In California, drought means home improvement

In a state were more than 98% of the area is affected by drought, the EPA encourages Fix a Leak Week.

The average American family could be wasting more than 10,000 gallons of water each year due to easy-to-fix household leaks, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) WaterSense program. That amount of water could increase a water bill by as much as 10 percent while wasting precious resources. That’s why EPA is encouraging consumers to participate in WaterSense’s seventh annual Fix a Leak Week, March 16 through 22, 2015, by finding and fixing leaks around the home.

If every household in California lost as much as 10,000 gallons of water per year to leaks, residents would be, cumulatively, spending more than $1.27 billion dollars on water lost to easily detectible and fixable leaks. California is facing one of the most severe droughts on record. According to the U.S. drought monitor’s March 3 report, over 98% of the state is experiencing drought conditions.

“During a severe drought, finding ways to conserve our precious water is everyone’s responsibility,” said Jared Blumenfeld, EPA’s regional administrator for the Pacific Southwest. “Household leaks in California may account for 137 billion gallons of water wasted each year.”

One of the EPA’s recommendations bodes well for home improvement spending: “Fix dripping pipes, fixtures, or hoses by using a wrench to twist and tighten the connections. If needed, pipe tape can help seal shower fixtures or hose connections.”