100% Locally Owned, Independent and Free

100% Locally Owned, Independent and Free

Digital water meters have saved $600k for customers in 'leaky suburbs'

Do you have a news tip? Click here to send to our news team.

Parking and boat ramp retained as river plan approved

Upgrades to a popular waterfront area as part of a 20-year vision have been endorsed by a local council. Following extensive consultation, Noosa Council has More

Waterfront ‘masterpiece’ heralds new chapter in luxury

A collection of waterfront penthouses with “never-to-be-built-out views” has sparked record interest from local and interstate buyers. The luxury residences at Comino at The Cove More

Photo of the day: seaside flock

Helen Browne snapped this photo of seagulls patrolling the shoreline at Mooloolaba Beach. If you have a photo of the day offering, email photo@sunshinecoastnews.com.au. Photos More

Waste workers win pay rise after ongoing industrial action

Rubbish collection staff in Noosa have secured pay increases and improved working conditions after months of bargaining and industrial action. Transport Workers’ Union members at More

Church on former tourist site set to open

A new church with seating for almost 800 people has set a date for its first service. Sanctuary Church posted to social media earlier this More

State reveals why it is pushing for controversial project

The state government has submitted its list of reasons it wants a contentious hinterland development proposal to be approved, as part of a court More

Smart water meters have saved Unitywater customers more than $605,000 and 130 million litres of water in the last 18 months.

The meters have detected hidden leaks which the utility has been able to alert customers to before they worsened or continued.

Do you want easier access to Sunshine Coast News? Click here to add a convenient shortcut to your phone or tablet.

The project, known as the Smart Meter Network, has seen 10,500 customers in the historically ‘leaky’ suburbs of Mooloolaba, Maroochydore, Alexandra Headland and Buderim areas have a digital meter installed at their property.

Executive Manager Customer and Community Katherine Gee said the utility had been impressed with the results of the smart water meters.

Smart meters have saved considerable amounts of water and money for residents. Picture: Unitywater

“Smart meters are intelligent devices that can help monitor water usage and detect hidden leaks that saves money and lost water,” Ms Gee said.

“It’s not only about helping our customers save money, but we have a huge focus on sustainability and are committed to playing our part in ensuring the sustainability and liveability of our region.”

Ms Gee said smart water meters captured meter readings at 15-minute intervals, compared with mechanical meters which are read every quarter.

“We’ve been able to notify more than 90% of our digital meter customers with potential hidden leaks within three days and they are then able to get a licensed plumber to identify their leak and repair it before it worsens.

“We detected a significant leak at a unit complex in Mooloolaba and worked with this customer to alert them and engage a plumber to investigate.

“The leak came from a burst pipe to the spa under a garden and the spa was on auto top-up so it was losing huge volumes of water. The water lost was almost the same amount of water used by this complex each day and if this continued without us detecting it, the water bill would have been more than $4000.”

Manager of the Coco Mooloolaba unit complex, Kylie Bartholomew, said, “This has saved us as a property, and all of the owners in our property, a load of money and heartache. It could have been far worse.”

Ms Gee said the Smart Meter Network was a trial and that over the next 12 months, Unitywater will be analysing the data from the smart water meters and valuing the benefits they can provide.

“This is one of the first steps in the long-term plan to roll out smart water meter technology across the utility’s entire water supply network to help our customers manage their water usage, detect leaks faster and save money on their bills.”

For more information about the meters, visit the Unitywater website

Do you have an opinion to share? Submit a Letter to the Editor with your name and suburb at Sunshine Coast News via: news@sunshinecoastnews.com.au

 

Subscribe to SCN’s free daily news email

This field is hidden when viewing the form
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.
[scn_go_back_button] Return Home
Share