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Water bill is drowning me!

February 3rd, 2010 at 03:20 am

I rent a small (less than 1000 sq ft) older house that's clearly not very efficient. Besides the high power bill due to the single pane windows and drafty floors....my water bill has doubled in the past 2 cycles and I really don't know why.

There are 4 of us in the household and our water habits have not changed. The utility company checked the meter and don't see any problems. We're pretty much just home on weeknights and weekends. We don't have a dishwasher so we do have to do dishes by hand; we never use water outdoors for anything.
Other than the possibility a plumbing leak....I'd love anyone's suggestions on how to lower this bill. I know I could get the landlord to check things out, but he didn't think there was a problem when we started having $300-$400 power bills (with the thermostat never going above 62).

We're trying to move to another place, but in case we end up staying here for a while, I'd love any suggestions! It stinks when you try to get 2 steps ahead and these crazy bills take you 3 steps back. It's a budget buster!

6 Responses to “Water bill is drowning me!”

  1. miclason Says:
    1265167516

    Sorry, I don't have any suggestions....due to new laws where I live, our water bill went up from $7 to $40... (yeah, I know, it's still cheap, but....)

  2. jewels3 Says:
    1265174401

    our typical water bill is $330 for 3 months. When we moved, they claim our bill is $560 for 84 days. We disputed it, but they won't adjust, so now we'll have to pay it even though we don't think it's right. Thank God for our tax refund. I would totally love a $40 water bill.

  3. creditcardfree Says:
    1265204658

    That does seem high! Check to see if your water heater is leaking. Make sure outside faucets are off. Could a neighbor be getting water from outside faucets? Put food coloring in tank of toilet and if dye shoes up in the bowl after 15 minutes you have a leak (I just read that on my water bill yesterday). Check all pipes for any wet spots, like under sinks.

    Oh, another way to see if you have a leak: check your meter reading just before bed after everyone is done using water for the evening. Then check in the morning before water is used. Compare numbers. If they are different...you do have a leak.

    Good luck!

  4. homebody Says:
    1265206855

    Okay want to hear our sad story....we could not find a leak anywhere, but the meter was running, running, running when we had everything in the house turned off. DH had to somehow dig under our driveway and replace things under there....so you could have an underground leak. Now our water is back down under $40.00 a month, but it goes up much more in the summer when we are watering our garden and lawn (I live on the rainy North Coast of California so we have plenty of water).

  5. Lisa Says:
    1265641373

    Power Bills: There are several things to do for the windows that are low cost, home stores carry window kits that blow dry on and come off pretty easy or get ridgid styrofoam about 1+ in thick and cut to window size and put them in the windows every night allowing the sun to warm the rooms during the day. If you sew you can line your window curtains/drapes with a thermal lining. Or, use a combination of the ideas above. I used all three at different times. Good luck!

  6. Jerry Says:
    1265996975

    I agree with checking the meter PM and AM, and then if it is still running considering the possibility that something leads to an underground leak. I hope it is something else, but if nobody is using more water and the rates are not increased, then something is awry! The best insurance is to get to the root of the problem ASAP, and if it needs a fix it will be up to the landlord. Good luck! We just had a higher water bill than usual, but it's because we live overseas and they check the meter VERY irregularly.
    Jerry

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