Water Conservation Tips

Water is life. We use water for many different aspects of our daily lives, from bathing, cooking, drinking, and much more. Think for a second what would happen if all the water from the face of the Earth simply vanished without a trace. The comfortable life that we are currently living would be no more. With the threat of climate change, and the excess heat we have been experiencing lately, there is no telling how life will be in the next couple decades. Hence we should do everything humanly possible to conserve this natural resource. In this article we share with you a few tips that you can use to conserve water.

1)Turn off the tap when brushing your teeth, while washing your hands or face, and when rinsing your razor. Turning off the tap when brushing your teeth can save up to six liters of water per minute, and eight gallons per day if you brush for the recommended two minutes. It is not necessary to run water while scrubbing your hands. Save a few gallons of water by turning the tap off after you get your hands, and or face wet. When shaving fill the sink with a few inches of water which will rinse the razor just as well as running water.

2)Fix leaky sinks and running toilets. A drip can result in up to 70 gallons of water lost per day, while a running toilet can waste up to 200 gallons of water each day. Leaks can often be fixed by making minor adjustments, but if you can’t fix the problem on your own you should call a plumber as soon as possible. Toilet leaks can be identified by adding dye tablets to the tank, if dye is seen in the bowl within 15 minutes this is an indication of a leaking toilet.

3)Try not using the washing machine until you have enough clothes for a full load. The washing machine will use the same amount of water regardless of whether it is full or empty. Half-loads or anything less than a full load adds up to gallons and gallons of waste water. The main issue is that additional washes, when added up over time can lead to a large amount of unnecessary water use. An alternative would be to wash using you hand when there is a small amount of clothing.

4)Choose efficient fixtures. Purchase water-efficient showerheads, taps, toilets, washing machines, and many other water-saving products. Ensure that the taps in your home has a high efficiency faucet aerator. Faucet aerators are the little pieces of hardware that screw into the bottom of faucets. Highly efficiency ones can reduce flow by 1.5 gallons per minute or more, saving water and money.

5)Never throw water away. If you have excess water let over in your glass or bottle, in a container, in the sink (depending on what it was used for), or in the bathtub, collect it for further use. Pour the leftover (potable) water into your pet’s water dish, or water your garden. Just ensure that water is not wasted. Additionally, when using the shower a bucket can be used to collect running water instead of allowing it to run down the drain.