High water bill in Santa Ana? Finding the leak

Multiple buildings, one meter

Many Santa Ana lots have more than one structure on one meter: a converted garage, a granny flat, a rear house. Each adds a pipe run, often buried across the yard. When the bill jumps, the leak can be in any of them. A plumber will usually start by closing the valve to each building in turn and watching the meter to see which one stops it.

The usual suspects, in order

1. 1

   Toilets

   Dye-test every tank, including the ones in back units.

2. 2

   Irrigation and hose bibs

   Check for broken heads, stuck valves, and outdoor taps left dripping.

3. 3

   Lines to back units

   Look for a wet or extra-green strip between buildings.

4. 4

   Under the house

   In raised-foundation homes, check the crawlspace for wet soil; in slab homes, feel for warm floors.

Older pipe, older problems

Galvanised steel still turns up in parts of older Santa Ana homes. It tends to leak at threaded joints and rusts from the inside, so a galvanised leak is often the first of several. In slab homes from the 1950s and 1960s, a slab leak is the most likely hidden source.

Bill relief

Santa Ana's water utility bills residents directly. Once the leak is repaired, ask customer service whether a leak adjustment is available and what documentation they need.

What a plumber does next

Most hidden leaks in Santa Ana homes are found within one to two hours once the simple causes are ruled out.

1. 1

   Isolate each building

   Valves to the main house and any rear unit are closed in turn while the meter is watched.

2. 2

   Pressure-test the leaking side

   A gauge on a hose bib shows how quickly pressure drops.

3. 3

   Check the obvious places

   Crawlspace, water heater, toilets and exposed pipe are inspected.

4. 4

   Locate with equipment

   Thermal and acoustic tools pinpoint leaks under slabs, in walls or along buried lines.