Help me catch my neighbor

[SP33Demon]

in the act of stealing water from my outside hose. Water bill claims that from December through March I used 14,000 gals (still way off IMO) and now from March - July 1st it's saying I used 23K. How is this even possible? I checked all the toilets, none are running. I didn't turn on the A/C until mid May, so I doubt it's that.

The only other explanation is my deadbeat neighbor who doesn't have a job and is up til 3 fcking a.m. watering his lawn, and gets up at 3pm and has his g/f support him by paying his rent (but he pays the utilities and is always broke). Note that his walkway is literally 5-6 feet from my faucet/hose.

I could just shut off the water to that valve but I want to catch him in the act and make him pay half my water bills. Are there any good all weather but concealable security cameras with night vision? Or I was thinking I could add a motion sensor by the faucet handle that could page me via WiFi? Any ideas are good here.

UPDATE: 95% sure it was him.
The bill came a few weeks ago. From 6/20-9/20 my usage was... 11,000 gallons. The prior bill was 23,000. The previous bill from Dec-March was 14,000, which I still thought was high. I didn't really change anything since shutting off the valve, and the water company came out and checked the meter (in a manhole at the front of the house). They confirmed there were no leaks.

So how does my bill go down to < HALF the previous bill? Only one explanation in my mind. BTW my roommate also asked the neighbor why the nozzle was off our hose. The neighbor said he took it off, so that pretty much confirmed it. I don't really talk/hang out much with those idiots anymore, I'm too busy anyway.

 

[sixone]

Maybe you have a leak under the house. You should call a plumber, first.

 

[lxskllr]

He isn't paying half of anything if he's broke. A lock doesn't cost much, and it'll save you aggravation.

 

[highland145]

How are you going to make him pay?

 

[SP33Demon]

How are you going to make him pay?

His rich g/f for starters. We're on good terms and if I have hard evidence, she'll pony up in the least. Especially after she begs me not to press charges and/or fuck him up.

 

[waggy]

a camera would be the best.

though..call a plumber too.

 

[highland145]

His rich g/f for starters. We're on good terms and if I have hard evidence, she'll pony up in the least. Especially after she begs me not to press charges and/or fuck him up.

Rich hot girlfriend?

 

[SP33Demon]

He isn't paying half of anything if he's broke. A lock doesn't cost much, and it'll save you aggravation.

Maybe you didn't read the OP. I could just turn off the valve to the outside faucet, it's not that hard. However, I want to catch him in the act if he's doing it.

 

[SP33Demon]

Rich hot girlfriend?

If by hot you mean ugly alcoholic cigarette smoking trollface, then sure.

 

[highland145]

If by hot you mean ugly alcoholic cigarette smoking trollface, then sure.

D:

 

[SP33Demon]

Maybe you have a leak under the house. You should call a plumber, first.

If I do that, then the cover is blown b/c he's home all day. He'll see the plumber and put two and two together.

I just need to find a covert camera that can record all night and let me access the recording remotely.

 

[Krazy4Real]

If by hot you mean ugly alcoholic cigarette smoking trollface, then sure.

Bang her in front of him. That'll teach him.

 

[unokitty]

Isn't anyone going to ask for pics of the girl friend?

Uno

 

[SP33Demon]

Bang her in front of him. That'll teach him.

She's already tried stuff on me when I was over there drinking, so that could be an option if I could somehow keep from puking. lol

 

[SP33Demon]

Isn't anyone going to ask for pics of the girl friend?

Uno

She's built like a wildebeast and kicks his ass when she's drunk. Hell she could probably kick my ass too, she's strong as an ox. 5-9 250ish.

 

[vi edit]

Before I went through the trouble of buying/setting up/and having to review a security DVR I'd just get one of those removable/locking faucets and see if the problem fixes itself.

If he's a trashy ass neighbor then calling him out on a video isn't going to do shit. You don't really fuck with somebody that has nothing to lose, especially on something as petty/easily fixable as this.

 

[blackdogdeek]

put a whole bunch of paint in the hose near the sprayer end. when he turns it on at night he'll spray his lawn with a bunch of paint.

you should be able to detect it the next day.

 

[highland145]

put a whole bunch of paint in the hose near the sprayer end. when he turns it on at night he'll spray his lawn with a bunch of paint.

you should be able to detect it the next day.

Heh, or roundup.

 

[Sinsear]

I wonder if your neighbor liked Ted

 

[Farang]

You have a leak, your neighbor isn't stealing anything.

 

[sixone]

If nothing else, check your water meter before you spend money on a camera. There might be a leak there.

 

[SP33Demon]

Before I went through the trouble of buying/setting up/and having to review a security DVR I'd just get one of those removable/locking faucets and see if the problem fixes itself.

If he's a trashy ass neighbor then calling him out on a video isn't going to do shit. You don't really fuck with somebody that has nothing to lose, especially on something as petty/easily fixable as this.

The problem is that we're on good terms and he invites me over a lot for beers/bbq, and I'm friends with his g/f. So either he hides it well and/or he's just that desperate for money. I can't just call him out on something like this w/out evidence since we're quasi-friendly.

Dude my fucking bill just went up to $50/month, do you think I'm just going to let this slide, especially if he's stealing? No way in hell, especially from someone also stealing from taxpayers in the state (he's on welfare when his g/f fully supports him, and his community college tuition is fully subsidized by taxpayers who actually work).

 

[GrumpyMan]

With all the heat in the country, a lot of pipes are busting. The leak could be under or near your house.

 

[SP33Demon]

If nothing else, check your water meter before you spend money on a camera. There might be a leak there.

A leak at the water meter? I looked and didn't see anything, nor abnormal vegetation growth (as excess water would indicate).

 

[Perknose]

A leak at the water meter? I looked and didn't see anything, nor abnormal vegetation growth (as excess water would indicate).

I don't know what the other poster meant, but I'd check your water meter when he's not stealing and you're not using water yourself to see if it's spinning, which would be evidence of a leak somewhere in your house.