WATER CONSERVATON TIPS

1. The single most effective conservation step that can be taken inside the home is to install low-flow showerheads. They use 30 to 70 percent less water while still providing invigorating showers.
   
2. Toilet water use can be cut by up to 70 percent by installing low-flow or air assisted commodes. If you can't replace your toilet, place a half-gallon plastic jug of water or a toilet dam in your tank. This can cut toilet water use by 20 percent. (Don't use bricks - they fall apart.) Limit flushes, if possible. Use the waste basket for paper waste.
   
3. Install low-flow faucet aerators on the bathroom and kitchen sinks. These use about half as much water without compromising performance.
   
4. Sing shorter songs in the shower. Your shower shouldn't last longer than five minutes. Sing all you want when you take a bath - just be sure to fill the tub halfway. Turn the faucet off while brushing your teeth or shaving.
   
5. When washing your car, use a cutoff nozzle instead of running the hose continuously.
   
6. About 8 percent of home water use takes place in the kitchen. Instead of running water, rinse dishes in a basin and soak pots and pans before scrubbing. Compost your fruit and vegetable scraps to avoid running the garbage disposal. Be sure your dishwasher is full before you run it. Next time you buy a dishwasher, consider the water-saving models which can cut water use by 25 percent.
   
7. Laundry accounts for about 14 percent of home water usage. Adjust the water level on your washing machine to match the size of your load. If you can't set the level on your machine, be sure to wash only full loads. Consider buying a water-saving model, which reduces water use by up to 30 percent.
   
8. Avoid having to run the water until it's hot. Insulate your water heater and hot water pipes.
   
9. Repair all plumbing leaks immediately. A dripping faucet can waste up to 2 gallons of water per hour. Check your toilet by dropping a small amount of food coloring into the tank. If colored water appears in the bowl after 10 minutes, you've got a leak that needs repairing.
   
10. Voluntarily cut back on lawn watering to no more than once every four to five days with no more than an inch of water at a time. Watering less often not only trains the grass roots to grow deep, but also it supplies the TREES with water. Daily, short term watering usually doesn't supply trees with enough water to live on. Grass usually goes dormant when it is allowed less water, not necessarily dying. Trees look deeper for water.
    
11. Use drip irrigation or soaker hoses when possible. To avoid evaporation, water before 10 a.m. or after 8 p.m. If it rains more than an inch, wait five days to water.
    
12. Use mulch to reduce evaporation.

Back to Previous Page