezing and I don't want to add broken pipes/flooded house to our current problems, (fyi, power is out and we're staying with the in-laws) does anyone know the general vicinity of where it should be located so that I can find it and turn it off?  FYI, we live in Maple Ridge, I know our gas meter is in the front of the house but I don't recall seeing the round water meter cover either in the front yard or the back yard...  I called my neighbor after seeing the weather report tonite and he looked for both of ours and couldn't find either of them...  It was dark so I will be going there tomorrow in the daylight (if the weather is not too bad) and I'd appreciate any info that might help me locate it!

TIA!

[Conan71]

quote:Originally posted by midtownnewbie

I know that I should know where it is, but I'm not sure where my water meter is located...  The temperature is supposed to get down to 21' tomorrow night and since the inside of my house is close to freezing and I don't want to add broken pipes/flooded house to our current problems, (fyi, power is out and we're staying with the in-laws) does anyone know the general vicinity of where it should be located so that I can find it and turn it off?  FYI, we live in Maple Ridge, I know our gas meter is in the front of the house but I don't recall seeing the round water meter cover either in the front yard or the back yard...  I called my neighbor after seeing the weather report tonite and he looked for both of ours and couldn't find either of them...  It was dark so I will be going there tomorrow in the daylight (if the weather is not too bad) and I'd appreciate any info that might help me locate it!

TIA!

They usually are near the curb for ease of reading and I believe they usually run the water lines in front of houses.  I'm thinking back to the houses I've lived in and every one of them was very close to the curb.

[midtownnewbie]

Thanks for the reply Conan.  Unless it's hidden in a flower bed, it's not in the front.  I'm going down there in a few hours and I hope there's no snow on the ground so that I can find it.  Wish me luck!

[RecycleMichael]

I have also seen them near an outdoor faucet close to the house.

Conan is right...they are somewhere that the meter reader can get to easily.

[Breadburner]

Maybe they covered it with that ugly green box thingy.....

[TulsaFan-inTexas]

Yes, they are usually near the street for easy access. You're doing a smart thing!

[Conan71]

I had turned my water off earlier in the week, I just didn't want the risk.  When I was dragging downed limbs to the curb, I was very careful not to cover up my meter hole....just in case!

[FOTD]

Just leave the faucets dripping for now.....

[Conan71]

quote:Originally posted by FOTD

Just leave the faucets dripping for now.....

That works unless you got a grey water sump in the basement.  Not a good idea then.

[FOTD]

The temp in the basement s/b above freezing....shouldn't it?

[midtownnewbie]

Thanks for all the replies.  We never found the water meter but we did find a water shut off in the basement that turned all the water off.  It entered through the back wall of the house so I assume that the meter must be either in the back yard or the easement.  With all the leaves and general debris on the ground, I couldn't locate the meter but it didn't matter as while I was searching, my father in law found the shut-off in the basement!  We also ran all the water out of the faucets/toilets and put a little RV antifreeze in the toilets and down all the drains.  Still no power but at least we shouldn't have to worry about frozen pipes!

[cannon_fodder]

FYI on pipe freezing:

Unless it gets REALLY cold it should not be a real concern.  I lived in Iowa in a trailer with above ground exposed pipes and would suffer pipe freezing only 2 times a year - when it was negative real temperatures.  Of course, that was with a heat source above them and *some* protection (in your home you have much more protection that a super ghetto trailer skirt provided).  

Nonetheless, if you are worried about it:

1. Leave outside faucets running a small bit, NOT just dripping.  A drip may not be enough flow to stop them from freezing AND may result in a frozen drain as well.  A small run should be enough to do the trick.  Inside faucets probably have enough heat to be OK, a drip should be fine to encourage more flow throughout the entire system.

A major problem area is under the kitchen sink.  It is usually on an exterior wall AND covered with cabinets (no heat flow).  Open cabinets to expose pipes to the heat.  Also do not forget your water heater - take a hot shower just before bed and the pipes will run for sometime to refill the water heater (not sure if this really helps, but it made me feel better anyway).

2. If you turn off your water you have to blow out your lines to truly protect them. Otherwise, even if you get rid of all pressure in the lines by turning on one, you will have spots that water will pool.  Now you have a limited amount of water, no flow, and freezing air in direct contact with the water.  While reducing the amount of water, it may increase the likelihood of freezing and reduce your preventative remedies (running water).

3. Pipe freeze is not fatal.  The copper pipes in my trailer froze at least 5 times when I was there (heat tape can not save you when it is -20 real, even after we retapped everything with new).  In all that freezing I lost one exterior faucet to cracking.  So you *should* be ok as copper is pretty flexible stuff. Clearly not desirable though...

/just my two cents.  One of those 10,000+ BTU shop furnaces (little air blaster things) work well to thaw them out should the need arise.  Hair dryers are just a damn joke unless it is an isolated freeze.

[Conan71]

quote:Originally posted by FOTD

The temp in the basement s/b above freezing....shouldn't it?

Yep, but if the sump overflows (takes power to run the pump), you wind up with a few inches of water covering the basement floor.