Next thoughts, "who's been taking the super long showers?" and "are we just running more laundry loads now the kids are bigger?" But the jump in water usage happened in just one billing cycle, so that's likely not the cause.
So, I went online and googled "water bill high". Enlightening, to say the least, and memory jogging. We actually did use all the water they said we did, and here's how.
One of the questions they ask is "did you have a house guest during this billing cycle?" Answer -- yes, my father-in-law, for one week. On average, an individual uses between 40 and 80 gallons of water a day. It isn't that they're taking super long showers. But just the additional laundry, extra water used in cooking and consumption, the dishes to be washed, toilet and sink use, combined with showers/bathing. It all adds up.
Now, I do not, for one second, regret having my father-in-law stay with us that week. And actually, with all of our water usage this summer, even the excess, I do not regret a drop. This post is merely to explain how much water can be used.
Next question, "did you fill a swimming pool?" Uh, guilty! We have a pop up swimming pool, about 15 feet in diameter and 3 feet deep. Yes, it uses a lot of water to fill it, compounded by a leak that occurred and we had to top off the water a second time. Your typical hose, (1/2 inch diameter) delivers about 600 gallons of water per 24 hour day. We had our hose running for about 24 hours, maybe a bit more, due to the leak for which we had to refill the top few inches of our pool. But the pool has been used a lot, and added to our enjoyment of the summer.
"Did you run a pressure washer?" Ooops, well. . .um. . .yes. Remember the driveway refinishing project of last month? Before it could be caulked, patched and resealed, it had to be cleaned. The pressure washer ran for about 9 hours that day. Our driveway had years, and years of moss built up on it. A pressure washer uses about 4 gallons of water per minute. Multiply that by 9 hours, and washing our driveway used 2160 gallons of water!!! Oh, wow! I had no idea it would use that much water!
So, our water consumption, when compared to this same time last year, was about 3000 gallons more for same period this year, according to our bill. However, the pressure washing, the pool filling (no pool last year, too cold), and having a guest should have added 3180 gallons. In actuality, we did better in our water use, this year over last, if you factor out the water used for the driveway, pool and guest. So, I think I'm supposed to not feel so badly about the high bill. Sort of, well maybe. I guess I'm just bummed that I didn't plan ahead for this higher bill. I'd at least have been more prepared mentally for that shocker of a bill.
There are other causes for higher than usual water consumption, for your reference, should you get a surprise of a bill some month. Consider this:
- Running a lawn sprinkler for just 1 hour will use 400 gallons of water.
- If you have an automatic irrigation system, a leaky pipe underground can use up to 6300 extra gallons per month.
- A running toilet (one whose little flap in the tank fails to shut properly) will use an extra 1 gallon of water every minute, or 1440 gallons per day. Or if there something wrong with the shut-off valve or the float is set too high, and water continues to fill the tank and then pour into the overflow tube, 7000-8000 gallons of water can be poured right down the drain.
- Faucets and shower heads that drip can use 1000s of gallons per year, just in those little drips!
Information on water consumption from the city of Kirkland, WA, Dept. of Public Works
