For years, everyone has known about helping to reduce our impact on the environment by being conscious of how we use its resources. And now, with the current economic woes, it makes even more sense these days to conserve as much as we can in order to save ourselves money every month when we pay our utility bills. One of the biggest culprits that can rob you of extra money every month and put a drain on the local supply are those pesky water leaks that pop up without warning, most often unnoticeable until it is way too late. We will teach two methods for detecting and dealing with these leaks, as well as letting you know when it is time to call in the professionals.
Doing it the Old Fashioned Way
Most people will not even notice that they have a problem until they get that monster of a water bill in the mail. By then, it may be too late or it might be fixable if they take detecting water leaks seriously enough to get out there and do a little detective work to find the source. The first method is to use sight and sound to see if you can find where exactly you might have water leaking problems. Your best bet is to go room by room, and check for leaks. Caça Vazamento
Starting with the bathroom, be sure to check the shower head, faucet and toilet tank for leaks. One sure way to determine whether the problem lies in the toilet is to check to see if the water moves from the tank to the bowl without flushing it first. If there are ripples on the surface of the water in the bowl, you might have water leaking from the tank. Additionally, you can put a few drops of food coloring in the water to test it. Walk away and come back in five, ten minutes. If the color has transferred to the bowl, you have a leaking tank.
Next Step: Water Using Appliances
After you have checked the rest of the sinks, pipes and faucets in the house, and still have not found a leak, it is time to check all appliances that you have connected directly to your water source. This includes dishwashers, washing machines and water heaters. There have been so many cases of high utility bills due to either a washing machine or water heater having a blown seal that went unnoticed for months, and could have easily been prevented by a simple visit from a plumber.
When checking appliances for water leaking potential, look for two things: standing water and a musty smell. You may have to get on your hands and knees for this part; no one said it would be easy. Standing water, even the tiniest amount may indicate that you have water leaking from water heater or washing machine, and if it is anywhere near the wiring, it could be potentially dangerous to let it continue. The musty smell is a sure sign that mold is beginning to grow in the dampness, and also needs to be taken care of before it gets worse. Now is the time to call in the professionals.
Found Nothing Inside? Time to Check the Outside
If there is a pipe leak in any of the connecting pipes from your water source to your home, you will find patches of ground that are springy and damp. Wet ground from water leaking from city pipes will be wet but not necessarily sodden with water standing on top, like it does when a septic tank leaks. Moreover, there may not be any smell associated with it. Time to call a plumber to find out if the leak repair will be on your dime or the city's.
Use Technology to Your Advantage
To prevent water leaks in the future, you can install one of two types of leak detection devices in your home. The first, passive, are stand-alone battery units with a moisture sensor. If it detects moisture, an alarm will sound, alerting you to the possibility of a leak. The second, active, will also sound an alarm, and will shut off the water supply when it happens.