Drawing Water from Fire Hydrants
Drawing water from public fire hydrants for temporary use is prohibited unless authorized by the Greenville Water Engineering Department. Requests for a Temporary Hydrant Use Permit can be made through the application process described below. Please note that all persons or entities granted use shall be liable for any damages to hydrants, system facilities, or personal property caused by the operation. Any violation of this regulation will be subject to penalties.
Applicant is required to lease an appropriately sized fire hydrant meter as determined by the engineering department. The meter is to be utilized for all construction related water usage at the site and is subject to auditing at the discretion of Greenville Water. Falsified readings may result in termination of usage. Users are responsible for reporting the meter reading to customer service on the first day of each month for billing.
Applicant is required to lease an appropriately sized fire hydrant meter as determined by the engineering department. The meter is to be utilized for all construction related water usage at the site and is subject to auditing at the discretion of Greenville Water. Falsified readings may result in termination of usage. Users are responsible for reporting the meter reading to customer service on the first day of each month for billing.
Public Agencies or Utility Companies are required to return the meter to Greenville Water annually for bench testing to confirm reading accuracy.
For users such as asphalt paving operations, hydro-seeders, street washers, etc. equipped with a tanker truck or trailer-mounted tank, the following permitting procedures apply:
- One-time or short-term User: Upon satisfactory inspection of the tank and confirmation that the tank is top filled with an air gap, the applicant will be issued a “Temporary Hydrant Usage Permit.”
Initial Inspection Fee $170.00
One-Month Usage Fee $100.00
- Less than 1,000 Gallons: Upon successful inspection of the tank and confirmation that the tank is top filled with an air gap, the applicant will be issued a “Fire Hydrant” sticker denoting that the tank has been inspected and the applicant is authorized to directly connect to a fire hydrant to fill the tank.
Annual Inspection Fee $170.00
Annual Usage Fee $500.00
- 1,000 Gallons or Greater: Applicant is required to lease a 3-inch fire hydrant meter. The meter is to be delivered to GW monthly for reading and inspection. Rules pertaining to the return of the fire hydrant meter are found below.
1-inch Hydrant Meter (up to 50 gpm)
- Deposit $500.00
- Installation/Inspection $100.00
- Monthly Lease Fee $16.94
- Greenville County Rate / 1000 gal $2.55
3-inch Hydrant Meter (up to 350 gpm)
- Deposit $1500.00
- Installation/Inspection $220.00
- Monthly Lease Fee $108.31
- Greenville County Rate / 1000 gal $2.55
All meters should be returned to Greenville Water after use. Deposits will be refunded if the meter is in satisfactory working condition. If the meter is not in satisfactory working condition, the deposit will be forfeited.
Any person or entity found to have used a fire hydrant without authorization will be fined accordingly based on the number of offenses:
1st Offense $500
2nd Offense $1000
3rd Offense $1500