Water Flow Balancing and Leak Detection
Water suppliers aim to provide the best clean and safe drinking water. The aim of any large water pipeline operator who is running water distribution networks is to ensure that the water flowing through the pipelines is tested, inspected and and running as it should. A district metered area will normally have a team of individuals involved in different tasks relating to the distribution and quality of the product since water is a product that is sold to industry but also to the general public. There will often be private consultant companies who provide special services to the Waterworks companies. These folks often need extra equipment to identify leaks.
What about leaks?
Leaks in water pipelines are not uncommon and have to be found. These could be large water pipelines or smaller ones. Pipelines are often underground i.e. some need to have the earth dug up to inspect them, while others have sections that are accessible through manholes or are operating above ground.
When working with consultants and companies who offer leak detection services there is a possibility to use clamp on flow meters to measure the total flow rate with more than one meter operating in sync with another. This means that flow is measured in a pipeline distribution that has the meters separated by a large enough distance to determine if there is a flow disparity between the flowmeters. Any imbalance in the flow readings, would indicate a leakage in the pipeline section. Using flowmeters and technologies like acoustic leak detectors, the actual point of leakage can be identified.
Need to rent a flow meter?
Recently we worked with a company located near Lake Tahoe California, who already had flow meters – but needed several at once in order to perform flow measurements on large water pipelines for flow balancing and water leak detection. In cases like this, the user often needs several flow meters at a time. Fortunately, we had all the flow meters they needed at our facility in Rayville. Not only that, the EESIFLO clamp on flow meters we supplied/rented met the technical specifications required to successfully carry out the flow measurements on larger pipes without having to scrape the pipe wall. In addition, the flow rates at night were considerably lower vs the day time flow and our flow meters were up to the task.
Leaks are not only found in water distribution pipelines. They can occur anywhere. Sometimes a client might send us a video to show us a leak and ask for a solution. In this case, it would be better to use submersible flow sensors with remotely located electronics. We can be contacted for assistance on choosing the best equipment to measure flow rates in any kind of pipe whether it is plastic, steel or cement lined.