Something I keep overlooking ? water and sewer utilities in Albuquerque charge demand-based fees too. Albuquerque Bernalillo County Water Utility Authority bills a capacity charge based on meter size. A 4-inch meter has a monthly capacity charge of $486 compared to $162 for a 2-inch meter. My client has a 4-inch meter installed during construction 20 years ago but actual peak flow hasnt required more than a 2-inch meter in over a decade. The oversized meter is costing $3,888 per year in unnecessary capacity charges.
Demand charges on water and sewer utility bills ? yes they exist
George ? water meter downsizing is one of the most reliable audit findings because water capacity charges are based solely on meter size. Nobody ever revisits the meter size after initial installation. I found a strip mall in San Antonio on a 6-inch meter that only needed a 3-inch. SAWS capacity charge dropped from $720 to $195 per month. Annual savings of $6,300 from a meter swap that cost $1,200.
Michelle ? exactly. The water meter was sized for a development that never fully built out. The actual flow demand is a fraction of the meter capacity. This is free money for any auditor who checks water bills.
In Tallahassee, the city water utility charges a base facility charge plus a demand surcharge for peak-month usage. The demand surcharge uses a 3-month rolling average of the highest consumption months. Its functionally a water demand ratchet. Most clients dont realize their water bill has a demand component because its not labeled as demand ? its called excess capacity surcharge.
Oklahoma City water has a similar structure. And sewer charges are usually based on water consumption with a demand multiplier during high-usage months. A restaurant that uses more water in summer (patio season, ice machines running harder) pays elevated sewer charges for months afterward based on the summer peak. Reducing peak water usage reduces both water demand charges AND sewer demand charges.
Charles ? sewer demand charges based on water consumption peaks? I never considered that connection. A client with high seasonal water usage is getting hit on both water and sewer demand simultaneously. This compounds the savings opportunity from water conservation measures.
Added water and sewer demand analysis to my standard audit protocol. First three clients I checked: two had oversized water meters ($4,200 and $2,800 annual savings from downsizing) and one had a sewer demand surcharge based on irrigation water that should have been excluded ($3,600 annual credit). Total $10,600 in water/sewer demand findings that I would have missed if I only audited electric bills.