Meter Reading

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Each month, ECU meter readers read approximately 25,000 water and electric meters and your consumption is determined by subtracting the previous month's meter reading from the current month's reading. ECU's meters are highly dependable and are randomly tested for accuracy.

A standard billable unit of electricity is a kilowatt. A kilowatt is one thousand watts of energy. For example, a 50 watt light bulb, burning for twenty hours would consume one kilowatt. The meter operates like the odometer in your car, registering ones, tens, hundreds, and thousands of kilowatt-hours. Some meters have a digital readout, others have dials. You can read your own electric meter by following these steps.

Diagram 1
If you have a meter that looks like this (digital), simply write down the numbers.

Diagram 2
On your electric meter there are either four or five dials. The dials rotate in opposite directions. In this example, the pointer on Dial A rotates clockwise, while Dial B pointer rotates counter-clockwise.

Start with the left dial on the meter (Dial B on a four dial meter and Dial A on a five dial meter).

• If the pointer is between two numbers, always choose the smaller number.
• If a pointer looks like it's exactly on a number, always look to the dial immediately to the right.
• If the pointer on the right dial is between 0 and 1, record the larger number on the left dial.
• If the pointer on the right dial is between 0 an 9, record the smaller number on the left dial.

Remember, the dials rotate in opposite directions

The meter face for ECU's water meters are typically white and can be found on the register in the water meter and valve box.  The number on the dial shows how many cubic feet have been used.  The difference in a monthly reading and the previous reading is how many cubic feet of water that will be billed for.  

The correct reading for the example is 545,190 cubic feet.

Newer meters and those in dangerous or hard-to-reach places are being equipped with an Electronic Radio Transmitter (ERT) that transmits consumption and tamper information to a receiver unit in either a handheld or truck-mounted unit. These ERT meters will decrease the time needed to read meters, and eliminate the need for personnel to be in a potentially dangerous situation. Meter faces look the same but are attached to a low-profile antenna mounted on the valve box. Residents should be careful not to damage these antennas, particularly when mowing.

The Meter Reading department is responsible for accurately reading & recording utility service usage for electric, water and sewer. Through rain, snow, sun, and heat, our meter readers provide a valuable service to ECU and our customers. This team of employees provide an important link between customer usage and billing. They report new or inactive meters to the billing section, troubleshoot billing discrepancy inquiries, and notify management of any apparent tampering. Our meter readers read over 25,000 meters every month. Our service area is broken down into 84 routes, and it is common for our personnel to walk between five and ten miles a day. On the largest routes, they will drive over one hundred miles in a day.

They are our eyes in the field also. They report potential threats to your utility services such as tree limbs overhanging powerlines or damaged meterboxes. Over 97% of all ECU meters now utilize an Automated Meter Reading system. This new system utilizes a unique radio signal which transmits a low level signal from each meter to a portable receiving unit. The receiver records the data from each meter which is later downloaded to the billing computer. One of the benefits of the automated system is reducing the time needed to walk or ride the entire route. In some cases, a meter reader can record all of the meters from the entrance of the neighborhood.