What's An Average Metered Water Bill

[tropo]

I've been paying the standard "broken meter" price at the townhouse I rent for the past 10 months. It was 246.10 baht per month until October and then increased to 353.10 per month.

I was under the impression that I was doing better than if I was paying the true metered amount, but after talking to a neighbour who only pays just over 100 baht a month I'm not so sure.

I would be interested to know what other people pay for their water. It's just two of us and we are not water hogs. We don't have a swimming pool or garden. We do about 3 loads of washing per week and shower once daily each. We wash up after cooking one or two meals per day. We hose our 2 balconies and carport about once a week and water some plants each day.

I'm in Pattaya.

Edited December 13, 2011 by tropo

[Orac]

We use at least twice as much as you from what you have said and have a fairly large pool on top of that - just paid 483 baht but we did have a problem with the pool filter a couple of weeks ago. Top of my head it was 370 baht last month. That is in a moobhan between NPW and SSCC on the darkside.

[Eff1n2ret]

The OP's figure sounds quite a lot. We have a large 3-bed house, normally only two of us in residence. We also have a fair-sized garden, but as a basis for comparison I would take the rainy-season months when the garden is watered either direct from rainfall or out of rainwater storage tanks, and therefore takes no mains water. Our bills then range between 120-150 baht, although we had one month when it was less than 90. With no rain since the end of October, our most recent bill was 360baht, and the highest I recall during a dry season was 650. I would expect to exceed that some time during the coming months, as the missis never stops buying plants.

Edited December 13, 2011 by Eff1n2ret

[Upnotover]

Same as you, I had paid 246.10/month for years until just recently and now its 353.10. Seems the standard (minimum) charge has gone up to 300 baht. Exceptional value none the less.

[gregb]

Don't know about Pattaya. In Bangkok when my wife and I lived alone in our townhouse our water bill was only about 170 baht. Then we had 2 children and a nanny that stayed with us and the bill went up to 450 baht. Dumped the full time nanny and the bill dropped to about 350.

An extra full time guest can use a bunch of water. Washing a car or a deck uses a comparatively small amount. With only 2 people I would say you are definitely overpaying if prices in Bangkok and Pattaya are similar.

[Semper]

OP. How much per unit?

[stoneyboy]

Lom sak,Phetchabun,my rented home goes 130 baht for 3 people,2 adults and a kiddy.

[tropo]

OP. How much per unit?

I don't know. Here's last months bill:

I assumed it was the same cost anywhere in Thailand.

Edited December 13, 2011 by tropo

[SimonD]

OP. How much per unit?

I don't know. Here's last months bill:

I assumed it was the same cost anywhere in Thailand.

Nope.

Whereabouts in Pattaya are you? Darkside? On an estate? Government water or local estate company water? Big difference.

Also check for leaks. Ask your Thai and farang neighbours with similar usage what they are paying.

There should be a visible water meter outside your property. Keep a daily record of your consumption.

Same goes for electricity. Government rates for water & power are usually half the private rates.

[tropo]

OP. How much per unit?

I don't know. Here's last months bill:

I assumed it was the same cost anywhere in Thailand.

Nope.

Whereabouts in Pattaya are you? Darkside? On an estate? Government water or local estate company water? Big difference.

Also check for leaks. Ask your Thai and farang neighbours with similar usage what they are paying.

There should be a visible water meter outside your property. Keep a daily record of your consumption.

Same goes for electricity. Government rates for water & power are usually half the private rates.

Cosy Beach (Pratumnak Hill)

Government water.

Yes, there is a water meter at my front entrance. It doesn't work, that's why I'm being billed a fixed rate of 353.40 baht every month.

I'm trying to decide if I should get them to install a new meter or stick with the fixed charge.

I'll feel like a bit of a goon if I get a new meter and end up paying more than I do now.

[llso]

I lived in a townhouse in Hua Hin for 7 years and we paid the rent, electric and water to the rental co. It is common practice in Thailand for these companies to mark up the electric and water rates. I found out the hard way. Not sure if this is your case, but people should know. I was out of town for about a month and even unplugged the refrigerator and had no electricity usage. I was expecting a very minimal bill next to nothing. When I go that month's bill it was about the same as we usually paid every month. So' I marched up to the front office where I had a good realtionship with the lovely young Thai lady that worked there as to why my electric bill was the same even though I had been gone the entire month. I got the usual "deer in the headlights look " and she could not give me a satisfactory answer. I pressed on and she became more fidgety and could not answerme. Finally she said "This is a business". I replied Oh! this is a business ? she relied yes ,a business. This was a revelation for me and something I remember to this day that when they are screwing you it's because it's a business. She was so pleased that she had finally given me an answer that I would accept. My friends and I now joke that when we are being had in Thailand that they must have went to the Khun Pat school of business.

