What is your Water Bill?
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I'm on a well. The yearly cost, including equipment replacement and electrical power, comes in at a small fraction of "city water". Even if the well costs a fortune to drill.
Previously, my 2 bedroom house (just wife and I) cost between 80 and 120 per month, plus a quarterly $125 sewer bill. $1500-$1700 per year!
Previously, my 2 bedroom house (just wife and I) cost between 80 and 120 per month, plus a quarterly $125 sewer bill. $1500-$1700 per year!
Our main home is on a rural water system and, at 2000-3000 gallons per month we're at the minimum usage that runs us $20/month. The rate structure is such that if we were to double our usage the monthly amount would go up to about $50/month, if we tripled our usage it would jump to $80/month. We're conservative with our water usage and all of the appliances/fixtures that use water are water saving. We're on a septic system so there are no monthly sewage fees.
The lake house is at the end of a smaller towns water supply and we always get billed at the minimum amount of $25/month for both water and sewage.
The lake house is at the end of a smaller towns water supply and we always get billed at the minimum amount of $25/month for both water and sewage.
Originally Posted By: Cujet
I'm on a well. The yearly cost, including equipment replacement and electrical power, comes in at a small fraction of "city water". Even if the well costs a fortune to drill.
Previously, my 2 bedroom house (just wife and I) cost between 80 and 120 per month, plus a quarterly $125 sewer bill. $1500-$1700 per year!
Consider that most wells will need maintenance every 15 years (at least) I just put in a new deepwell pump at a cost of 1400. so that comes out to say 8 bucks/month..so yea good deal.
But if you are starting from scratch..drilling and installing a pump will likely be say 8000 (at least). So in the first 15 years you are dealing with 135 bucks a quarter. I would gladly pay most of the rates listed above and not have to be concerned about a well.
I'm on a well. The yearly cost, including equipment replacement and electrical power, comes in at a small fraction of "city water". Even if the well costs a fortune to drill.
Previously, my 2 bedroom house (just wife and I) cost between 80 and 120 per month, plus a quarterly $125 sewer bill. $1500-$1700 per year!
Consider that most wells will need maintenance every 15 years (at least) I just put in a new deepwell pump at a cost of 1400. so that comes out to say 8 bucks/month..so yea good deal.
But if you are starting from scratch..drilling and installing a pump will likely be say 8000 (at least). So in the first 15 years you are dealing with 135 bucks a quarter. I would gladly pay most of the rates listed above and not have to be concerned about a well.
We average around $50/month with sewer and garbage pickup included as well during fall/winter/spring. Somewhat more during summer time due to occasional plant/grass watering.
Water/sewer/trash/etc. = ~$105/mo. Last month it was $135+. I did some watering of new grass seedlings
This is for a family of 4. I take 2 showers/day. Everyone else takes 1. We usually do 1 load of laundry/day.
This is for a family of 4. I take 2 showers/day. Everyone else takes 1. We usually do 1 load of laundry/day.
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50-55 a month including sewer and trash. The water treatment center is about 6 miles from the house, and we pull straight out of the muddy Mississippi.
Originally Posted By: Al
Originally Posted By: Cujet
I'm on a well. The yearly cost, including equipment replacement and electrical power, comes in at a small fraction of "city water". Even if the well costs a fortune to drill.
Previously, my 2 bedroom house (just wife and I) cost between 80 and 120 per month, plus a quarterly $125 sewer bill. $1500-$1700 per year!
Consider that most wells will need maintenance every 15 years (at least) I just put in a new deepwell pump at a cost of 1400. so that comes out to say 8 bucks/month..so yea good deal.
But if you are starting from scratch..drilling and installing a pump will likely be say 8000 (at least). So in the first 15 years you are dealing with 135 bucks a quarter. I would gladly pay most of the rates listed above and not have to be concerned about a well.
Must've been quite the pump! Our well was about $35/foot and is 130' deep, I recall about $5-6k by the time everyone got their share. I installed the pump, wires, and pipe to the house for maybe $600? We can only pull about 5 gallon/minute continously but that's plenty as the well typically has 80'(about 80 gallons) of water over the pump.
