I. Main Application Scenarios
Single flow metering systems, due to their structural characteristics, are mainly applied in the following scenarios where space and cost are requirements, but the water quality is relatively good:
1. Household metering for residential buildings: This is the main application area. It is used for water metering in urban residential communities, apartment buildings, etc., for each household’s water consumption. Due to its small size and low price, it is very suitable for large-scale installation.
2. Commercial and office spaces: Water metering for independent spaces such as shops, small offices, hotel rooms, etc.
3. Rural Safe Drinking Water Project: In rural areas with centralized water supply, it is used for household metering.
4. Temporary water metering: For scenarios such as construction sites and temporary facilities where short-term metering is required.
II. Advantages
1. Simple structure, low cost: Fewer parts, relatively simple production process, manufacturing cost and purchase price are usually lower than those of multi-stream water meters and remote transmission water meters, and have a high cost-performance ratio.
2. Compact size and light weight: Due to its single-flow channel design, the overall structure is highly compact and occupies a small installation space, making it easy to install in narrow pipe shafts or indoor spaces.
3. Low initial flow rate and high sensitivity: Even under very small water flow (such as a single drop), the impeller can start to rotate and measure, which helps to reduce the situation of inaccurate measurement of small flows and plays a certain role in promoting water conservation.
4. Relatively small pressure loss: The water flow path is direct and the internal resistance is small, so the impact on water pressure is smaller than that of some older multi-stream water meters.
III. Disadvantages
1. High water quality requirements, poor wear resistance: This is the main drawback. Because the concentrated water flow impacts a single impeller, if the water contains impurities such as sand and rust, it will accelerate the wear of the impeller and the shaft sleeve, resulting in a decrease in measurement accuracy and even clogging. Its service life is usually shorter than that of multi-stream water meters.
2. The flow stability and accuracy lifespan are inferior to those of multi-stream water meters: In multi-stream water meters, the water flow is divided into multiple streams, which impact the impeller symmetrically and uniformly. The impeller operates more stably and is subjected to more balanced forces. Therefore, in cases of large flow fluctuations, the measurement stability is better, and the long-term accuracy retention (accuracy lifespan) is also superior.
3. There may be a “water hammer” effect: When the valve is suddenly opened or closed, a water hammer phenomenon occurs, causing a significant impact force on the impeller. This could potentially lead to mechanical damage to the impeller mechanism over time.
4. Not suitable for piping systems with high impurities: In old galvanized iron water supply systems or areas with high sediment content in the water source, the failure rate will significantly increase.
Conclusion and Selection Suggestions
Single-stream flow water meters are an economical and practical household metering instrument suitable for good water quality environments.
Recommendation for selection: In newly built residential areas in cities (using PPR, PVC, etc. clean pipes), in areas with guaranteed water quality and where the initial installation cost needs to be controlled, single-stream flow water meters are the mainstream and ideal choice.
Carefully select or avoid using: In old residential areas (where iron pipes are prone to rust), rural self-supplied water sources (which may contain sand), industrial water sources or areas with high water hardness and numerous impurities, priority should be given to using more durable and stable multi-stream water meters, or consider using wireless remote transmission water meters (whose base meters are also often of multi-stream or wear-resistant design) to achieve long-term management and remote data reading.
With the development of smart water management, many new types of “smart water meters” (such as ultrasonic water meters and electromagnetic water meters) have surpassed mechanical meters in terms of performance. However, their costs are higher. Single-stream water meters, due to their extremely high cost-effectiveness, will still hold an important position in the civilian metering market for a considerable period of time.