Water Drop Dash 5K Race Helps Promote Water Conservation During Fix-a-Leak Week

Posted on: Mar 08, 2016

Register now for the Water Drop Dash 5K, which takes place on Saturday, March 19 along the picturesque banks of the Chattahoochee River in Roswell. The 4^th annual race helps the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District mark Fix a Leak Week (March 14-20).

The morning’s activities include a Kid’s Fun Run with mascots. After the 5K race, the whole family can enjoy a Water Festival featuring games, face painting and giveaways such as shower timers and outdoor conservation kits.

Join the fun, and learn how to check your plumbing fixtures for leaks and other water saving tips.

You already know that if your toilet is running or your faucets are leaking, you are wasting water and money. But you’ll probably never guess how quickly those leaks can add up.

An average household wastes 10,000 gallons of water each year due to leaks – equivalent to the water a typical family needs to wash laundry for 10 months.

To help promote water conservation through leak reductions, the Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District is once again participating in the EPA’s Fix a Leak Week, which starts on March 14.

During the week, the Metro Water District will share water-saving tips and encourage homeowners to find and fix leaks in household plumbing fixtures and irrigation systems.

Make time to check, twist and replace during Fix a Leak Week:

CHECK for leaks. Look for dripping faucets, showerheads, sprinklers and other fixtures. Check for toilets with silent leaks by putting a few drops of food coloring into the tank, waiting 10 minutes to see if color appears in the bowl before you flush. If you see color, you’ve got a leak. Don’t forget to check irrigation systems and spigots, too.
TWIST on a new aerator. To use less water without a noticeable difference in flow, install a WaterSense labeled aerator on your bathroom faucet. Also, make sure to tighten hose and pipe connections.
REPLACE the fixture if necessary. An old or worn–out rubber flapper is a common reason why toilets leak. Replacing one can be as quick and easy as bringing the old flapper to the home improvement store for comparison when purchasing a new one, and following an online tutorial or the directions of your local hardware store retailer. If you are replacing leaky faucets or showerheads, be sure to purchase WaterSense labeled models, which are independently certified to use 20 percent less water and perform as well as or better than standard models.

For more tips on how to conserve water, visit www.mydropcounts.org