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Water is an essential part of everyday life. It is also something that most people take for granted.
Simply turn on the tap and there it is! But although you may not think about it, water is not free. Every drop of water you use will cost you money. IN fact, a leaking faucet will cost you between $60 and $100 per year!
If you have 2 or more leaks you can imagine how quickly this can add up!
Of course, when you have an obvious leak you simply call your local Sydney plumber and have the fault rectified. But what do you do if you think you have a leak but are not sure?
Signs Of A Leak
If you discover the warning signs you can stop a leak before it causes any significant damage or costs you an excessive amount of funds. It is worth noting that your insurance will not always cover a water leak.
- Water Pressure drops – because the water is escaping somewhere it shouldn’t be.
- Your water bill rises sharply – but your water usage has remained the same.
- Damp patches – these maybe from a leaking roof but, depending on where they are located they can also be a result of leaking pipes.
Detecting The Leak
There are several ways in which you can confirm the leak and then track it down. This can be a time consuming process but you need to do it!
- Shut Off Your Faucets
The first step is to locate your main water meter. Then you must shut all your faucets and make sure any appliance that uses water is turned off.
In theory you should be using no water. You can then look at the dial on your water meter. If it is turning then you’re using water. This means you have a leak somewhere!
- Visual Inspection
The next step must be to verify the visible connections in your home. You need to check that every faucet is off and not dripping. Even the slightest drip can cause a movement in the water meter.
Ideally you should check the pipes joining your appliances to the water supply; they could be dripping at any spot!
You should also look at all the visible pipes you can find. Run your fingers gently along them, particularly at the joints to establish if they are wet or not.
Don’t forget to check the floor under any joins in your pipes. These can tell you there is a leak even if the pipe seems dry.
- Turn Off Valves
If nothing is obviously wrong then you need to shut off every valve you can find in your home. You can then check the water meter again to see if it is still moving.
You should have a valve just before every faucet or appliance. If you turn all of these off and the meter is still moving then you know you have a fault in the pipe.
Unfortunately much of the pipes will be hidden and you may need specialist help to track and replace the faulty pipe.
If the meter doesn’t move then you can turn the valves on one at a time until it does; this will tell you the leak is at that valve or between it and the connected appliances.
This is definitely good advice for finding leaks. We have had quite a few leaky pipes and had to have repairs. We have had Centipedes in our home and was told that they come when there is water leaks.