How simple metering helps to save water

Few people realise how much water they actually use: water is usually included in their rent and the price is calculated based on apartment size rather than consumption. Ramtin Massoumzadeh and Thibault Helle want to change our attitude towards water. Under the name Labtrino, they have developed technology that can measure people’s water consumption in a simple way.

–Many people seem to think that water is cheap, but the combination of hot and cold water is often more expensive than electricity, says Thibault Helle. Sweden has an unhealthy relationship with water compared to the rest of the world: Swedish people will turn on their shower just to preheat it.  

Making someone aware of how wasteful they are is often an effective strategy for making them more frugal. But measuring water consumption is usually expensive: a certified plumber is required to cut the pipes in order to install the equipment. So Labtrino has designed a smart meter which can be attached to the outside of the pipes and which any layman can install.

–It takes a few minutes to attach it to the pipes. The meter can also alert you to minor or major leaks, such as a dripping tap or a running toilet, Thibault Helle says.

HSB Living Lab has already been equipped with traditional water meters placed on the intake pipes for both hot and cold water or showers, taps and washing machines and dishwashers. This involves a total of eight water meters to measure just one apartment’s consumption. The Labtrino solution replaces the eight existing water meters with just two meters. One that is clamped above the cold water intake and one on the hot water intake. With the help of machine learning, the flow patterns can be categorised and the same information extracted. Via an app, the residents will be able to see both their own water consumption and how much water per outtake point their anonymised neighbours are using.

–This allows you to compare how much water you’re using in relation to others in the building, says Ramtin Massoumzadeh.

Labtrino’s meter will nudge people to save water by showing them their own consumption, although there are other potential upsides with this technology. A simple way of performing individual metering of water consumption increases the possibilities for rented and cooperatively owned apartments to convert to individual charging for water, which can also have positive climate effects.    

–A study by the Swedish National Board of Housing, Building & Planning suggests it is possible to reduce your water consumption by up to 30 per cent by having an invoice sent to your home and paying for your own water, reports Ramtin Massoumzadeh.  

The hope is that the Labtrino meter can be sold to landlords and cooperative housing associations both nationally and internationally to places in the world where water is a scarce commodity.   

–We see the international potential. Towns and cities are growing exponentially and we’re not consuming water sustainably, with many people calling it the new oil. Singapore is a warning example – they have to ship water over from Malaysia. By reducing water consumption, we believe we can do something positive for the world, says Thibault Helle.

Labtrino’s meters are located on the floors with ordinary apartments in HSB Living Lab.