Water resources are finite, and they are getting smaller every year. How can we save water in the most effective ways at home?
Vikram NeytalSapling
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Toilets:
Don’t Use the Toilet as an Ashtray or Wastebasket. Every time you flush a cigarette butt, facial tissue, or other small bit of trash, you’re wasting gallons of water. Put them in the garbage, or better yet, recycle.
Put Plastic Bottles or a Float Booster in Your Toilet Tank: To cut down on water waste, put an inch or two of sand or pebbles inside each of two plastic bottles. Fill the bottles with water, screw the lids on, and put them in your toilet tank, safely away from the operating mechanisms. Or, buy an inexpensive tank bank or float booster. This may save ten or more gallons of water per day.
Buy an Adjustable Toilet Flapper: Installing an adjustable toilet flapper will allow for adjustment of each per flush use; the user can adjust the flush rate to the minimum per flush setting that achieves a single good flush each time.
Install Composting Toilets
Install Low or Dual Flush Models
Shower:
Install Water-Saving Showerheads, Shower Timers, and Low-Flow Faucet Aerators Inexpensive water-saving low-flow showerheads or restrictors are easy for the homeowner to install. Long showers can use five to ten gallons every unneeded minute.
Take Shorter Showers. One way to cut down on water use is to turn off the shower after soaping up, then turn it back on to rinse. A four-minute shower uses approximately 20 to 40 gallons of water.
Leaks:
Check Faucets and Pipes for Leaks
Use Your Water Meter to Check for Hidden Water Leaks. Read the house water meter before and after a two-hour period when no water is being used. If the meter does not read exactly the same, there is a leak.
Laundry:
Use a clothes Washer for Only Full Loads. With clothes washers, avoid the permanent press cycle, which uses an added 5 gallons (20 liters) for the extra rinse.
Consider a High Efficiency Washing Machine. The most efficient washing machines use as little as seven gallons per load, compared to a whopping 54 for a traditional washer.