How to Check for Water Leaks

Toilet leaks are often silent and can easily go undetected. To check for a leak, place a dye tablet, food colouring, or finely ground pepper, and wait 15 minutes. If the water in the bowl is coloured, or pepper has appeared, it means that the flapper valve in the tank is failing to seal.

A drip from a faucet or showerhead can add up over time. Look for a loose connection between the showerhead and pipe, worn thread tape, or worn O-rings.

Age, use, and winter conditions can affect your irrigation system. Look for:

• Damage to the springs.
• Leaks at the joints between the sprinklers and the piping.
• Heads that do not fully pop up or are tilted.
• Loose connections between valves and other components.

• A leaking service line can be difficult to detect. You can look for wet or soggy areas on your lawn, patches of grass that are unusually green, or a septic tank that fills quickly, or constant water flow into a ditch or from a drainage line – these markers can help you identify the location of a leak.
• If you have a water meter, another detection method is to hold a metal object to the water meter shut-off and listen with your ear pressed to it – the sound of water hissing indicates that the leak is nearby.