Plumber Tips | Atlanta, GA
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Summertime is a time when the house is full, the kids are home, and water seems to abound. Suddenly you are outside in the pool, watering the flowers, and running the sprinkler a lot more frequently. Summers in Atlanta, GA are notoriously hot and notoriously long, so it’s no wonder if you notice that your water bill has spiked and not showing any signs of coming down any time soon.
This summer in particular may be harder than other summers, because with the current pandemic many people are choosing to stay home in lieu of heading to the sandy beaches of Georgia, which means you are filling up that backyard pool a lot more often. The good news is that you don’t have to pay a high water bill just to have fun if you take heed of a few simple tips.
As any plumber will tell you, smart water usage starts with the basics. Learning how to conserve water and be efficient with its use will go a long way towards keeping your summer water bills down and much more manageable. Here are just a few smart water usage tips for the rest of this summer and early fall.
Frequent Causes of High Water Bills During the Summer Months
Before launching into how to reduce water bills, it may be useful to learn the high usage spots of summer. Most plumbers will easily tell you that a home swimming pool can quickly cause your plumbing bill to jump. In general, families see their water bills jump during the summer because the kids are home from school and/or guest visits increase. In fact, due to COVID, there has been a spike in plumbing issues in many homes resulting in more calls to local plumbers, because home plumbing systems are not used to having so many people at home. The increase of parents working at home and children learning at home caught many people and home plumbing systems off guard.
Other reasons your water bill may get higher during the summer months is because you are watering your garden, lawn, grass, and trees more than you would during any other time of the year. If you own an air conditioner that is water-cooled this also will increase your water usage. Finally, fun sprinklers for the kids or water slides consume much more water than it seems since the water is never turned off, but instead fills these activities for hours. Most young kids also don’t think to turn them off when they are done, so they walk away and water continues to drain out into the waterslides or sprinklers even though no one is using them.
Quick and Easy Ways to Reduce Your Water Bill
Before panicking and calling a plumber assuming that something must be wrong with your plumbing because of your high bill, here are a few simple things you can do instead.
First off, be aware of your water usage and realize that there are ways to cut water waste. Professionals often cite appliances as the highest consumers of water in the home. Try to hold off on running your dishwasher unless it is completely filled so you can cut down the number of times it cycles per month.
Consider taking showers over baths because showers are more water-efficient. At the same time, encourage everyone in your home to take shorter showers. Due to COVID a lot of people working outside of the home are showering more than they used too, so shortening the length of showers is a good way to help reduce water usage.
Finally, every dentist and plumber will remind you that you should turn off the faucet while brushing your teeth. There is no reason to let the water drain down your sink and out the sewer if you aren’t using it. This is a good habit to teach your kids while they are young because you will have 18+ years of them potentially wasting water every night if you do not.
Look Around Your Home for Leaks
Once you adopt these practices, if your water bill is still staying high it may be time to contact a professional and check for leaks. There are two ways you want to approach this during the summer months. First, check the common offenders that are using up your water. Head outside and check your pool and waterslides for leaks. Fixing a leak will save you a lot more money than filling up the pool over and over again every morning.
Next, you actually want to check your plumbing system for leaks. If you have a leak in your plumbing or at one of your faucets you will be wasting gallons of water every day which will easily raise your plumbing bill. Even small, slow leaks can result in large water loss. If you have never had a plumber come to investigate your system now may be a good time to do so. An annual inspection is usually very cost-effective if you hire a local plumber, and the savings are incomparable since it may reveal small issues that would have turned into a plumbing emergency if left unaddressed.
Water Your Lawn at the Start or End of the Day
Finally, if you insist on watering your lawn on a regular basis then aim to water during the morning or evening hours. This helps reduce the amount of evaporation and allows you to reduce your overall water usage. If you have an automatic watering system, make sure to upgrade to one with a rain-sensor so you can save some on the days mother nature helps you out.
If you have followed all of the above-mentioned steps and are still facing a large water bill, it’s time to call in a plumbing expert. A high water bill can mean that something is wrong with your plumbing system, and an expert is the only one who can quickly and efficiently get to the bottom of it. Peach Plumbing & Drain has been helping residents of Atlanta, GA with their plumbing issues for the last decade, and we would be happy to send out a plumber to help you as well. Stop paying high water bills and get to the bottom of the issue with the help of one of our certified and trained plumbers.
