"jones" writes:
Maybe......... could it be a faulty meter. I really don't want the whole
yard and driveway dug up. The kitchen, bathroom and laundry were done from
scratch 20 years ago.

I'd reckon the meter will tick over only if there is flow through it.
So while your property is using no water, then the meter will not advance.

I think my water board will check a meter for a fixed charge and if the
meter is found to be faulty they will refund their meter-check charge.

You could maybe check your own meter. Turn on a garden hose and ensure
all other taps, etc., are off. Allow the flow to stablise and measure
the flow (litres/min) from your hose by filling graduated buckets or
some such. Note the water meter reading. Water the garden for an hour,
checking every 15 mins that the flow rate is held constant. After an
hour record the increase in your meter's reading. Compare the reading
with your calculated increase.

You can often hear water escaping from pipes by listening to the pipe
at another location. I don't know whether this will work for under-
ground leaks, but I'd try it. If you can borrow a stethoscope from a
friendly doctor you can try listening to the pipes around your
property first with the mains tap turned off, then with it turned on
but all other taps off. The lounder the sound of whistling, the closer
you are to a place where water is escaping. I deduced that the owner
in another unit had a dripping tap because I could hear the pipes
'whistling' when I put my head close to my washbasin while brushing
my teeth. I left her a note about getting leaking taps fixed and the
whistling soon ceased. I bet she wondered how I knew she had a dripping
tap in her unit! We don't have individual water meters in my unit block
so when one resident wastes water, we all generously share the expense!
--
John Savage (my news address is not valid for email)