Testing for Leaks and Water Saving Tips

Testing For Leaks

One of the easiest water leak test is to place dye or food coloring in your toilet tank and see if the food coloring or dye gets into the toilet bowl without having to flush (this test can be done overnight if more convenient, the key is to wait a bit and not to flush).

A toilet with a leak - even one you can't hear - can cost hundreds of dollars in water bills.

Another test is to read your water meter before going to bed. Then read it again in the morning before using any water. If the readings are the same, there is no leak.

Check all the household faucets for leaks, especially outside faucets and garden hose connections. Make repairs when necessary. A leak no matter how small can add up. A slow drip can waste 75 gallons a week. A steady drip can waste 200 gallons a week. A stream can waste 1000 gallons a week.

Water Saving Tips

Put plastic bottles in your toilet tank to help cut down on water use. Put an inch or two of sand or pebbles inside each of the plastic bottles to weigh them down. Fill them with water and put in toilet tank, safely away from operating mechanisms. In an average home, the bottles may displace and save ten or more gallons of water a day.

Take shorter showers - Long, hot showers can waste five to ten gallons every unneeded minute. Limit your showers to the time it takes to soap up, wash down, and rinse off.

Take baths - A bath in a partially filled tube uses less water than all but the shortest showers.

Don't let the faucet run while you clean vegetables. Just rinse them in a stopper sink or a pan of clean water.

Water house plants with leftover drinking water.