Water-Bill Analysis
Water-bill analysis is a revenue cross-check that compares a laundromat's metered water consumption against the manufacturer's per-cycle water usage for its actual installed machines, producing a range of implied cycles to test against claimed volume.
Why Does Water-Bill Analysis Matter in a Laundromat Sale?
Water is the closest thing this industry has to an independent revenue meter, and it is routinely misused. Done correctly it catches a store claiming roughly double its real volume, or an undetected leak. It cannot confirm revenue to the dollar, because leaks, bypasses, water-heater and boiler losses, changing machine mix, free cycles, rate changes, seasonal averaging, and shared service lines all move the relationship. Any single gallons-per-dollar ratio applied to an unmodeled store is a guess with a decimal point.
What Does It Look Like in Practice?
Metered consumption over twelve months, less an allowance for restrooms and mop sinks, implies 26,000-30,000 washer cycles. Claimed revenue implies 41,000. Either the revenue claim is wrong or something is very unusual about the store, and diligence should not proceed until the gap is explained.
What Should You Check?
- Use the manufacturer's per-cycle consumption for the actual installed models.
- Subtract non-machine use and account for how the utility calculates sewer.
- Report a range of implied cycles, never a single ratio.
Where Does This Come Up?
- Water Bill Analysis to Verify Laundromat Revenue: The Real Method
- How to Verify Laundromat Income: The Six-Source Reconciliation
- Utility Ratio
- Laundromat Valuation: How Stores Are Priced and Why
Related Terms
- Utility Ratio — Utility ratio is utilities expressed as a percentage of gross revenue
- Collection Audit — A collection audit is a buyer attending multiple coin collections in person
- Turns Per Day (TPD) — Turns per day
- QoE (Quality of Earnings) — QoE, or quality of earnings
See the full laundromat glossary for all 78 terms.
The Next Step
This page is general information about laundromat transactions, not legal, tax, or investment advice, and not a guarantee of sale price, timing, or financing approval. Verify current rules with your own CPA, attorney, lender, and the relevant state or municipal agency before acting.