Most parents get pretty excited over potty training their kids. Diapers and pull-ups take a nice chunk of change out of your wallet every month and they have a negative impact on the environment. Besides, who really enjoys the unpleasantness of changing diapers?! I, personally, was ecstatic when my son showed interest in potty training and was his biggest cheerleader. Now, I'd like to be your cheerleader and potty train you!
O.K., so maybe not that kind of potty training, but in my opinion this one is just as important.
Before I started my construction company, I was a stay-at-home-mom. Carson and I would spend a lot of our time downstairs in our home, where there is a small 1/2 bath. Throughout the day, I would hear the toilet in the bathroom re-fill itself about every 5 minutes. It got on my nerves a little, but I didn't really think too much about it. It wasn't that loud, so it couldn't be hurting much, right? Then, I came across my water bill. DUHN DUHN DUHN
I was shocked!!! My water bill is usually around $35-$45. How in the world could my water bill be close to $100???!!! After my initial reaction, I came back to reality and thought to myself, I knew I should have fixed that toilet.
I had to do some investigating to find out what was causing the toilet to leak. After removing the top of the tank and inspecting the guts of my potty, I noticed that the flapper at the bottom of the tank wasn't fitting exactly right. I took it off to get a closer look and it was warped. (These small inexpensive parts are inexpensive and often don't last more than a year or so) This, in turn, prompted a trip to the local home improvement store for a replacement.
If you only get one thing out of this post, let it be this; Bring the part or the part number with you! Yes, I learned this the hard way and got to make two trips to my favorite store. The second time around, I got the correct part and went home and within 2 minutes, it was installed.
The flapper installs by simply snapping it in place.
Do NOT Fear! The tank area of the potty is probably the cleanest part of the whole thing. The tank is where the clean water comes in and remains until it is flushed down into the toilet. There are a lot of parts in here including the flapper, probably a chain, and a floater (black thing that looks like a ball). These are all cheap and easily replaceable.
If you hear strange noises coming from your bathroom, do a quick inspection of the tank of the toilet and see if these items appear to be in good condition. If they don't, go ahead and replace them and save yourself the headache of an outrageous bill.
I would bet that some of you reading are saying, 'this doesn't apply to me because I have well water.' Actually, you have an even larger reason to be concerned with a running commode. There is a pump in your well that brings the water into your home and a septic tank that holds everything that leaves. Over time, your well pump will wear out. If it is constantly running, its lifespan with be greatly reduced due to over usage. You're also more likely to have issues with your septic system. Want a round-about figure of what it costs to repair/replace your pump and septic system? Start with $2500, if you "know somebody" and expect to go up from there.
I'm happy to report that after replacing the flapper, my water bill was back to its normal $35 and that Carson has been doing really well with his potty training also. With the money I'm not spending on a high water bill and diapers, I'm bound to be able to afford those new shoes... for my car.
