First Checks for a New-to-You House

1.2.1 Which district supplies the house?

Look at the water bill. Five retail districts serve inland North County (Fallbrook PUD, Rainbow, Vista ID, Escondido's city utility and Valley Center MWD), and their boundaries do not follow community names, so the bill settles it. The district decides who tests a backflow device, which watering hours apply and which rebates you can claim, and its yearly water quality report gives your hardness. The five districts §2.2 are compared in §2.2.

1.2.2 How do you run a first leak check?

Do this on a calm morning, before anyone needs water.

1. Find the meter box, usually near the street, and lift the lid.
2. Turn off every tap and water-using appliance in the house and yard.
3. Write down the numbers on the register and watch the small red flow indicator.
4. Wait 15 minutes without using any water, then read the register again.
5. If the numbers changed or the indicator turned, water is passing through the meter somewhere.

That is the method on Fallbrook PUD's Check a Leak sheet. Valley Center MWD customers can watch the meter's "Tattle Tell" dial instead, per VCMWD's leak page. What to do with a moving meter is in reading your water meter §4.1.

1.2.3 Where is the house valve?

Expect it where the service line comes up out of the ground and turns into the house, usually on the wall that faces the meter; some lines enter through the garage instead. Districts call it the house valve. Grove and rural lots often have a separate irrigation valve too, so follow each pipe leaving the meter and tag every valve you find.

1. Find the valve and note whether it has a lever (ball valve) or a round wheel (gate or globe valve).
2. Show every adult in the house where it is.
3. Do not force a stiff valve; an old one can break at the stem. A licensed plumber can replace it.

The valve types and how to close each are in finding your main water shutoff §4.4.

1.2.4 What pressure is the house getting?

Thread a pressure gauge onto a hose bib, turn off every other tap, open the bib and read the needle. Rainbow Water calls this the most accurate homeowner method and looks for 30 to 80 psi. Under the 2025 California Plumbing Code, §608.2, static pressure above 80 psi needs a regulator. Write the number down; setting or replacing a regulator is work for a licensed plumber. The full test is in checking your water pressure §3.1.

1.2.5 What should you look for on the water heater?

A short visual check, nothing taken apart:

• Straps. California's Health and Safety Code §19211 requires every residential water heater to be braced, anchored or strapped. The 2025 California Plumbing Code, §507.2, places straps in the upper and lower thirds of the tank, with the lower strap at least 4 inches above the controls.
• Relief valve pipe. The temperature and pressure relief valve near the top should have a discharge pipe running down from it. Leave the valve itself alone unless the heater's manual tells owners how to test it.
• Setting. The DOE Energy Saver Guide suggests 120°F as a starting point.

Gas controls, venting and the relief valve itself are licensed work. If you're unsure, call a licensed plumber. Details are in §6.2 on temperature and the relief valve and §6.3 on earthquake straps.

1.2.6 Is there a backflow device at the meter?

Houses with a private well, farm use or a fire sprinkler line often have one: a set of valves with small test cocks, above ground near the meter. The State Water Board's handbook requires each assembly to be tested at least once a year by a certified tester, and your district decides whether it sends the tester or you hire one. See backflow testing §5.1.

1.2.7 Sources for this section