How do I determine if I have a leak?

If you receive a water/sewer bill that is higher than what you are used to receiving, there is a chance that you have some type of a leak.  In an effort to assist customers in lowering their water bills, the City of O'Fallon is providing the following information along with free toilet dye test strips upon request.

1. The City of O'Fallon Water Division has found that 90% of all reported leaks or "water losses" are the result of a leaking toilet. A silent leak in your toilet can waste several thousand gallons of high quality water each year and place unnecessary demands on your sewer system. Usually you can not hear the leak because it runs slowly out of the tank.

2. How can you discover if your toilet leaks? The answer is simple. Just follow these easy steps and you'll know.
A. Lift off the lid from the toilet tank.
B. Place one toilet dye strip in the tank.
C. Do not flush or otherwise disturb the toilet for several hours. It is best to let the toilet sit overnight or during the day if no one is home.
D. At the end of the waiting period, observe the toilet bowl. If the color you placed into the tank shows up in the bowl, you have a leak.

3. How do you fix a leaking toilet? Most frequently, leaks in toilets are caused by defective flush valves. A flush valve is a flap or ball plunger device that acts as a stopper in the bottom of your toilet tank. After several years and many flushings, the stopper can be knocked out of shape or simply worn out. In order to save water and repair your toilet, see your hardware dealer or plumber and obtain an inexpensive and easy to install replacement valve or complete replacement kit.

***A portion of the above information was provided by the Illinois Interagency Water Management/Conservation Committee with funding from the Illinois Protection Agency.

If the dye strips show that there is not a toilet leak in your home, call our office to request a re-read of your meter and a leak check to help you to determine if the leak is in your service line or elsewhere in your home.

USE WATER WISELY!