We are perplexed about something…You can help. Why are we using more water than in previous years?
Picking a recent date of Dec. 17 just as an example, here are the gallons used and a
comparison to previous years. We would expect a use of 3,000 to 5,000 gallons per day in winter.
Dec. 17, 2023 we used 6750 gallons
Dec. 17, 2022 we used 5335 gallons
Dec. 17, 2021 we used 3815 gallons
Dec. 17 2020 we used 3540 gallons
This increase in water use costs Timber Valley an additional $600-800 per month! This is a hit to the Timber Valley bottom line.
Does anyone have any ideas why? We should all be on the lookout for hoses and hose splitters leaking, even on un-occupied lots. Please insulate your water supply hoses, and avoid “letting the faucet drip” to prevent freezing.
If anyone has any thoughts on why we are using more water please inform the office.
Thank You,
Your Water Monitor Team
202
Not there now. But sounds like we have a leak somewhere.
Same thing happened to a property (not at Jojoba) down here and the water department made an investigation for leaks and meters and adjusted the high water bills.
When was the last time the water flow meter was calibrated?? The city should have a scheduled calibration for the flow meter. If not they should replace it. Were the same number of people or units in the park each December. Maybe it is time to meter each lot. Has each lot and park been inspected for water leakage all that water has to be going somewhere. What if you turned off all water to the park downstream from the meter for a short period of time, then monitor the meter or shut off each major water line, one at a time and monitor the flow meter,that would give an indication what line is using the most water. Wishing you luck.
Same points, exactly! Especially “maybe it’s time to meter each lot.” I once lived in a community of about 300 homes, and water management had become quite a pain. Whilst many homeowners used water carefully even if they weren’t being charged for it, others used water like it was going out of style. Some folks used their water hoses to clean the streets in front of their lots. One loved to bath his dogs every day (and he had half a dozen LARGE hairy dogs!). And so on.
The homeowners association formed a task force to address the water situation. We took the water consumption for a year (so all seasons were considered), got the average per household, computed a reasonable flat rate, etc. Needless to say, there were objections, especially since the association didn’t have funds to pay for the water meters and installation so homeowners had to shell out the money themselves. If TV decides to go this route, perhaps these costs could be absorbed by the park, or added to the annual assessment.
Michelle
Seems like the last time we heard about this, someone had a stuck open toilet supply valve, the waste valve was open and he/she did heard it running. Maybe it’s time to walk around and use ears near the sewer hoses. It happened once, could happen again.
Well crumb. The end of that first sentence was supposed to say “he/she DIDN’T hear it running.”
I’m guessing there are still 150 lessees in the park at this time of year. Probably fewer? So that’s about 45 gallons per lot. Of course there could be leaks on lots not currently occupied. I’m quite sure I average 10 gallons or less a day and I have checked. No leaks. The system monitors use on an hourly basis, yes? What are the peak hours of use and the least hours of use? Chef Denis uses a bit more but I can’t imagine that explains it. People probably use less water in the winter? Obviously some people make no effort to minimize their use of water. Some people probably intentionally leave their faucets dripping even when there are no risks of freezing temperatures over night. Other recommendations are good and should be tried. Hopefully it’s not a problem under ground. If this problem persists, or gets worse, we should meter every lot – sorry it’ll cost some money but we’re already spending a lot of extra money every day with consumptions at this rate.
Dennis, based on the comments to this article, there are three of us who have raised the possibility of installing meters on each lot. While it will entail additional time and cost at the onset, long term benefits will most likely outweigh the costs. Count me in if you want to pursue this further.
Do you think more members are using their builtin washing machines? I don’t have one so I don’t know how much water they use. Just a thought.