If you've got good ground water, its a plus that you don't have to worry about what the treatment plant operator has been smoking lately or what the city up stream has dumped in...
Originally Posted By: Cujet
I'm on a well. The yearly cost, including equipment replacement and electrical power, comes in at a small fraction of "city water". Even if the well costs a fortune to drill.
Previously, my 2 bedroom house (just wife and I) cost between 80 and 120 per month, plus a quarterly $125 sewer bill. $1500-$1700 per year!
Consider that most wells will need maintenance every 15 years (at least) I just put in a new deepwell pump at a cost of 1400. so that comes out to say 8 bucks/month..so yea good deal.
But if you are starting from scratch..drilling and installing a pump will likely be say 8000 (at least). So in the first 15 years you are dealing with 135 bucks a quarter. I would gladly pay most of the rates listed above and not have to be concerned about a well.
Must've been quite the pump! Our well was about $35/foot and is 130' deep, I recall about $5-6k by the time everyone got their share. I installed the pump, wires, and pipe to the house for maybe $600? We can only pull about 5 gallon/minute continously but that's plenty as the well typically has 80'(about 80 gallons) of water over the pump.
If you've got good ground water, its a plus that you don't have to worry about what the treatment plant operator has been smoking lately or what the city up stream has dumped in...
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
Must've been quite the pump! Our well was about $35/foot and is 130' deep
Actually I looked up the bill. It was 1188 bucks including a new pressure tank. I didn't do squat.
My pump is 7 gpm, and the water comes to 20 feet of the surface. They usually figure 1.5 gallon/ft.
Must've been quite the pump! Our well was about $35/foot and is 130' deep
Actually I looked up the bill. It was 1188 bucks including a new pressure tank. I didn't do squat.
My pump is 7 gpm, and the water comes to 20 feet of the surface. They usually figure 1.5 gallon/ft.
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Last Quarter was $130, and included water (34,000 gallons), Sewer (13,000 Gallons, based on winter quarter usage (no irrigation)), Stormwater Fees (about $9 a quarter), and street light fees (about $2 a quarter).
Water rates are tiered to encourage conservation - up to 30,000 gallons are at around 0.90/1000 gallons, 30,000 to 100,000 gallons at aound $1.30/1000 gallons, and over 100,000 gallons at $2.30/1000 gallons.
Water rates are tiered to encourage conservation - up to 30,000 gallons are at around 0.90/1000 gallons, 30,000 to 100,000 gallons at aound $1.30/1000 gallons, and over 100,000 gallons at $2.30/1000 gallons.
Shall we review those numbers again ? For water planning purposes (I am a water resources engineer), the usual design numbers for interior home usage are 100 gallons per capita per day in this region. Our home has 4 people living in it. Thus 400 gallons per day for planning purposes. For a quarter, that is 36,500 gallons. We used 34,000 gallons total including outdoor usage (just shy of 100 gallons per day).
For the winter quarter (no irrigation in the winter in MN), we fluctuate between 11 and 13,000 gallons for the quarter, which is about 33 gallons per day per person. We use roughly 1/3rd the design numbers per capita in our household.
By comparison, in your earlier post, you indicated about 5000 gallons per month (I had to assume the month) (including all usage. That equates to about 82 gallons per day per person.
Our irrigation for the last quarter was around 22,000 gallons, applied over a 1/2 acre. That is about 1.6" of added precipitation in the quarter, and a regular lawn requires around a 0.5" of precipitation (rain or irrigation) per week to be maintained. We put about 0.12" per week down for irrigation last quarter. (Varies depending on the week).
For the winter quarter (no irrigation in the winter in MN), we fluctuate between 11 and 13,000 gallons for the quarter, which is about 33 gallons per day per person. We use roughly 1/3rd the design numbers per capita in our household.
By comparison, in your earlier post, you indicated about 5000 gallons per month (I had to assume the month) (including all usage. That equates to about 82 gallons per day per person.
Our irrigation for the last quarter was around 22,000 gallons, applied over a 1/2 acre. That is about 1.6" of added precipitation in the quarter, and a regular lawn requires around a 0.5" of precipitation (rain or irrigation) per week to be maintained. We put about 0.12" per week down for irrigation last quarter. (Varies depending on the week).
