How to Check for Leaks

A leaky toilet is the most common indoor leak. We recommend checking your toilet for leaks at least twice a year by using either a few drops of dark food coloring or leak detection dye tablets.

How to test your toilet for leaks¶

1. Remove the lid from the tank of the toilet.
2. Drop in one or two dye tablets, or at least five drops of food coloring into the tank of the toilet. Don't flush!
3. Wait about 15 minutes, then check the water in the toilet bowl. If there is color in the bowl, then there is a leak in the toilet tank, and the culprit may be the flapper or the valve.

Tampa Water Department customers can request a free frugal-flush flapper. This flapper may fit most, but not all toilets.

Once you are ready to replace your flapper, you can follow this simple step-by-step video (0:51). After replacing the flapper, perform the leak test again following the steps above to make sure the flapper is fitted properly.  

If your toilet is beyond repair, you may be eligible to receive up to a $100 toilet rebate for replacing your old toilet with a high-efficiency, EPA WaterSense-labeled toilet.

Check your bathtub, bathroom sink, and kitchen sink faucets for leaks every so often. According to the EPA, a faucet dripping at one drop per second can waste more than 3,000 gallons per year. 

Besides dripping coming from the faucet, visually inspect the water pipes under the sink that connect to the faucet, and feel for moisture. Pipes passing through walls can leak. Look for signs of water damage on walls behind faucets.

Tampa Water Department customers can request a free indoor water conservation kit which includes water-efficient, low-flow aerators for bathroom and kitchen sink faucets. Once you are ready to replace your faucet aerators, you can follow this simple step-by-step video (0:45).

Check your showerheads for leaks every so often. According to the EPA, a showerhead dripping at 10 drips per minute can waste more than 500 gallons per year.

Besides dripping coming from the showerhead, pipes passing through walls can leak. Look for signs of water damage on walls behind showers.

Tampa Water Department customers can request a free indoor water conservation kit which includes a high-efficiency showerhead. Once you are ready to replace it, you can follow this simple step-by-step video (0:47).

If you have a water softener, find the valve to switch it to bypass the water softener. 

Re-check the red triangle on your water meter. If it stopped spinning, your water softener has a leak.

1. Visually inspect all water connections points. This is where water lines connect to all water appliances.
2. Check for pooling water under your sinks, around your dishwasher, refrigerator with an ice maker, your water heater, and your washing machine.
3. Check your walls for wet spots, soft spots, cool spots, mold, discoloration, and bubbling paint.
4. Listen for dripping or spraying sounds.

Irrigation leaks can occur in many places. Routine inspection often starts at the irrigation controller and continue throughout the irrigation system. A basic investigation runs each zone for 2 minutes so that you can do a walkthrough and observe all areas of each zone (make sure each zone turns on and off). 

What to Look for¶

• Broken sprinkler heads
• Puddles at the base of a sprinkler head
• Puddles as you walk from one sprinkler head to the next
• Bubbling through the ground
• Sand around the sprinkler head which could indicate an underground leak
• Sprinkler heads that are pointed at buildings, sidewalks, and driveways
• Flows of water from sprinklers going down the storm drain

You are allowed to run your sprinkler system to check for leaks no more than 10 minutes per zone, once a week. However, you must be visible from the street while you are running the system to avoid a water use citation.

Please note: Increasing your watering run times can look like a leak on your monthly utility bill. Increasing run times by 10 minutes can increase your water use dramatically, as well as your utility bill. 

Visually inspect the connections for all your water devices and appliances, including outdoor spigots, to look for drips or other obvious signs of a leak.

DIY Leak Test¶

It’s important to periodically test for leaks in the pool by performing an evaporation bucket test. 

1. On a day without rain or heavy winds, shut down all pool systems (i.e. filtration systems, pool cleaners, automatic refill devices, etc.), and close the pool for 24-72 hours.
2. Fill a 2.5- to 5-gallon bucket to about 1 inch from the top and set the bucket in the pool (on a bench or step) such that at least two-thirds of the bucket is submerged in the pool, and the bucket water level is a little higher than the pool level.
3. Mark the initial water level within the bucket with a marker, piece of tape, or by using a ruler to record the distance from the top of the bucket. Mark/measure the initial height of the still pool water the same way.
4. Leave the bucket for 24-72 hours, then re-record the pool and bucket water levels. If pool water loss is greater than bucket water loss, the pool may have a leak.

Equipment Malfunction¶

A pool's automatic refill device can malfunction. These devices have settings that help you manage how often you re-fill the pool. Make sure to check this device periodically, even after a power outage or power surge, to make sure it's working properly.

Remember: It takes about 600 gallons to fill up an average pool by 2 inches. By checking your auto refill device, you can help prevent leaks that waste water and money.

Please note that not all pools have an auto refill device.

Resources¶

• EPA’s Jump into Pool Water Efficiency
• Video: Identifying pool leaks (1:29)