The 5-minute meter test
- 1
Turn everything off
Faucets, showers, dishwasher, washing machine, ice maker and the irrigation timer.
- 2
Find your meter
It’s usually in a box under a lid near the street or sidewalk.
- 3
Watch the leak indicator
If the small dial or triangle moves over two minutes, water is leaving somewhere.
Common causes of a high bill
If the meter moves, these are the usual suspects, roughly from easiest to hardest to find:
- A running toilet (try food coloring in the tank)
- A dripping faucet or water heater relief valve
- Irrigation line, valve or broken sprinkler head
- Pool leak or an auto-fill that keeps running
- Underground main line leak
- Slab leak under the floor
When to call for leak detection
If you’ve ruled out toilets and faucets and the meter still moves, the leak is probably hidden in a wall, under the slab, in the yard or in the pool.
That’s when detection pays off: it finds the spot so only that area needs repair. Start with slab, underground or pool leak detection depending on what you see.
Common questions
Why is my water bill so high all of a sudden?
Common causes are a running toilet, irrigation changes, filling a pool, or a hidden leak. If your habits didn’t change, check the meter with everything off.
Can a hidden leak really double a water bill?
It can. A constant leak runs 24 hours a day, so even a small one adds up over a billing cycle.