Water/Sewer bill is over $400

[Botev1912]

The water bill has nothing to do with the cost of living. Water can't be the most expensive bill. The water district manipulates people. Water consumption $20, sewer charges $97. How is this normal?

[Hemlock140]

Originally Posted by Botev1912

The water bill has nothing to do with the cost of living. Water can't be the most expensive bill. The water district manipulates people. Water consumption $20, sewer charges $97. How is this normal?

I don't work for the City, but I do work with them and pay a lot of commercial/industrial utility bills in my work.

Water comes from rain and snow, so it's free. The city is charging you for the cleaning/treatment and delivery (and their employees are well paid).

Sewer charges are a lot more because of the cost involved in delivering it to the treatment plant, then the treatment which has become far more expensive in order to meet environmental standards for clean water when the effluent is discharged into Elliot Bay. Recent rate increases are helping to pay for huge storage tanks to keep the sewage in times of severe runoff infiltrating the system, so it can be processed later rather than having raw sewage overflow into the bay.

As it happens, Electricity here is among the lowest priced in the US, while water and sewer are both among the highest.

[70Ford]

Originally Posted by bisjoe

I don't work for the City, but I do work with them and pay a lot of commercial/industrial utility bills in my work.

Water comes from rain and snow, so it's free. The city is charging you for the cleaning/treatment and delivery (and their employees are well paid).

Sewer charges are a lot more because of the cost involved in delivering it to the treatment plant, then the treatment which has become far more expensive in order to meet environmental standards for clean water when the effluent is discharged into Elliot Bay. Recent rate increases are helping to pay for huge storage tanks to keep the sewage in times of severe runoff infiltrating the system, so it can be processed later rather than having raw sewage overflow into the bay.

As it happens, Electricity here is among the lowest priced in the US, while water and sewer are both among the highest.

It may be free, but we don't own it.....
Even Seattle City Hall probably broke the law when they installed their green system.

Seattle electrical bills are super cheap, I agree. Having lived in Georgia where you're running something to either cool or heat your home most of the year, those bills get really old, really fast.

Read more: Saving rain: How much is too much? - seattlepi.com

Seattle City Hall is a 20,000 square-foot building that was completed in 2003, and includes a green roof and rainwater harvesting (RWH) system for toilet flushing and on-site irrigation. These systems help reduce peak flows from the city drainage system and improve water quality by reducing the pressures on the city sewer infrastructure. The RWH collection system can store up to 30,000 cubic-feet of water in a cistern located in the basement of what was at one time the old municipal building. Collected rainwater is then pumped from the basement cistern to restrooms in the newly constructed City Hall building for use in toilet flushing, as well as irrigation purposes. Stormwater runoff is expected to decrease by up to 75% and reduce indoor potable water use by 30%. These measures result in a significant reduction of stormwater flows and will alleviate loads into the city's combined sewer system. The building has also earned a U.S. Green Building Council Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Silver rating.

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Back to the OP...it sounds like you have a leak. That bill is way too high for one month.

[AddyLaddy]

We are a family of 6 and our 2 month (56 days) usage is around 800 cu ft and the total bill for that period is about $160 this year.

We we first moved in it was double that rate and having seen the first bill I went outside and checked the lawn irrigation system and found it was spewing water at mains pressure into the ground! Had to get the landlord to come and fix it, thankfully it was only doing it for one month before we spotted it. But he had lived in the house for 8+ years and this must have been happening every winter when he 'turned off' the sprinklers. I also noticed the absolute reading on my neighbour's meter was 50% below his although the houses were constructed in the same year.

[CDusr]

I would check toilets first, particularly a bad flapper causing toilet to run on and off. Maybe even an outdoor faucet or hose that didn't get shut off properly. If somebody washed a car or did anything where the water ran for any length of time you would be amazed.

Did you actually see the usage to compare to previous bills? I have been hearing this happen to more people, don't know if you have smart meters yet, but they can be a nightmare of overcharges.

We had a mystery bill one month and never did figure out what happened. If they have a threshold where your rate goes up a lot either due to usage or season that could also be an issue. That is a really high bill. If I paid bills like that and could afford it I would seriously look at compost toilets and see if you can actually do those in your area due to regs. Heck even a more efficient toilet and shower head may make a huge diff. That is a good chunk of change over time.

Yeh if you have a sprinkler system of any kind I would check that all that works properly and the way you planned, that can create a very large bill.

This is why I am a big believer in off-grid living. If you do this for retirement I think it is the smartest thing to do. Good for the environment and you may actually not have the cost run you into the ground. Not to mention you are for more conscious and personally responsible. Big corps and govts are really driving cost out of control. The costs are outstripping most peoples earning potential. Sorry, but when you lose your house because you can't pay your utility bill it's obscene. This has happened to quite a few people. The tax issue can be bad enough.