Water Bill Go Up? How To Detect If You Have A Leak

Posted on: 5 May 2017

If you have noticed that your water bill has gone up, you either are using more water in your home than usual or you have a leak. Fortunately, there are things you can do to check if the problem is due to a leak. You can then contact a plumber to repair the issue for you. If you do not, a small leak can easily lead to a much larger one and cause significant damage. Keep reading to prevent this from happening to you and get your water bill back to normal again.

Check the Water Pipes

Turn off the water that goes to the sink. You should notice a shut off valve somewhere close to the sink. Once the water is off, check the water pipes located under the sink. This type of leak can be difficult to notice because it is out of sight. One way to check this is to dab each connection on the pipes with a dry paper towel to see if you notice any wet spots.

The leak could be coming from the P-trap, which is usually caused by a loose connection. Tighten the nuts to see if the leak stops. If it does not, then you likely have a leak somewhere on the pipes, which requires a plumber to repair. This is especially true if you have metal pipes because they could be corroded.

Check the Faucets

The faucets themselves could have a small drip. Even though it is small, it can result in you wasting a lot of water over time. Also check around the faucets to see if you see any water or any kind of wetness. Fortunately, you could likely repair this problem on your own if you are the DIY type. If this does not repair the problem, you may need to exchange the entire faucet.

Check the Toilet

To check if your toilet is leaking, flush the toilet and wait to see how fast it stops running. You may have thought it was normal but if you walk away you may not notice a problem because the water may run quietly.

If you see a slow stream of water running down inside the toilet bowl then it has a leak. Another way to check this is to place a few drops of food coloring in the reservoir tank. Check back in approximately 30 minutes, and if you see the color in the toilet bowl, then you have a leak in the flapper. You can replace the flapper to repair this problem. Purchase a flapper at a hardware store and it will come with instructions on how to replace it.

If you are not able to find any leaks or repair any leaks that you find, you need to contact a plumber, like one from First Class Plumbing and Heating, to fix this problem for you. 

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