Three Ways To Lower Your Water Bill
Bills are never fun, but at least with most bills the way to lower them is obvious. If you want to lower your electric bill, then turn the lights off. If you want to lower your cell phone bill, use less data. But how do you lower your water bill? Most of us aren't using water with abandon, so how do we use less? Here are three of our favorite tips to lower your water bill.
Check Your Payments And Water Meters
Did you know that you pay for water twice?
Water gets pumped into a home and then out as sewage; both flows are charged on the monthly utility bills. Essentially most people pay for their water twice every month. Take a look at your water meter and see if there are two. You can request for a separate meter to measure water usage for irrigation, swimming pools, etc. Whatever water is used for purposes like irrigation will be subtracted from your sewage bill because you no longer are paying for the waters’ “exit”.
Lower The Hot Water Heater Temperature
Everybody loves a hot shower, but one place many homes lose energy is through the settings on their hot water heater. It is important to check your water heater upon moving in and make sure it is not set higher than the Occupational Safety and Health Administration standard of 140° F. The Environmental Protection Agency even argues that setting the maximum to 120° F is a safer setting, protecting skin from scalding temperatures. Based on the professional's recommendations there must be a balance that is not too hot to burn the skin but still hot enough to keep the bacteria away. Do a little more research and decide on 120° F or 140° F but anything higher than 140° F can waste $36-$60 annually because of the standby heat loss.
Keep in mind when you leave for extended periods of time it is a good idea to turn off the electric heater or turning the gas heater down.
Reduce Your Water Usage
Toilet: Take a quick scan and see if you have any leaking pipes. Toilets often have loose fixtures that leak water or pull more water than needed. Over time this waste can add up and hurt your bills. A great way to save water in your toilet is by putting a large rock the size of a brick or a jar full of rocks in your toilet tank. Every time you flush the box-like tank above the toilet bowl has to fill up before you can flush again. The rocks will take up space in your tank and therefore each flush will be more efficient.
Sinks: Keep an eye out for your sinks. Sometimes fixtures leak under the sink or behind the nozzle wasting water and rotting the area around the sink. Often times it is a quick fix worth fixing. Inside the spout’s joint, there is a rubber ring that rots and destroys the tight seal which commonly causes leaks.
Plants: Check and see if there is a sprinkler system. Make sure that it isn’t set to water the lawn during the heat of the day. It’s best to water the lawn in the cool of the night. You waste water if you water during the day because some of it evaporates in the heat before it even hits the plants.
If you are moving and haven't set up your water for your home yet the team at My Utilities would love to help make it easy on you. We want to help you get your water and other utilities connected in just a few minutes for free.
