HOW LARGE A METER TO USE 111 



In street sprinkling the number of carts and the number of times 

 that they are filled, with the known capacity of each cart, gives 

 an approximate basis of calculation. 



Knowledge of the amount of water used for public purposes 

 is also necessary in order to make a correct balance sheet of quan- 

 tities for the system and to show what the loss and unaccounted 

 for water really is. Correct knowledge upon these points goes 

 to the heart of a correct application of the meter system and to a 

 fair adjustment of meter rates. 



The use of meters should be insisted upon on public services, 

 even where it is not possible to make charges for the water. 

 Meters have been installed under these conditions frequently in 

 America. One conspicuous case was metering all the public 

 buildings in Washington even though the government as owner 

 of the water works does not permit any charges to be made for 

 the water. In this and other cases publicity of the results and an 

 unwillingness of those in charge to have the buildings in their 

 control use excessive amounts of water has led to overhauling 

 of fixtures, the suppression of many leaks and the stopping of 

 unwarranted drafts, and even though no pecuniary reward fol- 

 lowed the restriction of waste, the actual consumptions have 

 been greatly reduced. 



As to the Size of the Meter. Practice in regard to deter- 

 mining the size of the meter is divided. Sometimes the size 

 of meter is determined by the area of floor space in the building 

 supplied/' In this case the determination is made by the depart- 

 ment and the customer has nothing to say about it. 



When the customer furnishes the meter, he sometimes is 

 allowed to use any size that he selects. This condition is unfor- 

 tunate, as the taker is not ordinarily well posted and frequently 

 selects a size that is not appropriate to his use. 



Where the service pipe is of material that corrodes and 

 loses its carrying capacity, such as wrought iron and steel, 

 galvanized or otherwise coated, the meter should be of a smaller 

 size than the service pipe. For other than the smallest size 

 of domestic meters, it would also appear a wise provision to make 

 * W. W. Brush, Proc. Am. W.W. Assn., 1912, p. 35. 



