Fix Leaks One at a Time

Did you know that household leaks account for over a trillion gallons of water wasted yearly in the U.S.? To the average homeowner, that means as many as 10,000 gallons of water wasted each year – that’s enough to fill a backyard swimming pool! Fix a Leak Week, sponsored by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s WaterSense program, is a perfect reminder of the importance of finding and fixing leaks to save water and money.

Where do you begin? The best way to verify whether you have a leak is by reading your water meter. Use the step-by-step instructions in Find and Fix Leaks that Are Draining Your Budget to learn how to use your water meter to check for leaks. Once you’ve identified your leak, it’s time to look at some of the most common perpetrators of water waste.

Start indoors:

• Check for dripping faucets and showerheads or damp areas. A leaky faucet that drips at one drip per second can waste more than 3,000 gallons per year and damage your fixtures. A showerhead leaking at ten drips per minute can waste more than 500 gallons per year. These are relatively easy fixtures to repair or replace. Don’t forget to use plumber’s tape.

• Check your toilet. Put a few drops of food coloring into the toilet tank and wait 15 minutes without flushing. If color appears in the toilet bowl, it’s time to replace the flapper. A faulty flapper can waste up to 600 gallons per month.  

 Did you know that most water use and waste comes from outdoors?

 Head outdoors:

• Check your house bibs, which can waste hundreds of gallons of water.

• Check your garden hose for leaks, especially where it connects to the hose bib. If it leaks when the hose is turned on, make sure there is a tight connection. If that doesn’t work, replace the nylon or rubber washer that is located before the “spigot,” which is the metal faucet where the end of the hose attaches to the wall.

• Check your irrigation system for leaks or inefficiencies, such as broken or missing valves, emitters, sprinkler heads, or bubblers. An irrigation system with a leak 1/32” in diameter (about the thickness of a dime) can waste about 6,300 gallons of water per month!

Become a “Leak Detective” to track down pesky leaks, both indoors and outdoors, and work to conserve water. Glendale water customers can request a free conservation kit (including a water-efficient showerhead, toilet leak detection kit, etc.) to assess how they can conserve water indoors. If you need to upgrade your toilet or irrigation system, read through our water conservation rebates because you could be eligible for a rebate.