Here is some Win-Win-Win advice: you can save money by lowing your water bill. You can enjoy a sense of accomplishment by learning a new, exciting skill that you can talk about at parties. You can feel the empowering satisfaction of moral superiority by contributing to a better world.

You can accomplish all of this by simply making sure your toilets are not leaking.

When a faucet or spigot is leaking, you can see the drips and puddles, but a toilet can leak for years without being noticed.

There are two types of toilet leaks: an overflowing tank and a leaking valve.

Overflowing Tank

If your toilet is never silent, it is probably overflowing. Inside the tank there is a plastic pipe that sticks straight up and is open at the top. If the water goes all the way to the top of that pipe, it is overflowing.

Leaking Valve

To see if the valve is leaking:
1) Put a few drops of a dark food coloring in the tank. If you don’t have food coloring on hand, you may use dye strips that are available for free from the WRA office.
2) Wait for an hour.
3) Look for food coloring in the bowl.

To see videos of how to fix a leak, go to http://www.youtube.com/ and search for “fix a leaking toilet”.