Leak Detection Guide
Make sure no water is being used anywhere in the house — no dishwasher, no laundry, no one showering — then find your water meter and note the reading. Wait two hours without using any water, then check it again. Any movement in the reading means water is flowing somewhere in the system even though nothing should be running.
A leak that produces just a slow, steady drip can waste over 3,000 gallons a month; a leak that runs continuously, even at low pressure, can waste tens of thousands of gallons before it's caught. That's the gap between a bill that looks slightly off and one that looks alarming — the leak size, not just the leak's existence, determines how fast the cost adds up.
Hidden leaks most often show up behind walls near plumbing runs, under slab foundations, and along underground irrigation or main supply lines. Each location produces slightly different symptoms — wall leaks often show as damp drywall or a musty smell, while underground leaks show as unexplained wet or lush patches in the yard.
A running or silently leaking toilet is one of the single most common sources of unexplained water loss. A quick way to check: add a few drops of food coloring to the tank and wait 10 minutes without flushing — if color appears in the bowl, the flapper valve is leaking.
Irrigation systems and the underground line running from the street to your house are easy to overlook since they're rarely visible. A consistently soggy patch of lawn, a section of unusually green grass in an otherwise even yard, or water pooling near the meter box are all signs worth investigating outdoors specifically.
If the meter test confirms water is moving somewhere, but you can't find an obvious source like a running toilet, that's the point to call for professional detection rather than guessing further — acoustic and thermal equipment can pinpoint a leak location that would otherwise mean opening up walls or digging speculatively.
