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WATER LINE GUIDE · LEAK DETECTION
Get a free estimate
or call (678) 863-5620The short answer
The clearest sign is a water meter that keeps moving while every fixture is off. Other clues: an unexplained jump in the bill, a wet or unusually green strip between meter and house, a sunken spot over the pipe, and weak pressure at every tap. From the meter to the house, repairs are usually the owner's.
Reviewed by Atlanta Water & Sewage Solutions · Last updated
Who does the work
One crew, the whole line
Key facts
Each row links to the agency, code or publisher it comes from. Tap a source to check it yourself.
| Topic | What it says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Meter test | Read the meter, use no water for two hours, read it again; any change probably means a leak | EPA WaterSense — Fix a Leak Week |
| Average household leakage | More than 9,300 gallons wasted a year, per EPA WaterSense | EPA WaterSense — Fix a Leak Week |
| Serious leaks | Nine percent of homes have leaks wasting 50 gallons or more per day | EPA WaterSense — Fix a Leak Week |
| Where your pipe starts | At the meter outlet; Gwinnett, Rockdale, DeKalb, NCWSA and Walton County all own the meter and the street side | Gwinnett County DWR — Resident Responsibility |
| Gwinnett usage tiers (2026) | $5.78 per 1,000 gallons up to 8,000, then $8.67, then $11.56 above 12,000 | Gwinnett DWR Rates and Fee Schedule — January 2026, 2026 |
| Short-section repair | $400 to $1,500, typical market range (HomeGuide, 2025) | HomeGuide — Main Water Line Repair Cost (Dec 22, 2025), 2025 |
| Full line replacement | $2,000 to $5,000 on average, typical market range (HomeGuide, 2025) | HomeGuide — How Much Does Water Line Replacement Cost? (Dec. 22, 2025), 2025 |
Plain definitions
How the job runs
Stop irrigation, ice makers, softeners and anything on a timer. Make sure no toilet is running.
Write down the reading or photograph the dial. EPA WaterSense says any change after two hours of no use probably means a leak.
If the small triangle or dial is turning while the house is quiet, water is flowing somewhere past the meter right now.
Shut the main valve where the line enters the house, then look at the meter again.
If the meter stops, the leak is inside the house: fixtures, a toilet flapper or a water heater. If it keeps moving with the house valve closed, the leak is on the buried line between the meter and the house.
Georgia 811 asks for notice at least 3 business days before digging. Utility locators mark public lines, but the private service line generally isn't marked for you.
Warning signs
Meter moving with the house shut off? Call (678) 863-5620
Who owns what
Gwinnett County DWR
Maintains the main, the pipe to the meter and the meter; the owner repairs leaks between the meter and the home.↗
Where the line sits: Meter
Rockdale Water Resources
Owns the service line from the main through the meter; from the meter to the building is the customer's.↗
Where the line sits: Meter
DeKalb County Watershed Management
Everything up to and including the meter is county property; a replaced service line is charged as a new connection.↗
Where the line sits: Meter
Newton County Water & Sewerage Authority
Owner maintains the line from the meter to the building, including the connection at the meter.↗
Where the line sits: Meter
Walton County Water Department
Responsible through the meter; the customer's side includes the water line, pressure-reducing valves and backflow valves.↗
Where the line sits: Meter
Your options
OPTION 01
When it fits: A single leak in otherwise healthy copper, PEX or PVC, often from a dig strike, a root or a failed fitting.
OPTION 02
When it fits: Polybutylene, galvanized steel, repeated leaks or pressure problems along the whole run.
InterNACHI says polybutylene was made from 1978 to mid-1995 and tends to fail from the inside, so one leak often predicts more.
What it costs
Main water line repair (short section)
$400–$1,500
per repair
HomeGuide national range, 2025.
Typical market range — HomeGuide — Main Water Line Repair Cost (Dec 22, 2025), 2025
Main water line replacement
$2,000–$5,000
per line
HomeGuide average, 2025.
Typical market range — HomeGuide — How Much Does Water Line Replacement Cost? (Dec. 22, 2025), 2025
Trenched water line work
$50–$200
per linear foot
HomeGuide, 2025.
