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Lower your bill

Save energy and water

Small changes at home add up on every bill. Here is where to start, how to find a leak, and how to read your own meters.

Energy

Heating, cooling and hot water

Cooling

  • Set the thermostat to 78 or the highest comfortable temperature. Each degree cooler can add up to 3% to your bill.
  • Away for a while? Set it to 80 or higher.
  • Close shades on the sunny side during the day.
  • Use ceiling or box fans so you can set the thermostat higher.
  • Clean or replace air conditioner filters monthly.

Heating

  • Set the thermostat to 68 or the lowest comfortable temperature. Each degree above 68 adds about 3% to your heating bill.
  • Close the fireplace damper when it is not in use.
  • Open drapes in the day for sun and close them at night.
  • Keep registers and returns clear of furniture and curtains.
  • Check furnace filters every 30 days.

Water heater

  • Your water heater is your second-largest energy user.
  • Check the label to see whether yours is energy efficient.
  • The closer it sits to where you use hot water, the less heat is lost along the way.
Energy Star tax credits

Water

Use less water at home

  • Turn off the tap while brushing teeth or shaving. That saves 1 to 5 gallons a minute.
  • Cut your shower short. Each minute saves 2 to 10 gallons.
  • Fix leaky faucets. That can save up to 2,700 gallons a year.
  • Fill the tub only halfway.
  • Get running toilets fixed. One can waste 30 to 500 gallons a day.
Water lost to a leak
Leak sizePer dayPer month
Dripping15 gal450 gal
1/32 inch264 gal7,920 gal
1/16 inch943 gal28,300 gal
1/8 inch3,806 gal114,200 gal
1/4 inch15,226 gal456,800 gal
1/2 inch60,900 gal1,827,000 gal

Find a leak

Three places to check first

  1. Toilets

    Put a few drops of food coloring in the tank. If color shows up in the bowl without flushing, the flapper is leaking. Also check that water is not running into the overflow pipe.

  2. Faucets

    A new washer or O-ring usually fixes a dripping sink or tub faucet.

  3. Sprinklers

    Look for spots in the lawn that stay wet when the sprinklers are off.

Read your meters

How to read your electric and water meters

Digital electric meter used by Benton Utilities customers in Benton, AR

Electric meter

Your meter measures electricity in kilowatt-hours (kWh). Read a digital meter left to right, like a car odometer. Less than half of one percent of meters tested fall outside the accepted error rate of plus or minus 2%.

To request a meter test, call the billing office at 501-776-5930.

Sensus straight-reading water meter used by Benton Utilities in Benton, Arkansas

Water meter

Your meter is usually near the curb on the property line, in a concrete or black plastic box. Lift the lid with a screwdriver and check for insects or animals first.

Benton uses Sensus straight-reading meters with seven digits that record gallons. To check for a leak, turn off all water and watch the meter. If it moves, you may have a leak.