how do you figure up your water bill and how do you save money it?

Question

I am planning on moving to a one bedroom apartment that is small. At first the water was included into the rent now it is not. I might asked if the rent can be adjusted.

If the rate is $1.87 for the first 15 ccf and over 15 ccf at 2.85 with a meter size of 5/8 inch and a base rate of 10.90? what is normal average amount the bill should be? Not sure how much cooking I would be doing with water and how often I would flush the toilet. If I took a 15 minute shower (not bath) for 30 days with a low grade shower head (one that doesn't spew out a lot of water)

When you flush the toilet is sewage everything that goes down the toilet besides the water? Is sewage also anything that goes down the drain or garbage disposal besides the water?

If you live alone and aren't expecting any guests is it ok not to flush sometimes (only if its #1 not #2).

If you place a half gallon jug in the toilet bin behind where you sit to displace water does it really save money?

Answer 1

My bf and I live in a 2 bedroom with a washer/dryer and dishwasher. We pay for water and sewer and it's right around $30 a month. And he takes long showers! :)

Answer 2

Water isn't usually a big expense, worry more about power if that's not included. But to answer your questions:

- I'm billed every other month and it hasn't gone over $30 bimonthly. It's me, my wife, and our baby.

- I take 20 min showers, worry more about how that will affect your hot water bill (electrical or gas).

- Sewage is everything that exits the building, water is everything that comes in. So if it goes down a drain, water or not, (toilet drain, shower drain, sink drain) it's sewage.

- For the sake of saving the environment, it's a very good idea to flush only when neccesary. Do it whether everyone else does it or not.

- The half gallon jug in the toilet tank only works if it's an old tank that's not up to the new standards. These tanks were usually about 5-6 gallons. The new ones are about 2.5 gallons per flush, and any less and your #2's won't go down very easily. I'm going to think an apt building will have newer toilets.

The #1 usage of water is for the toilet (surprise, not the shower). So that's where you'll save the most on water.

Answer 3

Don't worry about the water much. A CCF is 100 cubic feet of water or 715 gallons. If you used 40 gallons on a shower it would empty your water tank so you won't use more than 2 ccf for a month if you don't do laundry or wash cars. The fees on the water bill will be more than the usage, the cost to heat the water will be more than they usage. Your entire water bill will be less than $20 a month probably. You may never go over your base rate so 10.90 plus taxes, fees and more taxes and fees.

Answer 4

Living in a country where water is scarce, we used to store water in a plastic drum, jugs, big pails etc. When washing our clothes we save the water from the machine and used that to flush the toilet. The clean water that comes outs while rinsing in the machine we used for watering the plants. In that way we were able to save water. Goodluck!

Answer 5

Hit your power AND your water company's websites. They'll very likely have answers and suggestions for your questions there. My power company will, in certain cases, come to a person's home to tell them ALL the ways they can conserve both water and energy.