Faucets

Can a Dripping Faucet Increase Water Bill? [Reason of High Water Bill?]

Can a dripping faucet increase your water bill? A seemingly tiny leakage can be something that you would find to have a huge impact on your water bill. A leaking faucet is something that you should never ignore. 

dripping faucet

Even a typical drip of just 10 drips per minute can cause around one gallon per day. This can be equivalent to 30 gallons per month. That should explain why a dripping faucet can increase the water bill. The extra or additional cost can reach up to $20 per month or $250 per year.

Can a Dripping Faucet Increase Water Bill?

As per the study conducted by experts in the industry, a leaking faucet can increase the water bill by around 10% or so for most households. Everyone thinks that those tiny drops from the faucet would not cost you that much. The drips from the faucet do run the water and it is bound to add to your total water consumption. 

There have been studies that have indicated that a dripping faucet can waste 5,500 litres of water a year. The exact amount that would be charged to you would be based on the amount of water being wasted. With the assumption of 10 drops a minute, it would be a gallon per day. Imagine the amount of water wasted and the way it can increase your bill if the drops tend to be 30 per minute or so. Using high-quality kitchen faucets can be what would help you avoid leakage altogether. 

What Causes a Leaky Faucet to Drip?

The primary reason for the leaky faucet drip can be the worn out washer or gasket. It can also be caused due to a loose O ring or even corrosion in the valve seat. These issues can be easily detected and can be fixed right away. 

Every time you turn the faucet, the washer bounces against the valve seat and this keeps damaging it. This will make the washer to wear out. Yet another reason that can further increase the issue can be an improper installation of the new washer. If the new washer you bought is of wrong size or has not been installed properly, it would contribute to the continued leakage. 

Apart from the corrosion in the valve seat, an issue in the base of the faucet can also cause the error. 

What Else Can Cause Water Bills to Be High?

Apart from the high leaky faucet, the other reasons that can cause the water bills to be so high can include the running water from your toilet. A continuous running toilet can waste water for up to 200 gallons a day. This can cause a huge increase in your water bill. 

The prime reasons that will result in high water bills do include:

Leaky toilets: A leaky or running toilet can cause water wastage of up to 5000 to 6000 gallons per month and that would be equivalent to hundreds of dollars increase in your water bill. It is a result of caused by the faulty flapper in the toilet. 

Leaky faucets and fixtures: Leaky faucets and fixtures can be the second reason that can cause a high water bill. A heavy leak would translate into more water loss, and consequently a bloated water bill. A faucet that drips just one drop per minute can cost 15 to 20 gallons per day. 

Leaky washing machines and other equipment: Your washing machine could be leaking. It can also be a result of other equipment that may be leaking. Most of the time, we do not notice the leakage and end up with water wastage that increases your water bill. 

A powerful flush: The powerful flush can also be a possible reason for a high water bill. The powerful flush works best for removing all the waste easily. But, if you are on a tight budget, this water bill increase can prove to be a little difficult to handle. Avoid flushing the toilet if you are just peeing. 

Water softeners and water heaters: Water softeners and water heaters are a few of the means to help you in getting good use of the water. If you have a loose connection with this equipment, it would be a cause of the leaky connections and subsequently a leaky water outlet. This can cause a high water bill. 

Water wasting habits: Some of the behavioural habits can be the cause of high water bills. Some of these habits can include:

 

  • Use of top-loading washing machines. They consume 200% more water than the front-loading machines 
  • Use of the washing machines for half or quarter loads. A full load of laundry can save water 
  • Overwatering of lawns and the use of recreational toys that consume heavy water 
  • Washing the dishes by hand can consume a huge amount of water 
  • Keeping the water flowing when brushing teeth or shaving

Avoiding a few of these bad habits can also help you avoid water wastage and subsequent increases in your water bills. 

The Difference Between Dripping Faucets And Draining Faucets?

A draining faucet can consume or waste a lot of water, as opposed to a dripping faucet that does not waste that much amount of water. The faucet is one of the most widely used means for watering plants, wash dishes and a host of other tasks. 

While fixing the dripping faucet can be quite easy as it would involve fixing or replacing the gasket or O ring in most cases. The costs involved in fixing a dripping faucet may be much lower. In sharp contrast, the costs involved in fixing the draining faucets can be quite expensive. It can also indicate a huge number of plumbing problems. 

How Much Does a Leaky Faucet Cost?

The drip calculator from the United States Geological Study can be the best pick to help you estimate the amount of water lost due to a faulty faucet. You can easily calculate the actual result of the pipe leakages. 

How Much Does a Leaky Faucet Cost

As per the calculator, the wastage due to drips can be calculated as:

 

  • One gallon = 15,140 drips
  • One liter = 4,000 drips

Imagine you have a faucet that drips at a quite slower rate, the common rate would be 10 drips per minute. That would be equivalent to three litres of water per day. The water wastage would be around 90 to 100 litres per month and 350 gallons per year. 

A faster drip per minute can make it around 20 litres of water per day and 2000 gallons per month. You can make use of the drip calculator above to arrive at the right calculations to arrive at how much water is wasted by the leaky faucet in 1 day. 

How Much Money Do You Lose From A Leaky Faucet?

Is a dripping faucet expensive? The water bills are calculated on the basis of the volume of use, and if you have 1000 gallons of water being wasted in a month, you are likely to incur a cost of around $20 a month or $250 a year. 

The calculations would ideally be dependent on the amount of water you use. The actual cost would be dependent on the leaks due to the drips per minute. The cost would be around $60 per minute if the drops are 30 or more. 

The Concluding Thoughts

If you are wondering if a dripping faucet increases the water bill, the ideas and tips that we have outlined in the above discussion should be helpful in providing you access to an enhanced degree of experience in fixing the issues more comfortably. Make sure that the dripping faucet is handled right in time and that can help you in fixing the issues and then address the water wastage in a more comfortable manner. 

A Few FAQs


Does a dripping tap use a lot of water?

A dripping faucet can waste a lot of water. It would largely be helpful in understanding how much water does the faucet use and how much money it adds to the water bill.

How much water can be wasted from a dripping tap?

A dripping faucet can on average waste around one to two gallons of water per day. It can equal about 250 gallons per month. It is advisable to pay enough attention to the proper fixes to address the water leakage.

About the author

Atish Ranjan

Atish Ranjan is the founder of WaterBrower. The water-related problems faced by him in his childhood led him to take this kind initiative to help many others who might be facing similar problems. He has been into research and water testing wherein he has found great water treatment solutions in different regions of the world. This blog is about everything that he has learnt during this study. Hope it helps many:)

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