Des Moines

Des Moines Water Works is an independently owned and operated public utility with a commitment to providing quality water in reliable quantities to the residents of Des Moines.

Whenever you have questions regarding your water service, water quality, billing statement, payment options, or any other water-related questions, we encourage you to contact us in one of the following ways:

By Phone: (515) 283-8700
In Person: 2201 George Flagg Parkway, Des Moines
Office Hours: 8:00 am-4:30 pm, Monday-Friday
customerservice@dmww.com

Services Billed
Des Moines Water Works provides and bills your water service.  In addition, the City of Des Moines has contracted with Des Moines Water Works to bill the City's services of sewer, stormwater, and solid waste.  Rates for water services are established by the Board of Water Works Trustees. Rates for City services of sewer, stormwater, and solid waste are established by the Des Moines City Council.  Residents are billed for the following services on their DMWW billing statement:

* Note: Sewer Customer Service Fee represents the cost of making sewer services available to the customer, regardless of the amount of usage. This also included the administrative expenses incurred by the City of Des Moines for maintaining the customer’s account. 
** An ERU is a unit of measurement used to calculate the billing for the impervious square footage of all structures/surfaces on your property including buildings, paved and rocked areas, decks and patios, any anything else that restricts the absorption of water into the soil. 

Water Availability Charges & Meter Sizes
The water availability fee is added to every bill along with a water consumption charge. The availability fee varies depending on the meter size in the home or business. The vast majority of Des Moines households are equipped with 5/8 inch meters. Below is a list of meter sizes along with the respective availability fee.

Inside City — Availability Charges & Meter Sizes

Outside City — Availability Charges & Meter Sizes

Water Consumption Rates
Des Moines Water Works Rate Schedule has three steps. Most residential customers use amounts of water that fall in the Step 1 rate amounts. Commercial businesses that use more water generally fall in Step 2 and Industrial accounts often use enough water to fall into Step 3.

While your DMWW billing statement shows your water consumption in Cubic Feet instead of gallons, we hope you will find the conversions in the chart below to be helpful:  

Average Daily Usage — Outside City Rate

Deposit
Customers who are tenants of a property will be charged the following deposits based on services received at the property:

• Garbage - $36.00 (charged by City of Des Moines)
• Sewer - $65.74 (charged by City of Des Moines)
• Stormwater - $13.26 (charged by City of Des Moines)
• Water - $100.00 (charged by Des Moines Water Works)

Total if all services are provided at the property = $215.00

The water deposit is equal to the usual cost of 90 days of service based on an average household consumption of 7,500 gallons per thirty day period.  Deposits will be added to the customer's account and will be reflected on the customer's first statement. Deposits are subject to Des Moines Water Works' collection rules, and as such, service may be terminated for non-payment of a deposit. Deposits will be applied to the balance of the account at the date of final service. Any amounts remaining after application of the deposit to the final balance will be refunded to the customer within a reasonable period of time after the customer's final service date.

Termination and Restoration Fees
A $65.00 fee will be charged to all accounts when water service is terminated for non-payment. An additional $35.00 fee will be charged when the customer requests their water be restored outside of the field service hours listed below:

Normal Field Service Hours
Monday-Friday 7:30 am-6:00 pm
Saturday 7:30 am-3:30 pm

Penalties and Fees

Sewer Charges
Sewer charges are based on the consumption measured on the water meter, unless a secondary or irrigation meter has been installed.

* Note: Sewer Customer Service Fee represents the cost of making sewer services available to the customer, regardless of the amount of usage. This also included the administrative expenses incurred by the City of Des Moines for maintaining the customer’s account.

Secondary (Irrigation) Meters
Des Moines customers may install a secondary meter to measure water that does not enter the sanitary sewer system (for example, lawn irrigation or filling a swimming pool). Sewer charges are not applied to water measured on this secondary meter.

To obtain a Sewer Service Fee Exemption from the City of Des Moines, follow the procedures below:
Note: All plumbing work must be performed by a Des Moines-licensed plumbing contractor.

1. The property owner or agent must file a completed Sewer Service Fee Exemption application for each secondary meter to be installed with the Community Development Department (602 Robert D. Ray Dr., Des Moines). A fee of $25.00 is charged for each Sewer Service Fee Exemption. 
2. After the application is approved, the property owner's plumber will need to obtain a plumbing permit for a Secondary Meter and at least one Backflow Prevention device. If there are multiple meters, a separate plumbing permit is required for each meter. (Note: The secondary meter must be a Neptune/Schlumberger meter with an Encoded Register.)
3. After the plumber has installed the secondary meter, contact Des Moines Water Works at (515) 283-8700 to have the meter reading device connected.
4. Contact the Plumbing Inspector's office at (515) 283-4200 for an inspection. The plumbing inspector will read the meter and check for proper installation. The Plumbing Inspector's office will send the completed application to Des Moines Water Works for activation of the sewer exemption.