December 23, 2025
This guide is specially designed for residents living in residential communities. Whether you have an IC card prepaid water meter or an NB-IoT remote prepaid water meter, following these instructions will help you manage your water purchases and recharges more easily. You can also check your water consumption and troubleshoot minor issues. This ensures accurate water metering and hassle-free payments for your household.
If you have an IC card prepaid water meter, you need to go to the property management office or the local water supply department's business hall to get a user card for the first use. Bring your ID card and property ownership certificate with you. The staff will bind and activate the card with your home water meter, so you can proceed with recharging later. There are two ways to recharge: either go directly to the property management payment office or designated water supply service outlets, tell the staff the amount you want to recharge, and they will write the purchased water volume into your card after you pay. Alternatively, if your community has a self-service payment machine, insert your card into the machine, select "Water Fee Recharge", complete the payment by scanning the QR code, and wait for the data to be written before taking your card back. After recharging, don't forget to place your card close to the meter's card-swiping area, which is usually a red induction zone. When you hear a "beep" sound, and the screen displays "Recharge Successful" along with the remaining water volume, you can take the card off—the water meter will resume water supply automatically.
If you have an NB-IoT remote prepaid water meter, it’s even more convenient with no need to visit offline locations. Simply scan the QR code on the water meter, follow the official WeChat public account or mini-program of the water supply company, register an account, and fill in your home information, such as building number, unit number, and household number, to bind the water meter to your personal account. When you need to recharge your water supply, simply open the "Water Fee Recharge" page on the public account or mini-program. Select the amount you wish to pay and complete the transaction using WeChat Pay or Alipay. After the payment is processed, the system will automatically send the purchased water volume to your water meter—there's no need for you to go downstairs to perform any operations. The remaining water volume on your meter will be updated in real time.
Checking your remaining water volume and consumption is straightforward. For IC card water meters, just place your user card near the card-swiping area, and the screen will sequentially display the remaining water volume, total water consumption, and battery level. If you want to see detailed water usage records, you will need to take your card to the property management office or business hall, where staff can read the data using special equipment. Remote water meters are much more convenient: open the bound public account or mini-program, tap "My Water Meter", and you can view the remaining water volume, water consumption details, and all recharge records at a glance. You can even check your household water usage on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
Don’t panic if you experience a water outage—first figure out if it’s due to unpaid fees or a malfunction. When the remaining water volume drops below the warning threshold, the water meter will emit a "beep-beep" sound to remind you to recharge soon. Once the water runs out, the meter will automatically shut off the valve and stop the water supply. To restore water in this case, just recharge your account: for IC card water meters, you need to swipe the card again to resume supply, while remote water meters will turn the valve back on automatically without any manual operation. If you have no overdue fees but still have no water, first check if the meter screen displays "Low Battery"—if yes, contact the property management to replace the battery. You can also check if there’s a blockage in your home’s water pipes. If these issues are ruled out and you still have no water, call the repair service.
There are some small details to keep in mind during use. The IC card is encrypted, so be sure to keep it safe. Do not bend or scratch the card, and avoid exposing it to high temperatures or placing it near strong magnetic fields, such as mobile phones and magnets, for extended periods. Doing so may cause the card to become demagnetized and unusable. If your card is lost or damaged, visit the property management office or business hall to apply for a replacement immediately, bringing your ID card with you. The original card will be invalidated once a new one is issued. It is best to write the recharged data to the water meter right after topping up, instead of leaving the card unused for an extended time, to prevent data loss. Water meters are typically installed in the kitchen, bathroom, or pipe well in the corridor—keep the surrounding area dry and clean, and avoid clutter that blocks access to the meter, as this can make reading the meter difficult and hinder maintenance work.
Additionally, never disassemble or modify the water meter yourself, and do not tamper with the lead seal on the meter. Doing so will affect metering accuracy, and you will be held responsible for the consequences. On cold winter days, remember to wrap the water meter with insulation cotton to prevent it from freezing and cracking. If the meter does freeze, never pour boiling water directly on it—thaw it slowly with warm water instead.
You may encounter some minor abnormalities while using the meter. If swiping the card yields no response or the screen won’t turn on, it’s most likely because the card is demagnetized or the meter battery is dead. Get a new card if it’s demagnetized, or contact the property management to replace the battery if the screen is dead. If you still have no water after recharging, the data may not have been written successfully, or the meter may be faulty. For IC card water meters, try swiping the card again; for remote water meters, refresh the mini-program. If the problem persists, call for repairs. If you notice a sudden spike in water consumption, first check for leaks in your home’s faucets and water pipes. If there are no leaks, contact the water supply staff to inspect the meter on-site.
If you encounter unsolvable problems such as a broken water meter, inaccurate metering, or a failed recharge, just call the community property management’s maintenance hotline or the water supply company’s customer service number. When reporting a fault, be sure to clearly state your building number, unit number, household number, and the specific issue with the water meter, so the maintenance staff can locate your home quickly and resolve the problem efficiently.
