According to the EPA, US homes waste 1 trillion gallons each year from leaks (Photo courtesy of the EPA)
Today begins “Fix a Leak Week.” It’s probably not in your calendar. It’s a new effort from the US EPA to encourage people to take a closer look at their plumbing. Tamara Keith reports:
Transcript
Today begins “Fix a Leak Week.” It’s probably not in your calendar. It’s a new effort from the US EPA to encourage people to take a closer look at their plumbing. Tamara Keith reports:
(sound of dripping)
It turns out that drip drip drip of a leaky faucet can really add up.
(sound of toilet running)
A running toilet can waste up to 200 gallons a day.
Michael Shapiro heads the water division at the EPA.
“A typical home will leak up to 11,000 gallons a year. About the amount of water that will fit into a home swimming pool, for example.”
Most people can handle doing the repairs themselves. Jim Loviss is the plumbing manager at Strosneiders Hardware in Bethesda, Maryland.
“Sometimes it’s a washer, sometimes it’s a hose or a supply tube. Most times it’s simple. It’s being able to shut the water off and find out where the problem is and solve it.”
But, he’s not expecting a rush on washers and toilet flappers just because the EPA has declared it “Fix A Leak Week.”
For The Environment Report, I’m Tamara Keith.