[MandoMan]

Originally Posted by dewilson58

Where do you live?? Some places, house water is sprinkler water.

North of 466.
“ Home Irrigation:

North of CR 466, homes are irrigated with potable water.
South of CR 466, homes are irrigated with non-potable water which is comprised of storm water runoff that is collected in water retention areas and groundwater from the lower Floridan aquifer when storm water supplies are not available.”

[HJBeck]

It looks like all your irrigation is being done by potable water. That gets expensive because sewer charges are based on potable water usage and costs about twice as much as the potable water itself. Your house uses recycled pond/lake water and does not add to sewer charges. 12,000 gallons is a lot. Might get one to check your automatic sprinkler system and it’s water system timing.

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by retiredguy123

I use about the same as you do for drinking water, but only about 2500 gallons for irrigation. You may want reduce your watering times and see what happens. I went from 30 minutes per zone to about 5-10 minutes and didn't notice any difference in my lawn and shrubs. You can also view your neighbors' water bills online at districtgov.org to see how your usage compares to similar lawns.

That's a good idea. Thank you.

[hal195z]

12,000 gallons of water per month is a lot of water. You may have a leaking toilet that is constantly using water. I have a 3 bath home with a pool and normally use around 6,000 gallons/month. Check you irrigation times and schedule. Twice a week with 30 minutes per zone is sufficient and no irrigation when it rains.

[OhioBuckeye]

Originally Posted by jebartle

I feel your pain, our spa WAS using $100 power per month.

When you have luxury’s you pay for it & nobody thinks luxury’s cost that much. This is only a start, things are going to get a lot worse! Just live a simple life, but I do feel bad for this person!

[ccrider]

You are confusing two different processes. Storm drainage is the water from rainfall that runs into the streets, into underground pipes, and generally end up in the ponds on the golf courses. This is the irrigation water that you pay for. Has nothing to do with the water you use in your home. The home-use water (called potable water); showers, toilet flushes, etc., also goes into separate underground pipes. These pipes are called sewers, the stuff in the pipes is called sewerage, and it all goes to water treatment facilities located throughout the Villages. You pay a base price for this water, and then another price based on the amount of water that you use. You also pay a base price for sewerage, plus a price based on the amount of water that you use. My house has separate meters for irrigation and potable water. Hope this helps someone.

[SGR720]

Originally Posted by MandoMan

How is water and sewer use measured by The Villages Community Development Districts? I’m asking not to complain, as I don’t think the cost is unreasonable, but because it confuses me. Below is a copy of my monthly bill. It says my water use was 12,480 gallons and my sewage use was also 12,480. On the left is a graph of my usage in the past year.

My house was unoccupied last year from May until the last week of October. I live alone. I take one five minute shower a day, turn off the water while brushing my teeth, and do two partial loads of wash per week. I have an automatic sprinkler system for my yard that I’ve never touched. I have a swimming pool that sometimes gets water added because of evaporation, but since January much less water has been added because I had an insulated pool cover installed. This seems to have made no difference in my water usage. I’m not sure why an unoccupied house uses more irrigation water some months than others when the controls haven’t been changed.

What about sewage? It looks like at least 90% of my water used either soaks into the sand beneath my grass or evaporates. It doesn’t use the sewers at all! I’ve been outside while the sprinklers run, and I’ve never seen any water running into a sewer. My personal water use is a brief shower, a few dishes, and a dozen or so toilet flushes, plus weekly wash. So how is my sewer use 12,480 gallons? I doubt that I add more than 1,500 gallons to the sewer in a month.

Is the charge for sewer use simply based on gallons of water used despite the fact that most doesn’t go into the sewer? Is there a meter that confirms that I have added 12,480 gallons of water to the sewer? (Of course there isn’t!) Do people with no lawn and only gravel have much lower water usage and so much lower sewer use charges, even though they may be adding just as much to the sewer as houses with lawns? Do houses with two or more occupants who are probably adding twice as much to the sewer system pay double? Would it be more appropriate for the cost for sewer to be divided equally according to occupants without claiming a sewer use that is certainly not supported by evidence?

I would have someone check out your irrigation system that water usage seems very high. In my 19 years here my water usage has only exceeded 10,000 gals twice and that was due to my irrigation system running 2 programs twice a week. Even when there were two of us in the house our water usage averaged below 6,000 gals a month. Consistent usage above 12,000 even when house was empty seems unusual. My bill this month gave "www.thevillageswaterwisdom.com" as a site to evaluate water usage based on your home type, you might want to check that out also.