FAQs

The current meter installation work is taking place through fall 2025, with brief water outages (typically an hour) expected during installation. Residents are notified 24–48 hours in advance through door tags and Voyent Alert notifications.

Water meters are being installed after the curb-stop in insulated meter pits, typically located at the property line. In some cases water meters must be installed within properties depending on the location of the curb-stop.

Understanding Meter Sizing and Flow Capacity

Some property owners have asked why the size of their new water meter may appear smaller than their existing service pipe — for example, a 1½-inch meter on a 2-inch service. It’s important to understand that meter size and service line size are not the same thing, and the installation of a smaller meter does not restrict the amount of water available to your property.

How Meter Sizes Are Determined

Meter sizing for the Erickson Water System is based on the irrigation privilege assigned to each property under the RDCK Utilities Rates, Fees and Charges Bylaw No. 3027. Each acre of irrigation privilege allows for 4.5 US gallons per minute (gpm) of flow.

For example:

A 10-acre property × 4.5 gpm per acre = 45 gpm expected flow demand.

A standard 1-inch positive displacement meter can accurately and reliably measure delivered flows in this range. Larger meters are only installed if the expected operating flow exceeds the upper range of a smaller meter or if there are localized pressure concerns.

This approach ensures that meter sizing is hydraulically appropriate, provides the most accurate measurement across the full flow range, and maintains adequate pressure for both household and irrigation needs.

Meter Size Does Not Restrict Flow

All meters being installed under this project are designed and tested to industry standards (AWWA C700/C710) and rated for continuous flow at very low pressure loss. Even though a meter’s internal diameter may be smaller than the pipe, the internal components are engineered to minimize head loss and turbulence.

To illustrate:

Even at the upper end of its operating range, a typical meter will cause only a few pounds of pressure drop, roughly equivalent to the loss caused by a short length of 2″ pipe. For most properties, this is negligible and unnoticeable during irrigation or domestic use.

Why Not Always Match the Pipe Size?

Oversized meters have drawbacks — they cost more, measure less accurately at lower flows, and make it harder to detect leaks. Using a meter that reliably handles the required flow provides better accuracy, leak detection sensitivity, and overall efficiency.

In simple terms, an appropriately sized meter, that may have a smaller internal diameter than the service line, provides the most accurate reading and is selected to match your irrigation privilege — not the diameter of your service line.

Phase 1 and Phase 2 Meter Types

• Phase 1 (2025–2026): Positive displacement (PD M35) meters — ideal for properties with consistent irrigation and domestic flow profiles.

• Phase 2 (2026–2028): Ultrasonic (E-Series) meters — designed for broad flow ranges and high accuracy at both low and peak flows.

Both meter types use Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) to transmit data securely and support near-real-time monitoring through EyeOnWater.

Sizing of the meters for agricultural lands in Erickson is based off the allowable irrigation volume per our Water Bylaw (4.5 gpm/acre) multiplied by the number of acres of irrigation privilege the property has. A typical meter will cause only a negligible (a few pounds) pressure drop after being installed. 

EyeOnWater is a software that is available to help customers track their own water use and receive leak alerts. Leak alerts can be sent to the customer's phone or email. 

Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) is technology that uses wireless cellular communication for meter reading. It sends a signal with data gathered from the meter to a secure Canadian-based server and  therefore permits the meters to be read remotely and also provides information to customers about their water usage.

The types of water meters being installed are positive displacement (Phase 1) and ultrasonic (Phase 2) which utilize industry-leading technology to drive accuracy and reliability.