WATER METER REPLACEMENT PROJECT In order to meet the mandates of Senate Bill 370, Etowah Water & Sewer Authority has contracted with Kendall Supply to begin a meter replacement program in August 2011 by replacing our existing water meters with the new Sensus meters. These meters offer low flow accuracy and allow the Authority to start a leak detection program and other management practices required by the State of Georgia. In order to complete these water meter improvements, the water may be cut off at individual meters for short periods of time, pending no complications occur. Work crews from Townley Construction will attempt to notify each residence before the water is temporarily shut down. Customers are urged to take the necessary precautions to prevent damage to any equipment that requires water. If you have a need where water must remain on during certain days and/or times, please contact the Authority ahead of time at 706-216-8474 and ask to speak to customer service. Please mark any irrigation systems or other private utilities that you may have in the area around the water meter so that crews may avoid them if possible. Water meters are usually located in the right-of-way of the public roadway and within this area, utilities are allowed to remove any items that may be planted. It may be necessary to trim back bushes or trees or remove plants, flowers or other items if they are in the way of the meter replacement project. Homeowners should make every attempt to remove them from the meter area and should not park over meters during the next few days. Please watch for the construction crews and drive carefully. If you have any questions, please call 706-216-8474. Thank you for your cooperation!

The IPERL water management system offers unparalleled low flow accuracy with high flow durability. Innovative magnetic technology allows for the capture of previously unmeasured low flow. One hundred percent lead free with no moving parts, the IPERL system maintains its accuracy over a twenty year lifetime. AMI connectivity and fourteen condition, diagnostic and lifetime alarms allows for quick resolution to issues experienced in the field. The IPERL system maximizes operational efficiency.

OMNI C2 Meters – 2 “ meters The OMNI meter from Sensus is the most technologically advanced large water meter on the market today. The key to this optimal measurement performance is the application of the new Floating Ball Technology (FBT). FBT employs and impeller with a ball design which makes the impeller weightless in the water line. The technology enables the impeller to begin moving with very little water flow or force through the meter. The result is that OMNI has an extended flow range with better low flow sensitivity, as well as the ability to capture extended high flow rates – all with virtually no wear.

Frequently asked Questions and Answers Q. Why are you replacing my water meter and will this affect my bill? A. Etowah Water & Sewer Authority is conducting a meter replacement program that is upgrading all of the existing meters with the latest water meter reading technology. This is partially due to the Governor signing the Water Stewardship Act in 2010 that requires us to have a leak detection program. The new Sensus meters will help us inform you of high usage on a daily basis, even an hourly basis if needed. This should not affect your bill, however, if your old meter has been in use 20 plus years you may see a slight increase in your bill as a result of the new meters accuracy being better than the older meter Q. My water pressure was fine until you changed my meter. Now it is too high or too low. A. I’ll be glad to send the inspector out to check the water pressure. Q. The contractor came back and adjusted my pressure, but it is still not like it used to be. A. We will contact the Contractor and have him return to your residence and recheck the pressure. (Do you know the desired pressure you had before the meter change-out/check the replacement form attached to customer account? Take the contact information and send to the Project Manager.) Q. During the weekend, my pressure was too high OR to low (whatever the customer’s case may be) and I had to call a plumber to come out and they replaced my pressure reducing valve (PRV). The plumber said my PRV went bad after you all changed my meter and I don’t believe I should have to pay the bill. A. We will contact the Contractor and have him return to your residence to see what repairs were performed. (Take the contact information and send to the Project Manager) *The water pressure in your home is regulated by a Pressure Reducing Valve (PRV). This valve was installed by the builder who constructed your home and is part of your homes plumbing system. Most PRV’s are located at the meter or under the home (basement) where the water line enters the home. Q. My yard was left a mess. A. We will contact the Contractor and have him return to your residence to see what repairs need to be performed. (Take the contact information and send to the Project Manager.) Q. I had sod in my yard and the contractor put back seed and straw. A. We will contact the Contractor and have him return to your residence to investigate. (Take the contact information and send to the Project Manager.) Q. You all tore up my flower bed when you replaced my water meter. A. Ninety nine percent of the time, water meters are located in the Right of Way of the public roadway and within the area utilities are allowed to remove any items that the home owner would have planted. The Contractor is required to attempt to contact the homeowner prior to removing plants, flowers or other items needing to be removed in order to replace the meter. However, if no one is at home, the contractor is free to proceed with the work at his own discretion. Sometimes plantings and other items have to be removed to replace the meter and it is unfortunate that your plants were removed, but we are conducting a massive meter

