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Water app tracks laundry, lawns and possible leaks
By Gwyneth J. Saunders CONTRIBUTOR
If you think your water bill is high, it might not be due to your spending a whole day doing load after load of laundry. It might not be because your houseful of guests showered twice a day.
It could be from an undetected leak, but how would you know unless it spouted up in the middle of your lawn?
There’s an app for that.
EyeOnWater (EOW), which can be found in app stores, is one way Beaufort-Jasper Water & Sewer Authority can help customers detect a problem when the “gallons used” number does not match the activity in their homes.
Pamela Flasch, BJWSA spokesperson, said 13,072 customers are currently signed up for the app.
“If they have leak alerts set up, they will receive a leak notification,” she said. “It is extremely helpful to BJWSA. Since the usage is seen daily, it is easier to find and fix leaks before they escalate.”
BJWSA detects leaks as part of routine operations, Flasch said.
“Bills are analyzed monthly based upon specific thresholds. Once the threshold has been reached, coordinators check EOW,” she said. “If constant consumption is found, information is sent to the customer to check the property. This applies to both residential and commercial customers.”
Customer Service Manager Jane McCormick said there is no such thing as an “average” household water use.
“Everyone uses water differently. For example, some people shower twice daily, while others shower once daily, once weekly or other,” she said. “The same holds true for dish washing, laundry, lawn watering, etc. We all have different habits.”
Hence the authority’s monthly monitoring of usage, a process that has saved a number of customers money and grief. Once a leak is detected, its location determines who is responsible for repairs.
“If the leak is on the street side of the meter, we can send a technician out to investigate and repair if needed,” Flasch said. “If the leak is on the customer side of the meter, we can offer a partial leak adjustment off the one highest bill after repair has been made.”
Even without a leak, water bills can be high, especially this time of year when homeowners turn their attention to lawns and gardens. The water company once more is urging customers to regulate their irrigation by alternating days and avoiding high use hours.
Excessive watering can put a strain on the distribution system by reducing its water pressure, causing discolored water and low levels in water storage tanks. That reduced water pressure can potentially affect public safety, since it will impact fire hydrants and other fire suppression facilities.
BJWSA recommends not irrigating on Mondays or between the hours of 3 and 9 a.m. any day. Odd-numbered addresses are asked to water on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, while even-numbered addresses are asked to water on the other three days. To receive a free reminder sticker to place on an irrigation unit for your landscaper, visit bjwsa.org/irrigation-sticker-requests.
Gwyneth J. Saunders is a veteran journalist and freelance writer living in Bluffton.