“This doesn’t cover the cost 100% in some cases. It varies per plumbing work, but in some cases it will come close to covering 100%,” said Brianna Wooten, the county’s communications director. “This is just a way to help customers so they don’t experience as much financial hardship.”
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New plumbing work that requires a permit must comply with current rules and regulations, which necessitates that meters be installed in a pit outside the structure, Wooten said.
“We’re not going around policing people saying you need to move your meter outside. It’s just if work is done, we want it to meet current standards,” she said.
The county currently has 83,267 active meters, of which 58,082 are already outside, according to the county.
As each of the remaining 25,185 are moved outside over time, costs to the county go down, Wooten said.
“It does decrease our long-term maintenance costs, because having a meter outside makes it much easier to access and service for necessary maintenance and readings,” she said.
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All the meters on the county’s water system have already been converted to be read automatically, but water employees must still enter private homes on other occasions for maintenance or to troubleshoot leaks that may require collecting data over a 90-day period, Wooten said.
“It cuts down on a whole host of issues of having employees having to enter into private homes by having the meter relocated outside,” she said.
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Since 2015, 127 customers have filed for the rebate, including 42 last year, according to county records. The application form can be found online at https://www.mcohio.org/Meter%20Rebate%20Form_2020.pdf.
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