Our annual hydrant flushing program will start on Sunday, March 26th and will continue...
Frequently Asked Questions
If you would like to cancel your service, contact our customer service department and schedule a final reading at least 2 business days before you want service cancelled. Owner's are permitted to have water shut off when finalized.
If you are moving and wish to have service transferred to another location, contact our customer service department and schedule a final reading for your current property at least 2 business days before you want service cancelled. It is also necessary to make application for your new location. If you wil be a tenant you must visit our customer service department to make application and provide 2 forms of ID (including a photo ID). If you are an owner you are permitted to make application by calling our customer service department.
What do I do if I have an emergency on the weekend or after regular business hours?
The AWA always has someone on call to help, even if it's after our regular water or sewer maintenance hours of 7am to 3pm or on a weekend. If you have a water or sewer emergency, call 814-949-2214. The AWA uses Answerlink to take calls during off hours. Please stay on the line until someone takes your call. The Answerlink operator will take your information and relay it to the AWA foreman on call. The foreman may call you back or may go to the site to investigate the reported problem. Either way, know that someone is addressing the issue. Remember, an AWA employee will always be in an AWA work truck and will have ID available to identify him as an employee.
For instructions from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on how to properly dispose of prescription drugs,
During the hotter months of the year, there seem to be a lot of questions and misinformation about whether or not the general public is allowed to swim in the AWA reservoirs.
The answer to this question is that the general public is NOT allowed to swim in the reservoirs!
Your support of the publicly owned water supply provides on-demand service to 1,942 hydrants system wide. The Altoona Water Authority has an aggressive fire hydrant maintenance program and regular system upgrades have substantially increased the quality of fire protection by increasing availability, water pressure and flow capacity throughout the system. By working closely with local fire fighting agencies, the Altoona Water Authority is doing their part to protect the future of this community.
Two combined sewer overflow facilities capture and store 1.5 million gallons of wastewater during rain events which is later pumped to the treatment plants for proper treatment. During wet weather, the Altoona Water Authority utilizes these facilities to capture the “first flush” from the combined sewer areas in order to remove organic solids and debris which in past years went directly to the stream. The solids removed from the wastewater are further treated through a state-of-the-art process that yields a nutrient rich fertilizer that enables local farmers to reduce reliance on chemical fertilizers.
Leak detection is of great importance, and Altoona Water Authority personnel are assigned specifically to this task as a proactive approach to water conservation and system maintenance.
Rates paid by customers of Altoona Water Authority are used for the upgrade, construction and maintenance of this area’s local water /wastewater system. Over the past 20 years this community has invested nearly 200 million dollars into creating one of the most technologically advanced systems on the east coast.
The AWA has entered portions of its properties into a Public Access Program with the Pennsylvania Game Commission. This program will allow access to these properties by the public for the purpose of hunting and hiking. There are some restricted areas on the properties. Please call our main office at 814-949-2222 for copies of applicable maps. All Pennsylvania Game Commission rules apply and will be enforced. The AWA asks that you take stewardship of these properties so that they will continue to remain open for your enjoyment.
A cubic foot of water is equal to 7.48 gallons of water. (100 cubic feet = 748 gallons).
Tenants are not permitted to make application for residential water/sewer service. All others may complete an application by calling or visiting our Customer Service Department during normal business hours.
See our "Contact Us" section for information about our location, hours and phone number.
Who is Invoice Cloud?
We have partnered with Invoice Cloud to provide our on-line bill presentment and payment platform. You can experience the convenience of paperless billing, multiple payment options and the ability to view your bill 24/7. Simply click the "Pay Your Bill" option from our home page and get started today.
Not only can you pay your bill on-line but you can access your account through our customer portal. This is a great way to view your account history, pay your bill or sign up for eBill. Simply select the "Pay Your Bill" option and follow the prompts.
Water/Sewer bills, like all municipal services, are liens against the property making the property owner responsible.
Yes. You can enroll in "autopay" using our on-line portal with Invoice Cloud. Simply select the "Pay Your Bill" option from our homepage, register with Invoice Cloud and follow the prompts.
Yes. As long as service is on there is a base charge for water, sewer, water surcharge & sewer surcharge by meter size. See our billing information page for the current rates.
Check out our Billing and Education pages for information on how to read your meter and how to check for leaks. It's good information to know. If you need any help call our customer service department and one of our representatives will assist you.
We also have water conservation kits available, stop in and pick one up!
We no longer accept credit card payments at our customer service department. Credit card payments can be made through our IVR (Interactive Voice Response) system by calling 1-855-786-5316, or from our website by selecting "Pay Your Bill". THERE IS A FEE FOR THIS SERVICE.
If water service is off there is a fee to have service restored. Also, you may be charged a security deposit.
There are a number of places other than our customer service department where you can pay your bill. Please reference the billing information page How to Pay Your Bill for this information.
All checks should be made out to ALTOONA WATER AUTHORITY
and sent to PO Box 3150, Altoona, PA 16603-3150.
The " - " before an amount means a credit charge. If the " - " appears before your total balance, YOU DON'T OWE ANYTHING for the current billing.
Call 814-949-2214. The Altoona Water Authority has emergency personnel available 24/7. In the unlikely event of an emergency, the Altoona Water Authority maintains a 254 day supply of water to avoid disruption of service to the 60,000 residents they serve. In addition, the system design enables water to be drafted from multiple services to allow for uninterrupted service.
Download our downspout removal PDF for information on this topic.
Typically, Altoona system water has a hardness value in the range of 2 to 5 grains per gallon or 34 to 85 mg/L.
What do I do if I have an emergency on the weekend or after regular business hours?
The AWA always has someone on call to help, even if it's after our regular water or sewer maintenance hours of 7am to 3pm or on a weekend. If you have a water or sewer emergency, call 814-949-2214. The AWA uses Answerlink to take calls during off hours. Please stay on the line until someone takes your call. The Answerlink operator will take your information and relay it to the AWA foreman on call. The foreman may call you back or may go to the site to investigate the reported problem. Either way, know that someone is addressing the issue. Remember, an AWA employee will always be in an AWA work truck and will have ID available to identify him as an employee.
Call 814-949-2214. The Altoona Water Authority has emergency personnel available 24/7. In the unlikely event of an emergency, the Altoona Water Authority maintains a 254 day supply of water to avoid disruption of service to the 60,000 residents they serve. In addition, the system design enables water to be drafted from multiple services to allow for uninterrupted service.
See our "Contact Us" section for information about our location, hours and phone number.
Trace amounts of ammonia are naturally present in public water systems. However, detection of ammonia in fish tanks is most-likely from waste products of the fish, and other organic matter.
Nearly all public water systems in Pennsylvania contain some type of leaded plumbing materials either in the distribution system or in homes or other buildings.
Optimal corrosion control treatment minimizes the lead concentrations at users' taps. Tap water samples are collected from homes and buildings throughout the community.
During 2019 there were no homes or other buildings where samples exceeded the EPA Action Level.
Typically, Altoona system water has a hardness value in the range of 2 to 5 grains per gallon or 34 to 85 mg/L.
No, but it has a natural trace presence in our water. The benefits of adding fluoride to public water systems has been a topic for debate since 1945.
The optimal range for fluoride addition is a narrow band. Too little addition has no "cavity fighting" benefit, while too much can lead to irreversible mottling, staining, and pitting of teeth.
