Water leaks average nearly 10K gallons yearly per household; It’s time to ‘fix a leak’

Created by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and supported by WaterSense partners across the U.S. and Canada, Fix a Leak Week aims to raise awareness about water leaks and provide resources to help identify and repair  common household leaks. The EPA estimates that average household leaks can account for nearly 10,000 gallons of water wasted every year! Common leaks include worn toilet flaps, dripping faucets, or appliances. These types of leaks are often easy to fix, requiring only a few tools and hardware that can pay for themselves in water savings.

What can you do?

1. Check for leaks where you live. Use the EPA’s at-home checklist and read some tips below to help you find leaks:
• Check your water meter before and after a two-hour period when no water is being used. If the meter changes at all, you probably have a leak.
• Identify toilet leaks by placing a drop of food coloring in the toilet tank. If any color shows up in the bowl after 10 minutes, you have a leak. (Be sure to flush immediately after the experiment to avoid staining the tank.)
• Examine faucet gaskets and pipe fittings for any water on the outside of the pipe to check for surface leaks. Calculate the water waste of a dripping faucet using the American Water Works Association Drip Calculator. When replacing fixtures, consider those with a WaterSense label, which could increase your home’s water efficiency and lower your bill.

The EPA Fix a Leak Week page offers extensive resources, including video tutorials, to help you find and fix leaks. If you’ve already determined you have leaks and these resources aren’t enough to stop them, it might be time to contact a plumbing professional.

2. Share information. Share information about the importance of finding and fixing leaks with friends, family, or via your social media network. Visit EGLE’s  website for some suggested language and graphics to use on social media.

Upcoming Events

EGLE’s Local Leader webinar series is dedicated to helping Michigan’s local officials and community leaders gain a better understanding of EGLE and the environmental regulations that affect their communities. Each month, EGLE hosts a one-hour webinar that will tackle a topic of interest to local officials and community leaders throughout the state. These webinars cover environmental topics beyond drinking water and are a great source of information (and are recorded to watch when you’re able!). The next webinar is Beach Monitoring Protecting Your Beaches and Community on April 16.

Register now for Protecting your beaches

2026 Michigan Environmental Compliance Conference (June 9-10) is a major event hosted biennially by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE).  It is considered the premier compliance assistance event from EGLE, designed to help businesses, municipalities, and environmental professionals understand and comply with their environmental requirements in Michigan.

Register now for Environmental Compliance Conference

Drinking Water Week (May 3-9) is an annual awareness week we use to educate the public on where their drinking water comes from, how to learn about their water quality, and who to contact with questions. We also encourage our Clean Water Ambassadors to share information on social media and coordinate with community partners and events in their community to bring awareness to this week and its messages.