Easy Ways to Save Water

Little leaks can add up to a lot of waster water. A small drip can waste 70 gallons of water in a day, while a steady leak just one-sixteenth of an inch in size can send more than 1,000 gallons a day down the drain. Fix leaky faucets and toilets right away.

Pipe Leaks:

1. Read your water meter
2. Turn off all water-using appliances and faucets and wait an hour
3. Read the meter again. If the meter has moved, you probably have a leak

Toilet Leaks:

1. Put food coloring in your toilet tank and wait for 20 minutes
2. If color seeps into the toilet bowl, you have a leak

Faucet Leaks:

1. Listen for running water when plumbing fixtures are closed and water-using appliances are off.
2. Check your taps a couple of times a year to make sure all faucets are working properly.

Laundry Room:

• Use the washing machine for full loads only to save water and enrgy.
• Install a water-efficient clothes washer

Kitchen:

• Run the dishwasher only when full to save water and energy.
• Install a water and energy efficient dishwasher

Bathroom:

• Install low-flow shower heads
• Take five minute showers instead of 10 minute showers.
• Fill the bathtub halfway or less.
• Install a high-efficiency toilet
• Install aerators on bathroom faucets
• Turn water off when brushing teeth, or shavings
• Don’t use the toilet as wastebasket

Landscape:

• Reduce your watering days to once or twice per week. Water your lawn only when it needs it. Water early in the morning or later in the evening when temperatures are cool.
• Check your sprinkler system frequently and adjust sprinklers so only your lawn in watered and not the house, sidewalk, or street
• Choose a water-efficient irrigation system such as drip irrigation for your trees, shrubs, and flowers.
• Put a layer of mulch around trees and plants to reduce evaporation and keep the soil cool. Organic mulch also improves the soil and prevents weeds.
• Plant drought-resistant trees and plants.

Activities:

• Teach children that your hose and sprinkler are not toys.
• Install a pool/spa cover to reduce evaporation and filter backwash.
• If draining a pool is necessary, find a use for the water
• Check your pool and pool plumbing for leaks.