High Water Bill Leak Investigation
Find out where the water on a surprise bill is actually going, and fix it if it's a buried leak.
The most common way a Kitsap homeowner learns about an underground leak is a water bill. The City of Bremerton, Silverdale Water District, Kitsap PUD or whoever serves you sends a bill that is two or three times normal, there is no obvious reason, and sometimes there is a note from the utility saying continuous usage was detected. The utility's responsibility ends at the meter, so they can tell you water is going through it but not where it ends up. That's where we come in.
A high bill investigation starts at the meter. With every fixture in the house closed, we read the low-flow indicator and time the meter to get a real number for how much water is leaving. Then we isolate the house at the main shutoff. If the meter keeps moving with the house isolated, the loss is on the buried service line between the meter and the house, and we go to work with acoustic equipment and a correlator to pinpoint it. If the meter stops, the loss is inside the house or on an irrigation branch, and we tell you that honestly so you can get the right trade involved.
A surprising number of these calls turn out to be irrigation: a cracked mainline, a stuck valve, a drip zone that never shuts off. We locate on irrigation systems too. The rest are usually service-line leaks on older copper, galvanized, polybutylene or early polyethylene that have been running for months in ground that drains well enough to hide them. Either way you get a clear answer and, if it's a buried line, a repair from the same crew.
Many utilities will adjust a bill once for a repaired leak if you provide documentation. We give you a written description of what we found and what was done so you can submit it.
When you need high water bill investigation
- A bill that is well above your normal seasonal usage
- A notice from the utility about continuous or unusual usage
- The meter's leak indicator moving with everything shut off
- A well pump running far more than it used to
- No visible water anywhere, which is normal in well-draining soil
How the job goes
- Meter test. Everything closed, low-flow indicator read, flow timed. We quantify the loss before we hunt for it.
- Isolate the house. Main shutoff closed. If the meter still moves, the leak is on the buried line. If it stops, it's indoors or on irrigation.
- Check irrigation. Irrigation branches are isolated and tested separately, because they are the culprit more often than people expect.
- Locate. Acoustic ground microphone and correlator along the traced service line to pinpoint the break.
- Report. A clear written description of what we found, where, and what it will take to fix.
- Repair. If it's a buried line, the same crew opens the ground, repairs or replaces, and restores the surface.
Equipment and materials
- Meter flow timing and low-flow indicator reading
- Acoustic ground microphone and correlator
- Pipe locator
- Pressure gauges and isolation fittings
What shapes the scope
Every property is different, and these are the things that decide whether a job is a quick morning or a full day. We'll tell you which it is before we start.
- Whether the loss is on the service line, indoors or on irrigation
- Length and route of the service line
- Pipe material and depth
- Whether the leak is large enough to hear easily or small and slow
High Water Bill Leak Investigation on real Kitsap jobs
High Water Bill Leak Investigation across the peninsula
Each community page covers what the local ground, water utility and housing stock mean for this work.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Bremerton
The shipyard city's older galvanized lines fail quietly and show up as a wet lawn or a water bill nobody can explain.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Silverdale
The 1980s and 90s subdivision boom around the mall left thousands of polybutylene service lines that are now failing on schedule.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Port Orchard
The county seat's hillside lots and clay soils turn small leaks into slope problems, and long rural runs hide breaks for months.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Poulsbo
Little Norway's mix of century-old downtown lines and fast-draining bay-side outwash means leaks hide well and fail suddenly.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Bainbridge Island
Clay soils and 500-foot driveways make island leaks slow to surface and expensive to guess at, which is why we locate before we dig.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Kingston
Ferry-town acreage with long wooded service runs where a leak can hide under hardpan for an entire winter.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Keyport
A century-old Navy village with short lots, old lines and shoreline clay that keeps everything damp.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Tracyton
Bluff-side lots over Dyes Inlet where seeps and springs make it easy to mistake groundwater for a leak and vice versa.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Hansville
Beach cabins at the tip of the peninsula with shallow lines, high water tables and a long drive for anyone who isn't already in Kitsap.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Indianola
A century-old summer colony where shared lines, easements and bluff clay make leaks a neighborhood puzzle.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Suquamish
Two utilities, mixed-era housing and Agate Pass shoreline clay in the heart of the Port Madison reservation.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Manchester
Rich Passage waterfront lots where the service line runs downhill and every leak finds the beach.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Enetai
East Bremerton's bluff-side neighborhood where mid-century copper lines fail on slopes that drain toward the bay.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Lofall
Rural acreage between Poulsbo and the Hood Canal Bridge where well lines run hundreds of feet through hardpan.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Olalla
Well country at the south end of Kitsap where a leaking line shows up as a pump that won't shut off.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Seabeck
Hood Canal forest parcels where boulders, hardpan and long well lines make guessing at a leak an expensive mistake.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in East Port Orchard
South Kitsap's 1970s and 80s subdivisions where copper and poly lines are reaching the end of their run.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Rollingbay
The northeast corner of Bainbridge where clay slopes, long drives and small community systems keep leaks hidden for seasons.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation in Port Townsend
A Victorian seaport where 1890s service lines sit under historic sidewalks and the gravity pipeline from the Quilcene delivers the water.
High Water Bill Leak Investigation: common questions
The utility said the leak is on my side. What does that mean?
Will the utility reduce my bill?
What if the leak is inside the house?
Services that often go together
Underground Water Leak Detection
Acoustic and correlator leak detection that pinpoints a buried water line break before anyone digs.
Read more →Irrigation Leak Detection
Locate and repair buried leaks on irrigation mainlines, laterals and valve boxes without digging up the whole system.
Read more →
Water Line Repair
Spot repair of a broken or leaking underground water service line, from excavation to restoration.
Read more →Something underground isn't right?
We answer 24 hours a day. We locate before we dig, and we handle the whole job with our own crew and equipment.