[211]

Over the last several months I’ve gotten a few courtesy calls from the local water district regarding our “overusage” of water. They suggested we have a leak someplace; which I do not. Just yesterday I decided to turn off the supply valve going to the house and look at the meter.
Sure enough that meter is spinning wildly, like a garden hose is on. This tells me I have a leak someplace underground between the meter and the supply valve.

Question; is this on the homeowners’ end? Or how is this handled logistically? Based on the courtesy calls we’re using almost double what all the other neighbors are using.

 

[DannyT]

usually if it is past the meter it's your responsiblity. where is the meter? if the meter is inside then you are responsible for the line from the curb valve to the house.

 

[211]

Meter is out by the road. We dont have concrete sidewalks so its just a box in the corner of the yard.
Looks like I have some digging to do..

 

[Alan]

Dig around and check near the meter box first. Most likely culprit is an old Galv nipple rotting away, or a plastic threaded fitting that has snapped off due to the meter box being driven on or general settling of the earth around that area.


Once you determine what type of pipe you have in the ground report back and we can let you know what kind of trouble you are in. How old is the house?

 

[211]

Dig around and check near the meter box first. Most likely culprit is an old Galv nipple rotting away, or a plastic threaded fitting that has snapped off due to the meter box being driven on or general settling of the earth around that area.


Once you determine what type of pipe you have in the ground report back and we can let you know what kind of trouble you are in. How old is the house?

Early '70s build...

Is it possible to just find the leak and replace the faulty section or will the whole run need to be replaced?

 

[michaelcherr]

To fix a leak you just need to fix whats leaking that being said, as a practicality, sometimes you want to replace a whole section of plumbing as insurance against future leaks. Can't really answer better than that until we know what's leaking/where it is and condition of everything else.

 

[DannyT]

if it is copper or plastic i would fix it, galvanized replace it.

 

[Alan]

Early '70s build...

Is it possible to just find the leak and replace the faulty section or will the whole run need to be replaced?

Agree with above, however to elaborate : If the leak is on the pipe itself IE : Sidewall, and not a fitting you may want to start saving for a waterline replacement. When plastic pipe starts leaking out the sidewall it's nearing it's lifespan.

If it's galvanized, it makes no sense to patch it.

Copper is usually pretty good, although sometimes the lines get bedded in large rock, and causes dimples in the bottom of the pipe, which are where the first leaks start showing. If you find something like this, you can patch it, but just like the scenario in the plastic line, it may be time to think about saving for a new line.

 

[plummen]

GET LOCATES BEFORE YOU START DIGGING.
Yeah I know that was all capital letters,wanted to make sure I got your attention!:laughing:

 

[Alan]

GET LOCATES BEFORE YOU START DIGGING.
Yeah I know that was all capital letters,wanted to make sure I got your attention!:laughing:

Good point. I'm not used to doing that for small repairs because our water lines here are much shallower than anything else that we might hit. :laughing:

 

[211]

GET LOCATES BEFORE YOU START DIGGING.
Yeah I know that was all capital letters,wanted to make sure I got your attention!:laughing:

Yeah, that's definitely on my list. In fact I spoke with a maintainence worker from the local water district (super helpful guy). He told me he'd give me a print for the sewage line and said that often times, in these old homes, they'd bury the sewage and water in the same ditch. So with the information on the print I may be able to find the water line without hunting for it. However, he made himself very clear that he wouldn't give prints until AFTER I called and got locates for everything.

Today I'll call and see if homeowners will cover it...

 

[plummen]

Around the great state of nebraska(yeah,I know!:laughing the water is buried 5' deep,while Im used to hand digging without locates after many years of practice on small repairs I dont suggest it to homeowners.
Even with locates Ive found many things that arent where theyre supposed to be:wink: