High Water Bills - Causes & Solutions

Your water bills are determined by Saukville Utility staff reading your water meter. When your water bill becomes higher than normal, there is usually a leak in your home.

When your water bill is high, check your toilets - 95% of all leaks are toilets and most times you cannot hear the leak. The toilet most likely leaking is the toilet rarely used. The leaking is often the result a deteriorated flush valve (flapper in the bottom of the supply tank). You can identify this problem by placing several drops of food coloring in the tank - do not flush. if you see color in the bowl after 15 - 20 minutes, the "flush valve" is leaky. The toilet will also waste water when the supply tank water level is set too high, resulting in continuous water waste through the overflow tube. The water level should be about 3/4 inches below the top of the overflow tube. A typical toilet leak at 1/4 gallon per minute will waste over 10,800 gallons each month. This wasted volume will more than double the average water/sewer bill. At current rates, it could add up to $310 to a quarterly residential bill. Therefore, correction of leaks can be well worth the cost of repair and will contribute to the cause of water conservation.

You should also periodically check all of your valves in your home and start reading your meter weekly. This way you can make sure there are no leaks in your home so that you are only billed for the water you use.

Suggestions from the PSC to Reduce Water Bills

Wisconsin Consumers can reduce their water bills by 10% by adopting a few simple changes at home and at the office, as well as installing more efficient hardware. Conserving water not only helps the environment, it also helps reduce costs on water and energy bills.

Water Conservation Tips

• Install faucet aerators in all sinks.
• Fix or replace faucet and toilet leaks.
• Don't let the water run while brushing your teeth or washing dishes.
• Don't wait for the water to run cold. Instead, store water in the refrigerator.
• Take showers instead of baths and take shorter showers.
• Install water-saving shower heads.
• Use low-flow toilets and urinals or displace water in tanks with plastic jugs filled with water or pebbles.
• After flushing the toilet, make sure the valve has closed and water is not running.
• Only use washing machines and dishwashers when there is a full load.
• Scrape plates cleans instead of rinsing.
• Use low-volume washing machines.
• Wrap water heaters with insulation.
• Limit watering of outdoor plants and landscaping.
• Water outdoor plants and landscaping in the evening.
• Use rain barrels to collect rainwater to use for plants and landscaping.
• Incorporate native plants into landscaping. They adapt better to the climate.
• Landscape with no or low water consuming plants.
• Use mulch around plants and trees to reduce water evaporation.

 

Helpful Documents

    Toilet Leak Testing