help with sewer bill

[gride300]

i've lived in a rental house for a month and got my first bill. it was 114.00 and 78 of that was sewer charge. i thought i had a gas leak and the gas man said i need a new high pressure valve on my water heater(would hear it occasionally). would this be the main culprit in my high sewer bill? i am the only person who lives here and honestly don't shower everyday and when i do it's 5-8 minutes max. toilets don't seem to be filling when just sitting and haven't seen any leaks in any faucets.

[cedarcreek216]

Unless you're heating the water that goes to your toilet the valve on the water heater has nothing to do with your sewer bill. Again, different locations can be different, but I've built buildings all over the country and it's pretty much common every where that you have domestic and sanitary water, billed separately. Domestic would be what is potable, or used in sink, shower and refrigerator. Sanitary being what would be used for your toilet. You may have a leak between your meter and your house, but the odds of that would be slim. Are you sure they did not have admin fees or hook up fees on that bill causing it to be abnormaly high? I would tell your landlord and have them look into it, the perk of being a renter is it's not your problem.

[gride300]

ya i already paid the hook up fee and what not. water bill of about 34 and sewer about 77. would it be better to have the h20 company come look or call a plumber?

[gride300]

going to ace tomorrow to get a new flapper. has a much better shape and what not. should do the trick i hope. only 9.99

[cedarcreek216]

That makes a little more sense, if your toilet is constantly running and refilling the flush tank with out being flushed, that could be a reason your sewer bill is higher than it should be.

[Paublo]

I've never heard of them measuring the sewer flow and billing you. What is normally done is charge for sewer based on water useage. In AZ they take the water useage for what should be the 3 months with the least water used for landscaping ( Jan, Feb, Mar) and that becomes the basis for your sewer bill.

Maybe the previous renter was a high water user and now you are getting nailed with a corrresponding sewer bill even though your water use is low. Call the utility and make them explain what is going on.

[swooddc]

Thats what they do in birmingham too, sewer is based on water usage. If you are filling a pool, or have a water leak they will take a little off the sewer charge if you call them.

[harddock]

here the water is metered and the sewer rate is about 2 or 2.5 times the water usage rate.
Some folks get a seperate meter for outside water to wash cars, and sprinkle the lawn which is exempt from the sewer charge. A toilet can trickle a bill into outragious fees.