Dear LPG,

I have to applaud your daily posts and tell you that I find the variety of subjects covered really entertaining.  Some of the most interesting to me are the commemorative days celebrated around the world and I think that I have found one that is really worth acknowledging this week.

I would like to introduce LPG readers to ‘Fix-A-Leak Week’ which starts today and, although it is not one I have heard of before, apparently it originated in the USA about ten years ago by a government agency called the Environmental Protection Agency. 

I have found celebration suggestions such as fun-runs and other such events but suffice to say that taking a look around your home to make sure there are no leaks is the best way to do this.  I was surprised to find out just how much a dripping tap can affect the reading on your water meter and also how you can check if you have a leak even if you can’t see an obvious one. 

Taking a reading from the water metre and then taking another two hours later, having not used any water in the meantime, is a good way to find out if there is a leak that you have not noticed, and the internet also estimates that roughly 15,140 drips of water equals one gallon, ‘it does make you think.  I did a bit of maths and worked out that there are 86,400 seconds in a day, so even if a tap is dripping once every two seconds, it would be losing well over three gallons a day adding a substantial amount to the water bill.  

So although it is one of those odd celebrations from America, perhaps we should follow fashion in the UK because it would be good for the environment and also quite good for our pockets now that most of us are metered.

CT, Honor Oak

LPG thanks CT for finding something worth thinking about in the UK as well as the US, but suggests that, if you are not sure what you are doing you acknowledge this event by finding someone who does to take a look for you.

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