LL

[SimonD]

Pratumnak Hill? That might explain quite a bit. Up there you may be paying more as it's a fair way from the nearest reservoir. That said my water bill for two people in Khao Talo on the Darkside was ~300 baht/month back in 2010 and our usage was above average but not extravagant. Prices may have gone up since then of course but your neighbour who claims only to pay 100 baht/month - a falang perhaps? There are a lot of bullshi**ers in Pattaya and he may be trying to score cheap points. For reasons known only to them a lot of the 'cheap charlies' find satisfaction in deflating their bills to make them appear more savvy. It's a juvenile form of one-upmanship. I don't think you're paying that much more over the odds but ask your Thai neighbours with similar usage (people per household) what they are paying.

[SimonD]

I lived in a townhouse in Hua Hin for 7 years and we paid the rent, electric and water to the rental co. It is common practice in Thailand for these companies to mark up the electric and water rates. I found out the hard way. Not sure if this is your case, but people should know. I was out of town for about a month and even unplugged the refrigerator and had no electricity usage. I was expecting a very minimal bill next to nothing. When I go that month's bill it was about the same as we usually paid every month. So' I marched up to the front office where I had a good realtionship with the lovely young Thai lady that worked there as to why my electric bill was the same even though I had been gone the entire month. I got the usual "deer in the headlights look " and she could not give me a satisfactory answer. I pressed on and she became more fidgety and could not answerme. Finally she said "This is a business". I replied Oh! this is a business ? she relied yes ,a business. This was a revelation for me and something I remember to this day that when they are screwing you it's because it's a business. She was so pleased that she had finally given me an answer that I would accept. My friends and I now joke that when we are being had in Thailand that they must have went to the Khun Pat school of business.

LL

That's a great story!

[ignis]

I would say you were paying well over before the new price..

We use a lot, 3 bedroom house, large garden, large pond both need water every day, 6x week washing machine is on, 6 dogs washed every week, car and pickup washed at least 1x per week, we both have at least 2x showers per day, paved area and carport washed every day, never paid over 250 baht, normal is between 180 - 220 baht month... house across the road have a daughter and only 1 dog, No pond, but still car and pickup + wash there carport area every day, there bill 110 - 130 baht month.

[kurnell]

We had water bills around 250 baht consistently for a year then, out of the blue, started receiving bills for 2.000+, <deleted> indeed!! It was a broken pipe.

[ignis]

Don't know about Pattaya. In Bangkok when my wife and I lived alone in our townhouse our water bill was only about 170 baht. Then we had 2 children and a nanny that stayed with us and the bill went up to 450 baht. Dumped the full time nanny and the bill dropped to about 350.

An extra full time guest can use a bunch of water. Washing a car or a deck uses a comparatively small amount. With only 2 people I would say you are definitely overpaying if prices in Bangkok and Pattaya are similar.

How do full time nanny use so much water ? next door had there house built just over 7 years ago and moved in with 1 small girl, granddad and a full time nanny, 18 months later nanny went back home to Burma, from then on their water bill went down over 100 baht per month..

[saengsureeya]

I'll feel like a bit of a goon if I get a new meter and end up paying more than I do now.

But now you're paying an amount not knowing whether it's correct or not.

Better get a new meter and pay what you actually use, even if it is more.

BTW, if the water company charges a fixed amount per month because the water meter isn't working, you can bet that the amount is too high......won't it?

[llso]

I lived in a townhouse in Hua Hin for 7 years and we paid the rent, electric and water to the rental co. It is common practice in Thailand for these companies to mark up the electric and water rates. I found out the hard way. Not sure if this is your case, but people should know. I was out of town for about a month and even unplugged the refrigerator and had no electricity usage. I was expecting a very minimal bill next to nothing. When I go that month's bill it was about the same as we usually paid every month. So' I marched up to the front office where I had a good realtionship with the lovely young Thai lady that worked there as to why my electric bill was the same even though I had been gone the entire month. I got the usual "deer in the headlights look " and she could not give me a satisfactory answer. I pressed on and she became more fidgety and could not answerme. Finally she said "This is a business". I replied Oh! this is a business ? she relied yes ,a business. This was a revelation for me and something I remember to this day that when they are screwing you it's because it's a business. She was so pleased that she had finally given me an answer that I would accept. My friends and I now joke that when we are being had in Thailand that they must have went to the Khun Pat school of business.

LL

That's a great story!

Glad That you enjoyed it! I have plenty more.

