# Installing Sub-Meter



## CallMeVilla (May 15, 2015)

This one is a problem ....  how would you solve it?

Picture a main house with a detached garage which has an apartment on top.  The two structures are connected by a second story archway so the apartment shower shares the main house bathroom wall on the 2nd floor.

The owners want a sub-meter to bill for the tenant water usage.  NOW comes the problem ...

The water main comes into the structure thru the street meter then up to a ball valve shutoff.  (see diagram) The piping turns into the garage wall and tees to the landscape irrigation.  The garage is fully finished and custom cabinets line the walls.  There is no separate pipe for the main house showing !

How would you find the split off of the piping between house and apartment?


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## frodo (May 15, 2015)

...............thinking

first...check your local city code for a tenant meter.

some places it is not allowed..by doing so,,it would make the apartment an illegal rental

that opens up a whole can of worms..needs to be addressed.

if the bathroom for the shower,,from apartment,,backs up to the house bathroom

i would bet the piping is not seperate,,but the apartment is tied into the house.

just my thought.

take a cabinet off the wall..cut the rock behind it,,directly under the bathroom

you might find the riser.

or,,cut rock behind lav or shower...see if pipe goes down..

sorry no help,,old houses, dont you love em!!

or spend the money on a thermo camera...it will show the hot cold pipeing
if you run the water

http://www.grainger.com/product/32MX58?cm_sp=HIO-_-HIDP-_-RR_VTVCREF&cm_vc=IDPRRCREFZ13&zoneId=IDPRRZ13


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## CallMeVilla (May 15, 2015)

Yep ....  1940's original with major remodel along the way. Hot water heater in garage.  Piping has to go somewhere.  I am considering opening the garage wall where the main feeds into the structure.  The division has to be evident someplace.

If the hot water heater is shared then that has to be divided between the two structures along with the kitchen and bath (cold water sides).

City refused to provide a separate street meter (too expensive for them to do it).  THEY suggested the inline sub-meter as a solution because the apartment is fully permitted.

Keep thinking .... might take all our brains to figure this ...


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## nealtw (May 15, 2015)

Good luck!!!!!!!!!


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## frodo (May 16, 2015)

not knowing the piping..

is it copper?  galvinised?

if copper...most likely looped under slab.


seriously....your best bet is a flir  thermo image.

you point it at a wall,,,and can "SEE"  the difference in temp where pipes are.

the savings in time and cost for cutting walls makes it worth it

low end  $300.00  up to $3000.00

that job,,will turn out to be a complete repipe to separate the 2 residences..along with a new water heater for apartment

are they aware of this?

something tells me they are thinking its just  "add a meter"


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## bud16415 (May 16, 2015)

Is there just a kitchen and the one bath? It might be simpler to run a new pex feed to both back to the sub meter and cap off how they are hooked up now.


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## CallMeVilla (May 19, 2015)

Solved.

Before ripping garage walls apart, we decided to excavate under the existing main supply pipe.  We discovered the main has a T which routes water to the apartment (plumbing shows above grade) THEN continues to feed the house.  

So, the solution became obvious.   Isolate the apartment with a new sub-meter.  Isolate the house and irrigation.  Add new shutoffs as needed.

The first diagram (above) shows what was above grade.  The new diagram (below) shows how the separation of water use between apartment and house was achieved.  Now the owner can bill the renter for water used.  There is now a shutoff added for the main house which had not existed.

Hope you enjoyed the ride and can draw from the solution.

PS  The diagram says "Sub-Main" which should read "Sub-Meter".  Sorry for typo


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## frodo (May 21, 2015)

good job....


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