How to read your meter

A meter is used to measure either the cubic feet of natural gas or the kilowatt-hours of electricity you use. Reading a meter is similar to reading a clock.

Here’s what to do:

Your meter provides an accurate measure of the amount of natural gas or the kilowatt-hours of electricity you have used. Montana-Dakota Utilities reads your meter about once a month. This meter reading is used to generate your utility bill. The majority of our service territory is read through AMR (Automated Meter Reading). It’s a method of remotely reading meters using advanced communications technology. This technology allows us to read your meters from a mobile meter-reading vehicle once a month, instead of requiring a meter reader to manually read it. To make it easier to read your meter, please keep the area in front of and around your meter clear at all times. Keep shrubbery trimmed away from the meter and remove snow and ice in the winter. If you would like to know how to read your meter, follow these steps (make sure you check the arrow that indicates the direction each dial spins):