Typical market range — HomeGuide — How Much Does Water Line Replacement Cost? (Dec. 22, 2025), 2025
All three ranges are typical national market figures published by HomeGuide, not Atlanta Water & Sewage Solutions pricing. Your line's length, depth and material set the actual cost, and estimates from us are free.
Free estimate: (678) 863-5620The whole story
In sandy ground a broken water line tends to bubble up quickly. East of Atlanta, the pipe usually sits in red clay backfill, and escaping water often follows the looser soil of the original trench or drains down rather than up. A leak can run for a whole billing cycle before a wet spot appears, if one ever does.
That's why the meter test matters more here than a walk around the yard. EPA's WaterSense program estimates that fixing easily corrected household leaks saves about 10 percent on water bills, and a buried service leak is rarely the easy kind. If the meter says water is leaving and the house is dry, trust the meter.
Worth knowing
Sometimes, with limits. NCWSA in Newton County allows no more than two leak adjustments in any twelve-month period and adjusts only the two highest consecutive months (NCWSA). The City of Covington considers adjustments for leaks on the residence side of the meter and bills the excess at a discounted $3.00 per thousand gallons for the two highest months (Covington leak policy).
Either way, utilities want proof the leak is fixed, so keep the invoice or receipt from the repair. Fix first, then apply. If you're on public sewer billed by water use, ask whether the sewer portion can be adjusted too, since leaked water never went down the drain.
Sometimes, with limits.
FAQ
Straight answers, with the rule or record behind them. Still unsure? Call and ask the crew that digs.
(678) 863-5620Turn off every fixture and appliance, then watch the meter's leak indicator. Per EPA WaterSense, a reading that changes over a two-hour quiet stretch probably means a leak. If yours moved, close the house shutoff and check again. A meter that still moves with the house valve closed points to a leak in the buried line between the meter and the house.
Source: EPA WaterSense — Fix a Leak Week
Usually the homeowner. Gwinnett, Rockdale, DeKalb, NCWSA and the Walton County Water Department all treat the meter as the boundary, so the line from the meter's outlet to the house belongs to the customer. Leaks at the meter or on the street side are the utility's, so report those to them directly.
Yes. A buried leak runs around the clock, and in clay soil the water may never surface. EPA WaterSense estimates the average household's leaks waste more than 9,300 gallons a year, and nine percent of homes have leaks losing 50 gallons or more per day. An unexplained bill increase is often the first sign.
Source: EPA WaterSense — Fix a Leak Week
Look for a strip of grass greener or softer than the rest of the lawn, a spot that stays muddy in dry weather, a depression along the pipe route, or a meter box that holds water between rains. In Georgia clay, water can travel along the old trench, so the wet spot may not sit directly over the leak.
HomeGuide's 2025 figures put a short-section main water line repair at $400 to $1,500 and a full replacement at $2,000 to $5,000 on average, with trenched work around $50 to $200 per linear foot. Pipe material, length and what sits on top of the line move the number most.
Source: HomeGuide — How Much Does Water Line Replacement Cost? (Dec. 22, 2025)
Many will consider it after the leak is repaired and documented. NCWSA limits adjustments to two in any twelve months and adjusts the two highest consecutive months. Covington bills the excess at a discounted $3.00 per thousand gallons for the two highest months. Policies differ, so keep your repair receipt and ask.
Source: NCWSA — Help Center: Leak adjustment information (Wayback snapshot Sept. 18, 2026)
It can. Pressure that drops at every fixture at the same time suggests a problem before water reaches the house: a leak, a crushed section, a failing pressure-reducing valve or old galvanized pipe narrowed by corrosion. Low pressure at just one faucet is more likely a local issue such as a clogged aerator.
InterNACHI says polybutylene was produced from 1978 to mid-1995 and can deteriorate from the inside when exposed to certain water disinfectants. Blue PB was mostly used outdoors for cold water, which means service lines. Because it fails along the pipe rather than only at fittings, one leak often signals that the whole run is at risk.
Keep going
Sources
Rules, costs and local facts on this page link to the agency, code or publisher that states them. Cost figures are third-party market ranges, not our prices — estimates are free.
Reviewed by Atlanta Water & Sewage Solutions · Last updated
Ready when you are
The pipe between the meter and your house can leak for months without a puddle. Your meter, your bill and a few simple checks will usually tell you before the ground does.
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