Water Usage and Supply Log

Who this is for

Meter readings turned into usage and cost. Each row takes the date and the reading, works out how much water went through since the last one, and multiplies it by whatever your supplier charges you per unit.

Households watching a bill, smallholdings and stables on a metered or borehole supply, landlords reading a meter between tenancies, and small premises checking their own consumption against what they are billed for.

What this helps you track

• Usage between one reading and the next, worked out from the readings themselves
• Cost of that usage at the rate you enter
• Readings you took yourself kept apart from estimates and supplier figures
• Supply problems — pressure, discoloured water, an interruption — dated alongside
• A total for the period, to set against the bill when it arrives

How to use it

1. Write the property, the meter serial number, the unit the meter counts in and your rate per unit at the top.
2. Read the meter on a regular day — the first of the month, or whatever suits you — and write the reading exactly as it shows, including any leading zeros.
3. Say where the figure came from: your own reading, an estimate or a supplier's bill.
4. Tick the issue column and use the notes whenever something is wrong with the supply itself.
5. Usage and cost fill in on screen and in the workbook; on paper, subtract the previous reading and multiply by your rate.
6. Compare the total at the foot of the page with the bill for the same period.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser
• Excel / Google Sheets workbook

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The workbook uses plain formulas only — SUM, IF, COUNTIF and the like — so it opens in Excel, LibreOffice and Google Sheets without anything breaking, and every calculated cell is grey so you can see which figures it worked out.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

What rate should I put in?

The one on your own bill, in the same unit your meter counts in. Rates differ by supplier, region and tariff and change over time, so none is supplied here. If your bill has a standing charge as well, add it in the notes rather than the rate.

My meter counts in cubic metres but the bill is in something else.

Convert once, write the conversion in the notes area, and keep the log in a single unit. Mixing units halfway down a column is what makes these logs unusable later.

Can I use it for a borehole, a tank or a sub-meter?

Yes. Anything with a counter works the same way: a reading, the gap since the last reading, and a cost if there is one. Leave the rate blank if the water costs nothing but the pumping.

How does this differ from the meter reading log?

The meter reading log covers several utilities side by side. This one is water only and goes further: usage between reads, cost at your rate, and a column for supply problems.