Leaks can range from the obvious drip or puddle to the silent, hidden waste of water from a toilet tank. Clearly, any dripping faucets or fixture should be repaired to avoid the gallons piling up but the biggest source of excessive usage is due to toilet tanks. If the flap valve inside a toilet tank begins to fail, this can be the largest consumption of water and it is a silent user. The easy way to check for a leaking toilet tank is to place food dye inside the tank and wait a few minutes to see if the coloring has migrated into the bowl. If it has, the toilet tank is leaking.
Another way to monitor if you are suffering from leaks is to utilize the “Eye on Water” application and review the past 24 hour usage. It can detail consumption at any and all hours of the day to see if water has passed through the meter. Usually most people do not use their water consistently overnight but if you see continuous usage overnight, then that would indicate a potential leak. You can also physically read your meter before going to sleep and re-read as soon as you wake up before using the water to see if any water has passed through the meter. Sometimes toilets will leak enough to have a consistent flow of water detected on the meter and if the toilet valve is turned off, it will stop the meter from moving. This is could be an even larger leak causing a very high bill.