We’ve heard the statement, “What we don’t know won’t hurt us.” Well, nothing could be further from the truth, especially when it comes to water leaks. Many homeowners have water leaks in their home or landscaping and don’t even know it. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that ten percent of the households in the USA have water leaks. Of those ten percent, they can expect to waste 10,000 gallons of water a year. On average, each house will consume 90 gallons of water daily, all due to water leaks.
ONE DROP PER SECOND CAN WASTE 3,000 GALLONS
Some homeowners realize they have a water leak, whether from a faulty toilet flapper or dripping faucets, and they put off doing anything about it. Most homeowners don’t understand the magnitude of a dripping faucet. They only see a slow dripping faucet, and they don’t see any harm in it. The fact is, a faucet that drips one drop per second can waste 3,000 gallons of water a year. That’s equivalent to 180 showers. A showerhead that leaks one drop every six seconds will cost a homeowner 500 gallons of wasted water per year. Most water leaks are minor and only require a quick fix.
Easy Way To Check For A Toilet Leak
Maybe it’s time to replace your old worn toilet. They seem to last forever. Instead, you can purchase a low-flow toilet that uses 1.6 gallons of water per flush for under two hundred dollars. The new toilet designs not only use less water, they also provide a more powerful flush. Maybe you want to know if your toilet is leaking. Take a couple of drops of food coloring and drop it in your toilet tank. Wait approximately fifteen minutes. If color appears in the bowl, there is a leak. Flush immediately after that to avoid stains, and consider replacing your damaged or torn toilet flapper. A toilet flapper cost less than ten dollars, and a homeowner could easily replace it.
Replace Old Water Guzzling Toilets With New Ones
The WaterSense label gets applied to toilets that have been subjected to thorough performance and efficiency testing by an independent laboratory. Only toilets that successfully pass the third-party certification testing qualify for the WaterSense designation. Presently Federal law requires that all toilets sold in the United States do not exceed 1.6 gallons per flush (GPF), while WaterSense-labeled models use as little as 1.28 GPF or less. Toilets manufactured between the early 1980s and 1992 often required 3.5 GPF (13.2 liters). Before 1980, toilets often utilized 5.0 to 7.0 gallons or more GPF. The oldest toilets can consume up to 8 GPF.
Some of these old toilets are still around and for no good reason. Some thought they would give up performance compared to the new toilets. That may have been true ten years ago, but not so today. Toilets designed today are made with the latest technologies and will perform as good or better than their water-guzzling counterparts.
ONE TRILLION GALLONS OF WATER WASTED A YEAR
The EPA has spent the last ten years with a clear focus on fixing water leaks. This past March was the tenth annual “Fix a Leak Week.” According to the EPA, the numbers are staggering regarding water wasted, one trillion gallons per year. Fixing water leaks in and around your home has a considerable effect on all of us. It puts money back in your pocket, saves our precious resources, and preserves the environment. The next time you hear a toilet running or see a faucet leaking, be proactive and have it repaired quickly.
Another Simple Way To Check For Household Leaks
Another sure way to know if you have a water leak in your home is to locate your water meter, which is usually located near the curb in front of your property:
- Make sure all the water is turned off in the home.
- Remove the cap from your meter, which is normally marked “water,” pull the lid off using a screwdriver.
- Take a reading of the meter and wait for 30 minutes.
If the meter moves up after 30 minutes, you almost certainly have a leak. Most water meters also have a leak indicator located on them. The leak indicator on your meter may be a little triangular-shaped dial or a small silver wheel that moves when water flowing through the meter. If the dial is moving and everything is turned off in your home, you have a water leak.
