Although meter accuracy has been addressed in the past as a potential cause of apparent water loss, the lack of significant data on meter accuracy at low flows has caused losses at these flow rates to be largely ignored. This article provides average low‐flow accuracies of different meter types and outlines two methods for estimating apparent losses caused by meter inaccuracy at low flows. By estimating apparent losses and resulting decreases in revenues, utilities can gain a better understanding of the real consequences of meter inaccuracy at low flow rates. Stopping nonrevenue water loss attributable to meter inaccuracy can result in substantial short‐term increases in utility revenue. Furthermore, meters that accurately record water across the entire range of flow rates lead to more equitable customer billing. In light of these benefits as well as increased system efficiency, utilities may want to make low‐flow accuracy a key consideration in selecting meters for initial installation or replacement.

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T he accurate measurement of potable water by way of metering is a viable approach to conserving water resources and encouraging responsible water use. When utilities meter water and water consumers become accountable for their water use, consumers become more efficient with their water use. For this reason, water metering has become an important tool in water conservation and in billing water consumers fairly. In fact, according to AWWA, "No tool available to water utilities has played a greater part in the conservation of water than the water meter" (AWWA, 2002a).AWWA has standards in place for water meters that provide utilities with a basis for meter purchases and performance. These standards have been updated multiple times, with minor changes being made in order to accommodate the changing technology and metering advancements as new manufacturers and new flow measurement technologies have joined the residential water meter marketplace. This study includes new or off-the-shelf meter accuracies for 5 ⁄8 × ¾-, ¾-, 1-, 1½-, and 2-in. residential water meters. The results from this research compare the off-the-shelf accuracy of commonly used and commercially available meter types with their corresponding AWWA standard for cold-water meters. In order to test the accuracy of commercially available, off-the-shelf water meters, this study bench-tested (center) 375 individual new meters from 15 manufacturers (right). Ninety different meter designs representing 5 /8 × ¾-to 2-in. meter sizes were gravimetrically tested in sets of common size (left). resource management 2011

The superior accuracy of the arc electrode magnetic flowmeter is demonstrated by optimizing its weight function and comparing its performance downstream of a 90 elbow and gate valve (50% open) with that of an optimized multipoint (six-electrode) and single-point electrode flowmeter. Research literature is inconclusive on the necessary angle of arc electrode magnetic flowmeters, as well as the required spacing for multipoint flowmeters to optimize meter accuracy. This article determines the optimum configurations for both arc and multipoint flowmeters using the coefficient of variation of the weight function as the basis for optimization. This study illustrates that the accuracy of multipoint electrode flowmeters exhibits the same oscillatory behavior of single-point flowmeters, but the magnitude of the deviation is greatly reduced. The numerical study also provides supporting evidence that the optimized arc electrode flowmeter is superior to the optimized multipoint and single-point electrode flowmeters.