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Help Conserve
Water with these Conservation Ideas
The Problem
Groundwater is being used at a rate 25 percent greater than its
rate of replenishment. What's more, as more pollutants spill into
our water systems there will be even less clean, fresh water available
for consumption. ADDITIONALLY, when you use less water, you need
less energy to heat that water…so you save money and conserve
valuable resources.
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Leaky
Fixtures: How Much Are You Wasting?
Drips
per Minute (small/slower leaks)
Simply count the number of drips in one minute from
the leaky fixture.
Note:
5 drips per second amounts to a steady stream. |
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*Assuming a 30 day month
Information Source: Water Audits and Leak Detection ©
1990 American Water Works Association
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What you can do
| 1. |
Install a low-flow showerhead
- Showers account for 32 percent of home water use. The law now requires
that all showerheads sold be low-flow models. Low-flow showerheads
deliver no more than 2.5 gallons per minute compared to standard showerheads
that release 4.5 gallons per minute. A family of four using low-flow
showerheads can save about 20,000 gallons of water per year. |
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| 2. |
Install an ultra-low-flush
toilet or a toilet displacement device - Toilets are water hogs. About
40 percent of the water you use in your home gets flushed down the
toilet. That amounts to more than 4 billion gallons of water in the
U.S. each day. That's why federal law now mandates that all new toilets
installed for residential use be low-flush toilets. Conventional toilets
generally use 3.5 to 5 gallons (sometimes more) of water per flush,
while low-flush toilets use 1.6 gallons of water or less. If you're
not building a new home, you can still benefit by installing one of
these toilets. Still have an old toilet? You can save more than 1
gallon of water per flush with a low flow toilet flapper to reduce
the amount of water used per flush. |
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| 3. |
Install flow restrictor
aerators - Placing these inside faucets saves 3 to 4 gallons per minute
when you turn on the tap. Of course, you can also help out by doing
simple things such as not running water in the sink while soaping
your face or brushing your teeth. |
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| 4. |
Repair leaks - Fix those
leaking and dripping faucets as soon as possible. A dripping faucet
can waste up to 20 gallons of water per day. A leaking toilet can
waste up to 200 gallons every day. |
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| 5. |
Landscape in tune with
the natural environment - If you're landscaping, use plants that are
native to your area. Growing native plants can save more than half
the water normally used to care for outdoor plants. Raising thirsty
plants in arid areas means having to drown them almost daily in gallons
of sprinkler or irrigation water. In dry areas, xeriscape landscaping
uses plants that need little water, thereby not only saving water
and labor, but also preventing pollution from the use of fertilizers.
If you must water your lawn, water early or late in the day or on
cooler days to reduce evaporation. Allow your grass to grow a bit
taller to reduce water loss by providing more ground shade for roots
and promoting soil water retention. |
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| 6. |
Hand wash your car - Swap
the carwash for a bucket of soapy water, a few rags, and a hose. It
takes more elbow grease, but will keep a lot of water from being washed
needlessly down the drain. And don't forget that turning the hose
off between rinses can save as much as 150 gallons of water. |
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| 7. |
 Use
water wisely in everyday activities - Water is wasted more quickly
than you might think. An open faucet lets about 5 gallons of water
flow every 2 minutes. In the kitchen, you can save between 10 and
20 gallons of water a day by running the dishwasher only when it's
full. You can save even more by washing dishes by hand in a sink or
dishpan containing water, rather than running the tap continuously
as you scrub. Run the clothes washer only when full as well. Taking
a shorter shower (turn off the showerhead while soaping) will also
save a lot of water. Sweep sidewalks and driveways instead of hosing
them down -- washing a sidewalk or driveway with a hose uses about
50 gallons of water every 5 minutes. |
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