Water Meters and Meter Reading

**Measuring Water

Consumption**Types of Water MetersDrinking water consumption

for each property is measured using a water meter. Water meters must be in good working order and sealed, both to the water supply network and with a mark certifying their metrological accuracy and the year of their last state inspection. Properties supplied with water are generally divided into two types:
- Individual
- Buildings – condominiums

For individual properties (houses, public buildings, commercial premises, and business enterprises) that use water for process purposes, water is measured by a single water meter installed on the connecting water service line. The valve assembly is installed in a shaft located no more than 2 meters from the property line or in an easily accessible enclosed space when the building is no more than 5 m from the street regulation line.

For property owners outside the construction boundaries of populated areas, designated as vacation home areas or agricultural properties, metering is performed using a single common water meter installed at the point of water intake from the water supply system.

In condominium buildings, there are two types of water meters:

1.Common (central water meter), which measures the total volume of water supplied to the building. Maintenance is the responsibility of our company, and the costs of repairs, preventive maintenance, and subsequent periodic inspections are borne by us. Our company strives to keep the water meter in good working order to ensure accurate measurement of water usage and satisfactory metrological integrity. The common water meter makes it possible to monitor and detect in a timely manner any violations or technical malfunctions in the building’s internal water supply network.

2.Individual (control, metered) water meters. These are installed in apartments, stores, or offices that are part of a condominium. They measure the consumption of cold and hot (in buildings with district heating) water. The water meters are the property of the customers, and it is their responsibility to supply and install them on the water supply network. The customer is responsible for the maintenance, inspection, and repair of these water meters.

To open a water account at a specific address, you must fill out the company’s standard application form and attach all required documents (see Opening, Closure, and Change of Account), and submit it to the relevant operational district or to the Customer Service Center at the central office of “VIK” EAD in Burgas, as well as pay the applicable fee. After that, a plumber will visit you on-site to inspect the water meter installation and seal it to the water supply network with a clamp bearing a serial number. This is the procedure for opening an account and registering a water meter.

Water Meter Reading Water meters

are read by employees of “ViK”—collection agents/meter readers. Although the regulation allows for a 3 (three)-month reading interval, for the convenience of our customers, water meters are read every month.

In all communal-type dwellings (apartment buildings, housing cooperatives), which account for 80% of our subscribers, water meters are installed in areas that are not directly accessible—such as bathrooms, toilets, or kitchens.

Performing the duties related to water meter readings requires visiting residents’ homes. Every customer who opens an account for apartment water meters also assumes the obligation to provide officials authorized by the “ViK” utility company with unimpeded access for reading, inspecting, and, if necessary, shutting off the water meters.
If you are unable to provide access for reading the apartment water meters, please call 851 323, 846 114, or 852 067 to report the readings you have taken or to arrange a convenient time and day for meter reading.

If the above conditions cannot be met, estimated consumption will be charged for up to two billing periods.

Where should one look for the causes of the large discrepancies in the readings from the central water meter?:

• Poor condition of the internal plumbing;
• Unauthorized modifications to the building’s internal plumbing and the connection of users without a submeter;
• Absence of control clamps or seals on the water meter connectors, and the resulting potential for unauthorized removal of individual water meters;
• Failure to conduct follow-up inspections of individual water meters within the timeframes prescribed by the
  Measurements Act; - Damaged or defective individual water meters.

Water Meter Inspection If

a customer has doubts about the proper functioning of the water meter, they have the right to request an accuracy inspection. This is done by filling out an application for a state inspection to be conducted by a licensed person at the relevant laboratory and by notifying the water utility operator (water utility) in advance regarding the possible removal of the meter from the system and its placement in test mode.

According to the Measurements Act, water meters with a nominal flow rate (Qn) < 15 m³ must be submitted for periodic inspection every 5 years (this category includes almost all individual water meters and central supply meters), while those with a nominal flow rate (Qn) > 15 m³ must be inspected every two years (this category includes meters installed on large water supply branches serving populated areas, complexes, neighborhoods, or large areas with internal sub-meters). Our water meter repair laboratories in the cities of Burgas, Aytos, and Karnobat perform preventive and major repairs on both water meters owned by our Company and on individual and sub-metering devices owned by our consumers (customers). All government inspections (whether periodic or post-repair) are conducted in independent laboratories authorized and licensed by the State Agency for Metrological and Technical Surveillance (DAMTN). These laboratories conduct tests on both communal and individual water meters. Every customer who owns an individual water meter is required to register and have their meter inspected within the specified timeframes. These deadlines are approved or amended only by decision of the chairperson of DAMTN and are published both in the State Gazette and in the “Regulation on Measuring Instruments (MI) Subject to Metrological Control.”

The operational condition of water meters is monitored by meter readers, who report any damaged meters when they visit to take readings according to the monthly schedule. There are many causes of water meter malfunctions, but the most common are wear and tear on key components and parts resulting from long-term use, and failure to meet deadlines for periodic inspections and/or preventive maintenance. If a customer believes that their water meter is damaged, they may inform their meter reader directly or call the service number for the area where they live. Inspections of individual water meters and/or any necessary repairs are subject to a fee, and invoices for these services are listed in a separate addendum to the customer’s water bill.