Prepaid water meters in the Western Cape

semiautomatix

semiautomatix

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I was attending the Western Province Rugby Awards dinner on Tuesday night when I received this SMS from my son: “Mom and dad, our water has been cut off. What do we need to do?”

I smiled to myself and replied: “You obviously used too much water today. Wait until midnight and it will come back on again.”

The “cut-off” was the result of the water management device I had installed in my home earlier this year. These devices provide each household with 200 litres of water a day, free, at the normal flow rate. People who register on the City of Cape Town’s indigency database get 350 litres per day, free (the most generous free allocation in the country). Whatever is not used gets carried over to the next day. You can get additional water every day if you specify how much you are prepared to pay per month.

...

In the most extreme circumstances, when people have failed to respond to overdue bills for months and months, they may be put on the trickle system. If your toilet cistern is filling up on the “trickle system” it will seem as if nothing is coming out of your tap until the cistern is full.
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What are your opinions on how these devices, including prepaid electricity, work? What about the insistence of the DA to have these installed?

Full article: http://tinyurl.com/ybfwlkg
 
The DA Council is insisting on these in order to control supply. They have far too many people connected to electricity and water, but are just not paying. It isn't about convenience or any other description - purely as a means of cutting off supply to non-payers or even managing future energy restrictions.

It also means the Council will not have to send people out to read meters. Not that they are very efficient in this regard anyhow. You can't phone in a reading without an appointment, which is a bit daft in this day and age.

Furthermore, you can't go back to a pay-monthly basis.

These meters are expensive, which is also a touchy subject.
 
Sackboy said:
The DA Council is insisting on these in order to control supply. They have far too many people connected to electricity and water, but are just not paying. It isn't about convenience or any other description - purely as a means of cutting off supply to non-payers or even managing future energy restrictions.

It also means the Council will not have to send people out to read meters. Not that they are very efficient in this regard anyhow. You can't phone in a reading without an appointment, which is a bit daft in this day and age.

Furthermore, you can't go back to a pay-monthly basis.

These meters are expensive, which is also a touchy subject.
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I understand the reasoning because the non-payment of accounts, but what about the practicality of the trickle system? What would you do if your water shut off half way through the evening shower?
 
Morgoth said:
erm, afaik each household at the moment is entitle to 200 litre per day at the moment.
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"People who register on the City of Cape Town’s indigency database get 350 litres per day, free (the most generous free allocation in the country)."
 
What about insisting that all households (as in residential) start using these meters as a way to make people realise their usage and possible wastage?
 
timgaul said:
I never said it was wrong or right ;)

I'm just wondering what the general opinion is, especially regarding the trickle system.
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base on =>

you cannot cut-off water
you have to avoid "waste of water"
limit the usage because of "service is free"

what you can do except "trickle system" ?

I have no any other idea, what do you think? ;)
 
timgaul said:
What about insisting that all households (as in residential) start using these meters as a way to make people realise their usage and possible wastage?
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I wouldn't mind having it in gauteng, the bills are usually not correct, trying to explain it to the municipality takes bloody ages, its a whole mess.
 
They're very good so long as they work. Another thing to bare in mind is the cost, a normal meter usually costs a lot less than a prepayment meter and with the government giving a free allowance its hard to recover costs on the capital expenditure.
 
Morgoth said:
I wouldn't mind having it in gauteng, the bills are usually not correct, trying to explain it to the municipality takes bloody ages, its a whole mess.
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That is one benefit I didn't even consider. No more residential billing will save a lot of wasted paper and banging of heads.
 
Fudzy said:
They're very good so long as they work. Another thing to bare in mind is the cost, a normal meter usually costs a lot less than a prepayment meter and with the government giving a free allowance its hard to recover costs on the capital expenditure.
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Subsidising of the meters should be implemented then. This country is perilously close to running short on water and electricity, this is one saving measure amongst other things. It will also help see a decrease in illegal connections of electricity.
 
timgaul said:
I understand the reasoning because the non-payment of accounts, but what about the practicality of the trickle system? What would you do if your water shut off half way through the evening shower?
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I think that will teach you to prioritise your water usage within the free daily allowance, and if you can't manage that, then pay for the convenience and flexibility of consuming more whenever you chose.
 
timgaul said:
I understand the reasoning because the non-payment of accounts, but what about the practicality of the trickle system? What would you do if your water shut off half way through the evening shower?
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so you just pay your bill every month! -> problem solved!

you have no money to pay your bill obviously you have to sacrifice.....

what's wrong again? :confused:
 
DreamKing said:
so you just pay your bill every month! -> problem solved!

you have no money to pay your bill obviously you have to sacrifice.....

what's wrong again? :confused:
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Some people are incapable of taking care of themselves even if they have the money to do so ;)
 
timgaul said:
Subsidising of the meters should be implemented then. This country is perilously close to running short on water and electricity, this is one saving measure amongst other things. It will also help see a decrease in illegal connections of electricity.
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Since the cost of each meter runs into the thousands (please provide the exact figure), once again, those in affluent areas will pay for the poor.
 
Sackboy said:
Since the cost of each meter runs into the thousands (please provide the exact figure), once again, those in affluent areas will pay for the poor.
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I will make little to know difference when we live with constant water rationing, now will it?
 
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