Water usage/meter question--low usage?

Factual Questions
1

One of my rentals is a duplex with a yard with grass, trees, shrubs-I pay the water. 1 water meter for the property, but I get 2 charges for sewage + various excise taxes, about $50/mo. And 2 charges for trash, about $50/mon. (About $25/mon. for each unit)

Last month’s bill was $312–August in Phoenix, OK, I’m used to it.

This month–just over $100-showed that the 2 apts. combined used about 10 units of water.

No changes in tenants. 2 old ladies, both with caretakers in and out, 1 with a maid who doesn’t live in, but is there about 5 hrs. a day. I repeat, no changes.

I called the City, proactively I thought, to avoid some “catch-up” bill because there was a meter fault. They looked at it and they say it’s fine.

My sprinkler guy is on the way over to check that, but even if the sprinklers have completely failed, would that account for $200/mo? Can those tenants really be using only 10 units of water in a month–the both of them? Even in the winter, when the sprinklers are basically off (maybe once every 2 weeks), the water bills are higher than that.

Anyone have any other possibility I can check? Should I go in and see if they’re flushing???

2

Simplest possible answer: Maybe one or both of them took a long vacation during the month.

3

Nope. I checked. Both basically confined to the home.

4

Look again at the $312 bill and see if it was estimated. Sometimes my meter is estimated in August (although I’m nowhere near AZ) due to the meter reader being on vacation. If you were overbilled in August due to an estimate and the meter was read in September, that could explain it.

5

A typical unit is 748 gallons. You should check what the town uses as a unit though some differ a lot.

An average person uses 100 gallons a day.

Depending on what you are irrigating you can easily use 10-100times more water in a day than a typical person uses. A 10x10 area of grass needs about 60 gallons a week.

Older people use a lot less water. 10 units between 2 people is completely reasonable.

I’d say your irrigation isn’t working and yes it could be costing you 200/month in just water for irrigation.

6

Or a new meter reader. Check the reading on your bill and compare it to the meter itself.

7

Sounds like an opportunity to raise rents …