Some residents of Portage la Prairie still have questions about high readings from the new water meters which were recently installed across the city. Councillor Wayne Wall says if you'd like to check your own meter, you can shine a flashlight on the solar panel at the top of the meter for several seconds. Wall notes this will activate the liquid crystal display which toggles back and forth between flow rate and total consumption every six seconds. He says you can easily see what your total water consumption has been, adding the last four digits of that number are decimal points and the first two digits are your reading in cubic meters.

Wall says there's also a faucet icon on the left hand side of the LCD panel which will help you check for any leaks. He notes if it says "off," there are no leaks, but if it's flashing it means there's been water consumption for more than fifty percent of the time during a 24 hour period. Wall adds if the faucet icon is continuously on, it means there's water usage at least every fifteen minutes during a 24 hour period, which is most likely a leak. He says if you're going to take a look at your meter, it's worthwhile to also check that leak indicator just to make sure there's nothing leaking in your toilet and no faucets are dripping anywhere in your home.