replacement program, we are required to maintain and upgrade the meter as needed per State and Federal mandates, and that requires sometimes digging up the meter box. Q. No one contacted me before you all shut off my water. A. Ask the customer if he/she was at home during the work. IF so, explain that the contractor is required to attempt to make contact with the resident prior to shutting off the service – explain the notice that was left on their mail post or in their door. (If there has been no damage to the water being shut off without prior notice, apologize and hopefully, the customer will be satisfied. IF there is damage, take the information down, including customer contact information and give to the Project Manager.) Q. There is water spraying up from my meter, what do I need to do? A. Gather the address and contact information of the customer and forward to the Project Manager via phone call. This is a matter that needs immediate attention so make sure your message is received. Q. My driveway now has a cracked place in it after the contractor drove his big trucks on it. A. We will have to investigate this with the Contractor. (Take the contact information and send to the Project Manager.) Q. Contractor drove his equipment up in my yard and now I have ruts in my grass. A. We will have to investigate this with the Contractor. (Take the contact information and send to the Project Manager.) Q. Your workers came to my home last night and fixed a leak on my meter and left a mess in my yard. A. Get the customers contact information and address of the property and give to the Project Manager. Q. I had a washer of clothes stained after you all changed out my water meter. A. Changing your water meter should not have caused discoloration of the water in your home’s plumbing system. If the staining of your laundry is from soil, then a second wash should remove the stain. Q. I got a HUGE water bill after you all changed out my meter. A. First thing – look up the customer’s consumption history on the account and (1) see if the “Huge” usage the customer is referring to occurred prior to the meter change out date; or (2) has occurred in the consumption history in the past year. (3) If it is ridiculously high usage, it may be a leak at the meter and someone needs to go and investigate. (If, however, the “huge” usage occurred in the past or it appears to be an abnormal spike that is not ridiculously high, then there are a few things to consider before assuming there is a leak at the meter. (4). Consider that the reading of the last meter could have been recorded wrong on the meter change-out sheet. Check the change-out sheet, call the customer back and state it was an error and has been adjusted. Q. My water heater pop-off valve came open after you changed my meter. A. The piping in your home is a closed system or should be. Your old water meter may have not been installed with a check valve allowing it to be an “open system” or the check valve could have failed. The purpose of the check valve is to prevent backflow from occurring. When we upgrade your meter service we would have installed a check valve which prevents water from passing back through the meter once it has entered your plumbing lines. When your water heater begins to heat the water, the thermal heat increases the pressure in your closed system. Pop off valves or Temperature Pressure Relief Valves (TPR) are just relief valves, a safety device feature equipped on all residential water heaters. This safety valve releases pressure from the tank if the

pressure or temperature reaches unsafe levels. Thermal expansion tanks are installed in newer homes to allow for thermal expansion within your homes plumbing system. IF you do not have a thermal expansion tank, you should call a plumber and see about installing one today. *Several years ago, Congress enacted the Safe Drinking Water Act. The Act set guidelines to insure all Americans access to quality water. Currently, the Act, defines a utility’s responsibility for water quality as being at the point of delivery, or the tap. The entry of objectionable or hazardous material into the customer’s plumbing may expose the utility to expensive and time consuming problems.

REMEMBER – we are only changing out meters and does not require us to dig up the service line nor disturb the meter assembly and/or customer service line. In both cases, there is minimal, if no interruption to the water service. The summary report maintained by the Contractor keeps a record of what work has been performed at each water service. Other things to consider if the customer has experienced a “HUGE” water bill….. 1. Is it in the summer time? If so, did the customer fill a pool, or use excessive water outdoors? Any new landscaping, laying sod, watering the yard or the garden, etc. 2. Did the customer have a water fixture repaired in the last billing period? 3. Did the customer check the flush valve chain on the toilet to see if it is maybe hung up and allowing the toilet to run continuously? Hanging flush valves on toilets can equate to several gallons of water in just a few hours. A running toilet can waste two gallons of water per minute. A silent leak in a toilet can waste up to 7,000 gallons of water per month. 4. To find silent leaks, put food coloring in the tank. Do not flush. Check the toilet bowl ten minutes later. If you see color in the bowl, the tank has a silent leak. Toilet leaks are typically caused by either a worn out flapper valve or a fill valve that doesn’t completely shut off when the tank is full. The flapper valve is the stopper in the bottom of the tank that lifts up when you push the flush handle and is the most likely culprit. Solution – replace the flapper. 5. A faucet leaking a slow steady drip, 100 drops per minute – wastes 350 gallons per month. A faucet leaking a small stream wastes 2,000 to 2,700 gallons of water per month. Replacing worn washers in your faucets will usually stop leaks.