John97Over The Hills And Far Away Premium Member join:2000-11-14 Spring Hill, FL |
John97
Premium Member
2012-Dec-25 8:10 pm
How much water does your family use in a month?My old house had a well, so I have no idea how much water we actually used. At my new house, according to my first water bill - if I am reading it right, we used 34,700 gallons of water. To me, this just seems insane.
But, using the Google tells me that maybe it's not that insane.
So, I figured a quick survey would give me some answers. Thanks in advance for any responses. |
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JahntassaWhat, I can have feathers Premium Member join:2006-04-14 Conway, SC |
7k per month in the summer with sprinklers. 1-2k at minimum for two people. No pool or anything to speak of. |
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jrs8084 Premium Member join:2002-03-02 Statesville, NC |
to John97
35K gallons is atypical. 3K gallons would be closer to my norm. |
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ilikeme Premium Member join:2002-08-27 Stafford, TX |
to John97
My 2 roommates and I use about 3-4k per month. We do not water the yard. I think my parents use about 5-7k in the summer when they run the sprinklers often. |
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to John97
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R4M0NBrazilian Soccer Ownz Joo join:2000-10-04 Glen Allen, VA |
to John97
Wow... High usage for my family (me, wife, 5 year-old, 4 month-old) is 7K gallons per month, low usage is 4.5K gallons...
5 yea-old only takes baths and wife loves long hot showers.
Your water usage should be in CCF (hundreds of cubic feet). 1 CCF = about 748 gallons. |
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John97Over The Hills And Far Away Premium Member join:2000-11-14 Spring Hill, FL |
John97
Premium Member
2012-Dec-25 9:08 pm
Thanks for the replies. This was my initial bill. Maybe they read the meter wrong when they started my service. I will have to keep an eye on the usage and see what we get. |
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dosdoxies Premium Member join:2004-12-15 Wallingford, PA |
to John97
Where I live they read the meter every 3 months. Is your bill for 1 month or more? |
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John97Over The Hills And Far Away Premium Member join:2000-11-14 Spring Hill, FL |
John97
Premium Member
2012-Dec-25 9:19 pm
said by dosdoxies:Where I live they read the meter every 3 months. Is your bill for 1 month or more? No, it's for one month and it's our first bill. They do bill monthly, I did confirm that when I set everything up after buying the house. But you are right, it was quarterly billing everyplace I lived prior to coming here. |
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Zorack join:2001-12-14 Fayetteville, WV |
to John97
34k would put my ass in shock for a month,that would usually mean a serious water leakage to me.... |
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dosdoxies Premium Member join:2004-12-15 Wallingford, PA |
to John97
I just looked at my bills. My highest this year was 30,000 for May, June and July. 2 people, 2 dogs, but the wife does water her gardens a lot in the summer. I agree, 34,700 is an awful lot for one month unless you're running a car wash on the side. |
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Bob4Account deleted join:2012-07-22 New Jersey |
to John97
Two adults, one child, 7200 gallons per month (235 gallons per day). Bill Date Usage Read Type
12/17/2012 8000 Gallons Automatic Read 11/15/2012 7000 Gallons Automatic Read 10/16/2012 7000 Gallons Automatic Read 09/17/2012 6000 Gallons Automatic Read 08/17/2012 7000 Gallons Automatic Read 07/18/2012 7000 Gallons Automatic Read 06/18/2012 8000 Gallons Automatic Read 05/17/2012 8000 Gallons Automatic Read 04/16/2012 7000 Gallons Automatic Read 03/15/2012 8000 Gallons Automatic Read 02/14/2012 7000 Gallons Automatic Read 01/16/2012 6000 Gallons Automatic Read |
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nunyaLXI 483 MVM join:2000-12-23 O Fallon, MO |
to John97
Family of 4, I use about 4-5K / month. No outdoor watering. |
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fartness (banned)Donald Trump 2016 join:2003-03-25 Look Outside |
to John97
Just got my bill the other day. I used 3000 gallons in 3 months. I am billed quarterly, so that means I use 1000 gallons a month. I take long showers too, but my bathroom is new, so I'm sure it has all the water saver features built in. |
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guppy_fish Premium Member join:2003-12-09 Palm Harbor, FL |
to John97
Check your irrigation timer, probably running daily and the most common reason for high water bills or a busted pipe in the irrigation. Leaking main copper from the meter to the home is another common occurrence in FL |
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GadgetsRmeRIP lilhurricane and CJ Premium Member join:2002-01-30 Canon City, CO |
said by guppy_fish:Check your irrigation timer, probably running daily and the most common reason for high water bills or a busted pipe in the irrigation. Leaking main copper from the meter to the home is another common occurrence in FL If a leak in a pipe is the cause it is going to be hard to find unless it is indoors where damage is easily visible. A 1/16" hole over the period of month can lose 24333 gals. + or -. If it is deep in the ground it could take quite some time to locate. That is assuming a line pressure of 60 psi. |
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TheMG Premium Member join:2007-09-04 Canada MikroTik RB450G Cisco DPC3008 Cisco SPA112
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to John97
3 of us in the house, about 2000 per month in the winter and the summer can be double that or more (depending on rainfall).
Low-flush toilets, quick showers with low GPM heads, and front-loading washing machine.
34,700 gallons seems insane. At the rates we pay, that would cost well over $1000!!!!! |
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John97Over The Hills And Far Away Premium Member join:2000-11-14 Spring Hill, FL |
John97
Premium Member
2012-Dec-26 1:00 am
Thanks again for the replies.