Originally Posted By: MNgopher
Shall we review those numbers again ? For water planning purposes (I am a water resources engineer), the usual design numbers for interior home usage are 100 gallons per capita per day in this region. Our home has 4 people living in it. Thus 400 gallons per day for planning purposes. For a quarter, that is 36,500 gallons. We used 34,000 gallons total including outdoor usage (just shy of 100 gallons per day).
For the winter quarter (no irrigation in the winter in MN), we fluctuate between 11 and 13,000 gallons for the quarter, which is about 33 gallons per day per person. We use roughly 1/3rd the design numbers per capita in our household.
By comparison, in your earlier post, you indicated about 5000 gallons per month (I had to assume the month) (including all usage. That equates to about 82 gallons per day per person.
Our irrigation for the last quarter was around 22,000 gallons, applied over a 1/2 acre. That is about 1.6" of added precipitation in the quarter, and a regular lawn requires around a 0.5" of precipitation (rain or irrigation) per week to be maintained. We put about 0.12" per week down for irrigation last quarter. (Varies depending on the week).
Wow....you know your stuff. You sure have inexpensive water in Minnesota. It's strange because here I sit...in a very rain soaked region from fall through late spring, including huge snow pack in the Cascade mountains (made available every spring) and yet my water is costs are still high. I have no sewer or other fees attached to my bill either. One more month to go and my next bill arrives....I expect it to be close to $400 (60 day period).
Shall we review those numbers again ? For water planning purposes (I am a water resources engineer), the usual design numbers for interior home usage are 100 gallons per capita per day in this region. Our home has 4 people living in it. Thus 400 gallons per day for planning purposes. For a quarter, that is 36,500 gallons. We used 34,000 gallons total including outdoor usage (just shy of 100 gallons per day).
For the winter quarter (no irrigation in the winter in MN), we fluctuate between 11 and 13,000 gallons for the quarter, which is about 33 gallons per day per person. We use roughly 1/3rd the design numbers per capita in our household.
By comparison, in your earlier post, you indicated about 5000 gallons per month (I had to assume the month) (including all usage. That equates to about 82 gallons per day per person.
Our irrigation for the last quarter was around 22,000 gallons, applied over a 1/2 acre. That is about 1.6" of added precipitation in the quarter, and a regular lawn requires around a 0.5" of precipitation (rain or irrigation) per week to be maintained. We put about 0.12" per week down for irrigation last quarter. (Varies depending on the week).
Wow....you know your stuff. You sure have inexpensive water in Minnesota. It's strange because here I sit...in a very rain soaked region from fall through late spring, including huge snow pack in the Cascade mountains (made available every spring) and yet my water is costs are still high. I have no sewer or other fees attached to my bill either. One more month to go and my next bill arrives....I expect it to be close to $400 (60 day period).
No Worries on misreading. Happens to me all the time... You just hit in one are I actually happen to know too much about
As far as the price of water, our water is realtively inexpensive because of the solid and very stable source of it we use: groundwater. Minneapolis and Saint Paul draw from the Mississippi, but the rest of the Metro draws from groundwater aquifers. The amount being drawn from those sources becoming more and more regulated by the day. Only issue with our water is that it is very hard - 18 to 24 grains of hardness depending on the aquifer. A water softener is basically mandatory.
I used to live in Fort Collins and Denver in Colorado. Higher water prices there were driven by the extensive infrastructure required to store spring runoff (dams and reservors) and the extensive waterworks required to deliver it to where it was needed. The water sure was nice and soft though!
As far as the price of water, our water is realtively inexpensive because of the solid and very stable source of it we use: groundwater. Minneapolis and Saint Paul draw from the Mississippi, but the rest of the Metro draws from groundwater aquifers. The amount being drawn from those sources becoming more and more regulated by the day. Only issue with our water is that it is very hard - 18 to 24 grains of hardness depending on the aquifer. A water softener is basically mandatory.
