From a leaky toilet to dripping faucets, shower heads and sprinklers, a water leak can be disastrous to your home, not to mention costly. Simply twisting and tightening hose and pipe connections can save your home from the EPA estimation of 10,000 gallons of water wasted per household a year.
"Checking leaks and such, if you are a do it “yourselfer” a lot of the fixes are easy, it's tightening things,” said Peter Kostes, Public Information Officer for the State of Nevada’s Public Utilities Commission.
There are several ways to make sure leaks don't happen in your home including high tech water supply lines that automatically shut off when ruptured. There is even an anti-leak smart phone app.
"It's plugged in, it's powered and it sends through the Wi-Fi or Wink Hub where it sends it to your smart phone if it detects a leak or anything like that,” said Randy Dugan, Department Supervisor at The Home Depot on South Virginia Street in Reno.
Other ways to conserve water include the EPA’s "WaterSense" program where different fixtures or appliances are rated to save 20 percent more water than standard models. “WaterSense” products fill the shelves at The Home Depot.
"We have all different options. We have faucets in the bathroom, in the kitchen, all are EPA rated,” said Dugan.
Fixing your leak and conserving water is especially important in our area where the drought has entered its fifth year.
“Especially in our area a prolonged drought, water conservation is important. Simple fixes can save the consumers money so it is kind of a win-win,” said Kostes.
