Water Bill Calculator

Home > City Services > Water & wastewater > Rates > Water Bill Calculator

Water Utility Bill Calculator

Single-Family Residential customers can estimate their bi-monthly water cost by selecting the residential category in the drop down menu. By entering your projected water use over a 2 month period and meter size, this calculator will provide you a breakdown of 2023 water rates and associated cost.

Agricultural customers that have access to the non-potable water supply can estimate their annual irrigation water costs by selecting the Agriculture category in the drop-down menu.

Here are some definitions and tips that will help you make the most of the Water Calculator.

Definitions

Allotment refers to the volume of water that is allowed to be applied to an acre of agricultural land. A yearly flat fee is applied for each acre of water allotment, currently set to 2,772.10 cubic meters per acre per year. Water used in excess of the allotment is assessed a higher tiered rate based on the percentage of water overage used. 

Cubic Meters (CM) refers to the volume of water used on property. One cubic meter  (m3) = 1,000 liters which is equivalent to ~250 large jugs of water. 

Potable Water refers to water that is drawn and treated from Okanagan Lake and meets the Canadian Drinking Water Quality Guidelines 

Non-Potable Water refers to Irrigation (non-drinkable) water that comes from the upper water shed of Hydraulic Creek. This water source is only available to select properties within Southeast Kelowna

Water Quality Enhancement Fee (WQE) refers to the bi-monthly fee applied to all Utility customers for the purpose of funding water quality improvement projects

What customer classes does this calculator work for?

This calculator is applicable for Single Family Residential and Agricultural customers who have access to potable and / or non-potable water. The calculator is not currently configured to estimate water costs associated with Commercial businesses, Mixed use (combination of Commercial and Residential), Strata Properties, or Multi-Family Properties.

What meter information do I need in order to use the calculator?

The Utility rates are based on the size of the meter installed at your property. A list of meters and sizes assigned to your account are listed on the Utility invoice. 

 Most residential homes have been installed with either a 5/8 inch  or 3/4 inch meter so if you are unsure of your size, select that one by default. Rates are identical for both of those sizes. 

What volume of water should I enter if I'm not sure?

The Utility provides some statistical average water consumptions for residential customers with only have one potable water service and a mixture of grass, shrubs, and garden. Consumption can vary based on lot size and time of year so select the category that best applies to your property. The highest variation would be during outdoor irrigation season while the indoor use remains fairly consistent at 30 cubic meters over a two month billing period. If primarily grass landscaping, increase the May-Oct consumption estimate and if taking water conservation measures, estimates can be reduced.

Lot SizeJan-FebMar-AprMay-JunJul-AugSep-OctNov-Dec
<0.25 acre32 CM28 CM50 CM80 CM110 CM55 CM
0.25-0.5 acre32 CM28 CM67 CM118 CM160 CM60 CM
0.5-1 acre32 CM28 CM85 CM160 CM200 CM67 CM
1-2 acre32 CM30 CM120 CM260 CM340 CM115 CM
2+ acre32 CM33 CM120 CM170 CM180 CM62 CM

If both potable and non-potable water residential services are connected and available, the recommendation is to enter 30 cubic meters for any 2 month period to represent indoor potable consumption and to reference the following table for average bi-monthly seasonal non-potable irrigation consumption 

Lot SizeMay-JunJul-AugSep-Oct
<0.25 acre20 CM50 CM90 CM
0.25-0.5 acre37 CM88 CM130 CM
0.5-1 acre55 CM130 CM170 CM
1-2 acre90 CM230 CM310 CM
2+ acre90 CM140 CM150 CM

The volume of water used for Agricultural purposes can vary dramatically based on the type of crop, soil make-up, and type of irrigation system used. Default volume of 2,772 CM is recommended if water use unknown, however, entering a volume of water in excess of this is a good point of reference as to what overage charges can add to the total invoice. 

How much will water cost me for the entire year?

If residential component of the calculator is selected, it will only provide you the anticipated cost for a single 2 month billing period. For a total yearly cost, the query will need to be run for each of the six billing periods and added together. 

If agriculture category is selected, the total will reflect the invoice issued annually.

Can I use my water meter information and track my own water use?

You can take readings directly from your water meter over a period of time to measure your water use. For more details as to how to interpret your meter output, you can contact the water meter department at watermeters@kelowna.ca or call us at 250-862-0409.

For those customers that have recently had a new water meter installed with an AMI endpoint, you would have been sent a promotional package for our free EyeOnWater (EOW) program. This secure and confidential software application is easy to use, available for desktop of mobile devices, and provides automated, up to date water meter data for your property. It also has the ability to notify you in the event that there is a potential leak and save you a significant amount of money. If you haven't signed up for this program yet, we encourage to click on our Water Meter webpage for more details. 

For residences with metered non-potable water.
1 US gal = 0.00378541 m3