Growers and Grocers

With the warmer months quickly approaching, now is a good time to start thinking about conserving water.  During those warm months, it is so easy to just turn on the lawn sprinklers and walk away.  Before you know it, you’ve watered your lawn for an hour!  Or maybe you toss that tissue into the toilet and flush it away, wasting 5-7 gallons of water each time. 

There are many ways you can save on your water usage and it will benefit your community, as well as your wallet.  How should you get started?  Well, keep on reading!

• Check for leaks around appliances that use water.  If there are no visible leaks, check your water meter and note the reading.  After about 2 hours of no water usage, go back and check the reading.  If the reading has changed, you have potential leaks.
• Your toilet may be leaking and you don’t even know it.  Try adding some food coloring to the tank.  If the color appears in the bowl, then you’ve got a leak that needs to be repaired.
• Use pre-slit foam tubing to insulate your water pipes and you will reduce the amount of time that it takes to heat up the water for your next shower.
• Limit the length of your shower to no more than 10 minutes.  Every additional unnecessary minute wastes up to 10 gallons of water.  You can also install a water saving shower head and that will reduce the amount of water used during your shorter showers.
• Don’t leave the water running while brushing your teeth or shaving.  Fill the sink with water and use that to rinse your razor, or a cup of water to rinse your toothbrush.
• When washing dishes by hand, wait until you have washed all dishes and then fill the sink with hot water and rinse them clean.  If you have a double sink, you can fill one side with soapy water and the other with clean hot water for rinsing.
• When watering your lawn, put an empty tuna can in the same area.  Once the can has filled your lawn has been watered the proper amount without over-watering.
• When choosing shrubs and plants, look for drought-resistant species.  This will reduce the amount of watering required throughout the summer months.
• Use a broom, not a hose, to clean off patios, driveways and sidewalks.

This is just the beginning of the list of ways to save on water usage.  You can get more ideas from Earth Easy and H2Ouse. 

Photo from Morgue File.