LL

Edited December 14, 2011 by llso

[Gippy]

I think the two of us in Bangkok use more water than you do and we pay around 160 baht a month for government water.

[ignis]

Meter reader has just been..

Now is a bit different as not paid for 3 months [floods] but 1st month normal 211 baht, today is for the past 2 months, [moved out of the house for just over 3 weeks] have a High Pressure washer and was used every day for at least 9 days + pond emptied, cleaned and refilled, + 3 more total refills to get water good again, so lots of water used for this as well as cleaning everything outside..... Total bill for 3 months 389 baht.. the 211 baht being in red as overdue, but was unable to pay at the time because of floods.

[pattayadingo]

My water bill in Pattaya for a townhouse with two of us is usually between 130 & 160 Baht.

Laundry 3 times a week. Nothing else special. Showers, cleaning and wash the car sometimes. All on the meter outside.

[swisstouristpattaya]

I pay 20 bats cubic meter of h2o,use 7 cm per month.for 2people=140bats total.

sent from tapatalk :-)

[MrMuddle]

In Phetchabun, large house, huge garden, with two ponds - both cleaned weekly, a washing machine that is used 3 times a week, two cars washed weekly, and a jacuzzi bath used several times a week, we have never used more than 200 baht a month, and the lowest figure was 130 baht. We also have over twenty animals, dogs, cats, pigs, etc, that use water for drinking and for cleaning them. The average is just under 160 baht a month. Drinking water ( we don't drink tap water), is 200 baht a month. Compared to the UK, where I was paying 20 pounds a month (961 baht at todays rate), eleven years ago, it's very cheap.

[tropo]

Pratumnak Hill? That might explain quite a bit. Up there you may be paying more as it's a fair way from the nearest reservoir. That said my water bill for two people in Khao Talo on the Darkside was ~300 baht/month back in 2010 and our usage was above average but not extravagant. Prices may have gone up since then of course but your neighbour who claims only to pay 100 baht/month - a falang perhaps? There are a lot of bullshi**ers in Pattaya and he may be trying to score cheap points. For reasons known only to them a lot of the 'cheap charlies' find satisfaction in deflating their bills to make them appear more savvy. It's a juvenile form of one-upmanship. I don't think you're paying that much more over the odds but ask your Thai neighbours with similar usage (people per household) what they are paying.

That was interesting about what you said about the neighbour who claims his bill was just over 100 baht/month. I'm sure he is a bullshitter. He's been telling me how rich he is from the moment we first met 8 months ago. That's the reason why I'm asking on this forum as I don't believe him.

[tropo]

It would seem that I'm paying more than I should going on reports here as I'm not a heavy user.

Thanks for all your replies

[PattayaParent]

Just got my bill for a 3 bedroom house with garden that needs watering, with 3 people living in it so daily showers and 3 washing machine loads a week.

166 Baht for 12m3, up from 141 Baht for 10m3 last month due to more garden watering.

[tropo]

Just got my bill for a 3 bedroom house with garden that needs watering, with 3 people living in it so daily showers and 3 washing machine loads a week.

166 Baht for 12m3, up from 141 Baht for 10m3 last month due to more garden watering.

Is there a varying cost per m3 depending on the area?

[PattayaParent]

Just got my bill for a 3 bedroom house with garden that needs watering, with 3 people living in it so daily showers and 3 washing machine loads a week.

166 Baht for 12m3, up from 141 Baht for 10m3 last month due to more garden watering.

Is there a varying cost per m3 depending on the area?

I've no idea, the cost per m3 on my bill seems to be 10.45167 Baht per m3, plus 30 baht monthly charge plus VAT of 10.88 Baht to get the total 166.30 Baht.

I'm living in a house in Ban Chang.

Maybe others can calculate their cost per m3 for their area to check.

[tropo]

Just got my bill for a 3 bedroom house with garden that needs watering, with 3 people living in it so daily showers and 3 washing machine loads a week.

166 Baht for 12m3, up from 141 Baht for 10m3 last month due to more garden watering.

Is there a varying cost per m3 depending on the area?

I've no idea, the cost per m3 on my bill seems to be 10.45167 Baht per m3, plus 30 baht monthly charge plus VAT of 10.88 Baht to get the total 166.30 Baht.

I'm living in a house in Ban Chang.

Maybe others can calculate their cost per m3 for their area to check.

Thanks for the info. I'm heading to the water department tomorrow to request a new meter.

Cheers

[Gary A]

Location makes a huge difference. We live upcountry and use rain water all during the rainy season. During the dry season (now) we buy it from the village. The cost is 3 baht per cubic meter so you can imagine it isn't much. The last bill was 66 baht.