Water drips and leaks in your home need to be addressed promptly. At best, you may be losing money as well as wasting water. At worse, you could be suffering water damage that goes unseen for months or years. With unseen water leaks, you could easily run into a situation where by the time it is found, fixing the damage can require a major investment of time and money.
Step 1: Look Around
It is amazing how often we tend not to notice things in our own homes, especially when they are less than desirable to have, such as odors or clutter. We tend to get used to living in our spaces.
Because of this, there may be some obvious leaks that we just don’t see. So the first step is to go around your home and examine your common water sources, such as the faucets and the toilets. Are there drips? Is the toilet refilling when you haven’t flushed it in a while?
Step 2: Check the Meter
The next step is to turn off all of the faucets and the appliances that use water. Unplug the refrigerator, for example, if you have an ice maker in it, or shut off the ice maker. Once you are sure that everything is turned off (leave the water main on–you don’t want to shut off the water, just wherever you think it is being used).
Next, go over to your water meter. Is the flow indicator dial moving? If so, you have a leak somewhere. Water is being used even though everything is turned off. If you happen to have a well, there is no easy way to do this test yourself, so you might want to skip to step 3.
Step 3: Call a Professional
Call in a professional to figure out where your water leaks exist, if you can’t find them. You don’t necessarily have to pay someone for this service. Check with your water company. They usually have programs that will help you identify leaks and may even send someone out to your home, especially if you have already performed the first two steps on your own.
Even if you do need to pay for this service, it can be worth the peace of mind.