Following the decline in temperatures, SA “Apă-Canal Chisinau” made a call to the consumers, urging them to make sure the locations of water meters, internal water and sewer pipes and water mains are thermally insulated, IPN reports.

To avoid eventual accidents and useless costs, the pipes and water meters should be insulated with special materials, enabling only the measurement information to be read. The water supplier makes reference to the legal provisions stipulating that the point of delimitation of internal water systems in apartment buildings is the exit from the meter installed in the basement of the building. For household users, the point of delimitation is the exit from the meter installed in the limits of the consumer’s territory. These places must be protected from frost.

Many pipes are not laid lower than the freezing depth of minimum 105 cm. Consequently, both the housing sector managers and the household users are obliged to take the necessary measures to ensure the protection of the water meter at its location. If such measures are not taken, the installations can get frozen, especially at night, when water consumption is lower. If the consumers do not satisfy the requirements, the operator will not bear responsibility for the subsequent disconnection from the water supply system following the freezing of metering installations.