Check for Water Leaks

Leaks in your home’s piping system cause major water loss. They may be hidden from view, but they will keep on hemorrhaging unless you tend to them. One big tip that you have leaky pipes is that your water bill keeps rising even though your water use doesn’t.

If you suspect water leaks, get to the heart of the problem by doing the following:

• Inspect your bathroom fixtures – Close inspection of your showers, sinks, and tubs will help you know if water from your faucet is literally going down the drain.
• Check toilets – You can check for leaks in your toilet by adding food coloring to the water in the tank. If you see the color seeping into the toilet bowl even if you do not flush, you may have a leak in your toilet. Do the same thing to the other toilets in the house.
• Check for bathtub leaks – You can check for tub leaks with the help of a test plug. Fill up the tub with a few inches of water. Insert your plug and wait for a few minutes. If the water level shrinks with the plug in, it is time to replace your drain gasket or install a new drain.
• Check for water heater leaks – Keep an eye out for pools of water on the floor around the water heater. It may be a leak, or it may simply be that the water on the floor is coming from condensation from the heater. You may need to adjust the heater vent to solve the problem.
• Check for outdoor leaks – Outdoor leaks are difficult to detect. You may hardly notice a leak in the swimming pool until the water level falls appreciably. Leaks could also be present in your sprinkler or irrigation system. Check for leaks by turning the system on and looking for wet spots on the ground. A wet spot could be traced to a malfunctioning valve that needs to be fixed right away.
• Check for hidden leaks – Leaks in your pipes may be hidden from view. To determine if there are leaks, keep an eye out for wet or damp spots on the walls or ceiling of the house. These spots could indicate spills in hidden pipes.

Checking for leaks and fixing them will save water and lower your utility bill. It will also help limit the use of one of Earth’s finite resources.