The bill is only for around $85.
Irrigation system has been off. We've had enough rain. It's programmed to only run on Mondays. I checked that. We're on water restrictions, only allowed to do one-day watering. According to my address, that day is Monday. But, I have the switch in the OFF position so it won't run at all. |
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to John97
If you can lift cover over the water meter and observe the dial on the water meter you can perform the following tests yourself. If you have a problem observing the water meter dial ask for a usage audit. Call the water department. Start here: » www.hernandocounty.us/utils/If they do not serve your home they can tell you who does from your address. I normally use around 20,000 each month which includes lawn irrigation. One month my bill showed a usage of 41,000 gallons so I called the city water department for a FREE usage audit. The procedure the water department technician used was simple. He turned off all water in the home and irrigation system then observed the meter dial. If the meter dial indicator continues moving then you have a leak somewhere. Most homes have a valve to shut off all water flow to the irrigation system and a separate valve to shut off water flow to the home plumbing system. First turn off the valve to the irrigation system. I had a high water usage in my previous residence one month and it turned out to be a leaking solenoid valve in the irrigation system. If the meter continues to show flow after turning off the valve to the irrigation system the problem is a leak in the homes plumbing. If the dial stops moving after shutting off the valve to the homes plumbing while the valve is open to the irrigation system the problem is in the irrigation system. If the meter shows water flow after turning off both valves the leak is between the meter and the shut off valves. By the way many homes have a T fitting at the output of the water meter with one line going to the irrigation system manifold and the other line going to the home plumbing. That is to reduce pressure drop in the home when the irrigation system is running. Whether or not a leak is found the next step is to turn on each irrigation zone one at a time using a watch with a second hand and observe the water meter dial to determine how many gallons of water each irrigation system zone consumes per minute. If one zone's usage is substantially higher than the others there probably is a break in an irrigation system line. I had a broken line. When I ran the zone where the break was for a short time and I observed higher usage than the other zones and discovered a puddle form where the break was located. You can multiply the number of gallons used per minute by the number of minutes each zone is set to run for, by the number of days the irrigation system runs each month, to calculate the number of gallons lawn irrigation consumes each month. |
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exocet_cmWriting Premium Member join:2003-03-23 Brooklyn, NY |
to John97
I had a similar "issue" when I bought my house last year. Water service was never cut or transferred to the contractor's name who bought it and sat on it for a few years.
My first reading was the culmination of the previous 5 years. Our water dept is pretty slow (in thinking). They said I was on the hook for tens of thousands of gallons of water in the first 30 days I was in the house. A few calls to the supervisor's supervisor with repeated explanations cleared things up (and the previous owner/contractor was back billed).
Make sure you aren't leaking on the meter side of things. Here is New Orleans everything leaks. If you have a leak on your side of the meter you can run up a bill quick. |
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to Mr Matt
Widowed male living alone. Increased usage due to grass watering during dry periods.
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ke4pym Premium Member join:2004-07-24 Charlotte, NC |
to John97
I use about 2800 gallons a month being single.
But I do have 2 aquariums I have to change out.
I too seem to take long showers. And my shower head is just a straight pipe into a sprinkler type head thingy. So, no low flow there.
I turned the house pressure down to compensate for that. Was at 80 psi, turned it down to 60. That knocked about $5 off my bill per month. |
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DKSDamn Kidney Stones
join:2001-03-22 Owen Sound, ON |
to John97
said by John97:The bill is only for around $85.
Lucky you. We are changed for water and a 125% surcharge for sewage. My water/sewage bill is around $1400/year. No lawn watering. |
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to John97
2 adults, 1 infant - about 5000gal/mo for fall - spring. Summer adds a bit with the pool and lawn. |
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tstolze Premium Member join:2003-08-08 O Fallon, MO |
to John97
Family of 4, without watering we average 2800 gallons/month. |
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ctggzg Premium Member join:2005-02-11 USA |
to John97
said by John97:The bill is only for around $85. We pay that much for 4,000 gallons. Anyway, 6,000 average here for two adults and two small kids, and we never water the yard or wash the cars. |
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ke4pym Premium Member join:2004-07-24 Charlotte, NC |
ke4pym to DKS
Premium Member
2012-Dec-26 12:17 pm
to DKS
said by DKS:said by John97:The bill is only for around $85.
Lucky you. We are changed for water and a 125% surcharge for sewage. My water/sewage bill is around $1400/year. No lawn watering. This is familiar. My water bill, just for water is like, $4.25. But the whole bill is closer to $37 by the time sewer and storm water fees and daily availability fees and such are tacked on. |
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to John97
About 6K per month. As high as 15K in the summer keeping the pool topped off.
Bill is usually under 30 bux a month.
Dave |
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Bob4Account deleted join:2012-07-22 New Jersey |
Bob4 to DKS
Member
2012-Dec-26 12:55 pm
to DKS
said by DKS:We are changed for water and a 125% surcharge for sewage. My water/sewage bill is around $1400/year. No lawn watering. $1,374.81 for calendar year 2012 here. |
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Boricua Premium Member join:2002-01-26 Sacramuerto |
to John97
This is mine for the month of October. Me and two roommates, clothes washer, dishwasher and sprinklers on in the front twice on my designated water days (Tu, Thu, Sat). EDIT: forgot to add a 50-gallon water heater. |
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