I used to live in Fort Collins and Denver in Colorado. Higher water prices there were driven by the extensive infrastructure required to store spring runoff (dams and reservors) and the extensive waterworks required to deliver it to where it was needed. The water sure was nice and soft though!
Originally Posted By: andrewg
Originally Posted By: MNgopher
Shall we review those numbers again ? For water planning purposes (I am a water resources engineer), the usual design numbers for interior home usage are 100 gallons per capita per day in this region. Our home has 4 people living in it. Thus 400 gallons per day for planning purposes. For a quarter, that is 36,500 gallons. We used 34,000 gallons total including outdoor usage (just shy of 100 gallons per day).
For the winter quarter (no irrigation in the winter in MN), we fluctuate between 11 and 13,000 gallons for the quarter, which is about 33 gallons per day per person. We use roughly 1/3rd the design numbers per capita in our household.
By comparison, in your earlier post, you indicated about 5000 gallons per month (I had to assume the month) (including all usage. That equates to about 82 gallons per day per person.
Our irrigation for the last quarter was around 22,000 gallons, applied over a 1/2 acre. That is about 1.6" of added precipitation in the quarter, and a regular lawn requires around a 0.5" of precipitation (rain or irrigation) per week to be maintained. We put about 0.12" per week down for irrigation last quarter. (Varies depending on the week).
Wow....you know your stuff. You sure have inexpensive water in Minnesota. It's strange because here I sit...in a very rain soaked region from fall through late spring, including huge snow pack in the Cascade mountains (made available every spring) and yet my water is costs are still high. I have no sewer or other fees attached to my bill either. One more month to go and my next bill arrives....I expect it to be close to $400 (60 day period).
Yikes! So how much water do you use? At those prices I'd be digging a hole for an outhouse, and collecting rain water off the roof for the garden. If you're watering your lawn 3 times a week and washing the car every other day then I guess you have to pay to play...
Originally Posted By: MNgopher
Shall we review those numbers again ? For water planning purposes (I am a water resources engineer), the usual design numbers for interior home usage are 100 gallons per capita per day in this region. Our home has 4 people living in it. Thus 400 gallons per day for planning purposes. For a quarter, that is 36,500 gallons. We used 34,000 gallons total including outdoor usage (just shy of 100 gallons per day).
For the winter quarter (no irrigation in the winter in MN), we fluctuate between 11 and 13,000 gallons for the quarter, which is about 33 gallons per day per person. We use roughly 1/3rd the design numbers per capita in our household.
By comparison, in your earlier post, you indicated about 5000 gallons per month (I had to assume the month) (including all usage. That equates to about 82 gallons per day per person.
Our irrigation for the last quarter was around 22,000 gallons, applied over a 1/2 acre. That is about 1.6" of added precipitation in the quarter, and a regular lawn requires around a 0.5" of precipitation (rain or irrigation) per week to be maintained. We put about 0.12" per week down for irrigation last quarter. (Varies depending on the week).
Wow....you know your stuff. You sure have inexpensive water in Minnesota. It's strange because here I sit...in a very rain soaked region from fall through late spring, including huge snow pack in the Cascade mountains (made available every spring) and yet my water is costs are still high. I have no sewer or other fees attached to my bill either. One more month to go and my next bill arrives....I expect it to be close to $400 (60 day period).
Yikes! So how much water do you use? At those prices I'd be digging a hole for an outhouse, and collecting rain water off the roof for the garden. If you're watering your lawn 3 times a week and washing the car every other day then I guess you have to pay to play...
Mine's about $30 a month right now but that includes trash pickup and sewer.
Our sprinkler system is only on automatic if the weather conditions warrant - right now for example is dry. in rainier weater, I turn it off and on as needed.
The bulk of our "water" bill is actually for sewer service - I beleive that is around $60 a quarter now. The rest is testing fees, street lights, storm water, and then the water.
I actually already use the sump pump discharge for plant watering, and the roof drains are routed to a pond that we constructed with a waterfall.
The bulk of our "water" bill is actually for sewer service - I beleive that is around $60 a quarter now. The rest is testing fees, street lights, storm water, and then the water.
I actually already use the sump pump discharge for plant watering, and the roof drains are routed to a pond that we constructed with a waterfall.
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