How to look for household water leaks, easily repair a leaking toilet and report a broken water line are among the tips that DWS will post weekdays starting March 15 on its website, www.hawaiidws.org, and on Facebook. Additional flyers will explain how to turn off a water meter before repairing household plumbing and the proper way to install a low-flow shower head.
To help prevent the spread of COVID-19, DWS has suspended previous in-person distribution of free dye tablets used to identify toilet leaks. The low-cost tablets are available locally and through online vendors.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has sponsored the annual Fix-a-Leak Week events since 2009 as a way of highlighting areas where water waste is commonplace inside many homes, outdoor areas and workplaces. The EPA estimates 10 percent of American homes have water leaks that waste at least 90 gallons of water each day. Common leaks can come from worn toilet flappers, dripping faucets or broken irrigation lines. “Household leaks can waste nearly 1 trillion gallons of water annually nationwide, so each year we hunt down the drips during Fix-a-Leak Week,” the EPA adds on its website that offers additional conservation tips and activities, www.epa.gov/watersense/fix-a-leak-week#:.
Founded in 1949, the Department of Water Supply is a semi-autonomous agency of the County of Hawai‘i whose mission is to provide customers with an adequate and continuous supply of safe drinking water through the operation of its 23 separate public water systems.