Water Services

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Customer Service (Billing): (816) 331-4331

Water Shop (Maintenance): (816) 322-1885    

Email backflow reports to: backflow@belton.org

After-Hours Emergency: (816) 331-1500

Business Hours:
Monday - Friday
7:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.

The Water Services Division operates and maintains the city's water reservoirs, pump stations and water mains to deliver the highest quality drinkable water to our customers.  The City of Belton currently purchases its water from the Kansas City Water Department. 

For information regarding water/sewer billing, please visit Utility Billing. 

Responsibilities

Responsibilities of the Account Holder
It is the account holder's responsibility to provide continual access to the water meter. If a meter reader encounters an obstruction to the meter, a 24-hour notice will be posted to the account holder's door (or vehicle if it is the obstruction) requesting that the obstruction be removed. If the obstruction is not removed within 24 hours, the matter will be turned over to the Codes Department as an ordinance violation and possible tow.

The property owner is responsible for maintaining the service line from the meter to the building / home as well as all plumbing within the building / home.

 

Responsibilities of the City of Belton
City responsibilities are limited to those things it controls, owns, or maintains, which include the water line leading to the customer's meter and the meter itself. Since the City of Belton does not control, own, or maintain the elements of the customer's home / business plumbing system, it cannot be held responsible for failures to this system.
 
Problems
Water service-related problems between the water meter and the customer's home / business or within the customer's home / business are the customer's responsibility.
 
For More Information
For more information about responsibilities with regard to water service operations, please contact the Water Services Division at (816) 322-1885.
 
Water Billing
For information about water billing or questions on your water account, please contact Customer Service at (816) 331-4331.

 

Backflow

Explanation of Backflow
Water distribution systems are designed with the intention of the water flowing in one direction - from the distribution system to the consumer. However, hydraulic conditions within the system may deviate from the normal conditions, causing water to flow in the opposite direction. Therefore, it is possible (and common) for water to flow in the opposite direction in unprotected systems. This is called backflow.
 
Cross-Connection Contamination
A cross-connection is formed at any point where a drinking water line connects either to equipment such as boilers or to systems containing chemicals such as:
  • Air-conditioning systems
  • Fire sprinkler systems
  • Irrigation systems

Cross-connection contamination can occur from backpressure, or when the pressure in the equipment or system is greater than the pressure inside the drinking water line. Contamination can also occur when the pressure of the drinking water line drops due to fairly routine occurrences, such as main breaks or heavy water demand. This causes contaminants to be sucked out from the equipment and into the drinking water line, known as backsiphonage.
 
Solution
Community water supplies are continuously jeopardized by cross-connections unless appropriate valves, know as backflow prevention assemblies, are installed and maintained. It is both a city and state regulation to have annual inspections and tests of each backflow assembly.

Water Quality

Drinking Water Quality
The City of Belton water customers are fortunate to enjoy their water supply from one of the nation's top-ranked water producers, the Kansas City Water Plant.  The Kansas City Water Plant draws water from the Missouri River and two deep well aquifers.

The Water Services Division operates and maintains the city's water reservoirs, pump stations and water mains to deliver the highest quality product at the most reasonable cost.

2018 Lead and Copper Report

 

Frozen Pipes

 Frozen water lines can lead to costly repairs for homeowners. Explore the information below to learn how to prevent water lines from freezing and actions to take if they do freeze.

Frozen Water Pipe Precautions

Tips for Keeping Pipes from Freezing
Every winter, many homeowners face the expense and inconvenience of frozen water pipes. However, you can cross that issue off your list of winter worries by taking a few precautions.

Allow Steady Water Flow
In some places, you're advised to leave a steady drip or pencil-lead thin stream of water flowing from a bathroom faucet during the worst of a cold spell.

Disconnect & Drain Outdoor Hoses
Detaching the hose allows water to drain from the pipe. Otherwise, one hard, overnight freeze can burst either the faucet or the connecting pipe.

Find the Master Shutoff
It may be near the water heater or the washing machine. More likely it's where the water line comes into your house from the street. If a pipe bursts anywhere in the house, this valve turns it off. Find it now and paint it a bright color or hang a tag on it. Be sure everyone in the family knows where it is and what it does.

Insulate Pipes or Faucets in Unheated Areas
If you have pipelines in an unheated garage or a crawl space under the house, wrap the water pipes before temperatures plummet. Hardware or building supply stores will have good pipe-wrapping materials available.

Seal off Access Doors, Air Vents & Cracks
Repair broken basement windows. Winter winds whistling through overlooked openings can quickly freeze exposed water pipes. But don't plug the air vents your furnace or water heater needs for good combustion.

Thawing Frozen Pipes

Tips & Helpful Examples
During an extreme, extended cold spell, pipes can freeze despite precautions. Follow these tips to thaw frozen pipes.

Keep the Plumber's Telephone Number Handy
Write down your plumber's number now before you need it in an emergency. Make sure to keep it in an easy-to-find location.

Take Care when Thawing Pipes
If you think you know where the freeze-up occurred and want to try thawing it yourself, do not, under any circumstances, use a torch with an open flame. The whole house could catch fire. Also, overheating a single spot can burst the pipe, and heating a soldered joint could allow it to leak or come completely apart.

Use a Hair Dryer
The easiest tool for thawing pipes is probably a hair dryer with a low-heat setting. Wave the warm air back and forth along the pipe; do not focus on one spot. If you don't have a hair dryer, you can wrap the frozen section with rags or towels and pour hot water over them. It's messy, but it works.

When Thawing, Prepare for Leaks
Even if it isn't leaking, the pipe may already be broken. The frozen water prevents the pipe from leaking. However, water can come gushing out when you thaw the pipe. Be ready to run for the master shutoff valve if necessary.

 

Line Locates

Please call Missouri One Call at (800) DIG-RITE or 8-1-1 for line locates. Requests are accepted 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

 

 

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