water running - nothing on - meter not spinning

Help requested ... sound of water running - nothing on - meter not spinning

I can hear (and feel) water moving through a 3/4" copper pipe that comes in from the outside. It is below the meter and connects up to it directly. There is a spigot on the pipe that when turned seems slow the flow, though not stopping it entirely. The spigot directly effects water pressure.

My concern is that nothing is on in the house and I cannot see any leaks. Nothing is on outside and I don't see any water spilling etc...

The meter is not spinning. When I turn on a faucet the meter spins. I have called the water company and they said that unless there is a leak they won't do anything. I'm not sure if I should be concerned about this or not.

If the leak indicator (normally a red triangle) on the meter is not moving (and you see it moving when you turn a tap on so you know it works) I would not worry about a leak inside the house.

Might just be vibration from your neighbors using water or a leak outside.

But in my experience of water leaks, you normally know you have them.

The last thing you want is the water company digging up your yard to find a leak that may or may not be there.

Try feeling it late at night when the neighborhood will be using less water.

House, condo, townhouse?
Location - subject to freezing? earthquakes?
Comes in from the outside thru what?
Foundation, crawl space? At what depth?

If water is running outside it could possible undermine a concrete footing/wall etc

yes, that's what I'm concerned about. We noticed the sound during the day and it continued all night - I was on the phone with the water company at 1am

The red triangle only spins when water is being pulled by the faucet/shower etc ...

We live in a two-story single family home in NJ
We haven't had sufficient freezing/warming in the past month but the area does experience through the winter.
I would estimate that the pipe comes in through a concrete wall in the basement at about 6ft below ground.

I have posted a picture of the configuration here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/28671997@N04/

Thanks for your help.

Well the water leak isn't in the house
So the meter won't indicate it
You need to escalate the issue above the brain dead person answering the phone

Water leaks cost every one $$

Have you noticed any trucks doing work in the area?
Any street work, tree work (big tree removed) etc?

The blue spigot is your shut-off valve.

Seperate to the issue raised in this post, I would have a plumber replace that with one that shuts the water off fully.

I recommend having it replaced with a ball valve rather than the screw type you have there.

Thanks. I'll contact the water company again. I haven't seen any work being done, at least around the front of the house where I believe the water comes from. Behind us they are doing construction but the ground work has been done for a month or so.

leak

The meter will only indicate leaks or flow ABOVE the meter. If the leak sounds like it is in the floor below the meter, it can leak FOREVER and the meter would NEVER show a leak.