Water Service Billing

Water Account Changes

When moving into or out of your home please contact the Village Office at 715-345-5250 so a beginning or final meter reading may be taken for your account.

Start or Stop Water Service

To start or stop utility services, contact the Village at 715-345-5250 at least two business days prior to the date you wish the final reading to be taken.

• Homeowners Buying or Selling: To avoid the possibility of Utility charges becoming a lien on the property, a final billing is required at the closing.
• Landlord and Tenants: If a tenant is responsible for utility bill during their lease, the tenant or landlord must contact the utility to request the change in service. If a tenant requests service to be discontinued and a new tenant has not requested service, utility service is placed in the landlord's name.

Additional Benefits of Utility Service Requests

• Help determine future and current billable account charges
• Water meter replacement charges in case a meter was damaged, broken, or stolen
• Possible water leaks within the property
• Bankruptcy balances attached to the property

Water Rates

Effective October 20, 2001, the rate for water is $3.47 per thousand gallons used for the first 60,000 gallons, $3.42 per thousand for the next 240,000 gallons, and $3.10 per thousand for usage above 300,000 gallons per quarter. In addition, there is a fixed charge of $32 for a ⅝ inch meter ($14,00 for Public Fire Protection and $18 for the meter service charge). The water fixed charge increases with larger meter sizes.

Billing Cycle

Bills are sent out quarterly and are due the 20th of the month following the end of the quarter. Unpaid sewer and water charges are subject to interest at the rate of 1.5% per month. Interest is added on the 20th of each month the delinquency continues.

Payments

Payments of sewer and water charges are accepted at various locations:

• In person at the Village of Plover Municipal Building
• In person at the BMO Harris Bank
  2851 Post Road
  Plover, WI 54467
• Pay online. Customers should be aware there is a service fee charge, which will be applied to the credit card transaction. The fee varies depending on the dollar amount of the transaction. You will be informed of the fee prior to completing your transaction.
• Mailed to and made payable to the Village of Plover:
  Village of Plover
  P.O. Box 37
  Plover, WI 54467

Discrepancies

• If you feel that your water bill is either too high or too low, there are several things that you can do to assist the Billing Department in correcting the problem.
• Higher than average water bills can indicate a possible internal plumbing problem. You may be able to determine the source of this increase by means of simple leak detection. If you need assistance, please call the Water Department at 715-345-5254. We will be happy to help locate a possible leak. There is no charge for this service.
• Many times, a low bill indicates either a stopped or failing meter. To schedule an appointment to have your meter checked, you can contact the Water Department at 715-345-5254.

Rental Property Sewer & Water Billing

As provided by State Statutes, unpaid sewer and water charges incurred by renters stay with the property, become a lien against the property and are the responsibility of the owner. Landlords who wish to have their tenants billed directly are required to submit such request in writing to the Village. Forms are available at the Village Offices for this purpose. However, the property owner (landlord) is still ultimately responsible for any unpaid charges, and will be notified of any delinquencies 14 days after the quarterly due date. Any delinquent charges remaining due as of November 15th of each year will be placed on that year's tax roll for collection.

Water Leaks

Water leaks are costly:

Tips on How to Find Leaks

• To test the entire building or house for leaks, try this suggestion. First make sure all water faucets, washing machines, etc., are turned off. Then locate the water meter. There is a small red triangle shaped dial, called a "low flow indicator" located on the face of the meter. If all sources of water are turned off and the dial is spinning, it indicates a leak someplace in the house. The most common leaks are found in the toilet.
• If this initial test indicates a leak, try turning off the shutoff valve to each appliance (toilets, sinks, etc.) and rechecking the "low flow indicator" until the leak has been found.
• Another test to see if a toilet is leaking is to add enough food coloring to the tank to give a strong color to the tank water. If the toilet bowl turns the color of the dye in the tank, you have a toilet leak.
• If you can't find any leaks but still feel you may have one, please call the Water Department at 715-345-5254 and we will be happy to schedule a time when a Water System employee can assist you. There is no charge for this service.

Meter Testing

Under Public Service Commission regulations, household water meters must be tested for accuracy once every eight years. This is normally done during the winter months. If the Water Department has tried to pull your meter but no one was home, please call the Water Department at 345-5254 or the Village Office at 715-345-5250 to make an appointment to have your meter tested.

Unlawful Connection

No person shall make any connection to the Water Utility without the permission of the Village. When the Village has reasonable evidence that a person has connected to the Water Utility without such permission, or that a person is obtaining water from the Water Utility, either in whole or in part, by bypassing a meter, tampering with a meter or by any other means, the owner/occupant of the premises for such unmetered services shall be assessed an administrative fee/liquidated damage assessment of $1,000.

Service Tips & Information

Signs of water service leak:

• Sound of water running
• Dirty water that doesn't clear up after running water at multiple faucets for a few minutes
• Decreased water pressure
• A hammering or noisy sound at the water meter

If you suspect a service leak, contact the Water Department to confirm there is a leak.

Responsible Habits

Turn your water off at the meter if you are leaving for an extended period of time. It's also a good idea to operate all shutoff valves periodically to ensure they will work properly when needed.

Water Lateral Responsibility

The water lateral from the main to the curb stop is the responsibility of the Water Department. The section from the curb stop (including the curb stop valve) to the house is the responsibility of the homeowner.

Water Meter

The instrument that actually measures the amount of water you use is the located in the basement, crawl space, etc. The remote reader (on the outside of the building) connects to the meter via a wire and allows reading of the meter without entering the house. It is the homeowner's responsibility to keep the meter from freezing and ensuring that the meter and remote read devices are accessible to Water System employees for testing, repairs, readings, etc.

Curb Stop

The homeowner is responsible to ensure the curb stop is undamaged and free from dirt, landscaping, etc., so the water can be shut off quickly in the event of an emergency.

Hydrant Flushing

The Water Department normally maintains and flushes fire hydrants twice a year. This is done to verify performance of the hydrants in the event of a fire and to maintain water quality throughout the distribution system.

Questions & More Information

All billing, final billing and change of address requests should be directed to the Village of Plover Office at 715-345-5250. For other service questions call the Water Department at 715-345-5254.