Water meter moving slowly after adding some valves to main water line

Hi,

I have a new home with water softener loop in the garage ahead of the rest of the house (except outdoor spigots). Yesterday I installed a whole-house filter before the softener. I cut the main incoming water line and created a "manifold" of sorts so that the water would come into the garage (first stop for the water softener loop) then go to a series of valves that would allow optionally bypassing the filter, then onward to a series of valves that would allow optionally bypassing the water softener. That part all works fine and is leak free.

However, just for kicks, I checked the water meter outside the house after I was done and the small arrow is moving, albeit very slowly. It moves for about 5 seconds, then stops for about 5 seconds, and so on -- it's fairly consistent in this activity. I know for a fact about a month ago that the meter was not moving when everything in the the house was turned off. I checked all the faucets, etc. and nothing is running.

I tried bypassing my filter and the softener so water comes into the garage and goes straight on into the rest of the house, and it still moves even though nothing is on inside or outside.

I tried turning off the valve to the entire house, and then the meter remains stopped, so something after the main line into the garage is using water. It seems coincidental that I just did this modification and the meter is running now, but I can see all the work I touched -- it's completely open and visible on the wall of the garage.

Is there something else I might be overlooking that could cause this type of action at the meter (slowly moving on and off, over and over) that would NOT be a leak?

Thanks for any input anyone can provide.
-- Vinnie

I would check the drain hose from the softener to see if any water comes out of that between regenerations. That would be an unusual failure, but the softener is the new thing.

I would turn of valves other than the main one, and see if the movement stops. Remember to turn down or off the water heater when you turn off the water to the water heater. Turn off toilet fill valves. Turn off the water to the furnace humidifier.

Turn off all sources of sound that you can. Turn off the electricity to the house if you have to. Then get some kids to listen for any water sounds.

Thanks. I just went around the house and checked the toilets first. Since I had used (flushed but not filled) one toilet while the water was off, I wondered if maybe it might be a culprit. It was, but not because I had used it with the water off. At first I lifted the seat lid and didn't see or hear any water running. But when I removed the tank lid, I could hear a very faint hissing sound from the fill valve. I think it was unrelated to me adding the new valves because about a month after moving into this house (new build, 6 months old), we had our master bath toilet do the same thing (hissing after done filling). I turned off the valve to that faucet and the meter stopped and stayed stopped. I had already replaced the cheap ballcock the builder put in our master bath with a FluidMaster fill valve to solve that issue, and luckily I had a couple still in the garage so I put one in the currently-hissing toilet and it stopped running, and the meter stayed stopped.

Thanks again!