The 30-minute meter test (no tools needed)
Your water meter is a leak detector you already own. Here's how to use it:
- Turn everything off. Every tap, the washing machine, the dishwasher. Don't flush during the test. If you have irrigation, make sure it's off too.
- Read the meter — including the small red/black dials or the last digits. Take a photo with your phone (it timestamps it for you).
- Wait 30 minutes. No water use at all.
- Read it again.
Where the leak is changes everything
Usually low urgency (book it in)
- A dripping tap or slowly running toilet — wasteful, but contained
- A weeping garden tap or irrigation fitting outside
- A slow drip under a sink with a bucket under it — you've contained it
Serious — act this week
- Meter test shows movement but you can't find any visible leak (hidden in a wall, underground, or under the slab)
- Damp patches or bubbling paint that keep growing
- A musty smell or mould that returns after cleaning
Urgent — act today
- A warm patch on the floor — a hot water line leaking under the slab, running up your power bill and soaking your foundations
- Water around electrical points, light fittings or the switchboard
- A bulging ceiling — that's water pooling above the plaster. Don't poke it; get the water off and get help
- The meter is spinning fast with everything off
Why "small" leaks wreck homes
Water damage is compound interest in reverse. A leak inside a wall doesn't stay a leak — it becomes swollen skirting, lifted flooring, rotten framing and mould remediation. The repair bill difference between "found it this week" and "found it this year" is regularly thousands.
And if it's on your side of the meter, every litre is on your bill. Sydney Water's hidden-leak allowance can soften the blow in some cases, but only after a licensed plumber has fixed the leak and you apply with evidence.
The bottom line
Run the meter test. If it moves and you can't see why, get the leak found professionally — modern acoustic and thermal detection means one small access hole instead of exploratory demolition. Cheaper, faster, and your house stays in one piece.