Tag Archives: leak

Drought & Conservation, General

Save Money, Save Water

Fixing at home leaks can be quick, cheap, and easy.

Taking a few minutes to fix small leaks in your home can prevent costly water bills. Household leaks can waste almost one trillion gallons of water per year nationwide. Some common household leaks are dripping faucets, worn toilet flappers, leaking valves, and irrigation systems. You can fix many of these leaks without having to call a professional. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) sponsors Fix a Leak Week annually to encourage leak detection and water conservation. Here are a few of the EPA’s leak repair tips:

Faucet Leaks

Your dripping faucet could be wasting more than 3,000 gallons of water per year. Check out this drip calculator from the AWWA to see how much water you could be wasting at home!

Once you know which part of your faucet is leaking (spout, base, etc.) you can purchase a single replacement piece or a faucet repair kit. Video tutorials like this one can take you from DIY to drip-stopping pro in under three minutes!

To ensure you purchase the right kit or replacement part, it’s best to research your current faucet or disassemble your faucet and take the pieces that need replacement with you. Once you have the necessary replacement parts, simply swap them out and test the faucet for leaks.

Toilet Leaks

A worn-out toilet flapper can silently waste thousands of gallons of water per year. Toilet leaks can be some of the sneakiest leaks in a home. Luckily, replacing a toilet flapper only takes a few minutes and the parts are inexpensive. The easiest way to figure out if your toilet is leaking is to perform a dye test.

Make sure to carefully examine your old flapper before tossing it to ensure you buy the correct replacement. This simple swap can prevent you from flushing hundreds of dollars down the drain.

Outdoor Leaks

In-ground irrigation systems, hose connections, and pools can also be sources of leaks that can skyrocket your water bill. It’s important to monitor your water bill when you water your lawn or during pool season to ensure you’re not missing a leak. Here are some outdoor leak detection tips:

  • Check your irrigation system for damage from freezing temps before you use it each spring.
  • Check your irrigation system for faulty sprinkler heads.
  • Check your hose connections regularly for pooling water or drips between uses.
  • Consult a professional if you suspect a pool leak.

If you need assistance fixing a leak, please contact a professional. If you receive a high bill and are unsure of what to do next, check out this video for next steps.

Charlotte Water can assist you with your outstanding balance from a high bill after your leak is repaired. To get help with your outstanding balance, please dial 311 or 704-336-7600.

Employee Spotlights, How Things Work

Leaky Meter? We Can Fix That.

Most days, it is likely a regular resident served by Charlotte Water doesn’t even think about where their water comes from or the infrastructure that supports it. However, those thoughts can be at the forefront of your mind if you walk outside and see a flood in your yard from a leaky pipe or fitting.

Charlotte Water has staff on standby at all hours to receive calls about leaks all around the region and will send a tech into the field to personally investigate a problem. Relevant calls come into Dispatch, a team of individuals who man the line 24/7 to be on standby in case the worst happens.

Senior Water Service Technician, Danny Balose, flushing a hydrant to repair a leak.

One of the supervisors at Dispatch, Fred Moody, shared stories of his experiences during his years of service and some of the unique things he’s seen. He said that they see more calls during extreme weather, such as deep freezes, and that it’s important to bear in mind that freezes impact our pipes more than northern regions not because of aged infrastructure, but because we designed our systems to be suitable for the climate we live in.

Outside of extreme events, leaky fittings and pipes can be from a number of things and can range from a serious leak that threatens the integrity of a road to just a damp yard. Below, Danny Balose, a seasoned water service technician, listens to water running through a meter to diagnose where a leak may be coming from.

Danny Balose detecting a leak by listening for running water.

Danny has decades of experience within the area. When I was riding with him to learn more about his role, he knew where many neighborhoods were in Charlotte just by memory from his visits over the years. He holds a philosophy that each visit demands the same attention and care to get to the bottom of the problem. He is meticulous in his record keeping and commits time after each call to fill out exactly what happened.

Danny is just one of many individuals at Charlotte Water that remains dedicated to serving their community. If you see a leak in your own yard or in the street near your home, call 311 and Danny or another technician from Charlotte Water will come out to investigate.

Construction, Repairs and Spills

All Hands on Deck: Weekend Leak Blitz

Over the past year, as the world seemed to slow down and almost stop at times, it simultaneously seemed like the workload never missed a beat. As the pandemic ramped up last spring and into the summer, so did our work orders. Due to the pandemic and our crews working staggered shifts, the number of work orders was on the rise.

But when the work needs to get done, it’s “all hands on deck” for our Charlotte Water crews. Over the past several months, our crews have begun conducting a “leak blitz” during one weekend each month to reduce work orders’ backlog. This means that our crews will develop a list of priority leaks to complete throughout the weekend. Approximately 24 crews are assigned to work on the leaks, while other crews are assigned to work on emergency-only leaks as they arise. In some cases, they have completed up to 50 leaks during a leak blitz weekend.

Our most recent leak blitz was this past weekend, February 20th and 21st. Crews were able to catch a break in the rain and get out to fix 29 leaks and counting, with a few work orders still pending. Thanks to our crews’ tremendous effort and hard work, they have been able to reduce the backlog of work orders and will continue to perform leak blitz’s in the coming months to stay ahead of the curve.

Learn more about how our staff prioritizes leaks, and how to protect your pipes during the winter months by reading our blog, and be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram for the latest information from Charlotte Water. To report a leak in your area, please call 311 directly.