Stop silent waste.

Step 1

Run the three home checks

• Toilet dye test
• Meter check (if you have access)
• Irrigation walk

EPA WaterSense gives the checks this way:

• Meter: read your water meter before and after a two-hour period when no water is being used. If the meter changes at all, you probably have a leak. Step-by-step: no-use meter test.
• Toilets: put a few drops of food coloring in the tank. If any color shows up in the bowl after 10 minutes, you have a leak. Flush afterward so the tank does not stain. More on the toilet dye test.
• Pipes and faucets: look at faucet gaskets and pipe fittings for water on the outside of the pipe.
• Outdoors: check an in-ground irrigation system each spring for frost or freeze damage, and check the garden hose where it connects to the spigot.

EPA also says that if a family of four uses more than 12,000 gallons a month in a colder month such as January or February, there could be serious leaks.

Step 2

Inspect the common culprits

• Flappers
• Washers/gaskets
• Sprinkler heads

What EPA WaterSense says about each one:

• Toilet flappers: an old or worn flapper can make a toilet flush on its own or silently leak thousands of gallons a year. EPA suggests checking it periodically and replacing it at least every five years.
• Faucet washers and gaskets: old and worn ones frequently cause faucet leaks. Turn off the water line before you start a repair. Size a drip with the Drip Meter.
• Showerheads: a showerhead leaking 10 drips per minute wastes more than 500 gallons a year. Some can be fixed by tightening the connection to the pipe stem with pipe tape.
• Irrigation: a leak 1/32 of an inch in diameter (about the thickness of a dime) can waste about 6,300 gallons a month.

If the meter still moves after these pass, Portland Water Bureau suggests closing the house's main shutoff valve, opening a faucet to confirm no water flows, and checking the meter again. If it is still moving, water is flowing between the meter and the house valve, possibly an underground leak. If it stopped, the leak is likely inside: toilets, faucets, appliances, or garden hoses.

Step 3

Act before it compounds

EPA's leak figures, converted to the units on a bill (1 CCF = 748 gallons). These are EPA's averages and examples, not your numbers:

• A home with a 50-gallon-a-day leak (EPA says nine percent of homes have one that size or larger): 50 × 30 = 1,500 gallons a month, or 1,500 ÷ 748 = about 2.0 CCF.
• The average household's leaks, more than 9,300 gallons a year: 9,300 ÷ 12 = 775 gallons a month, or about 1.0 CCF.
• The dime-sized irrigation leak above: 6,300 ÷ 748 = about 8.4 CCF a month.

EPA says fixing easily corrected household leaks can save homeowners about 10 percent on their water bills. Policies vary; confirm your rates with your utility.

Call in help when the leak is not one you can reach. Portland lists signs of an underground leak, including an unexplained increase in water use, a drop in water pressure, unusually wet or green spots in the yard, and cracked or lifted pavement, and says you may want a professional leak detection company to pinpoint it. In Portland, the property owner is responsible for the pipe from the meter to the house, and leaks repaired in a timely manner can qualify for a bill adjustment. Other utilities have their own rules; see the leak adjustment guide.

Sources checked Oct 3, 2026.

Take the guided leak check